JP7223730B2 - VEHICLE CONTROL DEVICE, VEHICLE CONTROL METHOD, AND PROGRAM - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a program.

In recent years, research has progressed on automatically controlling the running of a vehicle. In relation to this, there is known a technique of outputting information indicating an action request to the driver before the driver starts part or all of the driving operation by lowering the level of automation relating to the running of the vehicle. (See Patent Document 1, for example).

JP 2017-1563 A

However, in the conventional technology, when information regarding a change in the degree of automation of driving control is output to the occupants, no consideration is given to the timing of outputting the information according to the degree of automation before the change. I didn't. Therefore, in some cases, information regarding changes in the degree of automation of driving control cannot be output to the occupant at appropriate timing.

Aspects of the present invention have been made in consideration of such circumstances, and provide a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a program capable of outputting information regarding a change in automation of driving control at a more appropriate timing. intended to provide

A vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a program according to the present invention employ the following configuration.
(1): A vehicle control device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a recognition unit that recognizes a surrounding situation of a vehicle, and an operation control unit that controls at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle. When the degree of automation of the operation control executed by the operation control unit is changed based on the result of recognition by the operation control unit that executes one of a plurality of operation controls with different degrees, and the recognition unit , and an output control unit that outputs information about changes in the operation control to the occupant, and the degree of automation includes a first control degree and a second control degree that is lower in degree of automation than the first control degree. , and a third control degree in which the degree of automation is lower than the second control degree, and wherein the output control unit changes the degree of automation executed by the operation control unit from the second control degree to the third control degree. , the timing for outputting the information is delayed compared to when the first control degree is changed to the third control degree.

(2): In the above aspect (1), the recognizing unit recognizes first road information including road structures around the vehicle based on the result of recognition by an external sensor, and positional information of the vehicle. second road information including road structures around the vehicle is recognized from the map information based on the above, and the driving control unit controls the driving when the first road information and the second road information do not match. This is to change the degree of automation of control to a lower one.

(3): In the above aspect (1), the output control unit, when the degree of automation changes from the first degree of control to the third degree of control, sets the degree of automation to the third degree of control. The information is output at the timing when the change to is determined.

(4): In the aspect of (1) above, further comprising a driving operation element for receiving an operation for driving the vehicle by the occupant, wherein the output control unit has the degree of automation executed by the driving control unit. In the case of the second control degree or the third control degree, the timing of outputting the information is delayed as compared with the case of the first control degree.

(5): In the above aspect (1), the operation control unit, when changing from the third control degree to a fourth control degree with a lower degree of automation, controls the current state until a change occurs in the behavior of the vehicle. It is intended to continue the operation control of the degree of.

(6): In the aspect of (1) above, the output control unit determines the output timing of the information based on one or both of the surrounding circumstances of the vehicle and the state of the occupant recognized by the recognition unit. It sets the time or distance to delay.

(7): A vehicle control method according to an aspect of the present invention, in which a computer recognizes a surrounding situation of a vehicle, controls at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle, and performs a plurality of driving operations with different degrees of automation. When the degree of automation of the driving control is changed based on the result of executing any of the controls and recognizing the control, information regarding the change of the driving control is output to the occupant, and the degree of automation is set to the second a first control degree, a second control degree with a lower degree of automation than the first control degree, and a third control degree with a lower degree of automation than the second control degree, wherein the degree of automation is the first control degree. The vehicle control method delays the timing of outputting the information when changing from the second control degree to the third control degree than when changing from the first control degree to the third control degree.

(8): A program according to an aspect of the present invention causes a computer to recognize surrounding conditions of a vehicle, controls at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle, and performs a plurality of driving controls with different degrees of automation. If the degree of automation of the driving control is changed based on the result of executing any one of them, the information regarding the change of the driving control is output to the occupant, and the degree of automation is the first control a second control degree that is lower in degree of automation than the first control degree; and a third control degree that is lower in degree of automation than the second control degree, wherein the degree of automation is the second control The program delays the timing of outputting the information when changing from the first control degree to the third control degree than when changing from the first control degree to the third control degree.

According to aspects (1) to (8) above, it is possible to output information regarding changes in automation of operation control at more appropriate timing.

1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle system 1 including a vehicle control device according to an embodiment; FIG. 3 is a functional configuration diagram of a first controller 120, a second controller 160, and an HMI controller 180. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a recognition unit 130 and an action plan generation unit 140; FIG. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the details of matching processing in a match determination unit 136; FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining first output timing; FIG. FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining second output timing; FIG. FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining third output timing; FIG. It is a flow chart which shows an example of a flow of processing performed by automatic operation control device 100 of an embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of hardware constitutions of automatic operation control device 100 of an embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a program according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. An embodiment in which the vehicle control device is applied to an automatically driving vehicle will be described below as an example. Automatic driving means, for example, automatically controlling one or both of steering and speed of a vehicle to execute driving control. The vehicle operation control described above may include various operation controls such as ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control System), ALC (Auto Lane Changing), and LKAS (Lane Keeping Assistance System). The driving of an automatically driven vehicle may be controlled by manual driving by a passenger (driver).

[overall structure]
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle system 1 including a vehicle control device according to an embodiment. A vehicle on which the vehicle system 1 is mounted (hereinafter referred to as a vehicle M) is, for example, a two-wheeled, three-wheeled, or four-wheeled vehicle, and its drive source is an internal combustion engine such as a diesel engine or a gasoline engine, an electric motor, A combination of these. The electric motor operates using electric power generated by a generator connected to the internal combustion engine, or electric power discharged from a battery (storage battery) such as a secondary battery or a fuel cell.

The vehicle system 1 includes, for example, a camera 10, a radar device 12, a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) 14, an object recognition device 16, a communication device 20, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 30, and a vehicle sensor 40. , a navigation device 50 , an MPU (Map Positioning Unit) 60 , a driving operator 80 , an automatic driving control device 100 , a driving force output device 200 , a braking device 210 , and a steering device 220 . These apparatuses and devices are connected to each other by multiplex communication lines such as CAN (Controller Area Network) communication lines, serial communication lines, wireless communication networks, and the like. Note that the configuration shown in FIG. 1 is merely an example, and a part of the configuration may be omitted, or another configuration may be added. The automatic driving control device 100 is an example of a "vehicle control device". A combination of the camera 10, the radar device 12, the LIDAR 14, and the object recognition device 16 is an example of the "external sensor". The HMI 30 is an example of an "output section".

