IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,515,689
Granted Patent B2
US 12,515,689 · App. 18/373,302 · Granted Jan 6, 2026

Driving assistance device, driving assistance method, and storage medium

Inventors: Kosuke Toda (Wako, JP); Yuji Yasui (Wako, JP); Takeru Goto (Wako, JP); Aya Miura (Wako, JP); Kenjiro Torii (Wako, JP); Keming Ding (Wako, JP)
Assignee: HONDA MOTOR CO., LTD.
B60W50/14B60W30/18163B60W40/105B60W50/0097G06F3/165B60W2050/0083B60W2050/143
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,515,689
App. No.
18/373,302
Granted
Jan 6, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

Provided is a mobile object control device configured to: recognize a surrounding situation of a mobile object; set, based on the recognized surrounding situation, a risk area in which positions of the surrounding situation are associated with risk values that are indicator values indicating degrees to which the mobile object is to avoid traveling; generate a target trajectory indicating a route along which the mobile object is to travel in the future; cause the mobile object to travel along the generated target trajectory; and set at least one observation point in each of three or more provisional trajectories branching at a specific location ahead of the mobile object, and generate the target trajectory based on the risk area and the at least one observation point.

Claims (43)

1 . A driving assistance device comprising:

a recognizer configured to recognize a surrounding situation of a mobile object;

a decider configured to decide whether or not to prompt a driver of the mobile object to perform acceleration or deceleration on the basis of the surrounding situation; and

a notification controller configured to cause a speaker to output a notification sound for prompting the driver of the mobile object to perform the acceleration or deceleration on the basis of a decision result,

wherein the notification sound is a notification sound obtained by continuously changing a structure of a sound,

wherein the notification controller causes the speaker to output the notification sound when a difference between a speed of the mobile object and a target speed is greater than or equal to a threshold value, and

determines whether or not to continuously output the notification sound in accordance with the surrounding situation of the mobile object when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value,

wherein the notification controller causes the notification sound to be continuously output even if the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value when the mobile object is traveling in a specific road segment where the speed of the mobile object is predicted to change,

wherein the specific road segment includes a merging segment, and

wherein the notification controller ends an output of the notification sound when the mobile object has completed merging from a merging lane in the merging segment into a main lane.

2 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 , wherein the notification controller causes the speaker to output notification sounds obtained by differentiating a structure of a continuously changing sound when the mobile object is accelerated and when the mobile object is decelerated.

3 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 , wherein the notification controller causes the speaker to output a notification sound having a structure in which a frequency or pitch of a sound is continuously changed greatly or slightly.

4 . The driving assistance device according to claim 3 , wherein the notification controller changes the frequency or pitch in accordance with a degree of deviation between a speed of the mobile object and a target speed.

5 . The driving assistance device according to claim 3 , wherein the notification controller changes a period of the notification sound to be iteratively output in accordance with a degree of deviation between a speed of the mobile object and a target speed.

6 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 ,

wherein a plurality of speakers are provided in the mobile object, and

wherein the notification controller controls output processes of the plurality of speakers so that a sound image of the notification sound moves from the rear to the front of the driver or from the front to the rear of the driver in accordance with a case where the mobile object is accelerated and a case where the mobile object is decelerated.

7 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 , wherein the notification controller ends an output of the notification sound when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value and when the mobile object is not traveling in the specific road segment.

8 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 , wherein the notification controller causes the speaker to output a notification sound different from the notification sound when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value after the notification sound is output.

9 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 , wherein the notification controller determines whether or not to end the notification sound on the basis of content set by the driver when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value in a state in which the notification sound has been output.

10 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 , wherein the notification controller causes the output of the notification sound to end by receiving an end instruction from the driver when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value in a state in which the notification sound has been output.

11 . The driving assistance device according to claim 1 , further comprising a learner configured to learn a notification sound preferred by the driver on the basis of a previously output notification sound and a result of guiding the mobile object of the driver after the notification,

wherein the notification controller causes the speaker to output the notification sound learned by the learner in advance and associated with the driver when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value.

12 . A driving assistance method comprising:

recognizing, by a computer, a surrounding situation of a mobile object;

deciding, by the computer, whether or not to prompt a driver of the mobile object to perform acceleration or deceleration on the basis of the recognized surrounding situation; and

causing, by the computer, a speaker to output a notification sound for prompting the driver of the mobile object to perform the acceleration or deceleration on the basis of a decision result,

wherein the notification sound is a notification sound obtained by continuously changing a structure of a sound,

causing, by the computer, the speaker to output the notification sound when a difference between a speed of the mobile object and a target speed is greater than or equal to a threshold value;

determining, by the computer, whether or not to continuously output the notification sound in accordance with the surrounding situation of the mobile object when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value;

causing, by the computer, the notification sound to be continuously output even if the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value when the mobile object is traveling in a specific road segment where the speed of the mobile object is predicted to change,

wherein the specific road segment includes a merging segment, and

ending, by the computer, an output of the notification sound when the mobile object has completed merging from a merging lane in the merging segment into a main lane.

