PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To estimate a degree of a status that a traveling environment is susceptible to fatigue, in a visual confirmation load amount estimation device which estimates a visual confirmation load amount indicating the fatigable degree of eyes of a driver at drive.SOLUTION: In this drive support system, the visual load amount indicating the fatigable degree of the eyes of the driver at the vehicle drive is estimated, and support corresponding to the visual confirmation load amount is performed. When estimating the visual confirmation load amount, a captured image in the progressing direction of an own vehicle is acquired (S110), and a position which the driver is liable to gaze physiologically in the captured image is estimated (S120). Then, a position which the driver should visually confirm when driving the own vehicle in the captured image is estimated (S130), and the visual confirmation load amount is estimated (S140) on the basis of a positional relationship between the position which the driver is liable to gaze and the position which the driver should visually confirm. By this constitution, the visual confirmation load amount can be estimated from only an image in which the progressing direction of the own vehicle is imaged, and the degree of the status in which the traveling environment is susceptible to fatigue can be estimated.COPYRIGHT: (C)2013,JPO&INPIT【課題】運転時における運転者の目の疲れやすさを表す視認負荷量を推定する視認負荷量推定装置において、走行環境がどの程度疲れやすい状況であるかを推定できるようにする。【解決手段】運転支援装置においては、車両運転時の運転者における目の疲れやすさを表す視認負荷量を推定し、視認負荷量に応じた支援を行う。視認負荷量を推定する際には、自車両の進行方向における撮像画像を取得し(S110)、撮像画像中において、運転者が生理的に注視してしまう位置を推定する(S120)。そして、撮像画像中において、運転者が自車両を運転する際に視認すべき位置を推定し(S130)、注視してしまう位置と視認すべき位置との位置関係に基づいて、視認負荷量を推定する(S140)。この構成では、自車両の進行方向を撮像した画像のみから視認負荷量を推定することができ、走行環境がどの程度疲れやすい状況であるかを推定することができる。【選択図】図2
