JP2019175262A - Automated travel system and situation notification device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technology, in an automated travel system for automatically traveling a work vehicle, capable of ensuring sufficient safety with a rational configuration when a work vehicle is automatically driven to move between two work areas through means of a road.SOLUTION: Included is a situation notification device 125 installed in an entrance/exit area Sa of a work area S and capable of notifying entrance/exit status information indicating an entrance/exit status of a work vehicle 1 with respect to the work area S from a road R toward the road R side, based on a notification instruction input by wireless communication from a controller 18. When the controller 18 executes an inter-work area movement control to automatically travel the work vehicle 1 and pass the entrance/exit area Sa, a notification instruction is output to the situation notification device 125 installed in the entrance/exit area Sa, and an entrance/exit situation notification process is executed to cause the situation notification device 125 to notify the entrance/exit situation information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic traveling system for automatically traveling a work vehicle and a situation notification device used therefor.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an automatic traveling system that acquires the current position of a work vehicle using a satellite positioning system and automatically travels an unmanned work vehicle along a previously generated target travel route is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). .)
In the automatic traveling system described in Patent Document 1, in the work area where the manned vehicle driven by the passenger is traveling, the unmanned vehicle is automatically traveled, and the existence range of the manned vehicle up to a predetermined time point is predicted, When it is predicted that the position of the unmanned vehicle interferes with the presence range of the manned vehicle, it is configured to avoid actual interference by displaying a deceleration control command or the like on the display unit of the manned vehicle. .

JP 2000-339029 A

  Although the automatic traveling system described in Patent Document 1 is intended to automatically drive an unmanned vehicle in a work area where a manned vehicle is traveling, it is assumed that the unmanned vehicle travels on a road such as an agricultural road or a general road. It has not been. In the future, when two work areas exist at positions separated from each other across the road, labor saving and improvement of work efficiency will be required when moving the work vehicle from one work area to the other work area through the road. For the purpose, it is necessary to automatically move the work vehicle and move between the two work areas through the road. However, it is necessary to ensure sufficient safety when the work vehicle is automatically driven to enter and leave the work area from the road.

  In view of this situation, the main problem of the present invention is that, in an automatic traveling system that automatically travels a work vehicle, a sufficient safety is achieved with a reasonable configuration when the work vehicle is automatically traveled and moved between two work areas through a road. It is to provide a technology that can ensure the safety.

A first characteristic configuration of the present invention is an automatic traveling system including a control unit that automatically causes the work vehicle to travel based on a current position of the work vehicle measured using a satellite positioning system,
The control unit is capable of executing inter-work area movement control in which the work vehicle is automatically driven along a target travel path for movement between predetermined areas and moved between two work areas through a road.
Entry / exit status information indicating the status of entry / exit of the work vehicle from the road to the work area in response to an input of a notification instruction via wireless communication from the control unit, which is installed at the entrance / exit part of the work area. Is equipped with a situation notification device that can notify the road side,
When the control unit executes the inter-work area movement control to automatically travel the work vehicle and pass the entrance / exit part, the notification is made to the situation notification device installed in the entrance / exit part. An entry / exit situation notification process for outputting an instruction to notify the entrance / exit situation information is performed.
Further, the situation notification device according to the present invention used in the automatic traveling system includes a situation notification unit capable of notifying the entrance / exit situation information, and the situation notification unit in response to an input of a notification instruction via wireless communication. And a notification control unit that notifies the entrance / exit status information.

According to this configuration, the control unit on the work vehicle side automatically moves the work vehicle based on the current position of the work vehicle measured by the satellite positioning system, and moves between the two work regions through the road. Movement control can be executed. When the control unit performs movement control between work areas to automatically move the work vehicle and pass through the entrance / exit part of the work area, for the status notification device installed in the entrance / exit part, The entrance / exit situation notification process is executed in a form in which a notification instruction is output by wireless communication. In the entrance / exit part through which the work vehicle passes automatically, the status notification device installed in the entrance / exit part of the entry / exit of the work vehicle is accompanied by an input of a notification instruction via wireless communication from the control unit. The entrance / exit status information indicating the situation is notified toward the road side.
Then, a driver or a pedestrian of a manned vehicle on the road side recognizes the entrance / exit situation information notified by the situation notification device, and the work vehicle that is automatically traveling enters and exits the work area from the road. It is possible to immediately and surely grasp that it is in the middle to ensure safety.
Therefore, according to the present invention, in an automatic traveling system for automatically traveling a work vehicle, it is possible to ensure sufficient safety with a reasonable configuration when the work vehicle is automatically traveled and moved between two work areas through a road. Technology that can be provided.