The camera 10 is, for example, a digital camera using a solid-state imaging device such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). The camera 10 is attached to any location of the vehicle M on which the vehicle system 1 is mounted. When imaging the front, the camera 10 is attached to the upper part of the front windshield, the rear surface of the rearview mirror, the front part of the vehicle body, or the like. When imaging the rear, the camera 10 is attached to the upper portion of the rear windshield, the back door, or the like. When imaging the side, the camera 10 is attached to a door mirror or the like. For example, the camera 10 repeatedly images the surroundings of the vehicle M periodically. Camera 10 may be a stereo camera.

The radar device 12 radiates radio waves such as millimeter waves around the vehicle M and detects radio waves (reflected waves) reflected by surrounding objects to detect at least the position (distance and direction) of the object. The radar device 12 is attached to any location of the vehicle M. As shown in FIG. The radar device 12 may detect the position and velocity of an object by the FM-CW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave) method.

The LIDAR 14 irradiates light around the vehicle M and measures scattered light. The LIDAR 14 detects the distance to the object based on the time from light emission to light reception. The irradiated light is, for example, pulsed laser light. The LIDAR 14 is attached to any location on the vehicle M.

The object recognition device 16 performs sensor fusion processing on the detection results of some or all of the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14, and recognizes the position, type, speed, etc. of objects around the vehicle M. . Objects include, for example, other vehicles (surrounding vehicles such as preceding vehicles), pedestrians, bicycles, and road structures. Road structures include, for example, road signs, traffic signals, railroad crossings, curbs, medians, guardrails, fences, and the like. Road structures may also include, for example, road markings such as road markings drawn or attached to the road surface (hereinafter referred to as marking lines), pedestrian crossings, bicycle crossings, and stop lines. Objects may also include obstacles such as fallen objects on the road (for example, cargo from other vehicles or signs placed around the road). The object recognition device 16 outputs recognition results to the automatic driving control device 100 . In addition, the object recognition apparatus 16 may output the detection result of the camera 10, the radar apparatus 12, and LIDAR14 to the automatic operation control apparatus 100 as it is. In that case, the object recognition device 16 may be omitted from the configuration of the vehicle system 1 or the external sensor. Also, the object recognition device 16 may be included in the automatic driving control device 100 .

The communication device 20 uses networks such as a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, Bluetooth (registered trademark), DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), LAN (Local Area Network), WAN (WiDe Area Network), and the Internet. For example, it communicates with other vehicles existing in the vicinity of the vehicle M, the terminal device of the user who uses the vehicle M, or various server devices.

The HMI 30 outputs various types of information to the occupants of the vehicle M and receives input operations by the occupants. The HMI 30 includes, for example, various display devices, speakers, buzzers, touch panels, switches, keys, microphones, and the like.

The vehicle sensor 40 includes a vehicle speed sensor that detects the speed of the vehicle M, an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration, a yaw rate sensor that detects a yaw rate (for example, a rotational angular velocity around a vertical axis passing through the center of gravity of the vehicle M), and a direction of the vehicle M. including a direction sensor for detecting Moreover, the vehicle sensor 40 may be provided with a position sensor for detecting the position of the vehicle M. FIG. A position sensor is, for example, a sensor that acquires position information (longitude/latitude information) from a GPS (Global Positioning System) device. Also, the position sensor may be a sensor that acquires position information using a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver 51 of the navigation device 50 . A result detected by the vehicle sensor 40 is output to the automatic driving control device 100 .

The navigation device 50 includes, for example, a GNSS receiver 51, a navigation HMI 52, and a route determination section 53. The navigation device 50 holds first map information 54 in a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory. The GNSS receiver 51 identifies the position of the vehicle M based on signals received from GNSS satellites. The position of the vehicle M may be specified or supplemented by an INS (Inertial Navigation System) using the output of the vehicle sensor 40 . The navigation HMI 52 includes a display device, speaker, touch panel, keys, and the like. A GNSS receiver 51 may be provided in the vehicle sensor 40 . The navigation HMI 52 may be partially or entirely shared with the HMI 30 described above. The route determining unit 53, for example, from the position of the vehicle M specified by the GNSS receiver 51 (or any input position) to the destination input by the occupant using the navigation HMI52 route (hereinafter referred to as map upper route) is determined with reference to the first map information 54 . The first map information 54 is, for example, information in which a road shape is represented by links indicating roads in a predetermined section and nodes connected by the links. The first map information 54 may include POI (Point Of Interest) information and the like. A route on the map is output to the MPU 60 . The navigation device 50 may provide route guidance using the navigation HMI 52 based on the route on the map. The navigation device 50 may transmit the current position and the destination to the navigation server via the communication device 20 and acquire a route equivalent to the route on the map from the navigation server. The navigation device 50 outputs the determined on-map route to the MPU 60 .

The MPU 60 includes, for example, a recommended lane determination unit 61, and holds second map information 62 in a storage device such as an HDD or flash memory. The recommended lane determining unit 61 divides the route on the map provided from the navigation device 50 into a plurality of blocks (for example, by dividing each block by 100 [m] in the vehicle traveling direction), and refers to the second map information 62. Determine recommended lanes for each block. The recommended lane determination unit 61 determines, for example, which lane from the left the vehicle should travel. The recommended lane determination unit 61 determines a recommended lane so that the vehicle M can travel on a rational route to the branch point when the route on the map has a branch point.

The second map information 62 is map information with higher precision than the first map information 54 . The second map information 62 includes, for example, information on road shapes and road structures. The road shape includes more detailed road shapes than the first map information 54, such as the number of lanes, road curvature radius (or curvature), width, and slope. The above information may be stored in the first map information 54 . The information about the road structure may include information such as the type, position, orientation with respect to the extension direction of the road, size, shape, color, etc. of the road structure. Regarding the types of road structures, for example, lane markings may be one type, and lane marks, curbs, median strips, etc. belonging to lane markings may be set to different types. Further, the types of lane markings may include, for example, lane markings indicating that a lane change is possible and lane markings indicating that a lane change is not possible. The lane marking type may be set, for example, for each section of a road or lane based on a link, or multiple types may be set within one link.

Further, the second map information 62 may include location information (latitude and longitude) of roads and buildings, address information (address/zip code), facility information, and the like. The second map information 62 may be updated at any time by the communication device 20 communicating with an external device. The first map information 54 and the second map information 62 may be integrally provided as map information. Further, the map information (the first map information 54 and the second map information 62) may be stored in the storage section 190. FIG.

