Patent ID: 9135823
Filing Date: 2015-09-15
Classification: G08G

Abstract:
1. An object type determination apparatus mounted in a vehicle, comprising: a radar sensor configured to transmit and receive radar waves to detect an object from which the radar waves are reflected; a height estimation unit configured to estimate a height of the object detected by the radar sensor from a road surface on the basis of a variation pattern in which the intensity of a reflected wave signal varies with a distance from the vehicle to the object; a determination unit configured to use the estimation result of the height estimation unit to determine, according to one of a plurality of predefined criteria, whether or not the object detected by the radar sensor is an object for which a collision avoidance process is performed; a complex environment estimation unit configured to estimate a likelihood that a complex environment is present forward of the vehicle; and a criterion selection unit configured to select the one of the plurality of predefined criteria to be used by the determination unit on the basis of the estimation result of the complex environment estimation unit, the plurality of predefined criteria corresponding to different degrees of confidence in determination made by the determination unit that the object detected by the radar sensor is not an object for which the collision avoidance process is performed, the degree of confidence in determination made by the determination unit being a parameter that decreases as the likelihood that a complex environment is present forward of the vehicle increases.