In the second characteristic configuration of the present invention, the entrance / exit status information indicates entrance information indicating entrance of the work vehicle from the road to the work area, and exit of the work vehicle from the work area to the road. Including exit information,
The notification instruction includes an entrance notification instruction for informing the entrance information and an exit notification instruction for informing the exit information,
The control unit executes a predetermined entrance notification process and a predetermined exit notification process as the entrance / exit situation notification process,
In the admission notification process, when the work vehicle enters the work area from the road, the admission notification instruction is output to the situation notification device installed in an entrance / exit section that passes at the time of admission. Is a process of informing information,
In the exit notification process, when the work vehicle leaves the work area to the road, the exit notification instruction is output to the situation notification device installed in the entrance / exit section through which the work vehicle passes. This is a process for informing information.

According to this configuration, when the work vehicle that is automatically traveling passes through the entrance / exit part from the road and enters the work area, the entrance notification process is executed by the control part, and the situation is set in the entrance / exit part. The notification device automatically notifies the road side of the entry information indicating entry into the work area of the work vehicle that is automatically traveling.
In addition, when leaving the work vehicle running automatically from the work area through the entrance / exit part to the road, the exit notification process is executed by the control unit, the situation notification device installed in the entrance / exit part, The exit information indicating the exit of the work vehicle during automatic traveling to the road is automatically notified toward the road side.
That is, when the work vehicle moves between two work areas by automatic traveling, automatically when leaving the work area of the departure point to the road and when entering the work area of the arrival point from the road, Corresponding exit information and entrance information can be notified from the situation notification device installed in the corresponding entrance / exit section, and safety can be ensured according to each situation.
Therefore, a driver or a pedestrian of a manned vehicle on the road side of the entrance / exit part identifies the exit information and the entrance information, so that the work vehicle currently traveling automatically exits through the entrance / exit part. It is possible to clearly recognize whether or not to enter and respond more safely according to the situation.

The third characteristic configuration of the present invention is based on the current position of the work vehicle measured using the satellite positioning system and the inter-region movement target travel route including the position of the entrance / exit part. An entrance / exit timing detection unit that detects an entrance / exit start timing before the vehicle passes through the entrance / exit portion and an entrance / exit end timing after the work vehicle passes through the entrance / exit portion;
In the entrance / exit status notification process, the control unit causes the status notification device to start notification of the entrance / exit information at the entrance / exit start timing detected by the entrance / exit timing detection unit, and the entrance / exit timing The entry / exit information notification is terminated at the entry / exit end timing detected by the detection unit.

According to this configuration, the entry / exit timing detection unit refers to the current position of the work vehicle measured using the satellite positioning system in the inter-region movement target travel route including the position of the entry / exit unit, The entry / exit start timing before the work vehicle that is automatically traveling along the target travel route for moving between areas passes through the entrance / exit section, and the work vehicle that is automatically traveling along the target travel route for movement between regions enters / leaves It is possible to easily detect the entrance / exit end timing after passing through the section.
In the entrance / exit status notification process, the control unit starts the entrance / exit information notification to the status notification device at the entrance / exit start timing detected by the entrance / exit timing detection unit, and the entrance / exit end detected by the entrance / exit timing detection unit At the timing, the notification of the entrance / exit information is terminated with respect to the situation notification device.
That is, the entry / exit information is notified from the situation notification device installed in the entrance / exit section until the work vehicle starts to pass through the entrance / exit section and ends. Therefore, when the work vehicle passes through the entrance / exit part, safety can be reliably ensured at an appropriate timing.

The figure which shows schematic structure of an automatic traveling system Block diagram showing schematic configuration of automatic driving system The figure which shows the target travel route for work and the target travel route for movement between areas The figure which shows the state of the tractor which passes the entrance / exit part The figure which shows the state (a) which shows entrance information in an electronic bulletin board, and the state (b) which shows exit information

An embodiment of a work vehicle to which an automatic traveling system according to the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings.
In this automatic traveling system, as shown in FIG. 1, a tractor 1 is applied as a work vehicle according to the present invention. Other than the tractor, a riding rice transplanter, a combiner, a riding mower, a wheel loader, a snowplow, etc. It is possible to apply a passenger work vehicle and an unmanned work vehicle such as an unmanned mower.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the automatic traveling system includes an automatic traveling unit 2 mounted on the tractor 1 and a mobile communication terminal 3 that is set to communicate with the automatic traveling unit 2. The mobile communication terminal 3 can employ a tablet personal computer, a smartphone, or the like having a display unit 51 (for example, a liquid crystal panel) that can be touch-operated.

