JP2018195117A - Drive recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a drive recorder capable of reminding a driver of caution against wrong-way driving.SOLUTION: A drive recorder 10 includes: a current location information acquisition unit S1 for acquiring current location information of a vehicle; a wrong-way driving generation region database 30 in which position information representing a wrong-way driving generation region is recorded where wrong-way driving of the vehicle is assumed; a direction analysis unit S5 for analyzing a direction in which the vehicle should travel in the wrong-way driving generation region; a wrong-way driving determination unit S7 for determining a wrong-way driving state when it is determined that the vehicle is moving in the wrong-way driving generation region and a travel direction of the vehicle is reverse of an analyzed direction to which the vehicle should travel; and an alarm output unit S8 for outputting an alarm when determined to be a wrong-way driving state by the wrong-way driving determination unit. The direction analysis unit S5 extracts a road sign or the like representing a direction for the vehicle to travel from an acquired front image of the vehicle to analyze a direction indicated by the extracted road sign or the like.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a drive recorder mounted on a vehicle.

  Conventionally, drive recorders mounted on vehicles are widely known. Generally, when a large acceleration applied to a vehicle is detected, a drive recorder considers that an abnormality has occurred and automatically records image data captured by the in-vehicle camera on a recording medium, or constantly records image data. When a large acceleration is detected, data representing the occurrence of abnormality is recorded on a recording medium together with image data (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2017-4031 A

  By the way, in recent years, reverse running of vehicles has become a problem on highways and exclusive roads for automobiles. In this specification, the reverse running of the vehicle refers to traveling in the direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle should travel.

  In order to prevent such reverse running, it is considered necessary to alert the driver and to assist the driver with safe driving. For this reason, it is desired that the drive recorder mounted on the vehicle has a function of alerting the driver to prevent such reverse running.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the situation mentioned above, The objective is to provide the drive recorder which can alert a driver | operator for preventing reverse running.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the drive recorder according to the present invention is characterized by the following (1) to (2).
(1) A drive recorder mounted on a vehicle,
A current location information acquisition unit for acquiring current location information of the vehicle;
An area recording unit in which position information representing a predetermined area in which a reverse running of the vehicle is assumed is recorded;
A direction analysis unit for analyzing a direction in which the vehicle should travel in the predetermined region;
A reverse running determination unit that determines that the vehicle is in a reverse running state when it is determined that the vehicle is traveling in the predetermined area and the traveling direction of the vehicle is the opposite direction to the traveling direction;
An alarm output unit that outputs an alarm when the reverse running determination unit determines that the vehicle is in the reverse running state;
A drive recorder comprising:

(2) The direction analysis unit acquires a front image of the vehicle, extracts a road sign or a road sign indicating a direction in which the vehicle should travel from the acquired front image, and extracts the road sign or road Analyze the direction the sign shows,
The reverse running determination unit determines that the vehicle is in the reverse running state when the current position of the vehicle moves and the direction indicated by the road marking or road sign are reverse directions.
The drive recorder according to (1) above, wherein

  According to the drive recorder having the above configuration (1), when the vehicle runs backward in a predetermined area where the vehicle is supposed to run backward, it is determined that the vehicle is running backward and a warning is output. That is, the driver is alerted to prevent reverse running. Furthermore, the determination process for detecting the reverse running state is performed only within a predetermined area where the reverse running of the vehicle is assumed, and is not performed outside the predetermined area (that is, an area where reverse running is difficult to occur). Therefore, it is possible to efficiently detect the reverse running state while significantly reducing the load of the drive recorder for performing the determination process as compared with the aspect in which the determination process during the traveling of the vehicle is always performed.

  According to the drive recorder having the configuration (2), the reverse running state can be detected easily and accurately by utilizing the road markings or road signs already provided on the road.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the drive recorder which can alert a driver | operator for preventing reverse running can be provided.

  The present invention has been briefly described above. Further, the details of the present invention will be further clarified by reading through a mode for carrying out the invention described below (hereinafter referred to as “embodiment”) with reference to the accompanying drawings. .

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a drive recorder according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2A to 2C are diagrams for explaining various patterns of reverse running in the reverse running occurrence region. 3A to 3C are diagrams for explaining various patterns such as road markings. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing for detecting a reverse running state, which is executed by the microcomputer shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a time chart showing an example of the case where the vehicle runs backward in the reverse running occurrence region.

  Specific embodiments relating to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Embodiment>
Hereinafter, a drive recorder 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The drive recorder 10 is used as a vehicle-mounted device mounted on a vehicle. In the present embodiment, as the vehicle, for example, a business vehicle such as a truck or a taxi is assumed, but of course, it can also be applied to a general vehicle.

