Abstract: An ECU is applied to a vehicle system that is provided with lateral sensors which acquire distance information expressing a distance to an object that is located at a position on a lateral side of a vehicle. When distance information on the object is acquired by the lateral sensors, a judgement is made by the ECU as to whether or not the object is a predetermined moving object that moves relative to the vehicle. The ECU determines that the object is a target to be subjected to contact avoidance processing for avoiding contact with the object, based on a result of judging whether or not the object for which the distance information is acquired is a moving object.

Abstract: An object detection device includes a signal generator configured to generate a drive signal including an identification signal for identifying ultrasonic waves, a transmitter configured to transmit an ultrasonic wave as a probe wave in response to the drive signal, a receiver configured to receive the ultrasonic wave to generate a reception signal, and a determiner configured to analyze frequencies of the reception signal to determine whether the received wave is a reflected wave of the probe wave, thereby detecting an object. The drive signal includes a ramp-up signal generated to be followed by the identification signal and is used to ramp up an amplitude of the probe wave. A frequency of the ramp-up signal is set to include a frequency at which a transmission/reception efficiency is higher than a transmission/reception efficiency at each of a maximum frequency of the identification signal and a minimum frequency of the identification signal.

Abstract: An obstacle detection apparatus for vehicles includes: a first ultrasonic sensor for detecting a distance to an obstacle; a second ultrasonic sensor at a position of the vehicle for receiving a reflection wave from the obstacle of an ultrasonic wave from the first ultrasonic wave; a notifier that gives a notification of detecting the obstacle present within a preset distance in one or more of predetermined notification areas including a first notification area for the first ultrasonic sensor, and a second notification area for the second ultrasonic sensor detects the obstacle for the vehicle; and a controller that controls contents to be notified by the notifier. Furthermore, the controller determines whether a first indirect wave distance and a second indirect wave distance are used to determine whether to give the notification of detecting the obstacle in the first notification area.

Abstract: An image processing unit identifies the shape of an obstacle that is identified from an area that appears in a peripheral image based on an image captured by a camera. The shape of the obstacle includes at least a tilt of a section of the obstacle in a road-surface direction. The section of the obstacle faces a vehicle. The image processing unit generates a superimposed image in which a mark image that is generated as a pattern that indicates the identified obstacle is superimposed onto a position that corresponds to the obstacle in the peripheral image. At this time, the image processing unit variably changes properties of the mark image based on the tilt of the obstacle identified by an obstacle identifying unit. The image processing unit then displays the generated superimposed image on display apparatus.

Abstract: A parking space detection apparatus detects a parking space of an own vehicle and includes: a vehicle determination section that determines whether an other vehicle is present on at least one of two sides of a parking space, based on search information acquired from an in-vehicle search section that searches for the parking space; a width calculation section that, it is determined that the other vehicle is present on at least one of the two sides of the parking space, calculate a width of the parking space on an entrance side and a width of the parking space on an inner side based on the search information; and a parking determination section that determines whether the own vehicle is able to park in the parking space based on the widths of the parking space on the entrance side and on the inner side and size of the own vehicle.

Abstract: An estimation device includes an information acquisition unit, a detection determination unit, a direction determination unit, and a direction estimation unit. When an object is a first-time detected object, the direction determination unit determines whether a relative direction acquired by the information acquisition unit is a direction toward an own vehicle. When the relative direction acquired by the information acquisition unit is a direction toward the own vehicle, the direction estimation unit estimates that a direction predetermined according to an object position acquired by the information acquisition unit is the movement direction of the object.

Abstract: An object detection apparatus is provided with a distance measurement sensor that measures a distance to an object which exists in a surrounding area of a vehicle, by transmitting scanning waves to the surrounding of the vehicle and receiving reflection waves of the scanning waves, and an image acquiring section that is adopted to the vehicle, and is provided with an on-vehicle camera that captures images in the surrounding of the vehicle, the imaging acquiring section acquiring an image that is captured by the camera. The apparatus includes a determination section that determines whether, a predetermined object that is difficult to detect by the reflection waves of the distance measurement sensor is included in the object image, and a sensitivity control section that increases a sensitivity of the object detection by the distance measurement sensor and a vehicle control that is executed relative to the predetermined object as a target object.