  The tractor 1 includes a traveling machine body 7 having left and right front wheels 5 that function as drivable steering wheels, and drivable left and right rear wheels 6. A bonnet 8 is disposed on the front side of the traveling machine body 7, and an electronically controlled diesel engine (hereinafter referred to as an engine) 9 having a common rail system is provided in the bonnet 8. A cabin 10 that forms a boarding type driving unit is provided behind the hood 8 of the traveling machine body 7.

  A rotary cultivator, which is an example of the working device 12, is connected to the rear portion of the traveling machine body 7 via a three-point link mechanism 11 so as to be movable up and down and rollable so that the tractor 1 can be configured to have a rotary cultivating specification. it can. A work device 12 such as a plow, a seeding device, or a spraying device can be connected to the rear portion of the tractor 1 instead of the rotary tiller.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the tractor 1 includes an electronically controlled transmission 13 that shifts the power from the engine 9, an all-hydraulic power steering mechanism 14 that steers the left and right front wheels 5, and the left and right rear wheels 6. Left and right side brakes (not shown) for braking, an electronically controlled brake operating mechanism 15 that enables hydraulic operation of the left and right side brakes, and a work clutch that intermittently transmits power to the work device 12 such as a rotary tiller (see FIG. (Not shown), an electronically controlled clutch operating mechanism 16 that enables hydraulic operation of the work clutch, an electrohydraulic control type lifting drive mechanism 17 that drives the working device 12 such as a rotary tiller, etc., automatic travel of the tractor 1, etc. Vehicle-mounted electronic control unit 18 having various control programs and the like, a vehicle speed sensor 19 for detecting the vehicle speed of the tractor 1, and a steering angle sensor for detecting the steering angle of the front wheels 5 20, and the positioning unit 21 and the like for measuring the current position and current heading of the tractor 1 is provided.

  The engine 9 may be an electronically controlled gasoline engine equipped with an electronic governor. As the transmission 13, a hydraulic mechanical continuously variable transmission (HMT), a hydrostatic continuously variable transmission (HST), a belt-type continuously variable transmission, or the like can be employed. The power steering mechanism 14 may be an electric power steering mechanism 14 provided with an electric motor.

  Inside the cabin 10, as shown in FIG. 1, a steering wheel 38 that enables manual steering of the left and right front wheels 5 via a power steering mechanism 14 (see FIG. 2), a driver's seat 39 for passengers, a touch panel An expression display unit and various operation tools are provided. On both lateral sides of the front portion of the cabin 10, a boarding / alighting step 41 serving as a boarding / alighting unit for the cabin 10 (driver's seat 39) is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the on-vehicle electronic control unit 18 includes a shift control unit 181 that controls the operation of the transmission 13, a brake control unit 182 that controls the operation of the left and right side brakes, and a work device 12 such as a rotary tillage device. A work device control unit 183 that controls the operation, a steering angle setting unit 184 that sets the target steering angle of the left and right front wheels 5 during automatic traveling and outputs the target steering angle to the power steering mechanism 14, and a preset target traveling for automatic traveling A non-volatile in-vehicle storage unit 185 and the like for storing the paths Ps and Pr (see, for example, FIG. 3) are included.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the positioning unit 21 includes a satellite that measures the current position and the current direction of the tractor 1 using a GPS (Global Positioning System), which is an example of a satellite positioning system (NSS). A navigation device 22, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) 23 having a triaxial gyroscope, a three-direction acceleration sensor, and the like to measure the attitude, orientation, and the like of the tractor 1 are provided. Positioning methods using GPS include DGPS (Differential GPS) and RTK-GPS (Real Time Kinetic GPS). In the present embodiment, RTK-GPS suitable for positioning of a moving body is employed. Therefore, a reference station 4 that enables positioning by RTK-GPS is installed at a known position around the field as shown in FIGS.

