Patents by Inventor Kohei MOROTOMI

Kohei MOROTOMI has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11926316
    Abstract: A driving assist ECU determines that a current situation is a specific situation where it is predicted that there is no object that is about to enter an adjacent lane from an area outside of a host vehicle road on which a host vehicle is traveling, when a road-side object is detected at a part around an edge of the adjacent lane, and/or when a white line painted to define the adjacent lane is detected at the part around the edge of the adjacent lane and no object near the detected white line is detected. The driving assist ECU does not perform a steering control for avoiding a collision, the steering control for letting the vehicle enter the adjacent lane, when it is not determined that the current situation is the specific situation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2024
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuhei Miyamoto, Kohei Morotomi
  • Patent number: 11919533
    Abstract: An alert apparatus starts alerting a driver of a host vehicle, when an oncoming vehicle, that is an other vehicle traveling in an oncoming lane with respect to a traveling lane in which the host vehicle is traveling so as to approach the host vehicle and that is predicted to pass through on a specific direction side with respect to a current position of the host vehicle, is present, a turn signal indicator of the host vehicle corresponding to the specific direction side is being operated, and it is likely that the host vehicle starts turning to the specific direction side.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Mafune Kakeshita, Chen Xi, Kohei Morotomi, Yuto Shimbo, Tasuku Usui, Kenichi Shimizu, Wataru Ike, Tsunekazu Yasoshima
  • Patent number: 11919509
    Abstract: Disclosed is a driving assist apparatus which executes a process for collision avoidance when the possibility of collision of a vehicle with an obstacle is high. When the steering angle of the steering wheel is greater than an angle threshold, the apparatus determines that a driver is trying to avoid the collision by operating the steering wheel and does not execute the collision avoidance process. When the vehicle is making a right turn or a left turn, there arises a possibility that the collision avoidance process is not executed even in a situation where the collision avoidance process must be executed. In view of this, when the vehicle is making a right turn or a left turn, the angle threshold mentioned above is set to a larger value as compared with the case where the vehicle is not making a right turn or a left turn.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tsuruoka, Kohei Morotomi
  • Publication number: 20240059308
    Abstract: A driver assistance device includes a one or more processors. The one or more processors is configured to determine whether a pedal misapplication determination condition is satisfied, and output, when the one or more processors determines that the pedal misapplication determination condition is satisfied, at least one of a warning display and warning audio directly instructing a driver to release the pedal that is depressed at a point in time of outputting.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 31, 2023
    Publication date: February 22, 2024
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Xi CHEN, Kohei MOROTOMI
  • Patent number: 11834061
    Abstract: A driver assistance device includes a one or more processors. The one or more processors is configured to determine whether a pedal misapplication determination condition is satisfied, and output, when the one or more processors determines that the pedal misapplication determination condition is satisfied, at least one of a warning display and warning audio directly instructing a driver to release the pedal that is depressed at a point in time of outputting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Xi Chen, Kohei Morotomi
  • Patent number: 11760343
    Abstract: A vehicle control apparatus performs automatic braking control when an execution condition is satisfied, in a case where a lap rate of the obstacle is a threshold lap rate or more. Furthermore, the vehicle control apparatus performs automatic steering control when the execution condition is satisfied, in a case where the lap rate is less than the threshold lap rate and furthermore an avoidance area in which the vehicle can avoid a collision with the obstacle without traveling out of a self-lane and passage of the vehicle is not blocked by a passage inhibition object. The vehicle control apparatus performs the automatic braking control when a special condition including a condition that the execution condition is satisfied at least is satisfied, if the passage inhibition object exists, in a case where the lap rate is less than the threshold lap rate and furthermore the avoidance area does not exist.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignees: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA, DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yuhei Miyamoto, Kohei Morotomi, Tooru Takahashi
  • Patent number: 11760344
    Abstract: Collision avoidance assist apparatus comprises an object information acquiring apparatus for acquiring, as object information, information on a three-dimensional object as well as dividing lines defining a travelling lane in front of a vehicle, and a control unit configured to, when a collision possibility with a three-dimensional object is high, identify this object as a target object. When one of the dividing lines has been detected without any discontinuation in a predetermined region as well as a part of an other dividing line has not been detected therein, if the control unit determines, based on the object information, that a second condition which is satisfied when the target object is positioned on the other dividing line and is moving in a same direction as an extending direction is satisfied and an avoidance route exists, the control unit performs automatic steering control so that the vehicle travels along the avoidance route.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kohei Morotomi, Yuto Shimbo
  • Patent number: 11691621