Abstract: A dual-frequency CW processing unit (12) calculates an observation-point orientation of an observation point. An FMCW processing unit (11) calculates at least a power spectrum of a beat signal, which has been generated based on radar waves that have come from the calculated observation-point orientation, in terms of an up-modulation time interval and a down-modulation time interval (termed orientation power spectrum hereinafter). The FMCW processing unit (11) shifts the orientation power spectra of the up- and down-modulation time intervals to positive and negative directions, respectively, by an amount corresponding to a Doppler shift frequency. The FMCW processing unit (11) calculates a differential power spectrum by differentiating the orientation power spectra of the shifted up- and down-modulation time intervals, and detects a peak frequency where intensity is maximum.

Abstract: An obstacle detection apparatus for vehicles includes: a first probe wave sensor detecting a direct wave distance as a distance to an obstacle by transmitting a probe wave and receiving a reflection wave of the probe wave reflected by the obstacle; a second probe wave sensor receiving the reflection wave to detect an indirect wave distance as a distance to the obstacle by receiving the reflection wave; an approach determinator determining whether the obstacle is present between the first probe wave sensor and the second probe wave sensor and whether the obstacle is approaching the vehicle; and a distance determinator determining an obstacle distance to be less than or equal to a predetermined distance range when the indirect wave distance falls out of the distance range as the obstacle is present between the first probe wave sensor and the second probe wave sensor and the obstacle is approaching the vehicle.

Abstract: An object detection device includes a signal generation unit, a drive unit, an object determination unit, and a drive control unit. The signal generation unit generates at least one pulse signal that includes an identification code for identifying the ultrasonic wave. The drive unit drives the wave transceiver unit using a current or a voltage according to the at least one pulse signal. The object determination unit compares a code included in the received ultrasonic wave with the identification code and determines whether the received ultrasonic wave is a wave resulting from reflection of the ultrasonic wave transmitted by the wave transceiver unit, and determines whether an object is present in a predetermined detection range based on the amplitude of the received ultrasonic wave. The drive control unit reduces the current or the voltage used by the drive unit when a predetermined amplitude rise time has elapsed.

Abstract: An obstacle detection apparatus includes a distance measuring sensor, an imaging section, and a control section. Based on a reception result of reception waves obtained by the distance measuring sensor, the control section acquires an estimated reflection position in an illuminated region already irradiated with search waves. Based on the estimated reflection position, the control section recognizes an outer shape of an obstacle. Based on an imaging result obtained by the imaging section, the control section performs image recognition of the obstacle. Based on a recognition result of the outer shape of the obstacle and a result of the image recognition, the control section acquires a relative position, with respect to a vehicle, of a portion of the obstacle in an image captured by the imaging section included in a non-irradiated region ahead of the illuminated region in a vehicle traveling direction.

Abstract: An ultrasonic type object detection apparatus sequentially detects a distance between an ultrasonic sensor and an object in a coverage of a transmission wave at a predetermined detection cycle based on a time taken for the ultrasonic sensor to transmit the transmission wave and then to receive a reflection wave. The apparatus includes: a storage storing the distance to the object; a vehicle information acquisition device acquiring vehicle information for calculating a movement distance; a detection distance predictor predicting a next detected distance to the object based on a past detection result and the vehicle information; and a short range determinator determining whether the object is present in a short range area in which the distance between the object and the ultrasonic sensor is equal to or shorter than a short range threshold.

Abstract: A perimeter monitoring device is applied to a vehicle comprising a distance measuring sensor for transmitting a probing wave and receiving a reflected wave of the probing wave and an imaging device for capturing an image of the surroundings of the vehicle. The perimeter monitoring device comprises: an information acquisition unit for acquiring distance information, directional information, and object width information of an object existing in the vicinity of the vehicle as detection information of the object provided by the distance measuring sensor; an area setting unit for setting an image processing area on which image processing is performed in the image captured by the imaging device based on the distance information, the directional information, and the object width information acquired by the information acquisition unit; and an object recognition unit for performing the image processing on the image processing area set by the area setting unit to recognize the object.