The driving operator 80 includes, for example, a steering wheel, an accelerator pedal, and a brake pedal. The driving controls 80 may also include shift levers, modified steering wheels, joysticks, and other controls. Each operation element of the driving operation element 80 is provided with an operation detection unit that detects, for example, the operation amount of the operation element or the presence/absence of operation of the operation element by the occupant. The operation detection unit detects, for example, the steering angle and steering torque of the steering wheel, the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal and the brake pedal, and the like. Then, the operation detection unit outputs the detection result to one or both of the automatic driving control device 100 , the driving force output device 200 , the brake device 210 and the steering device 220 .

The automatic operation control device 100 includes, for example, a first control unit 120, a second control unit 160, an HMI control unit 180, and a storage unit 190. The first control unit 120, the second control unit 160, and the HMI control unit 180 are each implemented by a hardware processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (software). Some or all of these components are hardware (circuits) such as LSI (Large Scale Integration), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) (including circuitry), or by cooperation of software and hardware. The above-mentioned program may be stored in advance in a storage device (a storage device having a non-transitory storage medium) such as a HDD or flash memory of the automatic operation control device 100, or may be a DVD, a CD-ROM, or a memory card. Even if it is installed in the storage device of the automatic operation control device 100 by installing the storage medium (non-transitory storage medium) in a drive device, card slot, etc. good. A combination of the action plan generation unit 140 and the second control unit 160 is an example of the “operation control unit”. The HMI control section 180 is an example of an "output control section".

The storage unit 190 may be implemented by the various storage devices described above, or an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), or the like. The storage unit 190 stores various information, programs, and the like for controlling automatic operation in the embodiment. Further, the storage unit 190 may store map information (the first map information 54 and the second map information 62).

FIG. 2 is a functional configuration diagram of the first control unit 120, the second control unit 160, and the HMI control unit 180. As shown in FIG. The 1st control part 120 is provided with the recognition part 130 and the action plan production|generation part 140, for example. The first control unit 120, for example, realizes in parallel a function based on AI (Artificial Intelligence) and a function based on a model given in advance. For example, the "recognize intersections" function performs in parallel recognition of intersections by deep learning, etc., and recognition based on predetermined conditions (signals that can be pattern-matched, road markings, etc.). It may be realized by scoring and evaluating comprehensively. This ensures the reliability of automated driving. Further, the first control unit 120 executes control related to automatic driving of the vehicle M based on instructions from the MPU 60, the HMI control unit 180, and the like, for example.

The recognition unit 130 recognizes the surrounding situation of the vehicle M based on the recognition result of the external sensor (information input from the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 via the object recognition device 16). For example, the recognition unit 130 recognizes the types, positions, speeds, accelerations, and other states of objects existing around the vehicle M. FIG. The object type is, for example, whether the object is a vehicle or a pedestrian. The position of the object is recognized, for example, as the position of an absolute coordinate system (hereinafter referred to as a vehicle coordinate system) with a representative point (the center of gravity, the center of the drive shaft, etc.) of the vehicle M as the origin, and used for control. The position of an object may be represented by a representative point such as the center of gravity of the object, a corner, or a leading end in the traveling direction, or may be represented by a represented area. For example, if the object is a moving object such as another vehicle, the "state" of the object may be the acceleration or jerk of the object, or the "behavior state" (for example, whether or not the vehicle is changing lanes or is about to change lanes). ) may be included.

Further, the recognition unit 130 includes, for example, a first recognition unit 132, a second recognition unit 134, and a match determination unit 136. Details of these functions will be described later.

The action plan generation unit 140 generates an action plan for causing the vehicle M to travel by running control such as automatic driving based on the recognition result of the recognition unit 130 . For example, the action plan generation unit 140 generates an action plan based on one of a plurality of operational controls with different automation levels of operational control. The automation level is determined by the level determination unit 142, which will be described later.

For example, in principle, the action plan generation unit 140 drives in the recommended lane determined by the recommended lane determination unit 61, and based on the current position of the vehicle M obtained from the recognition result of the recognition unit 130 or map information. A target trajectory along which the vehicle M will travel in the future is automatically generated (without relying on the driver's operation) so as to be able to respond to the surrounding conditions of the vehicle M based on the shape of the surrounding roads and the like. The target trajectory includes, for example, velocity elements. For example, the target trajectory is represented by arranging points (trajectory points) that the vehicle M should reach in order. A trajectory point is a point to be reached by the vehicle M for each predetermined travel distance (for example, about several [m]) along the road. A target velocity and acceleration for each is generated as part of the target trajectory. Also, the trajectory point may be a position that the vehicle M should reach at each predetermined sampling time. In this case, the information on the target velocity and target acceleration is represented by the intervals between the trajectory points.

The action plan generator 140 may set an automatic driving event when generating the target trajectory. The events include, for example, a constant speed driving event in which the vehicle M is driven in the same lane at a constant speed, and another vehicle that exists within a predetermined distance in front of the vehicle M (for example, within 100 [m]) and is closest to the vehicle M. (hereinafter referred to as a preceding vehicle); a lane change event that causes the vehicle M to change lanes from its own lane to an adjacent lane; A branching event for branching, a merging event for merging the vehicle M into the main line at a merging point, a takeover event for ending automatic driving and switching to manual driving, and the like are included. Events include, for example, an overtaking event in which the vehicle M changes lanes to an adjacent lane, overtakes the preceding vehicle, and then changes lanes again to the original lane, and an event in which the vehicle M contacts an object existing in front of the vehicle M. may include avoidance events and the like that cause vehicle M to brake and/or steer to avoid

Further, the action plan generation unit 140 may change an event already determined for the current section to another event or A new event may be set for . In addition, the action plan generator 140 changes an event that has already been set for the current section to another event, or sets a new event for the current section, according to the operation of the HMI 30 by the occupant. You can The action plan generator 140 generates a target trajectory according to the set event.

The action plan generation unit 140 includes a level determination unit 142, for example. Details of the function of the level determination unit 142 will be described later.

The second control unit 160 controls the driving force output device 200, the braking device 210, and the steering device 220 so that the vehicle M passes the target trajectory generated by the action plan generating unit 140 at the scheduled time. do.

The second control unit 160 includes a target trajectory acquisition unit 162, a speed control unit 164, and a steering control unit 166, for example. The target trajectory acquisition unit 162 acquires information on the target trajectory (trajectory point) generated by the action plan generation unit 140 and stores it in a memory (not shown). Speed control unit 164 controls running driving force output device 200 or brake device 210 based on the speed element associated with the target trajectory stored in the memory. The steering control unit 166 controls the steering device 220 according to the curve of the target trajectory stored in the memory. The processing of the speed control unit 164 and the steering control unit 166 is realized by, for example, a combination of feedforward control and feedback control. As an example, the steering control unit 166 performs a combination of feedforward control according to the radius of curvature (or curvature) of the road ahead of the vehicle M and feedback control based on deviation from the target trajectory.

