JP2018092334A - Travel control apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a travel control apparatus capable of predicting a travelable area of a vehicle without being influenced by a change in luminance of an object (another moving object) and performing a preferable automatic operation according to a plan of an own vehicle traveling route.SOLUTION: A travel control apparatus includes a sensor for detecting an object existing in front of an own travelling vehicle, an obstacle identifying unit 212 for determining a plurality of measurement points each indicating at least the existence of the object on the basis of a detection output from the sensor to specify two measurement points arranged in a width direction of a road of the object, and an area setting unit 214 for setting a travelable area 232 on the basis of at least two measurement points.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a travel control device that controls automatic driving capable of traveling without requiring a driver's driving operation or automatic driving that assists the driver's driving operation.

  In Patent Document 1, an object is to accurately determine whether or not there is a possibility of collision between the own vehicle and an obstacle.

  In order to solve the problem, in Patent Document 1, the relative movement direction of the obstacle with respect to the host vehicle based on the distance between the frame indicating the position of the obstacle in the image and the vanishing point of the optical flow for the obstacle. The distance between the host vehicle and the obstacle in the direction orthogonal to is calculated. Then, by comparing the distance between the host vehicle and the obstacle and the distance between the photographing device and the side surface of the host vehicle, it is determined whether or not the host vehicle and the obstacle collide.

JP 2014-106901 A

  In Patent Document 1, since the speed of an object (obstacle) is estimated by optical flow, the brightness (pixel value) remains unchanged even when the pixel moves, and the amount of movement of the pixel is small (1 pixel or less). ) Etc. are assumed.

  For this reason, when there is a change in the brightness of the object due to, for example, entering / exiting a tunnel or blinking of a light, the speed estimation of the object may not function.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and can predict the travelable area of the host vehicle without being affected by the luminance change of the object (other moving body). It is an object of the present invention to provide a travel control device that enables suitable automatic driving according to a route plan.

[1] A travel control device according to the present invention is a travel control device that controls automatic driving capable of traveling without requiring a driver's driving operation or automatic driving that assists the driver's driving operation. And at least two measurements arranged in the road width direction of the object based on the detection output from the sensor and a plurality of measurement points each indicating the presence of the object. An object specifying unit that specifies a point and an area setting unit that sets an area where the object does not exist based on at least the two measurement points.

  Thereby, the area | region which the own vehicle can move becomes clear, and traveling control of the own vehicle can be performed with a margin. In addition, since an area where no object exists is set based on at least two measurement points, an area where the vehicle can move is set without being affected by changes in luminance of the object (other moving objects, stationary objects, etc.). can do. In addition, recognition load by the ECU or the like is small, and recognition without time lag can be performed.

[2] In the present invention, the region setting unit may set a region including at least a first side based on the two measurement points as a region where the object does not exist.

  Since the area where no object is present only needs to include the first side based on at least two measurement points arranged in the road width direction of the object, the area where no object exists can be easily set. In addition, since it is only necessary to control the vehicle so that it does not travel further forward than the first side, the calculation of the target travel locus by the electronic control unit (ECU) can be performed in a short time.

[3] In this case, the region setting unit sets a second side extending in the normal direction of the sensor from the end of the first side, and the first side and the first side are defined as a region where the object does not exist. A polygonal region including two sides may be set.

  Since a polygonal area including the first side and the second side is set, it is possible to set not only the area behind the first side but also the area running parallel to the obstacle as the area where the object does not exist. Thus, the range of selection of the area where the vehicle can travel can be expanded.

[4] In the present invention, at least one of the angle or the distance between the first measurement point detected last time and the second measurement point adjacent to the first measurement point is calculated as the previous feature amount, and the first detected this time. A feature amount calculation unit for calculating at least one of an angle or a distance between a measurement point and a second measurement point adjacent to the first measurement point as a current feature amount, the previous feature amount, and the current feature amount, Can be regarded as the same, the previous first measurement point and the second measurement point may include an object tracking processing unit that is regarded as having moved to the current first measurement point and the second measurement point. Good.

  By providing a characteristic point indicating an angle or distance to a measurement point that characterizes an object, it is possible to easily track the moving direction of the object, the speed, acceleration, and the position of the object that change every moment. As a result, for example, among various types of traveling control for automatic driving, in particular, follow-up control for the preceding vehicle, overtaking control for the preceding vehicle, and the like can be easily performed.

[5] In the present invention, an object position prediction unit that predicts a future position of the object from at least two measurement points detected last time and at least two measurement points detected this time, and a road width of the future object. An area predicting unit that predicts an area in which the future object does not exist based on at least two measurement points arranged in the direction may be included.

  As a result, not only the position of the future object but also the future position of the area itself where the object does not exist can be obtained, and the accuracy of the follow-up control for the preceding vehicle, the overtaking control for the preceding vehicle, and the like can be improved.

  According to the travel control device of the present invention, it is possible to predict the travelable area of the host vehicle without being affected by the luminance change of the object (other moving body), and according to the plan of the travel path of the host vehicle. A suitable automatic driving is made possible.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the vehicle containing the travel electronic control apparatus as a travel control apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the whole flow of automatic operation control. It is a functional block diagram regarding the structure of a periphery recognition part, mainly calculation of the driving | running | working area | region of the own vehicle, and periphery monitoring control. It is a top view which shows typically the coordinate system by which the several measurement point which shows the presence of a surrounding obstacle at least was expand | deployed. FIG. 5A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the current feature quantity of adjacent measurement points, and FIG. 5B is an explanatory diagram showing that the current first measurement point and the previous first measurement point correspond to each other. FIG. 5C is an explanatory diagram showing that the current second measurement point corresponds to the previous second measurement point, and FIG. 5D corresponds to the current third measurement point and the previous third measurement point. It is explanatory drawing which shows that it exists. It is a flowchart which shows the processing operation and periphery monitoring control in a periphery recognition part.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a travel control device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle 10 including a travel electronic control device 36 (hereinafter referred to as “travel ECU 36”) as a travel control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  In addition to the travel ECU 36, the vehicle 10 (hereinafter also referred to as “own vehicle 10”) includes a vehicle peripheral sensor group 20, a vehicle body behavior sensor group 22, a driving operation sensor group 24, a communication device 26, a human machine machine. It has an interface 28 (hereinafter referred to as “HMI 28”), a driving force control system 30, a braking force control system 32, and an electric power steering system 34 (hereinafter referred to as “EPS system 34”).