(Configuration of drive recorder)
As shown in FIG. 1, the drive recorder 10 includes a microcomputer (CPU) 11, an in-vehicle camera 12, an acceleration sensor (G sensor) 13, a vehicle speed sensor 14, a GPS receiver 15, a recording medium 16, a recording medium 17, and a temporary storage. A memory (SDRAM) 18, a human machine interface (HMI) unit 19, interfaces (I / F) 21 and 22, a speed interface 23, and a reverse running region database (DB) 30.

  The microcomputer 11 executes a program incorporated in advance and performs processing for realizing various functions required for the drive recorder 10. The drive recorder 10 has a known basic function as a drive recorder that automatically records information such as image data, and a function that alerts the driver to prevent reverse running. A function for alerting the driver to prevent reverse running will be described in detail later.

  Although FIG. 2 shows the case where the in-vehicle camera 12 is one, in the actual drive recorder 10, a plurality of in-vehicle cameras 12 can be connected to the drive recorder 10 as necessary.

  The in-vehicle camera 12 is installed in the vicinity of the front windshield of the vehicle, for example, and takes a picture of a road or other vehicle in front of the traveling direction of the host vehicle (hereinafter referred to as a “front image”) as a subject. A video signal including the contents of the video frame can be output continuously or intermittently.

  The acceleration sensor 13 can detect longitudinal and lateral acceleration applied to the host vehicle and output an electrical signal representing the magnitude of the acceleration. When a dangerous situation or a traffic accident occurs, a large acceleration is applied to the host vehicle, and therefore it is possible to identify whether or not the situation is dangerous based on a signal output from the acceleration sensor 13.

  The vehicle speed sensor 14 outputs a pulse signal (vehicle speed pulse) corresponding to the rotation of the output shaft of the transmission of the host vehicle. Based on the number of pulses of the pulse signal and the pulse generation period, the moving amount and moving speed (vehicle speed) of the host vehicle can be detected.

  The GPS receiver 15 can receive radio waves arriving from a plurality of GPS (Global Positioning System) satellites and calculate the current location (latitude / longitude) of the vehicle based on the timing of the received signals.

  Each of the recording media 16 and 17 is used for storing a large amount of data recorded by the drive recorder 10 over a long period of time. Accordingly, the recording media 16 and 17 are configured by a recording medium with a built-in nonvolatile memory, such as a CF card or an SD card. Although not shown, the recording media 16 and 17 are mounted in a card slot provided in the drive recorder 10 in a state where they can be easily attached and detached. In the present embodiment, the drive recorder 10 can selectively use the two recording media 16 and 17.

  The temporary storage memory 18 is a memory from which data can be freely read and written by accessing the microcomputer 11, and is composed of, for example, SDRAM. The temporary storage memory 18 is used by the microcomputer 11 as a working storage area, and is used to hold temporarily generated data and the like for a short period of time.

  The human machine interface (HMI) unit 19 has a function for providing necessary information to a user such as a driver. Specifically, it has at least one function such as a function for outputting a message such as a warning or guidance by outputting a synthesized pseudo audio signal, and a function for displaying a message including characters and figures on the screen as visible information. doing.

  The interface 21 processes the video signal output from the in-vehicle camera 12 and generates image data that can be processed by the microcomputer 11 for each frame of the video. The interface 22 processes an acceleration signal output from the acceleration sensor 13 and outputs data representing the magnitude of acceleration that can be processed by the microcomputer 11. The speed interface 23 receives a vehicle speed pulse signal output from the vehicle speed sensor 14 and performs a conversion process so as to conform to a signal standard that can be processed by the microcomputer 11.

  The reverse-running region database 30 stores latitude and longitude data, which are positional information indicating regions where reverse-running is expected (hereinafter referred to as “reverse-running region”), for each of the multiple reverse-running regions. Against it. The reverse running occurrence area registered in the reverse running occurrence area database 30 is, for example, an area where reverse running actually occurs frequently, or if reverse running does not occur at the present time but reverse running may occur in the future. Possible areas are envisaged. Specifically, for example, the vicinity of an interchange on a highway or an automobile-only road, a toll gate, and a service area (parking area) are assumed.

  In addition, about the data used as the foundation of the reverse running generation | occurrence | production area | region database 30, it is possible to create based on the result of having analyzed the data which the drive recorder 10 recorded, for example.

