Collision prediction determination device and vulnerable road user protection system

A collision prediction determination device of a subject vehicle, comprising:

• a camera, a radar, and a lidar as surrounding area sensors configured to acquire surrounding area information which is information on an object present in a first monitor area, the object including a vulnerable road user, the first monitor area including an area ahead of and on a lateral side of the subject vehicle in a traveling direction thereof;
• a pressure tube sensor as a contact sensor disposed in a vicinity of a front bumper and extending in a width direction of the subject vehicle, the contact sensor being configured to acquire contact information which is information on whether or not the object including the vulnerable road user has come into contact with the subject vehicle;
• a sonar as a proximity sensor and an interspace sensor, wherein by using reflected waves, the sonar as the proximity sensor is configured to acquire proximity information which is information on the object including the vulnerable road user present in a second monitor area, the second monitor area including an area proximate to the subject vehicle in the traveling direction thereof, and the sonar as the interspace sensor is configured to acquire interspace information which is information on an interspace between a bumper member disposed on the subject vehicle and an in-vehicle component thereof, the sonar being set to have a response speed higher than that of the radar and the lidar;
• and
• a collision prediction determination part configured to predict and determine a state of a collision of the subject vehicle with the object including the vulnerable road user, the state of the collision including whether or not the collision has actually occurred, based on the surrounding area information acquired by the surrounding area sensors, the contact information acquired by the contact sensor, and the interspace information acquired by the interspace sensor,
• wherein
• when, based on the surrounding area information in the first monitor area acquired by the surrounding area sensors, a predicted and determined result of a collision state of the subject vehicle with the vulnerable road user matches a prescribed collision state, the prescribed collision state being a collision state in which a smaller sensor output than that of another prescribed collision state, the collision prediction determination part is configured to:
• downwardly revise a collision prediction determination threshold which is a threshold used in predicting and determining the collision state of the subject vehicle;
• and predict and determine the collision state of the subject vehicle with the vulnerable road user, using the downwardly-revised collision prediction determination threshold, and
• when the collision prediction determination threshold is downwardly revised based on the surrounding area information,
• (i) when a prescribed control time elapses after the collision prediction determination threshold is downwardly revised, the collision prediction determination part changes the downwardly-revised value of the collision prediction determination threshold back to an original value of the threshold, and then continues to predict and determine the collision state of the subject vehicle with the vulnerable road user, and
• (ii) when the prescribed control time elapses after the collision prediction determination threshold is downwardly revised, if the collision prediction determination device acquires the proximity information from the sonar as the proximity sensor having the response speed higher than that of the radar and the lidar, still showing a high probability of the collision of the subject vehicle with the vulnerable road user, then the collision prediction determination part keeps the downwardly-revised collision prediction determination threshold unchanged and then continues to predict and determine a possible collision state of the subject vehicle to be collided with the vulnerable road user.