  The vehicle periphery sensor group 20 detects information related to the periphery of the vehicle 10 (hereinafter also referred to as “vehicle periphery information Ic”). The vehicle periphery sensor group 20 includes a plurality of outside cameras 50, a plurality of radars 52, a LIDAR 54 (Light Detection And Ranging), and a global positioning system sensor 56 (hereinafter referred to as “GPS sensor 56”). included.

  The plurality of in-vehicle cameras 50 outputs image information Iimage obtained by imaging the periphery (front, side, and rear) of the vehicle 10. The plurality of radars 52 output radar information Irader indicating reflected waves with respect to electromagnetic waves transmitted to the periphery (front, side, and rear) of the vehicle 10. The LIDAR 54 continuously emits a laser in all directions of the vehicle 10, measures the three-dimensional position of the reflection point based on the reflected wave, and outputs it as three-dimensional information Ilidar. The GPS sensor 56 detects the current position Pcur of the vehicle 10. The outside camera 50, the radar 52, the LIDAR 54, and the GPS sensor 56 are peripheral recognition devices that recognize the vehicle peripheral information Ic.

  The vehicle body behavior sensor group 22 detects information related to the behavior of the vehicle 10 (particularly, the vehicle body) (hereinafter also referred to as “vehicle body behavior information Ib”). The vehicle body behavior sensor group 22 includes a vehicle speed sensor 60, a lateral acceleration sensor 62, and a yaw rate sensor 64.

  The vehicle speed sensor 60 detects the vehicle speed V [km / h] of the vehicle 10. The lateral acceleration sensor 62 detects the lateral acceleration Glat [m / s / s] of the vehicle 10. The yaw rate sensor 64 detects the yaw rate Yr [rad / s] of the vehicle 10.

  The driving operation sensor group 24 detects information related to driving operation by the driver (hereinafter also referred to as “driving operation information Io”). The driving operation sensor group 24 includes an accelerator pedal sensor 80, a brake pedal sensor 82, a steering angle sensor 84, and a steering torque sensor 86.

  An accelerator pedal sensor 80 (hereinafter also referred to as “AP sensor 80”) detects an operation amount θap of the accelerator pedal 90 (hereinafter also referred to as “AP operation amount θap”) [%]. The brake pedal sensor 82 (hereinafter also referred to as “BP sensor 82”) detects an operation amount θbp of the brake pedal 92 (hereinafter also referred to as “BP operation amount θbp”) [%]. The steering angle sensor 84 detects the steering angle θst (hereinafter also referred to as “operation amount θst”) [deg] of the steering handle 94. The steering torque sensor 86 detects the steering torque Tst [N · m] applied to the steering handle 94.

  The communication device 26 performs wireless communication with an external device. The external device here includes, for example, a traffic information server (not shown). The traffic information server provides traffic information such as traffic jam information, accident information, and construction information to each vehicle 10. Alternatively, the external device may include a route guidance server (not shown). The route guidance server generates or calculates a planned route Rv to the target point Pgoal instead of the travel ECU 36 based on the current position Pcur of the vehicle 10 received from the communication device 26 and the target point Pgoal.

  In addition, although the communication apparatus 26 of this Embodiment assumes what is mounted (or always fixed) in the vehicle 10, for example, what can be carried out of the vehicle 10 like a mobile telephone or a smart phone. It may be.

  The HMI 28 receives an operation input from the occupant and presents various information to the occupant visually, audibly, and tactilely. The HMI 28 includes an automatic operation switch 110 (hereinafter also referred to as “automatic operation SW 110”) and a display unit 112. The automatic operation SW 110 is a switch for instructing the start and end of automatic operation control by the operation of the occupant. In addition to or instead of the automatic operation SW 110, the start or end of the automatic operation control can be instructed by other methods (such as voice input via a microphone (not shown)). The display unit 112 includes, for example, a liquid crystal panel or an organic EL panel. The display unit 112 may be configured as a touch panel.

  The driving force control system 30 includes an engine 120 (drive source) and a drive electronic control device 122 (hereinafter referred to as “drive ECU 122”). The AP sensor 80 and the accelerator pedal 90 described above may be positioned as a part of the driving force control system 30. The drive ECU 122 executes drive force control of the vehicle 10 using the AP operation amount θap and the like. In driving force control, the drive ECU 122 controls the driving force Fd of the vehicle 10 through the control of the engine 120.

  The braking force control system 32 includes a brake mechanism 130 and a braking electronic control device 132 (hereinafter referred to as “braking ECU 132”). The BP sensor 82 and the brake pedal 92 described above may be positioned as a part of the braking force control system 32. The brake mechanism 130 operates a brake member by a brake motor (or a hydraulic mechanism) or the like.

  The braking ECU 132 executes the braking force control of the vehicle 10 using the BP operation amount θbp and the like. In the braking force control, the braking ECU 132 controls the braking force Fb of the vehicle 10 through the control of the brake mechanism 130 and the like.

  The EPS system 34 includes an EPS motor 140 and an EPS electronic control unit 142 (hereinafter referred to as “EPS-ECU 142”). The steering angle sensor 84, the steering torque sensor 86, and the steering handle 94 described above may be positioned as a part of the EPS system 34.