  Each of the tractor 1 and the reference station 4 includes, as shown in FIG. 2, GPS antennas 24 and 61 that receive radio waves transmitted from the GPS satellite 71 (see FIG. 1), and between the tractor 1 and the reference station 4. Communication modules 25, 62 and the like that enable wireless communication of various data including positioning data in are provided. Thereby, the satellite navigation device 22 receives the positioning data obtained by the GPS antenna 24 on the tractor side receiving the radio wave from the GPS satellite 71, and the GPS antenna 61 on the base station side receives the radio wave from the GPS satellite 71. Based on the obtained positioning data, the current position and the current direction of the tractor 1 can be measured with high accuracy. In addition, the positioning unit 21 includes the satellite navigation device 22 and the inertial measurement device 23, thereby measuring the current position, current azimuth, and attitude angle (yaw angle, roll angle, pitch angle) of the tractor 1 with high accuracy. Can do.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the GPS antenna 24, the communication module 25, and the inertial measurement device 23 provided in the tractor 1 are housed in an antenna unit 80. The antenna unit 80 is disposed at an upper position on the front side of the cabin 10.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the mobile communication terminal 3 includes positioning data between the terminal electronic control unit 52 having various control programs for controlling the operation of the display unit 51 and the like, and the communication module 25 on the tractor side. And a communication module 55 that enables wireless communication of various data including the. The terminal electronic control unit 52 includes a travel route generation unit 53 that generates target travel routes Ps and Pr for travel guidance for automatically traveling the tractor 1 (for example, see FIG. 3), and various inputs input by the user. A non-volatile terminal storage unit 54 that stores data, target travel routes Ps and Pr generated by the travel route generation unit 53, and the like are included.

  When the travel route generation unit 53 generates the target travel routes Ps and Pr, a user such as a driver or an administrator works according to the target travel route setting input guidance displayed on the display unit 51 of the mobile communication terminal 3. Vehicle body data such as the type and model of the vehicle and work device 12 is input, and the input vehicle body data is stored in the terminal storage unit 54. The travel areas S and R (see FIG. 3) that are the target of generating the target travel paths Ps and Pr are roads R (an example of a work area), farm roads, and general roads, and the terminal electronic control of the mobile communication terminal 3 The unit 52 acquires travel area data including the shapes and positions of the travel areas S and R and stores them in the terminal storage unit 54.

The acquisition of the travel area data in the field S will be described. When the user or the like drives and actually travels the tractor 1, the terminal electronic control unit 52 determines the field from the current position of the tractor 1 acquired by the positioning unit 21. Position information for specifying the shape, position, etc. of S can be acquired. The terminal electronic control unit 52 specifies the shape and position of the field S from the acquired position information, and acquires travel region data including the field S, specified from the shape and position of the specified field S. FIG. 3 shows an example in which a rectangular field S is specified.
On the other hand, the travel area data on the road R can be acquired from the map information.

  When the travel area data including the shape and position of the identified travel areas S and R is stored in the terminal storage unit 54, the travel route generation unit 53 stores the travel area data and the vehicle body stored in the terminal storage unit 54. The target travel routes Ps and Pr are generated using the data.

  As illustrated in FIG. 3, the travel route generation unit 53 generates target travel routes Ps and Pr using vehicle body data, travel region data, and the like. For example, the work target travel route Ps for automatically traveling the tractor 1 in the field S is configured by a straight travel route, a connection route that connects them, and the like. On the other hand, the inter-region movement target travel route Pr for automatically traveling the tractor 1 on the road R is configured as a route along the road R when moving between the two fields S. Incidentally, the target travel routes Ps and Pr shown in FIG. 3 are merely examples, and what target travel route is set can be appropriately changed.

  The target travel routes Ps and Pr generated by the travel route generation unit 53 can be displayed on the display unit 51 and are stored in the terminal storage unit 54 as route data associated with vehicle body data, travel region data, and the like. The route data includes the azimuth angle of the target travel routes Ps and Pr, the set engine speed and the target travel speed set according to the travel mode of the tractor 1 on the target travel routes Ps and Pr, and the like. ing.

  In this way, when the travel route generating unit 53 generates the target travel routes Ps and Pr, the terminal electronic control unit 52 transfers the route data from the mobile communication terminal 3 to the tractor 1, so that the in-vehicle electronic control of the tractor 1 is performed. Unit 18 can obtain route data. The in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 automatically travels the tractor 1 along the target travel paths Ps and Pr while acquiring its current position (current position of the tractor 1) by the positioning unit 21 based on the acquired path data. Can be made. The current position of the tractor 1 acquired by the positioning unit 21 is transmitted from the tractor 1 to the mobile communication terminal 3 in real time (for example, every several seconds), and the mobile communication terminal 3 grasps the current position of the tractor 1. ing.