The HMI control unit 180 notifies the passenger of predetermined information through the HMI 30 . The predetermined information includes, for example, information related to traveling of the vehicle M such as information regarding the state of the vehicle M and information regarding operation control. The information about the state of the vehicle M includes, for example, the speed of the vehicle M, the engine speed, the shift position, and the like. In addition, the information on operation control includes, for example, whether or not operation control is executed by automatic operation, information for inquiring whether to start automatic operation, information on changes in operation control, status of operation control by automatic operation (for example, content of the event being executed). The information related to the change in driving control may be, for example, information indicating a change in the degree of automation, information indicating a point to be changed, or information requesting the driver to perform part or all of the driving operation along with the change. Further, the predetermined information may include information that is not related to the travel control of the vehicle M, such as TV programs and contents (for example, movies) stored in a storage medium such as a DVD. Further, the predetermined information may include, for example, the current position and destination of the vehicle M, and information regarding the remaining amount of fuel.

For example, the HMI control unit 180 may generate an image including the predetermined information described above, display the generated image on the display device of the HMI 30, generate a sound indicating the predetermined information, and transmit the generated sound to the HMI 30. You may output from a speaker. Further, the HMI control unit 180 may output information received by the HMI 30 to the communication device 20, the navigation device 50, the first control unit 120, and the like. Further, the HMI control unit 180 may transmit various types of information to be output by the HMI 30 to a terminal device used by a user (passenger) of the vehicle M via the communication device 20 . The terminal device is, for example, a smart phone or a tablet terminal.

The HMI control section 180 includes an output timing control section 182, for example. Details of the function of the output timing control section 182 will be described later.

The running driving force output device 200 outputs running driving force (torque) for the vehicle M to run to the driving wheels. The driving force output device 200 includes, for example, a combination of an internal combustion engine, an electric motor, a transmission, etc., and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) for controlling these. The ECU controls the above configuration in accordance with information input from the second control unit 160 or information input from the accelerator pedal of the operating element 80 .

The brake device 210 includes, for example, a brake caliper, a cylinder that transmits hydraulic pressure to the brake caliper, an electric motor that generates hydraulic pressure in the cylinder, and a brake ECU. The brake ECU controls the electric motor according to the information input from the second control unit 160 or the information input from the brake pedal of the driving operation element 80 so that the brake torque corresponding to the braking operation is output to each wheel. to The brake device 210 may include, as a backup, a mechanism that transmits the hydraulic pressure generated by operating the brake pedal to the cylinders via the master cylinder. The brake device 210 is not limited to the configuration described above, and is an electronically controlled hydraulic brake device that controls the actuator according to information input from the second control unit 160 to transmit the hydraulic pressure of the master cylinder to the cylinder. good too.

The steering device 220 includes, for example, a steering ECU and an electric motor. The electric motor, for example, applies force to a rack and pinion mechanism to change the orientation of the steered wheels. The steering ECU drives the electric motor according to information input from the second control unit 160 or information input from the steering wheel of the driving operator 80 to change the direction of the steered wheels.

[Functions of Recognition Unit and Action Plan Generation Unit]
Hereinafter, functions of the recognition unit 130 and the action plan generation unit 140 according to the embodiment will be described in detail. In the following description, the functions of the recognition unit 130 and the action plan generation unit 140 relating to control (level-down control) that lowers the degree of automation of the driving control of the vehicle M will be mainly described.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the recognition unit 130 and the action plan generation unit 140. As shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 3, two lanes L1 and L2 that can travel in the same direction (X-axis direction in the figure) are shown. Lane L1 is defined by lane markings LL and CL, and lane L2 is defined by lane markings CL and RL. In the example of FIG. 3, it is assumed that the vehicle M is traveling on the lane L1 at the speed VM.

The first recognition unit 132 recognizes first road information including road structures around the vehicle M based on the recognition result of the external sensor, for example. For example, the first recognition unit 132 analyzes an image captured by the camera 10, extracts edge points having a large luminance difference from adjacent pixels in the image, and connects the edge points to create partition lines LL, CL, and LL on the image plane. Recognize RL. Also, the first recognition unit 132 transforms the position of each point of the lane markings LL, CL, and RL into the vehicle coordinate system. The first recognition unit 132 also recognizes, for example, the line type of the lane marking (for example, lane marking CL shown in FIG. 3) that divides the own lane L1 and the adjacent lane L2 on the road. Line types may include not only types based on shapes such as solid lines and dashed lines, but also types based on colors.

The second recognition unit 134 recognizes second road information including road structures around the vehicle M from the map information based on the position information of the vehicle M, for example. For example, the second recognition unit 134 acquires the position information of the vehicle M from the vehicle sensor 40 or the navigation device 50, refers to the second map information 62 based on the acquired position information, and detects the vehicle from the second map information 62. The positions of the marking lines LL, CL, and RL in the coordinate system, the line type of the marking line CL, and the like are recognized. Further, the second recognition unit 134 collates the output of the direction sensor included in the vehicle sensor 40 with the second map information 62 to recognize which road and which lane the vehicle M is traveling on on the map. good too. Further, the second recognition unit 134 may recognize the position of the representative point of the vehicle M in the width direction of the traveling lane L1 (hereinafter referred to as the lateral position) based on the position information of the vehicle M. . The lateral position may be derived as an offset amount from either the left or right road division line of the lane, or may be derived as an offset amount from the center of the lane.

The match determination unit 136 determines whether or not the recognition result of the first recognition unit 132 (eg, first road information) matches the recognition result of the second recognition unit 134 (eg, second road information). do. For example, the match determination unit 136 determines whether or not the position of the lane marking included in the first road information matches the position of the lane marking included in the second road information. Hereinafter, the process of determining whether or not the position of the lane marking included in the first road information matches the position of the lane marking included in the second road information will be described as "matching processing".

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the details of the matching process in the match determination unit 136. As shown in FIG. Below, a marking line (a marking line recognized by the first recognition unit 132) CL (hereinafter referred to as a marking line CL1) obtained from the external sensor and a marking line obtained from the map information (the second recognition unit 134 Although the matching process with the marking line CL (hereafter referred to as marking line CL2) recognized by the second marking line CL2 will be described, the matching process may be performed similarly for the other marking lines LL and RL. The coincidence determination unit 136 superimposes the position of the lane marking CL1 and the position of the lane marking CL2 on the plane of the vehicle coordinate system with the position (X1, Y1) of the representative point of the vehicle M as a reference, to obtain the lane marking CL1. and the position of the marking line CL2 match or not. "Match" is, for example, a case where the degree of divergence between the marking line CL1 and the marking line CL2 is equal to or less than a threshold. The divergence may be, for example, the divergence in the horizontal position (in the Y-axis direction in the figure) (for example, the deviation amount W1 between the division lines CL1 and CL2 in the diagram), or the divergence in the vertical position (the length of the distance in the X-axis direction). (eg, section A1 in the figure) or a combination thereof.