  The EPS-ECU 142 controls the EPS motor 140 in accordance with a command from the travel ECU 36 to control the turning amount R of the vehicle 10. The turning amount R includes the steering angle θst, the lateral acceleration Glat, and the yaw rate Yr.

  The traveling ECU 36 performs automatic driving control for driving the vehicle 10 to the target point Pgoal without requiring a driving operation by the driver, and includes, for example, a central processing unit (CPU). The ECU 36 includes an input / output unit 150, a calculation unit 152, and a storage unit 154.

  A part of the function of the traveling ECU 36 can be assigned to an external device existing outside the vehicle 10. For example, the vehicle 10 itself may have a configuration in which the planned route Rv and / or the map information Imap is acquired from the route guidance server without having the action plan unit 172 and / or the map database 190 described later.

  The input / output unit 150 performs input / output with devices other than the ECU 36 (sensor groups 20, 22, 24, communication device 26, etc.). The input / output unit 150 includes an A / D conversion circuit (not shown) that converts an input analog signal into a digital signal.

  The computing unit 152 performs computation based on signals from the sensor groups 20, 22, 24, the communication device 26, the HMI 28, the ECUs 122, 132, 142, and the like. And the calculating part 152 produces | generates the signal with respect to the communication apparatus 26, drive ECU122, brake ECU132, and EPS-ECU142 based on a calculation result.

  As illustrated in FIG. 1, the calculation unit 152 of the travel ECU 36 includes a periphery recognition unit 170, an action plan unit 172, and a travel control unit 174. Each of these units is realized by executing a program stored in the storage unit 154. The program may be supplied from an external device via the communication device 26. A part of the program can be configured by hardware (circuit parts).

  Based on the vehicle periphery information Ic from the vehicle periphery sensor group 20, the periphery recognition unit 170, as shown in FIG. 4, the boundaries 202a and 202b (lane marks, guardrails, slopes, etc.) of the road 200 and the peripheral obstacle 204 ( Other vehicles 204a, 204b, stationary objects, etc.) are recognized. For example, the boundaries 202a and 202b of the road 200 are recognized based on the image information Iimage. The periphery recognition unit 170 recognizes the travel lane 206 of the vehicle 10 based on the recognized boundaries 202 a and 202 b of the road 200.

  The peripheral obstacle 204 is recognized using the image information Iimage, the radar information Irader, and the three-dimensional information Ilidar. The peripheral obstacle 204 includes moving objects such as other vehicles (other vehicles 204a and 204b) and stationary objects 204c such as buildings and signs (for example, traffic lights). When the surrounding obstacle 204 is a traffic signal, the periphery recognition unit 170 determines the color of the traffic signal.

  The action planning unit 172 calculates the planned route Rv of the host vehicle 10 to the target point Pgoal input via the HMI 28, and performs route guidance along the planned route Rv.

  The travel control unit 174 controls the output of each actuator that controls the vehicle behavior. The actuator here includes the engine 120, the brake mechanism 130, and the EPS motor 140. The travel control unit 174 controls the behavior amount of the vehicle 10 (particularly the vehicle body) (hereinafter referred to as “vehicle body behavior amount Qb”) by controlling the output of the actuator.

  The vehicle body behavior amount Qb mentioned here includes the vehicle speed V, the longitudinal acceleration α [m / s / s], the longitudinal deceleration β [m / s / s], the steering angle θst, the lateral acceleration Glat, and the yaw rate Yr. The acceleration α and the deceleration β can be calculated as time differential values of the vehicle speed V.

  The travel control unit 174 includes a driving force control unit 180, a braking force control unit 182, and a turning control unit 184. The driving force control unit 180 controls the traveling driving force Fd (or acceleration α) of the vehicle 10 mainly by controlling the output of the engine 120. The braking force control unit 182 controls the braking force Fb (or the deceleration β) of the vehicle 10 mainly by controlling the output of the brake mechanism 130. The turning control unit 184 mainly controls the turning amount R (or the steering angle θst, the lateral acceleration Glat, and the yaw rate Yr) of the vehicle 10 by controlling the output of the EPS motor 140.

  The storage unit 154 stores programs and data (including the map database 190) used by the calculation unit 152. The map database 190 (hereinafter referred to as “map DB 190”) stores road map information (map information Imap). The map information Imap includes road information Iload related to the shape of the road.

  The storage unit 154 includes, for example, a random access memory (hereinafter referred to as “RAM”). As the RAM, a volatile memory such as a register and a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory can be used. The storage unit 154 may include a read only memory (hereinafter referred to as “ROM”) in addition to the RAM.

  As described above, the travel ECU 36 of the present embodiment performs automatic operation control. In the automatic driving control, the vehicle 10 is driven to the target point Pgoal without requiring a driving operation by the driver. However, in the automatic driving control, when the driver operates the accelerator pedal 90, the brake pedal 92, or the steering handle 94, the operation may be reflected in the driving. In the automatic driving control of the present embodiment, automatic driving force control, automatic braking force control, and automatic turning control are used in combination.

  The automatic driving force control automatically controls the traveling driving force Fd of the vehicle 10. The automatic braking force control automatically controls the braking force Fb of the vehicle 10. The automatic turning control automatically controls the turning amount R of the vehicle 10. The turning of the vehicle 10 here includes not only the case of traveling on a curved road, but also includes turning the vehicle 10 left and right, changing the driving lane, joining to another lane, and maintaining the driving lane. Note that turning for maintaining the traveling lane means turning (or steering) to maintain the vehicle 10 at the reference position (for example, the center in the vehicle width direction) in the vehicle width direction.