  Regarding the transfer of the route data, the entire route data can be transferred from the terminal electronic control unit 52 to the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 at a time before the tractor 1 starts the automatic travel. Further, for example, the route data including the target travel routes Ps and Pr can be divided into a plurality of route portions for each predetermined distance with a small data amount. In this case, only the initial route portion of the route data is transferred from the terminal electronic control unit 52 to the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 before the tractor 1 starts automatic traveling. After the start of automatic driving, every time the tractor 1 reaches a route acquisition point set according to the data amount or the like, route data of only the subsequent route portion corresponding to the point is transmitted from the terminal electronic control unit 52 to the on-vehicle electronic control. It may be transferred to the unit 18.

  When starting the automatic traveling of the tractor 1, for example, when the user or the like moves the tractor 1 to the start point and various automatic traveling start conditions are satisfied, the user can display the display unit 51 on the mobile communication terminal 3. The mobile communication terminal 3 transmits an instruction to start automatic driving to the tractor 1 by instructing start of automatic driving by operating. As a result, in the tractor 1, the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 receives an instruction to start automatic traveling, and the positioning unit 21 obtains its current position (current position of the tractor 1) while acquiring the target traveling path Ps, Automatic traveling control for automatically traveling the tractor 1 along Pr is started. The in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 moves the tractor 1 along the target travel routes Ps and Pr in the travel areas S and R based on the positioning information of the tractor 1 acquired by the positioning unit 21 (corresponding to the satellite positioning system). It is configured as an automatic traveling control unit that performs automatic traveling control for automatic traveling.

  The automatic travel control includes automatic shift control for automatically controlling the operation of the transmission 13, automatic braking control for automatically controlling the operation of the brake operating mechanism 15, automatic steering control for automatically steering the left and right front wheels 5, and a rotary tillage device. The automatic operation control for automatically controlling the operation of the working device 12 is included.

  In the automatic shift control, the shift control unit 181 uses the target travel routes Ps, Pr based on the route data of the target travel routes Ps, Pr including the target travel speed, the output of the positioning unit 21, and the output of the vehicle speed sensor 19. The operation of the transmission 13 is automatically controlled so that the target travel speed set according to the travel mode of the tractor 1 is obtained as the vehicle speed of the tractor 1.

  In the automatic braking control, the braking control unit 182 determines whether the left and right side brakes in the braking area included in the route data of the target traveling paths Ps and Pr based on the target traveling paths Ps and Pr and the output of the positioning unit 21. Automatically controls the operation of the brake operation mechanism 15 so as to properly brake the left and right rear wheels 6.

  In the automatic steering control, the steering angle setting unit 184 controls the left and right sides based on the route data of the target travel routes Ps and Pr and the output of the positioning unit 21 so that the tractor 1 automatically travels on the target travel routes Ps and Pr. The target steering angle of the front wheels 5 is obtained and set, and the set target steering angle is output to the power steering mechanism 14. Based on the target steering angle and the output of the steering angle sensor 20, the power steering mechanism 14 automatically steers the left and right front wheels 5 so that the target steering angle is obtained as the steering angle of the left and right front wheels 5.

  In the work automatic control, the work device control unit 183 determines that the tractor 1 is based on the route data of the target travel routes Ps and Pr and the output of the positioning unit 21, and the target travel route Ps for work (see, for example, FIG. 3). A predetermined work (for example, tillage work) by the work device 12 is started as the work start point such as the start end of the vehicle is reached, and the tractor 1 is terminated at the work target travel path Ps (for example, see FIG. 3). The operation of the clutch operation mechanism 16 and the lift drive mechanism 17 is automatically controlled so that the predetermined work by the work device 12 is stopped as the work end point is reached.

  Thus, in the tractor 1, the transmission 13, the power steering mechanism 14, the brake operation mechanism 15, the clutch operation mechanism 16, the lift drive mechanism 17, the on-vehicle electronic control unit 18, the vehicle speed sensor 19, the steering angle sensor 20, positioning. The automatic traveling unit 2 is configured by the unit 21, the communication module 25, and the like.

  In this embodiment, not only the user or the like does not get on the cabin 10 but also the tractor 1 automatically runs, and the tractor 1 can also automatically run while the user or the like gets on the cabin 10. Accordingly, not only the user or the like does not get on the cabin 10 but also the tractor 1 can be automatically driven along the target travel paths Ps and Pr by the automatic traveling control by the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18, and the user or the like can enter the cabin 10. Even when the vehicle is on board, the tractor 1 can be automatically traveled along the target travel routes Ps and Pr by the automatic travel control by the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18.