  In addition, the reverse running occurrence area database 30 is usually stored on a management device (for example, a personal computer) disposed in an office of a company (taxi company, transportation company, etc.) that manages a large number of business vehicles. It is assumed that it will be created. Then, by transferring the data from the management device such as an office to the drive recorder 10 installed in each vehicle via the recording medium 17, each drive recorder 10 stores the reverse running region database 30 updated to the latest information. Become available. In addition, when the drive recorder 10 has a communication function, it is also possible to obtain the latest data in the reverse running region database 30 online from a server outside the vehicle.

(Basic function of drive recorder)
First, basic functions of the drive recorder 10 will be briefly described. The microcomputer 11 of the drive recorder 10 considers that an abnormality has occurred when a large acceleration (acceleration of a predetermined value or more) applied to the vehicle is detected by the acceleration sensor 13 as a basic function of the drive recorder 10, and the in-vehicle camera 12 Automatically records the image data taken by the recording media 16 and 17. Alternatively, the microcomputer 11 always records the data of the image taken by the in-vehicle camera 12 and records data indicating the occurrence of abnormality in the recording media 16 and 17 together with the image data when a large acceleration is detected.

(Drive recorder's function to alert the driver to prevent reverse running)
Hereinafter, the function of the drive recorder 10 that alerts the driver to prevent reverse running will be described.

  As shown in FIGS. 2A to 2C, the reverse running of the vehicle occurs in various patterns. In each figure, an arrow indicated by a broken line indicates a normal traveling pattern of the vehicle, and an arrow indicated by a solid line indicates a reverse traveling pattern of the vehicle.

  Specifically, FIG. 2A shows four reverse running patterns a to d that occur in the vicinity of an interchange on a highway. The reverse running pattern a proceeds to the left in the figure and enters the main line at the junction of the main road and the entrance road that joins the main line, but proceeds in the right direction in the figure and runs backward on the main line. Is the case. The reverse running pattern b is a case where after entering the exit road that branches off from the main line, a U-turn is made to return to the main line and the car runs backward on the exit road. The reverse running pattern c is a case where the vehicle makes a U-turn while traveling on the main line and runs backward on the main line. The reverse running pattern d is a case where the entrance road is entered from the main line and the vehicle runs backward on the entrance road because the entrance road cannot be entered when the exit road should have entered from the main line.

  FIG. 2B shows two reverse running patterns e and f that occur in the vicinity of the toll booth on the highway. The reverse running pattern e proceeds to the right in the figure and reverses on the main line in the same way as the reverse running pattern a when entering the main line from the entrance road after passing through the toll gate to enter the expressway from the general road. It is a case of running. The reverse running pattern f is a case where the vehicle enters the exit road instead of the entrance road after passing through the toll booth in order to enter the highway from the general road and runs backward on the exit road.

  FIG. 2C shows two reverse running patterns g and h that occur near the service area (parking area) on the highway. The reverse running pattern g is a case where when entering the main line from the service area, the vehicle should enter the exit road for exiting the service area, enter the entrance road for entering the service area, and run backward on the entrance road. . The reverse running pattern h, when entering the main line from the service area, should proceed to the right in the figure and enter the main line at the junction of the exit road and the main line. This is a case of running backward on the line.

  In order to prevent such reverse running, the drive recorder 10 has a function of alerting the driver to prevent reverse running. In order to achieve this function, the drive recorder 10 utilizes a road marking or road sign that is already provided on the road and indicates the direction in which the vehicle should travel. Here, the road marking refers to a symbol or character marking drawn on the road surface with paint or the like in order to display traffic regulations or instructions. A road sign refers to a signboard that displays traffic regulations and instructions. Hereinafter, road markings or road signs indicating the direction in which the vehicle should travel are collectively referred to as “road markings”.

  Such road markings and the like are often provided particularly in an area where the vehicle is supposed to run backward. In other words, in the reverse run occurrence area database 30, it is confirmed that a road marking or the like is already provided as the reverse run occurrence area, near the interchange of the expressway, the toll gate, and the service area ( The vicinity of the parking area is registered.

  As a specific example of road markings etc. provided in the reverse running area, for example, as shown in FIG. 3 (a), depicted on the road surface of the entrance road that merges with the main line near the interchange of the expressway, An arrow S1 (road marking) indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle is assumed. As shown in FIG. 3 (b), an arrow S2 (road sign) indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle drawn on a separation plate that partitions the entrance road and the main line similar to FIG. 3 (a) is assumed. Also, as shown in FIG. 3 (c), an arrow S1 (road marking) indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle drawn on the entrance road to the service area near the service area (parking area) of the expressway, or A display board S3 (road sign) indicating an entry prohibition installed on the shoulder of the entrance road is assumed.