  In the automatic driving force control, the vehicle 10 travels by controlling the traveling driving force Fd. At this time, the ECU 36 sets a target value (for example, target engine torque) of the travel driving force Fd, and controls the actuator (engine 120) according to the target value. Further, the ECU 36 sets an upper limit value αmax (hereinafter also referred to as “acceleration upper limit value αmax”) of the longitudinal acceleration α of the vehicle 10 and controls the driving force Fd so that the longitudinal acceleration α does not exceed the acceleration upper limit value αmax. To do.

  In the automatic braking force control, the vehicle 10 is decelerated by controlling the braking force Fb of the vehicle 10. At this time, the ECU 36 sets a target value (for example, target longitudinal deceleration βtar) of the braking force Fb, and controls the actuator (brake mechanism 130) according to the target value. Further, the ECU 36 sets an upper limit value βmax of the deceleration β of the vehicle 10 (hereinafter also referred to as “deceleration upper limit value βmax”) so that the deceleration β does not exceed the deceleration upper limit value βmax (sudden deceleration). The braking force Fb is controlled so as not to overdo it.

  In the automatic turning control, the turning amount R of the vehicle 10 is controlled to turn the vehicle 10. At this time, the ECU 36 sets a target value (for example, target steering angle θstar or target lateral acceleration Glatar) of the turning amount R, and controls the actuator (EPS motor 140) according to the target value. Further, the ECU 36 sets an upper limit value Rmax of the turning amount R of the vehicle 10 (hereinafter also referred to as “turning amount upper limit value Rmax”), and sets the turning amount R so that the turning amount R does not exceed the turning amount upper limit value Rmax. Control. The turning amount upper limit value Rmax is, for example, an upper limit value θstmax of the steering angle θst (hereinafter also referred to as “steering angle upper limit value θstmax”) or an upper limit value Glatmax of the lateral acceleration Glat (hereinafter referred to as “lateral acceleration upper limit value Glatmax”). Used in the form.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an overall flow of the automatic operation control of the present embodiment. In step S11, the traveling ECU 36 determines whether or not to start automatic driving. For example, the ECU 36 determines whether or not the automatic operation switch 110 (FIG. 1) has been switched from OFF to ON. When the automatic operation is started (S11: YES), the process proceeds to step S12. When the automatic operation is not started (S11: NO), the current process is finished, and the process returns to step S11 after a predetermined time has elapsed.

  In step S12, the ECU 36 sets a target point Pgoal. Specifically, the input of the target point Pgoal is received from the user (driver or the like) via the HMI 28. In step S13, the ECU 36 calculates a planned route Rv from the current position Pcur to the target point Pgoal. In addition, when performing step S13 after step S21 mentioned later, ECU36 updates the scheduled path | route Rv.

  In step S <b> 14, the ECU 36 acquires vehicle surrounding information Ic, vehicle body behavior information Ib, and driving operation information Io from each of the sensor groups 20, 22, 24. As described above, the vehicle periphery information Ic includes the image information Iimage from the outside camera 50, the radar information Irader from the radar 52, the three-dimensional information Ilidar from the LIDAR 54, and the current position Pcur from the GPS sensor 56. The vehicle body behavior information Ib includes the vehicle speed V from the vehicle speed sensor 60, the lateral acceleration Glat from the lateral acceleration sensor 62, and the yaw rate Yr from the yaw rate sensor 64. The driving operation information Io includes an AP operation amount θap from the AP sensor 80, a BP operation amount θbp from the BP sensor 82, a steering angle θst from the steering angle sensor 84, and a steering torque Tst from the steering torque sensor 86.

  In step S15, the ECU 36 calculates the output upper limit value Pmax of each actuator. The actuator here includes the engine 120, the brake mechanism 130, and the EPS motor 140.

  Further, the upper limit value Pmax of the output Peng of the engine 120 (hereinafter also referred to as “output upper limit value Pengmax”) is, for example, the upper limit value of the torque of the engine 120. The upper limit value Pmax of the output Pb of the brake mechanism 130 (hereinafter also referred to as “output upper limit value Pbmax”) is, for example, the upper limit value of the braking force Fb. The upper limit value Pmax of the output Peps of the EPS motor 140 (hereinafter also referred to as “output upper limit value Pepsmax”) is, for example, the upper limit value of the torque of the EPS motor 140. By using these output upper limit values Pmax (Pengmax, Pbmax, Pepsmax), it becomes possible to avoid excessive output and enhance the riding comfort of the occupant.

  The output upper limit value Pmax is calculated based on the upper limit value Qbmax of the vehicle body behavior amount Qb. In step S15 of the present embodiment, limit control for switching the output upper limit value Pmax according to the vehicle speed V is executed.

  In step S16, the ECU 36 calculates a travelable area (such as the travelable area 232 in FIG. 4) described later. The travelable area 232 indicates an area where the vehicle 10 can travel at the present time. For example, a region where the distance between the vehicle 10 and each of the surrounding objects is a predetermined value or more with reference to the reference point of the vehicle 10 (for example, the center of gravity of the vehicle 10 and the center of a line segment connecting the left and right rear wheels) is shown.

  In calculating the travelable region 232, the relationship with the obstacles around the vehicle 10 (particularly, obstacles ahead) (the other cars 204a, 204b, etc. in FIG. 4) is also considered. In relation to surrounding obstacles, the ECU 36 performs surrounding monitoring control. The peripheral monitoring control will be described later with reference to FIG.

  When the periphery recognition unit 170 recognizes a red signal, the area ahead of the stop line before the traffic light can be excluded from the travelable area 232. Alternatively, the travelable area 232 may be simply calculated based on the relationship (distance, etc.) with the surrounding obstacles, and the travel restriction due to the red signal may be reflected when calculating the target travel locus Ltar described later.