In the example of FIG. 4, it is assumed that the deviation amount W1 is equal to or less than the threshold. On the other hand, in the section A1, the lane marking CL1 is not recognized, but the lane marking CL2 is recognized. Therefore, the divergence between the division lines CL1 and CL2 in the section A1 is equal to or greater than the threshold. In this case, the match determination unit 136 determines that the first road information and the second road information do not match (unmatch) in the section A1. If the section A1 is not recognized as a result of recognition by the external sensor, for example, if it is not recognized due to the weather such as heavy rain or the influence of street lights at night, or if it cannot be recognized because the lane markings drawn on the road have disappeared, This includes cases where it is not recognized due to road shapes such as uphill roads and curved roads.

In addition, the match determination unit 136 determines whether the first road information and the second road information match each other with a predetermined sufficient degree of reliability in the matching between the lane marking CL1 and the lane marking CL2 at a predetermined distance. If the information does not match with sufficient reliability, it may be determined that the first road information and the second road K information do not match.

Further, the match determination unit 136 may determine that the first road information and the second road information do not match when the line types of the lane marking CL1 and the lane marking CL2 do not match. "The line types of the lane marking CL1 and the lane marking CL2 do not match" means, for example, that one of the lane markings CL1 and CL2 is a lane marking indicating that a lane change is possible, and the other is a lane marking indicating that a lane change is possible. This is the case when the lane indicates that it is impossible to Further, "the line types of the comparting lines CL1 and CL2 do not match" may be, for example, the case where the curvatures of the comparting lines CL1 and CL2 do not match.

In addition, the match determination unit 136 may not acquire the first road information due to an abnormality in the external sensor, or may not acquire the second road information because there is no map information corresponding to the position information of the vehicle M. In this case, it may be determined that the first road information and the second road information do not match. Abnormality of the external sensor includes, for example, the case where the image data of the camera 10, the recognition result of the radar device 12 or the LIDAR 14 cannot be acquired, or the case where the acquired information is an abnormal value.

The level determination unit 142 determines the automation level (an example of the degree of automation) of the operation control executed by the operation control unit based on the determination result of the matching determination unit 136 . The automation level of operation control in the embodiment includes, for example, a first level (an example of a first degree of control) and a second level (an example of a second degree of control) in which the degree of automation of operation control is lower than the first level. and a third level (an example of a third degree of control) in which the degree of automation of operation control is lower than that of the second level. Further, the automation level may include a fourth level (an example of a fourth control degree) in which the degree of automation of operation control is lower than that of the third level. Here, the automation level may be a level determined by standardized information or regulations, or may be an index value that is set independently of them. Therefore, the types, contents, and number of automation levels are not limited to the following examples. A low degree of automation of driving control means, for example, that the degree of automation in driving control is low and the tasks imposed on the driver are large. Low automation of driving control means that the degree of control of steering or acceleration/deceleration of the vehicle M by the automatic driving control device 100 is low (the driver needs to intervene in steering or acceleration/deceleration operation is high). Tasks imposed on the driver include, for example, monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle M, operating a driving operator (for example, an action of gripping a steering wheel), and the like. The task imposed on the driver is, for example, a task for the crew (driver task) necessary for maintaining automatic driving of the vehicle M. Therefore, if the crew cannot perform the assigned tasks, the level of automation will be reduced. For example, the first level operational control may include operational control such as ACC, ALC, LKAS, and TJP (Traffic Jam Pilot). Also, the second or third level operational control may include, for example, operational control such as ACC, ALC, and LKAS. A fourth level of operational control may include manual operation. Further, for the fourth level operation control, for example, operation control such as ACC may be executed. Among the first to fourth levels, the first level has the highest degree of automation of operation control, and the fourth level has the lowest degree of automation of operation control.

Also, in the first level, there are no tasks assigned to the crew. Also, the tasks assigned to the occupants at the second level are, for example, monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle M. FIG. Also tasks imposed on the occupants at the third level are, for example, monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle M and gripping the steering wheel. Tasks assigned to the occupants (for example, the driver) at the fourth level include, for example, monitoring the surroundings (especially the front) of the vehicle M and operating the steering and speed control of the vehicle M using the driving operator 80. be. That is, in the case of the fourth level, it is a state in which the passenger can immediately take over driving. The contents of the driving control and the tasks imposed on the crew at each automation level are not limited to the examples described above. The automatic driving control device 100 executes driving control at any one of the first to fourth levels based on the surrounding conditions of the vehicle M and the task being executed by the occupant.

For example, the level determination unit 142 associates execution conditions set for each automation level based on other surrounding situations (for example, behavior of surrounding vehicles) recognized by the recognition unit 130 and map information. Determine automation level.

Further, for example, the level determination unit 142 determines that the first road information and the second road information do not match by the match determination unit 136 during the execution of driving control at any one of the first to third levels. is determined, the automation level of operation control is changed from the current level to a lower level. In this case, for example, if the current automation level is the first level, the level determination unit 142 changes it to any one of the second, third, or fourth level, and changes the current automation level to the second level. If so, change to third or fourth level. For example, the level determination unit 142 may change to an automation level determined for each current automation level. good too.

Further, the level determination unit 142 may determine the automation level to be changed based on the reason why the match determination unit 136 determines that the first road information and the second road information do not match, for example. For example, when the current automation level is the first level, if it is determined that the road information does not match temporarily due to the shape of the road, such as an uphill road or a curved road, the level determination unit 142 changes from the first level When the level is changed to the second level and it is determined that the road information does not match due to an abnormality in the external sensor, the level is changed from the first level to the third level. As a result, it is possible to change to a more appropriate automation level according to the determination result of the match determination unit 136 .

[Functions of HMI control unit 180]
Next, the details of the functions of the HMI control unit 180 will be described. When the level determination unit 142 determines to change the automation level of the operation control to a level lower than the current level, the HMI control unit 180 generates information regarding the change in operation control, and the HMI 30 transmits the generated information. Let the crew output. The output timing control unit 182 controls the timing of outputting the information regarding the change of the driving control according to the automation level of the driving control of the vehicle M before the automation level is changed to the lower one.

