Search

US-20260125071-A1 - VEHICLE DRIVING ASSISTANCE APPARATUS

US20260125071A1US 20260125071 A1US20260125071 A1US 20260125071A1US-20260125071-A1

Abstract

A vehicle driving assistance apparatus acquires an inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle existing in a neighboring lane, and acquires an inter-vehicle time obtained by dividing the inter-vehicle distance by a relative speed of the host vehicle with respect to the other vehicle. The apparatus performs driving assistance to notify an operator of the host vehicle of the presence of the other vehicle when a target condition that the inter-vehicle time is equal to or less than a predetermined time and the other vehicle is not detected by a surrounding detection device is satisfied, and when the apparatus detects the intention of the operator or an operation by the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane.

Inventors

  • Hikaru AKIMOTO

Assignees

  • TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20251007
Priority Date
20241106

Claims (10)

  1. 1 . A vehicle driving assistance apparatus comprising an electronic control unit configured to perform driving assistance for a host vehicle based on position information of another vehicle included in wireless communication information transmitted from the other vehicle, wherein the electronic control unit is configured to: acquire, as an inter-vehicle distance, a distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle existing in a neighboring lane neighboring a lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, based on the position information; acquire, as an inter-vehicle time, a value obtained by dividing the inter-vehicle distance by a relative speed of the host vehicle with respect to the other vehicle, based on the position information; and perform the driving assistance to notify an operator of the host vehicle of the presence of the other vehicle in the neighboring lane when a target condition that the inter-vehicle time is equal to or less than a predetermined time and the other vehicle is not detected by a surrounding detection device mounted on the host vehicle is satisfied, and when the electronic control unit detects the intention of the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane or an operation by the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane.
  2. 2 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the neighboring lane is an oncoming lane neighboring the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, and wherein the other vehicle is an oncoming vehicle traveling in the oncoming lane.
  3. 3 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the target condition includes a condition that an obstacle is detected in front of the host vehicle in the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, by the surrounding detection device.
  4. 4 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the wireless communication information is information transmitted from a wireless communication terminal possessed by a driver riding in the other vehicle.
  5. 5 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic control unit is configured to: determine that it detects the intention of the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane, when it detects activation of a turn signal device of the host vehicle indicating entry of the host vehicle into the neighboring lane; and determine that it detects the operation by the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane, when it detects an operation to a steering wheel of the host vehicle for causing the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane.
  6. 6 . A vehicle driving assistance apparatus comprising an electronic control unit configured to perform driving assistance for a host vehicle based on position information of another vehicle included in wireless communication information transmitted from the other vehicle, wherein the electronic control unit is configured to: acquire, as an inter-vehicle distance, a distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle existing in a neighboring lane neighboring a lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, based on the position information; and perform the driving assistance to notify an operator of the host vehicle of the presence of the other vehicle in the neighboring lane when a target condition that the inter-vehicle distance is equal to or less than a predetermined distance and the other vehicle is not detected by a surrounding detection device mounted on the host vehicle is satisfied, and when the electronic control unit detects the intention of the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane or an operation by the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane.
  7. 7 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the neighboring lane is an oncoming lane neighboring the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, and wherein the other vehicle is an oncoming vehicle traveling in the oncoming lane.
  8. 8 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the target condition includes a condition that an obstacle is detected in front of the host vehicle in the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, by the surrounding detection device.
  9. 9 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the wireless communication information is information transmitted from a wireless communication terminal possessed by a driver riding in the other vehicle.
  10. 10 . The vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the electronic control unit is configured to: determine that it detects the intention of the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane, when it detects activation of a turn signal device of the host vehicle indicating entry of the host vehicle into the neighboring lane ; and determine that it detects the operation by the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane, when it detects an operation to a steering wheel of the host vehicle for causing the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to Japanese patent application No. JP 2024-194629 filed on November 6, 2024, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. BACKGROUND Field The present invention relates to a vehicle driving assistance apparatus. Description of the related art Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-111732 discloses a vehicle driving assistance apparatus that issues an alert to a driver of a host vehicle when a turn signal is not activated and another vehicle traveling in a neighboring lane exists in the vicinity of the host vehicle in. Further, in this vehicle driving assistance apparatus, when the turn signal is activated, even if another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane exists in the vicinity of the host vehicle, the alert is not issued. In some cases, when the turn signal is activated and the host vehicle is about to enter the neighboring lane, the driver of the host vehicle does not recognize that another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane exists in the vicinity of the host vehicle. In such a case, it is preferable to notify the driver of the host vehicle of the existence of the other vehicle. However, in the conventional vehicle driving assistance apparatus, when the turn signal is activated and the host vehicle is about to enter the neighboring lane, even if another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane exists in the vicinity of the host vehicle, the alert is not issued. Therefore, appropriate notification regarding another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane is not provided to the driver of the host vehicle. On the other hand, in some cases, when the turn signal is activated and the host vehicle is about to enter the neighboring lane, the driver of the host vehicle recognizes that another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane exists in the vicinity of the host vehicle. In such a case, if the existence of such another vehicle is notified to the driver of the host vehicle, the driver may feel bothered. In this case, the notification that concerns another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane and is provided to the driver of the host vehicle is not appropriate. Further, even when the driver of the host vehicle does not recognize the existence of another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane, when the host vehicle enters the neighboring lane, the driver recognizes the existence of the other vehicle and has a temporal margin to avoid contact between the other vehicle and the host vehicle. In such a case, if the existence of the other vehicle is notified to the driver of the host vehicle, the driver may feel bothered. Also in this case, the notification that concerns another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane and is provided to the driver of the host vehicle is not appropriate. SUMMARY An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle driving assistance apparatus that is capable of providing appropriate notification regarding another vehicle traveling in the neighboring lane to an operator of the host vehicle. A vehicle driving assistance apparatus according to the present invention comprises an electronic control unit configured to perform driving assistance for a host vehicle based on position information of another vehicle included in wireless communication information transmitted from the other vehicle. The electronic control unit is configured to acquire, as an inter-vehicle distance, a distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle existing in a neighboring lane neighboring a lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, based on the position information. Further, the electronic control unit is configured to acquire, as an inter-vehicle time, a value obtained by dividing the inter-vehicle distance by a relative speed of the host vehicle with respect to the other vehicle, based on the position information. Furthermore, the electronic control unit is configured to perform the driving assistance to notify an operator of the host vehicle of the presence of the other vehicle in the neighboring lane when a target condition that the inter-vehicle time is equal to or less than a predetermined time and the other vehicle is not detected by a surrounding detection device mounted on the host vehicle is satisfied, and when the electronic control unit detects the intention of the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane or an operation by the operator to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane. According to the present invention, when the inter-vehicle time is longer than the predetermined time, no notification is made even if the operator of the host vehicle intends to cause the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane. That is, even when the operator of the host vehicle causes the host vehicle to enter the neighboring lane, no notification is made in cases where the operator of the host vehicle has a temporal margin to a