  In step S17, the ECU 36 calculates a target travel locus Ltar. The target travel locus Ltar is a target value of the travel locus L of the vehicle 10. In the present embodiment, the optimal target travel locus Ltar is selected from the travel tracks L that satisfy various conditions from the travelable region 232 calculated in step S16.

  In step S18, the ECU 36 calculates a target control amount (in other words, a target vehicle body behavior amount Qbtar) of each actuator based on the target travel locus Ltar. The target vehicle body behavior amount Qbtar includes, for example, a target longitudinal acceleration αtar, a target longitudinal deceleration βtar, and a target lateral acceleration Glatar.

  In step S19, the travel ECU 36 controls each actuator (in other words, the vehicle body behavior amount Qb) using the target control amount calculated in step S18. For example, the driving force control unit 180 calculates a target output Pengtar (for example, target engine torque) of the engine 120 (actuator) so as to realize the target longitudinal acceleration αtar. Then, the driving force control unit 180 controls the engine 120 via the driving ECU 122 so as to realize the target output Pengtar.

  Further, the braking force control unit 182 calculates the target output Pbtar of the brake mechanism 130 (actuator) so as to realize the target longitudinal deceleration βtar. Then, the braking force control unit 182 controls the brake mechanism 130 via the braking ECU 132 so as to realize the target output Pbtar.

  Further, the turning control unit 184 sets the target rudder angle θstart so as to realize the target lateral acceleration Glattar. Then, the turning control unit 184 controls the EPS motor 140 (actuator) via the EPS-ECU 142 so as to realize the target steering angle θstar. In addition to or instead of turning by the EPS motor 140, it is also possible to turn the vehicle 10 by a torque difference between the left and right wheels (so-called torque vectoring).

  In step S20, the ECU 36 determines whether or not to change the target point Pgoal or the planned route Rv. The case where the target point Pgoal is changed is a case where a new target point Pgoal is input through the operation of the HMI 28. The case where the planned route Rv is changed is, for example, a case where traffic congestion occurs in the planned route Rv and it is necessary to set a detour. The occurrence of traffic jams can be recognized using traffic jam information acquired from the traffic information server via the communication device 26, for example.

  When the target point Pgoal or the planned route Rv is changed (S20: YES), the process returns to step S13, and the planned route Rv based on the new target point Pgoal is calculated or a new planned route Rv is calculated. When the target point Pgoal or the planned route Rv is not changed (S20: NO), the process proceeds to step S21.

  In step S21, the traveling ECU 36 determines whether or not to end the automatic driving. The automatic driving is terminated, for example, when the vehicle 10 arrives at the target point Pgoal or when the automatic driving switch 110 is switched from on to off. Or when it becomes a surrounding environment where automatic driving | operation becomes difficult, ECU36 complete | finishes automatic driving | operation.

  When the automatic operation is not terminated (S21: NO), the process returns to step S13, and the ECU 36 updates the planned route Rv based on the current position Pcur. When the automatic operation is terminated (S21: YES), the process proceeds to step S22.

  In step S22, the ECU 36 executes an end process. Specifically, when the vehicle 10 arrives at the target point Pgoal, the ECU 36 notifies the driver or the like by voice, display, or the like via the HMI 28 that the vehicle 10 has arrived at the target point Pgoal. When the automatic operation switch 110 is switched from on to off, the ECU 36 notifies the driver or the like via voice, display, or the like via the HMI 28 that automatic operation is to be terminated. When the surrounding environment becomes difficult for automatic driving, the ECU 36 notifies the driver or the like via the HMI 28 by voice, display, or the like.

  As described above, when calculating the travelable region 232 (S16 in FIG. 2), the ECU 36 performs the periphery monitoring control. Hereinafter, the periphery monitoring control will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The peripheral monitoring control is control for avoiding contact with a peripheral obstacle (such as the other vehicle 204a in FIG. 4) existing around the vehicle 10 (particularly in front) based on information from the peripheral recognition unit 170.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the periphery recognition unit 170 includes a measurement point setting unit 210, an obstacle specifying unit 212, a region setting unit 214, a feature amount calculation unit 216, an obstacle tracking processing unit 218, and an obstacle position. A prediction unit 220 and a region prediction unit 222 are included.

  The measurement point setting unit 210 sets a plurality of measurement points on a virtual plane on the travel ECU 36 based on the detection output from the vehicle periphery sensor group 20 for each unit time. Examples of the unit time include the time for the outside camera 50 to capture an image for one frame, the frame rate of the LIDAR 54, and the like.

For example, as shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of measurement points 230A ₁ ~230A _n on one arranged along the traveling direction of the vehicle 10 is the measured point indicating the one boundary 202a of the road 200, the other of the plurality of measurement points 230B _{1 to} 230B _n are measurement points indicating the other boundary 202b of the road 200.

The measurement points that exist in the travel lane 206 and are aligned in the road width direction are measurement points that indicate the peripheral obstacle 204 that exists in front of the host vehicle 10. For example, measurement points 230C _{1 to} 230C _n and 230D _{1 to} 230D _n are set for the other vehicles 204a and 204b, respectively.

  Data on the measurement points, that is, the coordinates of the measurement points on the virtual plane of the travel ECU 36 are registered in the memory as a coordinate table. That is, the coordinate table constitutes a coordinate system in which a plurality of measurement points each indicating the presence of a surrounding obstacle are developed based on the detection output from the vehicle surrounding sensor group 20. In the data relating to each measurement point, at least information indicating the position of the measurement point (distance from the vehicle 10) is registered. This will be described later.