  The drive recorder 10 extracts road markings and the like from the front image obtained from the in-vehicle camera 12 while the vehicle is traveling in the reverse running occurrence region, and displays the “direction in which the vehicle should travel” indicated by the extracted road markings and the like. To analyze. Then, when the drive recorder 10 determines that the “direction in which the vehicle should travel” and the actual traveling direction of the vehicle are opposite, the drive recorder 10 determines that the vehicle is traveling backward and informs the driver accordingly. Etc.

  Hereinafter, this point will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The process shown in FIG. 4 is executed by the microcomputer 11 only while the vehicle is running (not executed while the vehicle is stopped). The fact that the vehicle is traveling can be detected, for example, by determining whether or not the vehicle speed obtained from the vehicle speed sensor 14 is equal to or less than a predetermined minute value.

  When the vehicle starts traveling (while the vehicle is traveling), the current location of the vehicle is acquired in step S1. As the current value, specifically, information on latitude / longitude corresponding to the current location of the vehicle obtained from the GPS receiver 15 is acquired.

  Next, in step S2, it is determined whether or not the current location obtained in step S1 is within the reverse running occurrence area registered in the reverse running occurrence area database 30, and if it is outside the reverse running occurrence area (S2) NO), the process returns to step S1 and the processes of steps S1 and S2 are repeatedly executed as long as it is outside the reverse running region.

  On the other hand, if the current location is in the reverse running occurrence region (YES in S2), the processing after step S3 is started. First, in step S3, a front image is acquired from the vehicle-mounted camera 12, and in a subsequent step S4, road markings and the like are extracted from the acquired front image through image analysis. The road markings are extracted by, for example, registering in advance the shapes, patterns, and colors (hereinafter referred to as shapes, etc.) of a plurality of assumed road markings and registering the roads in the front image. When there is a shape or the like that matches the shape or the like of the marking or the like, it can be performed by extracting the matched shape or the like.

  Next, in step S5, “the direction in which the vehicle should travel” is analyzed from the extracted road marking or the like. This analysis is performed based on the extracted shape such as a road marking. Specifically, for example, when the extracted road marking or the like is an arrow as shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C, the direction indicated by the arrow is recognized as the “direction in which the vehicle should travel”. . When the extracted road marking or the like is a display board indicating entry prohibition shown in FIG. 3 (c), the direction in which the surface on which the entry prohibition is indicated on the display board faces is recognized as “the direction in which the vehicle should travel”. The

  Subsequently, in step S6, the actual traveling direction of the vehicle is acquired. The actual traveling direction of the vehicle can be performed, for example, by acquiring the moving direction of the current location of the vehicle based on the current location and the current location obtained in step S1.

  Next, in step S7, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is running in reverse. This determination is performed by comparing the “direction in which the vehicle should travel” recognized in step S5 with the actual traveling direction of the vehicle acquired in step S6. When it is determined that the “direction in which the vehicle should travel” and the actual traveling direction of the vehicle are not opposite (NO in S7), the process returns to step S1 again, and the above-described processing is repeatedly executed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the “direction in which the vehicle should travel” and the actual traveling direction of the vehicle are opposite (YES in S7), it is determined that the vehicle is running in reverse, and the process proceeds to step S8 to prompt the driver. In order to call attention, a human machine interface (HMI) unit 19 issues an alarm. The alarm can be made with sound only, image only, or both sound and image.

  In addition, when the drive recorder 10 has a communication function for communicating with a management device such as a company office that manages the vehicle, the vehicle has run backward to the office using the communication function. Notify that. Thus, by notifying the office or the like, when the driver returns to the office or the like, it is possible to assist the driver with safe driving or the like. After such an alarm / notification is performed, the process returns to step S1 again, and the above-described processing is repeatedly executed.

  Hereinafter, an example of the processing flow shown in FIG. 4 will be described with reference to FIG. In the example shown in FIG. 5, the vehicle has stopped in a reverse running region such as a service area of an expressway before time t1. Therefore, before the time t1, since the vehicle is stopped, the process shown in FIG. 4 is not performed.

  At time t1, the vehicle starts to travel. For this reason, the process shown in FIG. 4 is started at time t1. After time t1 when the vehicle starts traveling, the vehicle is located in the reverse running region until the vehicle moves out of the reverse running region, so that it is determined as YES in step S2. Therefore, as long as the reverse running state is not determined, the processes in steps S1 to S7 (YES in S2 and NO in S7) are repeatedly executed.