Abstract: A parking assisting apparatus includes an imaging unit acquiring image information corresponding to an image of surroundings of a vehicle, an image processing section recognizing a feature shape in the image by processing the image information, an obstacle detecting section acquiring positional-relationship information corresponding to a positional relationship between the vehicle and an obstacle present around a parking space, and a manner-of-parking selecting section selecting a manner of parking the vehicle in the parking space from manner candidates including perpendicular parking and parallel parking based on the feature shape and the positional-relationship information.

Abstract: An object detection apparatus includes an object detecting unit detecting an object present around a subject vehicle based on received waves, in a case of receiving reflected waves, from the object, of ultrasonic waves transmitted from an ultrasonic sensor as transmitted waves. The object detection apparatus includes a temperature sensor detecting a temperature of the ultrasonic sensor, and based on a detected value of the temperature of the ultrasonic sensor, corrects at least one of a reception sensitivity for the received waves received by the ultrasonic sensor and a transmission intensity for the transmitted waves from the ultrasonic sensor. The object detection apparatus then detects the object using the corrected received waves.

Abstract: An ultrasonic sensor includes a sensor body, a cushion member, a retainer unit, and a drainage path. The sensor body includes an ultrasonic microphone and a microphone support unit which allows a protruding part of the ultrasonic microphone located at a distal end in an axial direction to protrude and supports the protruding part. The cushion member covers the protruding part. The retainer unit allows exposure of a portion of the cushion member that is located at the distal end in the axial direction, and a portion of the cushion member that is located at a proximal end in the axial direction is sandwiched between the retainer unit and an outer peripheral surface of the protruding part. The drainage path penetrates the retainer unit in a radial direction to allow water to be discharged out of the retainer unit from a gap between the retainer unit and the cushion member.

Abstract: In an object detection device to be installed to a vehicle and detect an object outside the vehicle, a position calculator sets multiple candidate points representing a candidate position of the object, based on positions of feature points extracted from a first image captured at a first time. The multiple candidate points are set to be denser within a detection range set based on a distance to the object detected by the ultrasonic sensor than outside the detection range. The position calculator estimates positions of the multiple candidate points at a second time which is after the first time, based on the positions of the multiple candidate points and movement information of the vehicle, and calculates the position of the object by comparing the estimated positions of the multiple candidate points at the second time and the positions of the feature points extracted from a second image captured at the second time.

Abstract: An object detection device comprises a transmission sound pressure adjustment unit adjusting a sound pressure of the search wave so that the sound pressure of the search wave or a reflected wave based on the search wave is within a predetermined transmission target range. The transmission unit transmits, as the search wave, a first search wave with a first frequency changing with time at a first rate and a second search wave with a second frequency changing with time at a second rate that is different from the first rate. The transmission sound pressure adjustment unit is configured to adjust the sound pressure of each of the first and second search waves so that the sound pressure of the corresponding one of the first and second search waves or the reflected wave based on the corresponding one of the first and second search waves is within the transmission target range.

Abstract: A perimeter monitoring device is applied to a vehicle comprising a distance measuring sensor for transmitting a probing wave and receiving a reflected wave of the probing wave and an imaging device for capturing an image of the surroundings of the vehicle. The perimeter monitoring device comprises: an information acquisition unit for acquiring distance information, directional information, and object width information of an object existing in the vicinity of the vehicle as detection information of the object provided by the distance measuring sensor; an area setting unit for setting an image processing area on which image processing is performed in the image captured by the imaging device based on the distance information, the directional information, and the object width information acquired by the information acquisition unit; and an object recognition unit for performing the image processing on the image processing area set by the area setting unit to recognize the object.

Abstract: A parallel running vehicle detecting apparatus is provided, which includes a first distance sensor for detecting distance of an object in a first detection area on a rear lateral side of a vehicle, a second distance sensor for detecting distance of an object in a second detection area, a parallel running vehicle detector for detecting a parallel running vehicle based on detections of the first and second distance sensors, and a storage for storing a detection distance history of the second distance sensor. The parallel running vehicle detector is provided with multiple determination conditions for determining whether the object detected by the first distance sensor is the parallel running vehicle, and changes the parallel running vehicle determination condition based on the detection distance history stored in the storage.