The obstacle identifying unit 212 focuses on only a plurality of measurement points arranged in the road width direction, and identifies at least two measurement points for each of the surrounding obstacles 204. Among the measurement points 230C _{1 to} 230C _n and 230D _{1 to} 230D _n , end points (230C ₁ , 230C _n ) and (230D ₁ , 230D _n ) indicating both ends in the road width direction respectively indicate measurement points indicating the surrounding obstacles A1 and A2 Identified as

The region setting unit 214 sets a region where the peripheral obstacle 204 does not exist (hereinafter referred to as a travelable region 232) on the virtual plane on the travel ECU 36 based on the specified measurement points of the peripheral obstacle 204. . In this case, as the travelable region 232, regions where the lines connecting the end points (230C ₁ , 230C _n ) and the lines connecting the end points (230D ₁ , 230D _n ) are respectively set as the first sides 234a and 234b are set.

  Further, the region setting unit 214 sets second sides 236a and 236b extending in the normal direction of the sensor (radar 52, LIDAR 54, etc.) from the ends of the first sides 234a and 234b. Then, a polygonal region including a plurality of first sides 234 a and 234 b and a plurality of second sides 236 a and 236 b is set as a region where the peripheral obstacle 204 does not exist, that is, the travelable region 232.

  On the other hand, the feature amount calculation unit 216 calculates at least one of the direction (angle) or the distance between the measurement points adjacent to each other among the plurality of measurement points arranged in the road width direction detected this time as the current feature amount.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5A, when considering the measurement point 230C ₁ adjacent to the measurement point 230C ₂ and the measurement point 230C ₂ measurement points 230C _3, this characteristic quantity is three time corresponding to three measurement points Feature amounts F _{1 to} F ₃ can be mentioned.

The feature amount F ₁ this time is the position of the measurement point 230C ₁ (distance from the vehicle 10), the direction d12 of the first line segment 238a extending from the measurement point 230C ₁ to the measurement point 230C _2, and the length of the first line segment 238a. L1, occlusion flags indicating that does not extend the line segments and the like from the measurement point 230C ₁ to the measuring point 230C ₂ different measuring points.

The feature amount F ₂ this time is the position of the measurement point 230C ₂ (distance from the vehicle 10), the direction d21 of the first line segment 238a extending from the measurement point 230C ₂ to the measurement point 230C _1, and the length of the first line segment 238a. L1, the measurement point 230C ₂ extending measurement point 230C ₃ from the second segment 238b of the orientation d23, the length L2 and the like of the second line segment 238b and the like.

The feature amount F ₃ this time is the position of the measurement point 230C ₃ (distance from the vehicle 10), the direction d32 of the second line segment 238b extending from the measurement point 230C ₃ to the measurement point 230C _2, and the length of the second line segment 238b. L2, (not shown) direction of the third line segment 238c extending from the measurement point 230C ₃ to the measuring point 230C ₄ (not shown), the length of the third segment 238c (not shown) and the like. The same applies hereinafter.

  Then, the feature quantity calculation unit 216 registers the current feature quantity as the previous feature quantity and initializes the current feature quantity when the obstacle tracking processing of the peripheral obstacle 204 described later is completed.

  The obstacle tracking processing unit 218 comprehensively compares the current feature value with the previous feature value at the stage when the current feature value is calculated, and the current feature value and the previous feature value are mainly regarded as the same. The measurement point of and the previous measurement point are searched and associated. In order to shorten the processing time, it is preferable that the distance between the current measurement point to be compared and the previous measurement point is an actual measurement value, for example, a measurement point within 2 m. For example, this is a distance range in which the unit time is 0.015 seconds (progressive one frame time) and the vehicle 10 is assumed to have a maximum speed of 200 km / h.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5B, the previous measurement points 230C ₁ , 230C ₂ and 230C ₃ (represented by broken circles) and the current measurement points 230C ₁ , 230C ₂ and 230C ₃ (respectively solid circles) When the current feature value of the measurement point 230C ₁ can be regarded as the same only as the previous feature value of 230C ₁ , the obstacle tracking processing unit 218 determines that the current measurement point 230C ₁ and the previous measurement point 230C ₁ Is associated. “Can be regarded as the same” includes, for example, the direction of a line segment (first line segment 238a, etc.) within ± 5 °, and the difference in length of the line segments within 20 mm.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5C, if the current characteristic of 230C ₂ can be regarded as identical only the last feature quantity of the measurement point 230C _2, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218, the measurement of the current measurement point 230C ₂ and the previous associates the point 230C _2. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5D, if the current characteristic of the measured point 230C ₃ can be regarded as identical only the last feature quantity of the measurement point 230C _3, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218, the current measurement point 230C ₃ and the previous correlating the measurement point 230C ₃ of.

As a result, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218 moves the obstacle specified at the previous measurement points 230C _{1 to} 230C ₃ as the obstacle specified at the current measurement points 230C _{1 to} 230C ₃ after a unit time. Estimated. Further, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218 estimates the acceleration of the corresponding peripheral obstacle 204 based on the information on the speed estimated for each unit time. If the speed of the corresponding peripheral obstacle 204 is zero, it is determined that the corresponding peripheral obstacle is not a moving object but a stationary obstacle.

  On the other hand, the obstacle position predicting unit 220 generates a corresponding peripheral based on the position information of the previous feature amount, the position information of the current feature amount, and the unit time described above with respect to at least two measurement points 230 arranged in the road width direction. The speed of the obstacle 204, the traveling direction, and the position after a predetermined time are predicted. Examples of the predetermined time include a unit time and a preset time (1 second, 5 seconds, etc.).

  The region prediction unit 222 predicts the travelable region 232 after a predetermined time based on the positions after the predetermined time of at least two measurement points 230 arranged in the road width direction predicted by the obstacle position prediction unit 220. The predicted travelable area 232d is assumed.

  Here, the processing operation and the periphery monitoring control in the periphery recognition unit 170 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The peripheral recognition unit 170 is activated every unit time.