  When a user or the like is in the cabin 10, the vehicle-mounted electronic control unit 18 switches between an automatic running state in which the tractor 1 is automatically run and a manual running state in which the tractor 1 is run based on the operation of the user or the like. be able to. Therefore, the automatic travel state can be switched from the automatic travel state to the manual travel state during the automatic travel on the target travel paths Ps and Pr, and conversely, while the travel is performed in the manual travel state, It is possible to switch from the manual running state to the automatic running state. For switching between the manual driving state and the automatic driving state, for example, a switching operation unit for switching between the automatic driving state and the manual driving state can be provided in the vicinity of the driver's seat 39, and the switching operation unit is carried around. It can also be displayed on the display unit 51 of the communication terminal 3. Further, when the user operates the steering wheel 38 during the automatic traveling control by the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18, the automatic traveling state can be switched to the manual traveling state.

As shown in FIG. 3, the travel area data includes work area data including the shape and position of the field S, which is the work area, and road data including the shape and position of the road R. These travel area data are set in advance by a user operation on the display unit 51 of the mobile communication terminal 3.
The farm field S is an area where the tractor 1 is automatically traveled along the work target travel route Ps to perform a predetermined work (for example, work such as tillage).
On the other hand, the road R is a traveling area connecting the entrance / exit portions Sa of the field S, and the tractor 1 is automatically traveled along the inter-area movement target traveling path Pr to move between the two fields S. It is an area for.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the agricultural field S, the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 automatically performs the tractor 1 along the work target travel path Ps and performs a predetermined work (for example, work such as tillage) as the automatic travel control. ) Is performed so that the automatic traveling control in the field can be executed. The work target travel route Ps starts from, for example, the vicinity of the entrance / exit part Sa in the field S, and after the work meanders in the field S until it returns to the vicinity of the entrance / exit part Sa in the field S. It is configured as a route.

  On the other hand, on the road R, the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 performs inter-work area movement control in which the tractor 1 is automatically driven along the inter-area movement target travel route Pr and moved between the two farm fields S through the road R. Configured to be executable. This inter-region movement target travel route Pr is, for example, a route that leaves from the field S on the departure side to the road R side through the entry / exit part Sa, and a road R in the entry / exit part Sa of the field S that arrives from that point. And a route that enters the field S on the arrival side through the entrance / exit part Sa from the point on the road R side.

Furthermore, the automatic traveling system of the present embodiment is configured to ensure sufficient safety when the tractor 1 is automatically driven as described above to enter and leave the field S from the road R. Details will be described below.
As shown in FIGS. 3, 4, and 5, each entry / exit portion Sa of the farm field S is provided with a display 127 (an example of a situation notification unit) that can display arbitrary information by the notification control device 126. An electronic bulletin board 125 (an example of a status notification device) is installed.
The electric bulletin board 125 is configured as a portable standing signboard type, and an upper display 127 a and a lower display 127 b are provided as the display 127.
3 shows a state in which the electric bulletin board 125 is installed in all the entrance / exit sections Sa, the electric bulletin board 125 has at least the entrance / exit sections of the two farms S to which the tractor 1 moves. What is necessary is just to be installed in Sa. Further, the electronic bulletin board 125 may be used by moving to another entrance / exit part Sa at an appropriate time.

  A notification control device 126 (an example of a notification control unit) provided on the electric bulletin board 125 wirelessly communicates with the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 of the tractor 1 via the communication module 25 (see FIG. 2) on the tractor 1 side. It is configured to be possible. The notification control device 126 then enters / exits status information indicating the status of entry / exit of the tractor 1 from the road R to the field S based on a predetermined notification instruction input from the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 of the tractor 1 by wireless communication. Is displayed on the upper display 127a and the lower display 127b, and the entry / exit status information can be notified toward the road R side.

  The vehicle-mounted electronic control unit 18 of the tractor 1 executes a predetermined entry / exit situation notification process when the tractor 1 is automatically run to pass through the entrance / exit part Sa by executing the above-described movement control between work areas. It is configured. In this entry / exit status notification process, the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 identifies the electronic bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa to be passed in the inter-region movement target travel route Pr, and notifies the notification control device 126 thereof. In response, a notification instruction is output. The electronic bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa is identified by a method such as registering the communication address of the electronic bulletin board 125 in advance. Also, whether the electric bulletin board 125 is specified is installed in the entrance / exit part Sa through which the tractor 1 passes when entering or whether it is installed in the entrance / exit part Sa through which the tractor 1 passes. Is also done so that it can be identified.

