NaviView: visual assistance using roadside cameras-evaluation of virtual views

AHS (advanced cruise-assist highway system) will increase the road potential because it enables to shorten the distance between the cars. On the other hand, AHS may make the drivers uncomfortable because of the reduced field of vision by the car ahead and the anxiety for the reliability of the control system. In order to improve the amenity of drivers under the control of AHS, we have proposed the NaviView system to recover driver's field of vision. NaviView is a novel concept to realize a visual assistance for drivers by using the videos obtained from the roadside monitor cameras. In this paper we have clarified that the NaviView is effective for visual assistance by subjective experiments. Several virtual views have been compared from the visual assistance point of view. The view from the virtual camera located above the driver's car is most effective to understand the traffic situation around the car. Feasibility of the implementation of NaviView was also demonstrated by using a real road scene.