  First, in step S101, the measurement point setting unit 210 sets a plurality of measurement points 230 on a virtual plane on the travel ECU 36 based on the detection output from the vehicle surrounding sensor group 20 for each unit time. Data regarding the measurement point 230, that is, coordinates on the virtual plane on the travel ECU 36, etc. are registered in the memory as a coordinate table.

  In step S102, the obstacle identifying unit 212 focuses on only the plurality of measurement points 230 arranged in the road width direction, and identifies at least two measurement points for each of the surrounding obstacles 204.

In step S <b> 103, the region setting unit 214 sets the travelable region 232 on the virtual plane on the travel ECU 36 based on the specified measurement point 230 of the surrounding obstacle 204. In other words, the region setting unit 214, a line connecting measurement points 230C ₁ and 230C _n corresponding, first side 234a of the line connecting the measuring points 230D ₁ and 230D _n respectively, and 234b, further, the first side 234a, 234b The second sides 236a and 236b extending in the normal direction of the sensor (radar 52, LIDAR 54, etc.) from the end of the sensor are set. Then, the region setting unit 214 sets a polygonal region including the plurality of first sides 234 a and 234 b and the plurality of second sides 236 a and 236 b as the travelable region 232.

  In step S104, the feature amount calculation unit 216 calculates at least one of the direction (angle) or distance of the measurement points 230 adjacent to each other among the plurality of measurement points 230 arranged in the road width direction detected this time as the current feature amount.

  In step S105, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218 calculates the feature amount (previous feature amount) calculated by the feature amount calculation unit 216 in the previous step S104 and the feature amount calculated by the feature amount calculation unit 216 in the current step S104. Comparing the amount (current feature amount) comprehensively, mainly the previous feature amount (the direction of the line segment and the length of the line segment) and the current feature amount (the direction of the line segment and the length of the line segment) The previous measurement point 230 and the current measurement point 230 that can be regarded as the same are searched and associated with each other. That is, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218 has the same obstacle as the peripheral obstacle 204 specified at the previous measurement point 230 that can be regarded as the same and the peripheral obstacle 204 specified at the current measurement point 230 after the unit time. Correlate as a thing.

  In step S106, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218 estimates the speed of the corresponding surrounding obstacle 204 based on the position information of the previous feature quantity measurement point 230, the current feature quantity position information, and the unit time. .

  In step S107, the obstacle tracking processing unit 218 estimates the acceleration of the corresponding peripheral obstacle 204 based on the information on the speed estimated for each unit time.

  In step S108, the obstacle position prediction unit 220 determines the corresponding surroundings based on the position information of the previous feature amount, the position information of the current feature amount, and the unit time with respect to at least two measurement points 230 arranged in the road width direction. The position of the obstacle 204 after a predetermined time is predicted.

  In step S <b> 109, the region prediction unit 222 determines the travelable region 232 after a predetermined time based on the positions after the predetermined time of at least two measurement points 230 arranged in the road width direction predicted by the obstacle position prediction unit 220. Predict.

  In step S110, the feature quantity calculation unit 216 registers the current feature quantity as the previous feature quantity, and initializes the current feature quantity.

  Then, the periphery recognition part 170 is started for every unit time, and the process of step S101-S110 mentioned above is repeated.

  As described above, in step S17 in FIG. 2, the travel ECU 36 selects, as the target travel locus Ltar, the optimal one of the travel loci L that satisfies various conditions from the calculated travelable region 232. In this selection, the estimated speed and acceleration of the surrounding obstacle 204, the predicted position of the surrounding obstacle 204 after a predetermined time, and the predicted travelable area 232 after the predetermined time are also taken into consideration.

  As described above, the travel control apparatus according to the present embodiment is a travel control apparatus that controls automatic driving capable of traveling without requiring a driver's driving operation or automatic driving that assists the driver's driving operation. The presence of at least an object (peripheral obstacle 204) based on a sensor (vehicle peripheral sensor group 20) that detects an object (peripheral obstacle 204) existing in front of the vehicle 10 and the detection output from the sensor. An object specifying unit (obstacle specifying unit 212) for specifying at least two points (measurement points 230) aligned in the road width direction of the object (peripheral obstacle 204), and at least two points And an area setting unit 214 that sets an area where no object exists (travelable area 232) based on the point (measurement point 230).

  Thereby, the area | region which the own vehicle 10 can move becomes clear, and traveling control of the own vehicle 10 can be performed with a margin. Further, since the travelable area 232 is set based on at least two measurement points 230, the area where the host vehicle 10 can move can be set without being affected by the luminance change of the surrounding obstacle 204. Moreover, the recognition load by the travel ECU 36 and the like is small, and recognition without time lag can be performed.

  In the present embodiment, region setting unit 214 sets a region including first sides 234 a and 234 b based on at least two measurement points 230 as travelable region 232.

  Accordingly, the travelable area 232 only needs to include the first sides 234a and 234b based on at least two measurement points 230 arranged in the road width direction of the surrounding obstacle 204, and thus the travelable area 232 can be easily set. Can do. In addition, since it is only necessary to control the own vehicle 10 so as not to travel forward from the first sides 234a and 234b, the travel ECU 36 can calculate the target travel locus Ltar in a short time.

  In this case, the region setting unit 214 sets the second sides 236a and 236b extending in the normal direction of the sensor from the ends of the first sides 234a and 234b, and sets the first sides 234a and 234b as the travelable region 232. A polygonal region (travelable region 232) including two sides 236a and 236b is set.

  Accordingly, in order to set a polygonal region including the first side 234a, 234b and the second side 236a, 236b, not only the region behind the first side 234a, 234b but also the peripheral obstacle as the travelable region 232 It is possible to set an area where the object 204 runs in parallel, and the range of selection of the area where the vehicle 10 can travel can be expanded.