  When the notification instruction is input in this way, the notification control device 126 of the electronic bulletin board 125 notifies the entrance / exit status information toward the road R in a form of displaying the entrance / exit status information on the display 127. Therefore, a driver or a pedestrian of a manned vehicle on the road R side recognizes the entrance / exit status information notified by the electric bulletin board 125, so that the tractor 1 during automatic traveling can be moved from the road R to the field S. Thus, it is possible to immediately and surely grasp that the vehicle is entering and leaving, and this ensures safety.

The entrance / exit notification process executed by the on-vehicle electronic control unit 18 includes an entrance notification process and an exit notification process described below.
The entrance notification process is an entry / exit notification process executed when the tractor 1 enters the field S from the road R. In this entrance notification process, the electronic bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa through which the tractor 1 passes is specified. Then, when entering the farm field S through the entrance / exit part Sa from the road R, an entry notification instruction is output to the notification control device 126 of the electric bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa. . Then, in response to the entry notification instruction, the notification control device 126 of the electronic bulletin board 125 displays character information such as “enter here” on the upper display 127a as shown in FIG. The entrance information indicating the entrance of the tractor 1 such as an arrow heading from the road R side to the field S side is displayed as the entrance / exit status information.

  On the other hand, the exit notification process is an entry / exit notification process that is executed when the tractor 1 leaves the field S to the road R. In this exit notification process, the electric bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa through which the tractor 1 passes at the time of exit is specified. Then, when the field S passes through the entrance / exit part Sa and exits on the road R, an exit notification instruction is output to the notification control device 126 of the electric bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa. Then, in response to the entry notification instruction, the notification control device 126 of the electronic bulletin board 125 displays character information such as “Get out of here” on the upper display 127a, as shown in FIG. Exit information indicating the exit of the tractor 1 such as an arrow heading from the field S to the road R is displayed as the entrance / exit status information.

  Further, the notification control device 126 of the electronic bulletin board 125 receives the entry information or the exit notification instruction from the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 of the tractor 1 in addition to displaying the entrance information and the exit information on the upper display 127a. 5 (a) and 5 (b), information indicating that the tractor 1 is moving in the entrance / exit part Sa, such as character information such as “moving robot tractor”, is displayed on the lower display 127b. Is displayed as the above entry / exit status information.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 of the tractor 1 functions as an entrance / exit timing detection unit 121 that detects an entrance / exit start timing and an entrance / exit end timing. Here, the entrance / exit start timing is a timing before the tractor 1 approaches the entrance / exit part Sa and passes through the entrance / exit part Sa. On the other hand, the entrance / exit end timing is a timing at which the tractor 1 leaves the entrance / exit part Sa after passing through the entrance / exit part Sa.

  The entrance / exit timing detection unit 121 determines the above entrance / exit start timing and the above based on the current position of the tractor 1 measured by the positioning unit 21 and the inter-region movement target travel route Pr including the position of the entrance / exit portion Sa. Detect entry and exit end timing. Note that the entrance / exit timing detection unit 121 automatically detects that the tractor 1 is automatically moved along the work target travel route Ps even when the tractor 1 during automatic travel in the field S approaches the entrance / exit portion Sa. When the vehicle does not pass through the entrance / exit part Sa immediately after that, such as when the vehicle is traveling, the timing is not detected as the entrance / exit start timing.

  The in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 of the tractor 1 enters / exits the entry / exit timing with respect to the electric bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa in the entrance / exit situation notification process executed when the tractor 1 passes the entrance / exit part Sa. Display of entrance / exit information is started at the entrance / exit start timing detected by the detection unit 121, and display of entrance / exit information is ended at the entrance / exit end timing detected by the entrance / exit timing detection unit 121. With this configuration, the entrance / exit information is notified by the electric bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa until the tractor 1 starts to pass through the entrance / exit part Sa, and it is ensured at an appropriate timing. Safety will be ensured.

  For example, when exiting from the field S to the road R, the display of the entrance / exit information on the electronic bulletin board 125 is started at the timing when the tractor 1 traveling in the field S approaches the entrance / exit part Sa before 10 m. Can do. On the other hand, when entering the farm field S from the road R, the display of the entrance / exit information on the electronic bulletin board 125 is started at the timing when the tractor 1 traveling on the road R approaches the entrance / exit part Sa before 30 m. Can do. In this embodiment, the approach distance of the tractor 1 with respect to the entrance / exit part Sa, which is the display start timing of the entrance / exit information on the electronic bulletin board 125, is set to be different between the entrance and the exit. The distance can be appropriately changed. For example, the distance may be set to be the same when entering and leaving.