For example, when the automation level of the driving control of the vehicle M is changed from the second level to the third level, the HMI control unit 180 controls the driving control more than when the automation level is changed from the first level to the third level. Delay the output of information about changes. Further, when the automation level is changed from the first level to the third level, the HMI control unit 180 may output information regarding the change in operation control at the timing when the change to the third level is determined. Further, when the automation level is the second level or the third level, the HMI control unit 180 may delay the timing of outputting the information regarding the change of the operational control compared to when the automation level is the first level. Further, when changing the automation level from the third level to the fourth level, the HMI control unit 180 may continue the driving control at the current control level until the behavior of the vehicle changes. The output timings controlled by the output timing control section 182 will be specifically described below by dividing them into several output timings. In the following example, it is assumed that time progresses in order of times t1, t2, and t3. Vehicle M(t*) and velocity VM(t*) indicate the position and velocity of vehicle M at time t*.

<First output timing>
When the automation level of the driving control of the vehicle M before the automation level is changed to the lower one is the first level, the output timing control unit 182 outputs the information regarding the change of the driving control to the HMI 30 at the first output timing. Let The first output timing is, for example, the timing at which the match determination unit 136 determines that the first road information and the second road information do not match, or the level determination unit 142 changes from the first level to the second level. This is the timing at which it is decided to change to an automation level lower than level 1 (for example, level 3).

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the first output timing. In the example of FIG. 5, it is assumed that lanes L1 and L2 exist as in FIG. 3, and the vehicle M is traveling in the lane L1 at the speed VM. The same applies to FIGS. 6 and 7 as well. In the example of FIG. 5, at the time t1 when the vehicle M reaches the point P1, the match determination unit 136 determines that the first road information and the second road information do not match in the section beyond the point P2. Suppose In this case, the level determination unit 142 determines to change from the first level to a level lower than the first level (for example, the third level) when the vehicle M reaches the point P2.

Output timing control unit 182 is generated by HMI control unit 180 when vehicle M reaches point P1 and level determination unit 142 determines to change from the first level to the third level at point P2. The HMI 30 is caused to output information regarding the change in operation control. The information about the change in driving control output from the HMI 30 at the first output timing includes, for example, "The automation level of the vehicle will be lowered from the first level to the third level." Please monitor the surroundings and hold the steering wheel by the time you arrive at point P2." As a result, the driver is instructed to perform a driving operation according to the changed automation level from the point P1 where the information is output to the point P2 where the automation level of the driving control of the vehicle M is lowered. can be prepared. Therefore, the occupant can be made to perform the driving operation more reliably.

<Second output timing>
When the automation level of the driving control of the vehicle M is the second level, the output timing control unit 182 causes the HMI 30 to output the information regarding the change of the driving control at the second output timing. The second output timing is, for example, a timing delayed by a predetermined time from the time when it is decided that the automation level of operation control is changed from the second level to a level lower than the second level (for example, the third level). be.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the second output timing. In the example of FIG. 6, at the time t1 when the vehicle M reaches the point P1, the match determination unit 136 determines that the first road information and the second road information do not match in the section beyond the point P2. Suppose it was In this case, the level determining unit 142 determines to change from the second level to the third level when the vehicle M reaches the point P2.

The output timing control unit 182 controls the timing when the vehicle M reaches the point P1 and the level determination unit 142 determines that the level is changed from the second level to the third level at the point P2 (for example, the first output timing). At time t2, which is delayed by a predetermined time Ta, the HMI 30 is caused to output the information related to the change in operation control generated by the HMI control unit 180. FIG. Predetermined time Ta is, for example, based on speed VM of vehicle M, the time during which vehicle M is estimated not to reach point P2. Further, the predetermined time Ta may be variably set based on the circumstances around the vehicle M (for example, the behavior of surrounding vehicles, the shape of the road), the state of the occupant (the execution state of the task imposed on the occupant), and the like. For example, when the traffic ahead of the vehicle M is congested, the output timing control unit 182 sets the predetermined time Ta longer than when the traffic is not congested, so that the lane L1 can be driven like a curved road or downhill. is a complicated road shape, the predetermined time Ta is set shorter than in the case of a straight line.

In addition, instead of the predetermined time Ta, the output timing control unit 182 outputs to the HMI 30 the information regarding the change in the driving control at the timing when the vehicle M reaches the point Pa, which is a predetermined distance Da away from the point P1 in the traveling direction. You may let The predetermined distance Da is a distance shorter than the distance from the point P1 to the point P2. Further, the predetermined distance Da is variably set based on the speed VM of the vehicle M, the surrounding conditions, the state of the occupant, and the like. In this way, the output timing control unit 182 variably sets the predetermined time Ta or the predetermined distance Da, so that the output timing control unit 182 outputs information regarding changes in driving control at a more appropriate timing according to the surrounding conditions of the vehicle and the state of the occupants. It can be output to the crew. Note that the output timing control section 182 may set the predetermined time Ta to a fixed time, and may set the predetermined distance Da to a fixed distance. As a result, the processing load when setting the predetermined time ta and the predetermined distance Da can be reduced compared to the case where the processing load is set variably.

The information about the change in driving control output from the HMI 30 at the second output timing includes, for example, "The automation level of the vehicle will be lowered from the second level to the third level." Please hold the steering wheel before arriving at point P2." In this way, in the second output timing scene, since the driving control at the second level has already been executed, part of the task (surroundings monitoring) by the driver is being executed. Therefore, even if the output timing is delayed from the first timing, it is possible to make preparations for performing the driving operation according to the changed automation level in a short period of time. Further, by delaying the output timing from the first timing, it is possible to satisfy the execution condition of the third level and suppress the execution of the driving control of the third level before the vehicle M reaches the point P2. can. By suppressing the change to the third level driving control before reaching the point P2, the first road information and the second road information match again until the point P2, and the level down control is performed. The current level of automation can be continued when there is no longer a need to perform

<Third output timing>
When the automation level of the driving control of the vehicle M is the third level, the HMI control unit 180 causes the HMI 30 to output the information regarding the change of the driving control at the third output timing. The third output timing is the timing at which the automation level of driving control is changed from the third level to the fourth level, and is the timing at which the behavior of the vehicle M changes.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the third output timing. In the example of FIG. 7, at the time t1 when the vehicle M reaches the point P1, the coincidence determination unit 136 determines that the recognition result of the first recognition unit 132 and the recognition result of the second recognition unit 134 are ahead of the point P2. Suppose that it is determined that there is no match in the section. In this case, the level determining unit 142 determines to change from the third level to the fourth level when the vehicle M reaches the point P2.