  In the present embodiment, at least one of the angle or the distance between the first measurement point detected last time and the second measurement point adjacent to the first measurement point is calculated as the previous feature amount, and the first detection point detected this time is calculated. At least one of an angle or a distance between one measurement point and a second measurement point adjacent to the first measurement point is calculated as the current feature amount. If the previous feature value and the current feature value can be regarded as the same, the previous first measurement point and the second measurement point are considered to have moved to the current first measurement point and the second measurement point. ing.

  As a result, by providing the measurement points that characteristically indicate the peripheral obstacle 204 with feature quantities indicating the angle and distance, the moving direction of the peripheral obstacle 204 that changes momentarily, the speed, acceleration, and peripheral obstacles of the peripheral obstacle 204 are displayed. The position of 204 can be easily tracked. As a result, for example, among various types of traveling control for automatic driving, in particular, follow-up control for the preceding vehicle, overtaking control for the preceding vehicle, and the like can be easily performed.

  In the present embodiment, the position of the future peripheral obstacle 204 is predicted from at least two measurement points 230 detected last time and the at least two measurement points 230 detected this time, and the road width of the future peripheral obstacle 204 is predicted. A future travelable region 232 is predicted based on at least two measurement points 230 arranged in the direction.

  As a result, it is possible to obtain not only the future position of the surrounding obstacle 204 but also the future position of the travelable area 232 itself, and the accuracy of the follow-up control for the preceding vehicle, the overtaking control for the preceding vehicle, and the like can be improved. .

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that the present invention can be freely changed without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  For example, the polygonal travelable area 232 set by the area setting unit 214 may be displayed three-dimensionally on the windshield. As a result, the driver can intuitively recognize which area in front is the travelable area 232.

  Although the vehicle periphery sensor group 20 of the above embodiment includes a plurality of outside cameras 50, the plurality of outside cameras 50 may include a stereo camera that detects the front of the vehicle 10.

  The vehicle body behavior sensor group 22 of the above embodiment includes a vehicle speed sensor 60, a lateral acceleration sensor 62, and a yaw rate sensor 64 (see FIG. 1), but is not limited thereto. For example, any one or more of the lateral acceleration sensor 62 and the yaw rate sensor 64 can be omitted.

  The driving operation sensor group 24 of the embodiment includes the AP sensor 80, the BP sensor 82, the steering angle sensor 84, and the steering torque sensor 86 (see FIG. 1), but is not limited thereto. For example, any one or more of the AP sensor 80, the BP sensor 82, the steering angle sensor 84, and the steering torque sensor 86 may be omitted.

  In the above-described embodiment, the engine 120, the brake mechanism 130, and the EPS motor 140 are used as the actuators that are targets in the automatic operation control (see FIG. 1), but are not limited thereto. For example, any one or two of the engine 120, the brake mechanism 130, and the EPS motor 140 can be excluded from the targets of automatic operation control. When one of the actuators is excluded from the target of the automatic operation control, the driver performs control related to the actuator that is excluded from the target. Further, as described above, it is possible to turn using the torque difference between the left and right wheels instead of the EPS motor 140.

  In the above-described embodiment, the automatic driving that does not require the driver's driving operation for any of acceleration, deceleration, and turning of the vehicle 10 has been described (see FIG. 2), but is not limited thereto. For example, the present invention is applied to automatic driving that does not require the driver's driving operation for only one or two of acceleration, deceleration, and turning of the vehicle 10, or automatic driving that assists the driving operation of the driver. Is also possible.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle (own vehicle) 20 ... Vehicle periphery sensor group 36 ... Traveling ECU (ECU) 50 ... Outside camera 52 ... Radar 54 ... LIDAR
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 170 ... Peripheral recognition part 172 ... Action plan part 174 ... Travel control part 200 ... Road 202a, 202b ... Road boundary 204 ... Surrounding obstacle 204a, 204b ... Other vehicle 206 ... Travel lane 210 ... Measurement point setting part 212 ... Obstacle Identification unit 214 ... region setting unit 216 ... feature amount calculation unit 218 ... obstacle tracking processing unit 220 ... obstacle position prediction unit 222 ... region prediction unit 230 ... measurement point 232 ... travelable region 234a, 234b ... first side 236a, 236b ... second side 238a ... first line segment 238b ... second line segment 238c ... third line segment

Claims (5)

A travel control device that controls automatic driving that can run without requiring driving operation of the driver or automatic driving that assists the driving operation of the driver,
A sensor for detecting an object existing in front of the vehicle,
An object specifying unit for determining a plurality of measurement points each indicating at least the presence of the object based on a detection output from the sensor, and specifying at least two measurement points arranged in a road width direction of the object;
And a region setting unit that sets a region where the object does not exist based on at least the two measurement points. The travel control device according to claim 1,
The region setting unit sets a region including at least a first side based on the two measurement points as a region where the object does not exist. The travel control device according to claim 2, wherein
The region setting unit sets a second side extending in the normal direction of the sensor from an end portion of the first side, and includes the first side and the second side as a region where the object does not exist. A travel control device that sets a rectangular region. The travel control device according to claim 1,
At least one of the angle or the distance between the first measurement point detected last time and the second measurement point adjacent to the first measurement point is calculated as the previous feature amount, and the first measurement point detected this time and the first measurement are calculated. A feature amount calculation unit that calculates at least one of an angle or a distance from a second measurement point adjacent to the point as a feature amount of this time;
When the previous feature value and the current feature value can be regarded as the same, the previous first measurement point and the second measurement point have moved to the current first measurement point and the second measurement point. An object tracking processing unit regarded as a traveling control device. The travel control device according to claim 1,
An object position prediction unit that predicts the position of the object in the future from at least two measurement points detected last time and at least two measurement points detected this time;
A travel control device comprising: a region prediction unit that predicts a region where the future object does not exist based on at least two measurement points arranged in the road width direction of the future object.

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