Patent ID: 9747800
Date: 2017-08-29
CPC Classifications: G08G

Claim:
1. A vehicle recognition notification apparatus mounted on a subject vehicle comprising: a recognition information reception processing section that receives a recognition information signal transmitted from another vehicle and indicating that a driver of the other vehicle recognizes the subject vehicle; an another-driver recognition state determination section that determines whether the driver of the other vehicle recognizes the subject vehicle based on the recognition information signal received by the recognition information reception processing section; an informing control section that informs a driver of the subject vehicle of a result of a determination made by the another-driver recognition state determination section based on the recognition information signal; a subject-driver recognition state determination section that determines whether the driver of the subject vehicle recognizes a predetermined other vehicle; a recognition information transmission processing section that transmits to the other vehicle a recognition information signal indicating whether the driver of the subject vehicle recognizes the other vehicle, based on a result of a determination made by the subject-driver recognition state determination section; a subject-vehicle position acquisition section that acquires a position of the subject vehicle; a vehicle information reception processing section that receives vehicle information transmitted by the other vehicle and including information to specify a position of the other vehicle; an another-vehicle position acquisition section that acquires the position of the other vehicle based on the vehicle information received by the vehicle information reception processing section; and a visual line detection section that detects a visual line direction of the driver of the subject vehicle, wherein: the subject-driver recognition state determination section determines whether the driver of the subject vehicle recognizes the other vehicle, based on the visual line direction detected by the visual line detection section, the position of the subject vehicle acquired by the subject-vehicle position acquisition section, and the position of the other vehicle acquired by the another-vehicle position acquisition section; the another-driver recognition state determination section determines whether the subject vehicle is present in a predetermined viewable range of the other vehicle, based on the position of the subject vehicle acquired by the subject-vehicle position acquisition section and the position of the other vehicle acquired by the another-vehicle position acquisition section; the another-driver recognition state determination section determines that a recognition state indicating whether the driver of the other vehicle recognizes the subject vehicle is unclear when not receiving the recognition information signal from the other vehicle within a particular period of time after the determination that the subject vehicle is present in the viewable range of the other vehicle; the another-driver recognition state determination section determines that the driver of the other vehicle recognizes the subject vehicle when receiving from the other vehicle the recognition information signal indicating that the driver of the other vehicle recognizes the subject vehicle within a particular period of time after the determination that the subject vehicle is present in the viewable range of the other vehicle; and the another-driver recognition state determination section determines that the driver of the other vehicle does not recognize the subject vehicle when receiving from the other vehicle the recognition information signal indicating that the driver of the other vehicle does not recognize the subject vehicle within a particular period of time after the determination that the subject vehicle is present in the viewable range of the other vehicle.