IP Library Granted Patent US 8,981,963
Granted Patent B2
US 8,981,963 · App. 13/822,874 · Granted Mar 17, 2015

Accident/near-miss factor area specifying device and accident/near-miss factor area specifying method

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,981,963
App. No.
13/822,874
Granted
Mar 17, 2015
Kind
B2
Abstract

Disclosed is an accident/near-miss factor area specifying device capable of specifying accident/near-miss factor areas, the presentation of which is highly required. The accident/near-miss factor area specifying device ( 100 ) is used for specifying accident/near-miss factor areas which a driver of a vehicle should be aware of in order to prevent an accident, and the device comprises a viewing area specifying unit ( 151 ) for specifying a viewing area of a driver of a vehicle which had a near-miss, immediately before the near-miss occurs, and an unnoticed area specifying unit ( 152 ) wherein, when a near-miss object is located in a viewing area, an area corresponding to the position of the object is treated as an unnoticed area which is one of the accident/near-miss factor areas.

Claims (16)

1. An incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus that specifies one or more incident/potential-incident factor areas to be noticed by a driver of a vehicle in order to prevent an incident and a potential incident, comprising:

a viewing area specifying section that specifies a viewing area of a driver of a vehicle for which an incident or a potential incident has occurred, the viewing area being the driver's viewing area just before the incident or the potential incident; and

an unnoticed area specifying section that, if an object of the incident or the potential incident is located in the viewing area, sets an area corresponding to a location of the object, as an unnoticed area that is one of the incident/potential-incident factor areas.

2. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising an over-noticed area specifying section that, if the object of the incident or the potential incident is located in the viewing area and another object that is likely to be noticed by the driver is located in the viewing area, sets an area corresponding to the location of the other object as an over-noticed area that is one of the incident/potential-incident factor areas.

3. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a factor area presenting section that displays the incident/potential-incident factor area so as to be overlapped on map data.

4. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the viewing area specifying section specifies the viewing area on the basis of time-series data as record of a driving state of the vehicle.

5. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising an incident/potential-incident determining section that determines presence/absence of occurrence of the incident or the potential incident of the vehicle and specifies occurrence time and the object of the incident or the potential incident on the basis of time-series data as record of a driving state of the vehicle.

6. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the incident/potential-incident determining section specifies the object of the incident or the potential incident of the vehicle on the basis of a time-series data as record of a driving state of another vehicle.

7. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the incident/potential-incident determining section determines that the incident or the potential incident of the vehicle occurs at time when at least one of acceleration and course of the vehicle changes drastically.

8. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a factor blind area specifying section, that if the object of the incident or the potential incident of the vehicle is already located in the viewing area and also located in a blind spot of the driver, sets an area corresponding to the blind spot as a factor blind area that is one of the incident/potential-incident factor areas.

9. The incident/potential-incident factor area specifying apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein

the viewing area specifying section specifies the viewing area in time unit, and

the unnoticed area specifying section specifies the unnoticed area in time unit.

10. An incident/potential-incident factor area specifying method of specifying one or more incident/potential-incident factor area to be noticed by a driver of a vehicle in order to prevent an incident and a potential incident, comprising:

a step of specifying a viewing area of a driver of a vehicle for which an incident or a potential incident has occurred, the viewing area being the driver's viewing area just before the incident or the potential; and

a step, if an object of the incident or the potential incident is located in the viewing area, of setting an area corresponding to a location of the object, as an unnoticed area that is one of the incident/potential-incident factor areas.

Assignments (4)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 21, 2022
From: PIECE FUTURE PTE. LTD.
To: TECH SOS LIMITED
Reel/Frame 060586/0245 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 8, 2022
From: PANASONIC CORPORATION
To: PIECE FUTURE PTE. LTD.
Reel/Frame 058933/0508 →
CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE ERRONEOUSLY FILED APPLICATION NUMBERS 13/384239, 13/498734, 14/116681 AND 14/301144 PREVIOUSLY RECORDED ON REEL 034194 FRAME 0143. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE ASSIGNMENT. Recorded Dec 24, 2020
From: PANASONIC CORPORATION
To: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 056788/0362 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 10, 2014
From: PANASONIC CORPORATION
To: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 034194/0143 →