The output timing control unit 182 controls the timing when the vehicle M reaches the point P1 and the level determination unit 142 determines that the level is changed from the third level to the fourth level at the point P2 (for example, the first output timing). , until time t3 when the vehicle M reaches the point P2, the timing for outputting the information regarding the change of the driving control generated by the HMI control unit 180 to the HMI 30 is delayed.

In this way, when the degree of automation of driving control is changed to a lower one, and the automation level causes the crew to operate the driving operator (specifically, the crew grips the steering wheel) Task is imposed on the occupant (for example, the third level), the automatic driving control device 100 continues driving control at the current level until the timing when the behavior of the vehicle M changes.

The information about the change in driving control output from the HMI 30 at the third output timing includes, for example, "The automation level of the vehicle will be lowered from the third level to the fourth level." information is included.

In the scene of the third output timing, since driving control at the third level has already been executed, the driver is monitoring the surroundings and gripping the steering wheel. Therefore, even if the vehicle M reaches the point P2 where the behavior of the vehicle M is affected, it is possible to continue stable running even after the point P2 without notifying the occupant of the information regarding the change in the driving control. In addition, by delaying the output timing, when the first road information and the second road information match again until the point P2 and it becomes unnecessary to perform the level down control, the passenger is not notified. , the current level of automation can be continued.

For example, when the HMI control unit 180 causes the display device of the HMI 30 to display an image showing information regarding changes in operation control at the first to third output timings described above, the HMI control unit 180 displays the image based on the post-change automation level. You may change the display mode of . In this case, the HMI control unit 180 changes the display mode so that the image is displayed more emphasized when the post-change automation level is lower than when the automation level is high. The display mode includes, for example, image color, size, shape, pattern, character font, and the like. Further, the display mode may include blinking display of an image, animation image display, and the like. Further, the HMI control unit 180 may output an alarm (for example, voice or alarm sound) or the like at the timing of outputting information regarding changes in operation control. In this case, the HMI control unit 180 makes the warning stronger (for example, the volume is increased) when the post-change automation level is lower than when the automation level is high. As a result, the later the output timing, the more emphasized the display mode and the stronger the warning. ) can be executed.

Further, even after the first predetermined time has passed since the information regarding the change of the operation control is output at the first to third output timings described above, if the task corresponding to the automation level after the change is not executed, HMI control unit 180 may output a stronger warning than the warning described above. Further, if the task assigned to the occupant has not been executed even after the second predetermined time has passed since the strong warning was output, the first control unit 120 and the second control unit 160 control the vehicle M to be safe. Degeneration control may be performed to stop at a place (for example, the shoulder of the road, etc.).

[Processing flow]
Drawing 8 is a flow chart which shows an example of a flow of processing performed by automatic operation control device 100 of an embodiment. Below, among the processes executed by the automatic driving control device 100, mainly the processing related to the information output control when the automation level of the driving control of the vehicle M is changed to the lower one will be mainly described. The processing shown in FIG. 8 may be repeatedly executed at a predetermined timing or a predetermined cycle during execution of automatic driving, for example.

In the example of FIG. 8, first, the first recognition unit 132 recognizes the surrounding situation of the vehicle M based on the recognition result of the external sensor (step S100). Next, the second recognition unit 134 recognizes the surrounding situation of the vehicle M based on the map information (step S102). Next, the match determination unit 136 performs matching processing between the recognition result obtained by the processing of step S100 and the recognition result obtained by the processing of step S102 (step S104). Next, the level determination unit 142 determines the automation level of driving control of the vehicle M based on the matching result (step S106).

Next, the HMI control unit 180 acquires the current automation level of driving control of the vehicle M (step S110), and determines whether the automation level determined by the process of step S106 is changed to a level lower than the current level. It is determined whether or not (step S108). When it is determined that the automation level of operational control will be changed to a level lower than the current level, the HMI control unit 180 generates information regarding the change in operational control (step S112). Next, the output timing control unit 182 determines the timing of outputting the information regarding the change of the operational control based on the automation level before the change (step S114). Next, the output timing control unit 182 outputs information regarding the change in operation control at the determined timing (step S116). Thus, the processing of this flowchart ends. If it is determined in the process of step S110 that the automation level of the operation control will not be changed to a level lower than the current level, this flowchart ends.

After the information is acquired at the timing determined by the processing of step S116 in FIG. 8, when the conditions for executing the changed automation level are satisfied, the automatic operation control device 100 changes the automation level. to execute operation control. Also, in the process of step S110 in FIG. 8, when it is determined that the automation level of the driving control will not be changed to a level lower than the current level, and it is determined that the level will be changed to a level higher than the current level. If so, the HMI control unit 180 may output the information regarding the change in operation control before the automation level is changed, or may output it at the same time as or after the automation level is changed.

[Modification]
In the above-described embodiment, the output timing control section 182 delays the second and third output timings with reference to the first output timing when changing from the first level, which is the highest automation level, to the lower level. However, instead of this, the second and first output timings may be determined based on the third output timing. In this case, the output timing control section 182 determines the second output timing to be earlier than the third output timing, and the first output timing to be earlier than the third and second output timings.

According to the above-described embodiment, the automatic driving control device 100 (an example of the driving control device) includes the recognition unit 130 that recognizes the surrounding situation of the vehicle M, and the driving control device that controls at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle M. A control unit (action plan generation unit 140, second control unit 160) that executes one of a plurality of operation controls with different automation levels (an example of the degree of automation), and a recognition unit 130 HMI control unit 180 (HMI control unit 180 ( an example of an output control unit), wherein the HMI control unit 180 delays the timing of outputting information when the automation level before the automation level is changed to a lower one is lower than when the automation level is high. Accordingly, information regarding changes in automation of driving control can be output to the occupant at a more appropriate timing.

Specifically, in the embodiment, when changing the output timing of information related to level down control and information such as driving change requests based on the current automation level of operation control, when the automation level is low, when the automation level is high delays the output timing compared to For example, when the automation level is the highest (for example, in the case of the first level), when it is determined that the recognition result of the first recognition unit 132 and the recognition result of the second recognition unit 134 do not match By outputting the information to , it is possible to secure a long driving distance to the point where the points do not match. Therefore, it is possible to provide a margin for handing over the driving operation to the driver. In addition, when the automation level before the change is the second level, by outputting the information at a later timing than in the case of the first level, it is possible to suppress the automation level from immediately becoming low after the passenger's operation is completed. be able to. Further, when the automation level before the change is the third level, the current automation level can be maintained by continuing the current automation level as long as the behavior of the vehicle M does not change. Therefore, according to the embodiment, according to the automation level of driving control, it is possible to notify the occupant of the level change information at an appropriate timing considering the time until the level down control.