  At time t2, the vehicle starts reverse running in the reverse running pattern g or h shown in FIG. For this reason, after time t2, it is determined YES in step S7. Therefore, after time t2, step S8 is executed, and the above-described alarm and notification are performed.

  The reverse running started at time t2 ends at time t3. Therefore, after time t3, when it is determined NO in step S7, step S8 is not executed. However, in the example shown in FIG. 5, the alarm and notification described above are continuously performed after time t3 in order to alert the driver and thoroughly support safe driving for the driver. Note that the alarm or notification described above may be terminated at time t3.

  As described above, according to the drive recorder 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the vehicle runs backward in the reverse running occurrence region where the vehicle is supposed to run backward, it is determined that the vehicle is running backward and a warning is given. Is output (S7 to S8 in FIG. 4). That is, the driver is alerted to prevent reverse running.

  Furthermore, the determination process for detecting the reverse running state is performed only within a predetermined area where the reverse running of the vehicle is assumed, and is not performed outside the predetermined area (that is, an area where reverse running is difficult to occur) (FIG. 4). Step S2). Therefore, the load of the drive recorder 10 for performing the determination process (specifically, the micro process for performing the processes of S3 to S7 in FIG. 4) is compared with an aspect in which the determination process is always performed during the traveling of the vehicle. It is possible to efficiently detect the reverse running state while significantly reducing the computation load of the computer 11.

  Further, by utilizing the road markings already provided on the road (steps S3 to S5 in FIG. 4), the reverse running state can be detected easily and accurately.

<Other aspects>
In addition, this invention is not limited to said each embodiment, A various modification is employable within the scope of the present invention. For example, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and modifications, improvements, and the like can be made as appropriate. In addition, the material, shape, dimensions, number, arrangement location, and the like of each component in the above-described embodiment are arbitrary and are not limited as long as the present invention can be achieved.

  For example, in the above embodiment, in order to analyze the “direction in which the vehicle should travel”, road markings extracted by image processing from the acquired forward image are used. The relationship between a large number of positions (latitude / longitude) included in the running occurrence region and the “direction in which the vehicle should travel” is stored in association with each position, and the stored relationship, the current location of the vehicle, Based on the “direction in which the vehicle should travel” may be analyzed.

Here, the features of the above-described drive recorder 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention are summarized and listed in the following [1] to [2], respectively.
[1] A drive recorder (10) mounted on a vehicle,
A current location information acquisition unit (S1) for acquiring current location information of the vehicle;
An area recording unit (30) in which position information representing a predetermined area in which a reverse running of the vehicle is assumed is recorded;
A direction analysis unit (S5) for analyzing a direction in which the vehicle should travel in the predetermined region;
A reverse running determination unit (S7) that determines that the vehicle is traveling in the predetermined area and determines that the vehicle is traveling backward when it is determined that the traveling direction of the vehicle is opposite to the direction in which the vehicle should travel. )When,
An alarm output unit (S8) that outputs an alarm when it is determined by the reverse running determination unit that the vehicle is in the reverse running state;
A drive recorder comprising:

[2] The direction analysis unit (S5) acquires a front image of the vehicle, extracts a road sign or a road sign indicating a direction in which the vehicle should travel from the acquired front image, and extracts the road Analyze the direction indicated by the sign or road sign
The reverse running determination unit (S7) determines that the vehicle is in the reverse running state when the direction in which the current location of the vehicle moves is opposite to the direction indicated by the road marking or road sign,
The drive recorder (10) described in [1] above.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Drive recorder 12 Car-mounted camera 14 Vehicle speed sensor 15 GPS receiver 19 Human machine interface part 30 Reverse running area database

Claims (2)

A drive recorder mounted on a vehicle,
A current location information acquisition unit for acquiring current location information of the vehicle;
An area recording unit in which position information representing a predetermined area in which a reverse running of the vehicle is assumed is recorded;
A direction analysis unit for analyzing a direction in which the vehicle should travel in the predetermined region;
A reverse running determination unit that determines that the vehicle is in a reverse running state when it is determined that the vehicle is traveling in the predetermined area and the traveling direction of the vehicle is the opposite direction to the traveling direction;
An alarm output unit that outputs an alarm when the reverse running determination unit determines that the vehicle is in the reverse running state;
A drive recorder comprising: The direction analysis unit acquires a front image of the vehicle, extracts a road sign or a road sign indicating a direction in which the vehicle should travel from the acquired front image, and indicates the extracted road sign or road sign Analyze the direction,
The reverse running determination unit determines that the vehicle is in the reverse running state when the current position of the vehicle moves and the direction indicated by the road marking or road sign are reverse directions.
The drive recorder according to claim 1.

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