    Abstract: A driving support apparatus comprises a controller for performing collision avoidance braking control and lane deviation suppressing control. When a performing condition of the lane deviation suppressing control is satisfied at a timing of the collision avoidance braking control is about to be performed, the controller makes direction determination processing for determining whether or not the own vehicle travels to a direction toward which it will collide with a target object or to a direction toward which it will avoid colliding with the target object. In the direction determination processing, when it is determined the own vehicle travels to a collision direction, the controller stops the lane deviation suppressing control to perform the collision avoidance braking control, and when it is determined the own vehicle travels to a collision avoidance direction, the controller performs cooperative control for making the lane deviation suppressing control cooperate with the collision avoidance braking control.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuhei Miyamoto, Kohei Morotomi
  • Publication number: 20230150488
    Abstract: A driving assist ECU determines that a current situation is a specific situation where it is predicted that there is no object that is about to enter an adjacent lane from an area outside of a host vehicle road on which a host vehicle is traveling, when a road-side object is detected at a part around an edge of the adjacent lane, and/or when a white line painted to define the adjacent lane is detected at the part around the edge of the adjacent lane and no object near the detected white line is detected. The driving assist ECU does not perform a steering control for avoiding a collision, the steering control for letting the vehicle enter the adjacent lane, when it is not determined that the current situation is the specific situation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 11, 2023
    Publication date: May 18, 2023
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISA
    Inventors: Yuhei MIYAMOTO, Kohei Morotomi
  • Patent number: 11577720
    Abstract: A driving assist ECU determines that a current situation is a specific situation where it is predicted that there is no object that is about to enter an adjacent lane from an area outside of a host vehicle road on which a host vehicle is traveling, when a road-side object is detected at a part around an edge of the adjacent lane, and/or when a white line painted to define the adjacent lane is detected at the part around the edge of the adjacent lane and no object near the detected white line is detected. The driving assist ECU does not perform a steering control for avoiding a collision, the steering control for letting the vehicle enter the adjacent lane, when it is not determined that the current situation is the specific situation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuhei Miyamoto, Kohei Morotomi
  • Patent number: 11541883
    Abstract: A vehicle driving assist apparatus of the invention starts a collision avoidance steering assist control to automatically steer the vehicle to avoid a collision of the vehicle with the obstacle in response to a driver performing a collision avoidance steering operation for avoiding the collision when there is a possibility that the vehicle collides with the obstacle. The vehicle driving assist apparatus cancels the collision avoidance steering assist control in response to the driver performing a counter collision avoidance steering operation against automatically steering the vehicle intended to be achieved by the collision avoidance steering assist control after a first predetermined time elapses from starting the collision avoidance steering assist control.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kohei Morotomi, Hirotaka Hatakeyama, Yuhei Miyamoto
  • Publication number: 20220340106
    Abstract: A drive assistance device includes an automatic brake unit configured to perform automatic brake control, a brake hold unit configured to perform a brake hold control keeping the vehicle stopped, a brake hold cancel unit configured to cancel the brake hold control when it is determined that a predetermined cancel condition is satisfied, a surroundings information obtaining unit configured to obtain surroundings information indicating a situation around the vehicle, a maneuver information obtaining unit configured to obtain maneuver information about a driving maneuver performed by a driver of the vehicle, a maneuver determination unit configured to determine, based on the surroundings information and the maneuver information whether the driving maneuver performed during the brake hold control is appropriate for the situation around the vehicle, and a prohibition unit configured to prohibit cancelling the brake hold control as long as it is determined that the driving maneuver is inappropriate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2022
    Publication date: October 27, 2022
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Mafune KAKESHITA, Toshifumi KAWASAKI, Kohei MOROTOMI
  • Patent number: 11465618
    Abstract: Disclosed is a collision avoidance assisting apparatus which can execute an automatic braking process and an automatic steering process for avoiding collision with an obstacle. When the magnitude of a steering angle exceeds a predetermined threshold, the collision avoidance assisting apparatus determines that a driver has an intention of avoiding the collision by a steering operation and stops the automatic braking process and the automatic steering process. However, in such a case, the automatic braking process and the automatic steering process may be stopped when the steering angle exceeds the threshold as a result of execution of the automatic steering process. In view of this, when both the automatic braking process and the automatic steering process are being executed, the collision avoidance assisting apparatus continues the automatic braking process and the automatic steering process even when the magnitude of the steering angle is greater than the predetermined threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kohei Morotomi, Noriyuki Tsuruoka
  • Patent number: 11433861