  Further, the tractor 1 is provided with a display 110 capable of displaying that the vehicle is automatically traveling while being visible from the outside. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the in-vehicle electronic control unit 18 of the tractor 1 is configured to display character information such as “unmanned traveling” on the display 110 during execution of automatic traveling control.

[Another embodiment]
Another embodiment of the present invention will be described. Note that the configuration of each embodiment described below is not limited to being applied alone, but may be applied in combination with the configuration of another embodiment.

(1) Various changes can be made to the configuration of the work vehicle.
For example, the work vehicle may be configured in a hybrid specification including an engine 9 and an electric motor for traveling, or may be configured in an electric specification including an electric motor for traveling instead of the engine 9. .
For example, the work vehicle may be configured as a semi-crawler specification including left and right crawlers instead of the left and right rear wheels 6 as a traveling unit.
For example, the work vehicle may be configured to have a rear wheel steering specification in which the left and right rear wheels 6 function as steering wheels.

(2) In the above embodiment, when the tractor 1 passes through the entrance / exit part Sa and enters / exits the field S, the entrance / exit displayed on the display 127 of the electric bulletin board 125 installed in the entrance / exit part Sa. Although specific examples of information have been described, the entrance / exit information displayed on the display 127 can be appropriately changed depending on the situation. Moreover, you may comprise so that entrance / exit information may be output as audio | voice information.

(3) In the above embodiment, the portable electric bulletin board 125 is used. However, the electric bulletin board 125 may be configured to be permanently installed in the entrance / exit part Sa of the field S.

1 Tractor (work vehicle)
18 On-vehicle electronic control unit (control unit)
52 Terminal Electronic Control Unit (Control Unit)
121 Entrance / exit timing detector 125 Electric bulletin board (status notification device)
127 Display (Status notification part)
126 Notification control device (notification control unit)
Pr Target travel route Pr Target travel route R for movement between areas Road S Field (working area)
Sa entrance / exit

Claims (4)

An automatic traveling system comprising a control unit for automatically traveling the work vehicle based on the current position of the work vehicle measured using a satellite positioning system,
The control unit is capable of executing inter-work area movement control in which the work vehicle is automatically driven along a target travel path for movement between predetermined areas and moved between two work areas through a road.
Entry / exit status information indicating the status of entry / exit of the work vehicle from the road to the work area in response to an input of a notification instruction via wireless communication from the control unit, which is installed at the entrance / exit part of the work area. Is equipped with a situation notification device that can notify the road side,
When the control unit executes the inter-work area movement control to automatically travel the work vehicle and pass the entrance / exit part, the notification is made to the situation notification device installed in the entrance / exit part. An automatic traveling system that executes an entrance / exit situation notification process for outputting an instruction to notify the entrance / exit situation information. The entrance / exit status information includes entrance information indicating entrance of the work vehicle from the road to the work area, and exit information indicating exit of the work vehicle from the work area to the road,
The notification instruction includes an entrance notification instruction for informing the entrance information and an exit notification instruction for informing the exit information,
The control unit executes a predetermined entrance notification process and a predetermined exit notification process as the entrance / exit situation notification process,
In the admission notification process, when the work vehicle enters the work area from the road, the admission notification instruction is output to the situation notification device installed in an entrance / exit section that passes at the time of admission. Is a process of informing information,
In the exit notification process, when the work vehicle leaves the work area to the road, the exit notification instruction is output to the situation notification device installed in the entrance / exit section through which the work vehicle passes. The automatic travel system according to claim 1, which is a process for informing information. The work vehicle passes through the entrance / exit part based on the current position of the work vehicle measured using the satellite positioning system and the inter-region movement target travel route including the position of the entrance / exit part. An entrance / exit timing detection unit that detects a previous entrance / exit start timing and an entrance / exit end timing after the work vehicle has passed through the entrance / exit portion,
In the entrance / exit status notification process, the control unit causes the status notification device to start notification of the entrance / exit information at the entrance / exit start timing detected by the entrance / exit timing detection unit, and the entrance / exit timing The automatic travel system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the notification of the entrance / exit information is terminated at the entrance / exit end timing detected by the detection unit. A situation notification device used in the automatic traveling system according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A status notification unit capable of reporting the entrance / exit status information;
A situation notification device comprising: a notification control section that causes the situation notification section to notify the entrance / exit status information in response to an input of a notification instruction via wireless communication.

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