[Hardware configuration]
Drawing 9 is a figure showing an example of hardware constitutions of automatic operation control device 100 of an embodiment. As illustrated, the computer of the automatic operation control device 100 includes a communication controller 100-1, a CPU 100-2, a RAM 100-3 used as a working memory, a ROM 100-4 for storing a boot program and the like, a flash memory, an HDD, and the like. A storage device 100-5, a drive device 100-6, etc. are interconnected by an internal bus or a dedicated communication line. The communication controller 100-1 communicates with components other than the automatic operation control device 100. FIG. A portable storage medium such as an optical disc (for example, a computer-readable non-temporary storage medium) is loaded in the drive device 100-6. A program 100-5a executed by the CPU 100-2 is stored in the storage device 100-5. This program is developed in RAM 100-3 by a DMA (Direct Memory Access) controller (not shown) or the like and executed by CPU 100-2. The program 100-5a referenced by the CPU 100-2 may be stored in a portable storage medium attached to the drive device 100-6, or may be downloaded from another device via a network. Thereby, some or all of the components of the automatic operation control device 100 are realized.

The embodiment described above can be expressed as follows.
a storage device storing a program;
a hardware processor;
By the hardware processor executing the program stored in the storage device,
Recognizing the vehicle's surroundings,
controlling at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle, and executing any one of a plurality of driving controls with different degrees of automation;
Based on the recognized result, when the degree of automation of the driving control is changed, causing the occupant to output information regarding the change of the driving control,
The degree of automation includes a first degree of control, a second degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the first degree of control, and a third degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the second degree of control,
When the degree of automation is changed from the second degree of control to the third degree of control, the timing of outputting the information is delayed more than when the degree of automation is changed from the first degree of control to the third degree of control;
A vehicle control device configured to:

As described above, the mode for carrying out the present invention has been described using the embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to such embodiments at all, and various modifications and replacements can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. can be added.

Reference Signs List 1, 2 Vehicle system 10 Camera 12 Radar device 14 LIDAR 16 Object recognition device 20 Communication device 30 HMI 40 Vehicle sensor 50 Navigation device 60 MPU 80 100 Automatic operation control device 120 First control unit 130 Recognition unit 132 First recognition unit 134 Second recognition unit 136 Match determination unit 140 Action plan generation unit , 142 Level determination unit 160 Second control unit 162 Target trajectory acquisition unit 164 Speed control unit 166 Steering control unit 180 HMI control unit 182 Output timing control unit 190 Storage unit , 200... Driving force output device, 210... Brake device, 220... Steering device

Claims (8)

a recognition unit that recognizes the surrounding situation of the vehicle;
an operation control unit that controls at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle, the operation control unit that executes any one of a plurality of operation controls with different degrees of automation;
an output control unit for outputting information regarding a change in the driving control to the occupant when the degree of automation of the driving control executed by the driving control unit is changed based on the result of recognition by the recognizing unit; prepared,
The degree of automation includes a first degree of control, a second degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the first degree of control, and a third degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the second degree of control,
The output control unit changes from the first control degree to the third control degree when the degree of automation executed by the operation control unit is changed from the second control degree to the third control degree. delaying the timing of outputting the information than when
The output control unit sets a distance for delaying the output timing of the information based on one or both of the vehicle surroundings recognized by the recognition unit and the occupant's condition.
Vehicle controller. The recognition unit recognizes first road information including road structures around the vehicle based on the result of recognition by an external sensor, and roads around the vehicle from map information based on position information of the vehicle. recognizing the second road information including the structure,
The operation control unit changes the degree of automation of the operation control to a lower one when the first road information and the second road information do not match.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1. When the degree of automation is changed from the first control degree to the third control degree, the output control unit outputs the information at the timing when the change to the third control degree is determined.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1. further comprising a driving operator for receiving an operation for the passenger to drive the vehicle;
When the degree of automation currently being executed by the operation control unit is the second control degree or the third control degree , the output control unit causes the occupant to operate the operation operator to drive the vehicle. When executing an operation , delaying the timing of outputting the information compared to when the first degree of control is applied;
The vehicle control device according to claim 1. When the operation control unit changes from the third control degree to a fourth control degree with a lower degree of automation, the operation control unit continues the operation control at the current control degree until the behavior of the vehicle changes.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1. The recognition unit recognizes first road information including road structures around the vehicle based on the result of recognition by an external sensor, and roads around the vehicle from map information based on position information of the vehicle. recognizing the second road information including the structure,
The operation control unit is
When the first control degree is being executed, the information is output at a first output timing at which it is determined that the first road information recognized by the recognition unit and the second road information do not match. ,
When the second control degree is being executed and it is determined that the first road information and the second road information do not match, a second output timing is delayed by a predetermined time from the first output timing. outputting the information at the output timing;
When changing from the third control degree to a fourth control degree with a lower degree of automation, the information is output at a timing that is later than the second output timing and the behavior of the vehicle changes.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1. the computer
Recognizing the vehicle's surroundings,
controlling at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle, and executing any one of a plurality of driving controls with different degrees of automation;
Based on the recognized result, when the degree of automation of the driving control is changed, causing the occupant to output information regarding the change of the driving control,
The degree of automation includes a first degree of control, a second degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the first degree of control, and a third degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the second degree of control,
When the degree of automation is changed from the second degree of control to the third degree of control, the timing of outputting the information is delayed from when the degree of automation is changed from the first degree of control to the third degree of control. height,
setting a distance for delaying the output timing of the information based on one or both of the recognized surrounding situation of the vehicle and the state of the occupant;
Vehicle control method. to the computer,
Recognize the surrounding situation of the vehicle,
controlling at least one of acceleration/deceleration and steering of the vehicle, and executing any one of a plurality of driving controls with different degrees of automation;
Based on the recognized result, when the degree of automation of the driving control is changed, causing the occupant to output information regarding the change of the driving control,
The degree of automation includes a first degree of control, a second degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the first degree of control, and a third degree of control with a lower degree of automation than the second degree of control,
When the degree of automation is changed from the second degree of control to the third degree of control, the timing of outputting the information is delayed from when the degree of automation is changed from the first degree of control to the third degree of control. height,
setting a distance for delaying the output timing of the information based on one or both of the recognized surrounding situation of the vehicle and the state of the occupant;
program.

Images