    Abstract: A drive assistance device includes an automatic brake unit configured to perform automatic brake control, a brake hold unit configured to perform a brake hold control keeping the vehicle stopped, a brake hold cancel unit configured to cancel the brake hold control when it is determined that a predetermined cancel condition is satisfied, a surroundings information obtaining unit configured to obtain surroundings information indicating a situation around the vehicle, a maneuver information obtaining unit configured to obtain maneuver information about a driving maneuver performed by a driver of the vehicle, a maneuver determination unit configured to determine, based on the surroundings information and the maneuver information whether the driving maneuver performed during the brake hold control is appropriate for the situation around the vehicle, and a prohibition unit configured to prohibit cancelling the brake hold control as long as it is determined that the driving maneuver is inappropriate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Mafune Kakeshita, Toshifumi Kawasaki, Kohei Morotomi
  • Publication number: 20220258730
    Abstract: When a host vehicle is likely to collide with an object ahead, a vehicle collision-avoidance assist device sets a target avoidance path by which the collision is avoidable, and executes avoidance steering of forcibly steering the host vehicle so as to travel along the target avoidance path upon an avoidance steering starting condition being met. When another vehicle traveling next to the host vehicle is a vehicle traveling alongside, the device stores a vehicle-traveling-alongside travel region, and when the other vehicle is an oncoming vehicle, the device stores an oncoming vehicle travel region, and acquires a travel region of the host vehicle along the target avoidance path as an avoidance travel region. The device does not execute the avoidance steering when the avoidance travel region overlaps with the oncoming vehicle travel region, but executes the avoidance steering when the avoidance travel region overlaps with the vehicle-traveling-alongside travel region.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 14, 2022
    Publication date: August 18, 2022
    Inventors: Kohei MOROTOMI, Tsunekazu YASOSHIMA, Sho HASHIMOTO, Yumi SHIMANAKA
  • Patent number: 11338801
    Abstract: A collision avoidance device includes an electronic control unit configured to: determine whether or not an oncoming vehicle enters inside a turning circle of a host vehicle turning; and execute a collision avoidance control in a case where the electronic control unit determines that there is a collision possibility between the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle, wherein the electronic control unit is configured not to execute the collision avoidance control when the electronic control unit determines that the oncoming vehicle enters inside the turning circle of the host vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kohei Morotomi, Masayuki Katoh, Noriyuki Tsuruoka
  • Patent number: 11305761
    Abstract: Provided is a collision avoidance control apparatus for a vehicle including a first sensor configured to detect a first object present in a first area; a second sensor configured to detect a second object present in a second area; and a controller configured to execute collision avoidance control when determining the first object and the second object as the same object, in which the controller is further configured to determine the first object and the second object as the same object when determining that the first object enters the first area, and determining that at least part of the second object is present in a specific region, the specific region being a region which includes a first object region in which the first object exists, and which includes a part of a region contiguous to the first object region and outside of the first area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuhei Miyamoto, Kohei Morotomi
  • Publication number: 20220073090
    Abstract: An alert apparatus starts alerting a driver of a host vehicle, when an oncoming vehicle, that is an other vehicle traveling in an oncoming lane with respect to a traveling lane in which the host vehicle is traveling so as to approach the host vehicle and that is predicted to pass through on a specific direction side with respect to a current position of the host vehicle, is present, a turn signal indicator of the host vehicle corresponding to the specific direction side is being operated, and it is likely that the host vehicle starts turning to the specific direction side.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 2, 2021
    Publication date: March 10, 2022
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Mafune Kakeshita, Chen Xi, Kohei Morotomi, Yuto Shimbo, Tasuku Usui, Kenichi Shimizu, Wataru Ike, Tsunekazu Yasoshima
  • Patent number: 11110859
    Abstract: The vehicle notification apparatus comprises: an operation element operated by a driver to activate a turn signal indicator; an information obtaining device that obtains information on an object around the vehicle; an auditory notification device configured to give an auditory notification; a visual notification device configured to give a visual notification; and a control unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kohei Morotomi, Tomohiro Tanaka
  • Publication number: 20210253093
    Abstract: Collision avoidance assist apparatus comprises an object information acquiring apparatus for acquiring, as object information, information on a three-dimensional object as well as dividing lines defining a travelling lane in front of a vehicle, and a control unit configured to, when a collision possibility with a three-dimensional object is high, identify this object as a target object. When one of the dividing lines has been detected without any discontinuation in a predetermined region as well as a part of an other dividing line has not been detected therein, if the control unit determines, based on the object information, that a second condition which is satisfied when the target object is positioned on the other dividing line and is moving in a same direction as an extending direction is satisfied and an avoidance route exists, the control unit performs automatic steering control so that the vehicle travels along the avoidance route.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2021
    Publication date: August 19, 2021
    Inventors: Kohei MOROTOMI, Yuto SHIMBO