Vehicle control device including object detection unit for collision avoidance, vehicle control method, and program

A vehicle control method which is applied to a vehicle, the vehicle control method comprising:

• detecting an object located in front and diagonally forward of the vehicle by an object detection unit including a forward camera and a pair of front-and-lateral millimeter wave radars;
• calculating, by a processor, a reliability degree of the detected object based on at least one of:
• (i) whether the detected object is located in an overlapping region where a detection region of the pair of front-and-lateral millimeter wave radars and a capture region of the forward camera overlap, or
• (ii) whether an abnormal condition is satisfied;
• calculating, by the processor, a time-to-collision with respect to the detected object;
• executing a collision avoidance control to decelerate the vehicle only when the reliability degree is equal to or greater than a first predetermined threshold and the time-to-collision is equal to or less than a second predetermined threshold
• for avoiding a collision between the vehicle and the detected object or reducing damage to the collision when the detected object satisfies a predetermined collision condition;
• and
• suppressing the collision avoidance control based on the one moving object when a moving object or a stationary object is detected within a predetermined area in a vicinity of the detected object.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a program which causes a processor to perform steps comprising:

• detecting an object located in front and diagonally forward of the vehicle using an object detection unit including a forward camera and a pair of front-and-lateral millimeter wave radars;
• calculating a reliability degree of the detected object based on at least one of:
• (i) whether the detected object is located in an overlapping region where a detection region of the pair of front-and-lateral millimeter wave radars and a capture region of the forward camera overlap, or
• (ii) whether an abnormal condition is satisfied;
• calculating a time-to-collision with respect to the detected object;
• executing a collision avoidance control to decelerate the vehicle only when the reliability degree is equal to or greater than a first predetermined threshold and the time-to-collision is equal to or less than a second predetermined threshold
• for avoiding a collision between own vehicle and the detected object or reducing damage to the collision when the detected object satisfies a predetermined collision condition;
• and
• suppressing the collision avoidance control based on the one moving object when a moving object or a stationary object is detected within a predetermined area in a vicinity of the detected object.