# US 8,788,148 B2 · Driver assistance system and driver assistance method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 8,788,148 B2 - Document ID: US8788148B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 13/321,092 - Filed: 2010-04-09 - Published: 2012-03-22 - Granted: 2014-07-22 - Earliest claimed: 2009-05-21 - Assignees: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Mitsunori Ohta; Takeshi Kimura; Taku Suzuki - Inventors: Mitsunori Ohta; Takeshi Kimura; Taku Suzuki - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8788148B2 ## CPC - B60W 50/14: Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention - B60W 40/09: Driving style or behaviour - G08G 1/167: {Driving aids for lane monitoring, lane changing, e.g. blind spot detection} - B60R 2300/302: combining image information with GPS information or vehicle data, e.g. vehicle speed, gyro, steering angle data - B60R 2300/305: merging camera image with lines or icons - B60R 2300/804: for lane monitoring - B60W 2050/146: {Display means} - B60W 2520/10: Longitudinal speed - B60W 2540/22: Psychological state; Stress level or workload - G08G 1/0969: having a display in the form of a map - G08G 1/166: {for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes} - Y02T 10/84: Data processing systems or methods, management, administration - B60W: CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT - G08G: TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS (guiding railway traffic, ensuring the safety of railway traffic B61L; arrangement of road signs or traffic signals E01F9/00; radar or analogous systems, sonar systems, lidar systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91, G01S15/88, G01S17/88; {radar or analogous systems, sonar systems, lidar systems specially adapted for anti-collision purposes G01S13/93, G01S15/93, G01S17/93}) - B60R: VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION ## Abstract Risk and/or control status are presented in such a way that the vehicle driver can easily comprehend the fact. Upon detecting risk during driving a vehicle, the vehicle is controlled and information of at least one of the risk and the status of the vehicle being controlled is presented in visual form. In addition, the driver's initiative (D) in driving the vehicle is calculated (step S2), and the visual form, in which the information is presented, is altered depending on the calculated driver's initiative (step S3). When, for example, a lane departure prevention control works, the status of restraining lane departure is presented by arrow(s) in an anti-lane-departure direction opposite to the direction of lane departure. The size (including the length and the width) and color of the arrow(s) are altered depending on the initiative (D). Here, when the initiative (D) is at a low level, the arrow(s) is set in color, for example, ‘red’ and increased in size because the risk that the tendency of lane departure may increase becomes high. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A driver assistance system comprising: at least one controller configured to provide a plurality of vehicle motion controls for controlling a vehicle based on a detected risk during driving the vehicle; a display device configured to present information, in visual form, regarding at least one of (i) the detected risk, and (ii) an operating state of at least one of the vehicle motion controls; a calculating unit configured to calculate a driver's contribution amount based at least on a first ratio of (i) motion of the vehicle depending on the driver's operation, to (ii) total motion of the vehicle; and an altering unit configured to alter the visual form in which the information is presented based at least on the driver's contribution amount calculated by the calculating unit. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on a second ratio of (i) predicted motion of the vehicle based on the driver's operation after a predetermined time passes, to (ii) predicted total motion of the vehicle after the predetermined time passes. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on a predetermined relationship between the driver's contribution amount and the operating state of the at least one of the vehicle motion controls. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The driver assistance system according to claim 3, wherein the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on a quantity of active vehicle motion controls. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present, in visual form of an operating state indicator, a force acting on the vehicle when the at least one of the vehicle motion controls is active, and wherein the altering unit is configured to alter the operating state indicator in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes lower, a size of the operating state indicator becomes larger. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present, in visual form of an operating state indicator, a force acting on the vehicle when the at least one of the vehicle motion controls is active, and wherein the altering unit is configured to alter the operating state indicator in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes lower, a color of the operating state indicator changes to red from a color other than red. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present, in visual form of an operating state indicator, a force acting on the vehicle when the at least one of the vehicle motion controls is active, and wherein the altering unit is configured to alter the operating state indicator in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes lower, a luminance of the operating state indicator becomes higher. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present, in visual form of an operating state indicator, the force acting on the vehicle when the at least one of the vehicle motion controls is active, and wherein the altering unit is configured to alter the operating state indicator in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes lower, a blink speed of the operating state indicator becomes higher. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present, in visual form of a risk indicator, the detected risk during driving the vehicle, and wherein the altering unit is configured to alter the risk indicator in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes higher, a color of the risk indicator changes to blue from a color other than blue. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present, in visual form of a risk indicator, the detected risk during driving the vehicle, and wherein the altering unit is configured to alter the risk indicator in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes higher, a luminance of the risk indicator becomes higher. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present, in visual form of a risk indicator, the detected risk during driving the vehicle, and wherein the altering unit is configured to alter the risk indicator in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes lower, a blink speed of the risk indicator becomes higher. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the altering unit is configured to alter a display image of the vehicle on the display device in such a way that, as the driver's contribution amount becomes lower, a magnification of the display image of the vehicle becomes larger. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the display device is configured to present at least one of (i) a future state of a risk during driving the vehicle, (ii) a present state of motion of the vehicle depending on the operating state of the at least one of the vehicle motion controls, and (iii) a past state of the motion of the vehicle depending on the operating state of the at least one of the vehicle motion controls. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to calculate a frequency of driver's operation, and the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on the calculated frequency. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to calculate a waking state of the driver, and the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on the calculated waking state. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to calculate how many times in the past the vehicle driver drove on a present route, and the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on the calculated number of times. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to detect traffic congestion, and the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on the detected traffic congestion. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on a speed limit for a road on which the driver is driving. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The driver assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the calculating unit is configured to detect a quantity of other vehicles in the surroundings of the vehicle, and the calculating unit is configured to calculate the driver's contribution amount based further on the detected number of other vehicles. ### Claim 20 A driver assistance method comprising: controlling a vehicle using at least one of a plurality of vehicle motion controls based on a detected risk during driving the vehicle; presenting information, in visual form, regarding at least one of (i) the detected risk, and (ii) an operating state of the at least one of the vehicle motion controls; calculating a driver's contribution amount in driving the vehicle based at least on a first ratio of (i) motion of the vehicle depending on the driver's operation, to (ii) total motion of the vehicle; and altering the visual form in which the information is presented based at least on the calculated driver's contribution amount.