13 . A computer-readable non-transitory storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to:

recognize a surrounding situation of a mobile object;

decide whether or not to prompt a driver of the mobile object to perform acceleration or deceleration on the basis of the recognized surrounding situation; and

cause a speaker to output a notification sound for prompting the driver of the mobile object to perform the acceleration or deceleration on the basis of a decision result,

wherein the notification sound is a notification sound obtained by continuously changing a structure of a sound,

cause the speaker to output the notification sound when a difference between a speed of the mobile object and a target speed is greater than or equal to a threshold value;

determine whether or not to continuously output the notification sound in accordance with the surrounding situation of the mobile object when the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value;

cause the notification sound to be continuously output even if the difference between the speed of the mobile object and the target speed is less than the threshold value when the mobile object is traveling in a specific road segment where the speed of the mobile object is predicted to change,

wherein the specific road segment includes a merging segment, and

end an output of the notification sound when the mobile object has completed merging from a merging lane in the merging segment into a main lane.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 27, 2023
From: TODA, KOSUKE; YASUI, YUJI; GOTO, TAKERU; MIURA, AYA; TORII, KENJIRO; DING, KEMING
To: HONDA MOTOR CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 065039/0366 →
Priority Claims (1)
JP 2022-158020 · Sep 30, 2022 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20240109552A1 · Apr 4, 2024
References Cited (55)
US 8248223B2 · Periwal · 2012 [cited by applicant]
US 8483949B2 · Taguchi et al. · 2013 [cited by applicant]
US 8583329B2 · Breed · 2013 [cited by examiner]
US 10843710B2 · Seo et al. · 2020 [cited by applicant]
US 10921804B2 · Okimoto · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 10953875B2 · Prakah-Asante · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20020140562A1 · Gutta et al. · 2002 [cited by applicant]
US 20070032943A1 · Okabe · 2007 [cited by applicant]
US 20080119993A1 · Breed · 2008 [cited by applicant]
US 20090088925A1 · Sugawara et al. · 2009 [cited by applicant]
US 20100045451A1 · Periwal · 2010 [cited by applicant]
US 20130250112A1 · Breed · 2013 [cited by examiner]
US 20160016513A1 · Di Censo et al. · 2016 [cited by applicant]
US 20160091896A1 · Maruyama · 2016 [cited by applicant]
US 20160094928A1 · Shiozawa et al. · 2016 [cited by applicant]
US 20160236681A1 · Nguyen van et al. · 2016 [cited by applicant]
US 20160272204A1 · Takahashi et al. · 2016 [cited by applicant]
US 20170129501A1 · Lee · 2017 [cited by examiner]
US 20180111551A1 · Suzuki et al. · 2018 [cited by applicant]
US 20190037298A1 · Reily · 2019 [cited by examiner]
US 20190179330A1 · Oniwa et al. · 2019 [cited by applicant]
US 20190283671A1 · Shimomura et al. · 2019 [cited by applicant]
US 20190378040A1 · Ali · 2019 [cited by examiner]
US 20200402401A1 · Takamura · 2020 [cited by examiner]
US 20210019108A1 · Smith · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20210323570A1 · Yasui · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20230394989A1 · Hill · 2023 [cited by examiner]
CN 105460014 · 2016 [cited by applicant]
CN 110097785 · 2019 [cited by applicant]
DE 102005022663A1 · 2006 [cited by examiner]
EP 2980547A1 · 2016 [cited by examiner]
JP 2001010372A · 2001 [cited by examiner]
JP 2005053401 · 2005 [cited by applicant]
JP 2006244142 · 2006 [cited by applicant]
JP 2007042003 · 2007 [cited by applicant]
JP 2007133486 · 2007 [cited by applicant]
JP 2016020203 · 2016 [cited by applicant]
JP 2018067198 · 2018 [cited by applicant]
JP 2019158935 · 2019 [cited by applicant]
JP 2019199179 · 2019 [cited by applicant]
JP 2021033570 · 2021 [cited by applicant]
JP 2021077141 · 2021 [cited by applicant]
JP 2021174505 · 2021 [cited by applicant]
JP 2022170271A · 2022 [cited by examiner]
JP 7600825B2 · 2024 [cited by examiner]
WO 2014174840 · 2014 [cited by applicant]
WO 2021216768 · 2021 [cited by applicant]
U.S. Notice of Allowance for U.S. Appl. No. 18/202,391 dated Mar. 13, 2025. [cited by applicant]
Japanese Office Action for Japanese Patent Application No. 2022-087539 mailed Jul. 29, 2025. [cited by applicant]
Non-Final Office Action for U.S. Appl. No. 17/225,297 dated Nov. 25, 2022. [cited by applicant]
Non-Final Office Action for U.S. Appl. No. 17/225,297 dated Apr. 27, 2023. [cited by applicant]
Chinese Office Action for Chinese Patent Application No. 202110415904.0 mailed Jun. 30, 2023. [cited by applicant]
Non-Final Office Action for U.S. Appl. No. 18/125,770 dated Aug. 31, 2023. [cited by applicant]
Japanese Office Action for Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-171974 mailed Oct. 24, 2023. [cited by applicant]
Japanese Office Action for Japanese Patent Application No. 2022-158020 dated Aug. 26, 2025. [cited by applicant]
Cited By (1)
US 12,722,644