JP2020080066A - Communication device, communication method, vehicle, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a communication device that can avoid interference with other wireless communication, and continue wireless communication with a communication partner even when communication obstacles suddenly interfere with a wireless communication propagation path between a user and the communication partner for inter-vehicle communication or road-vehicle communication.SOLUTION: A communication device includes: performing wireless communication with a communication partner by forming a directional beam that is headed toward another vehicle of the communication partner or a road-side communication device using a directional antenna; detecting a communication obstacle entering a wireless propagation path between an own vehicle and the communication partner; detecting an edge of an outer edge configuration of the communication obstacle when the communication obstacle entering the wireless propagation path is viewed from the own vehicle direction; and performing control so that the direction of a directional beam from the directional antenna is changed from a direction toward the communication partner to a direction toward the edge of a communication obstacle when the communication obstacle enters the wireless propagation path.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication device for performing vehicle-to-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication, a communication method and a program, and a vehicle equipped with the communication device.

  Conventionally, a vehicle-to-vehicle communication that is provided in a vehicle that travels on a moving route such as a road and that communicates with another vehicle that is moving on the moving route, or a road-to-vehicle distance between a roadside communication device that is provided on the moving route. A communication device that performs communication is known.

  Reference 1 discloses an inter-vehicle communication device capable of varying a communicable range of inter-vehicle communication and selectively using a plurality of communication systems selectively according to circumstances. According to the cited document 1, it is possible to skip one or more vehicles and relay inter-vehicle communication.

  In the cited document 2, when the radio wave transmitted from the roadside communication device to the vehicle of the communication partner is shielded by another vehicle, the transmission of the information is retransmitted to the vehicle of the communication partner whose radio wave is shielded. A road-to-vehicle communication system is disclosed in which the output intensity is increased, the directivity to a vehicle of a communication partner is increased, and a modulation method that can be easily demodulated is changed. According to the cited document 2, it is possible to increase the possibility that information transmission from the roadside communication device to the vehicle will be established.

JP, 2005-038202, A JP, 2010-282562, A

  In the above-mentioned vehicle-to-vehicle communication and road-to-vehicle communication, it was found that there are the following problems. If an omnidirectional antenna is used for wireless communication with a vehicle or the like of a communication partner, it is likely to be interfered with by other wireless radio waves such as road reflection waves. In order to avoid this interference, if wireless communication is performed using a direct wave of a directional beam using a directional antenna, when a communication obstacle such as another vehicle suddenly enters the propagation path of the wireless communication, the communication partner There is a risk that the wireless communication with will be interrupted and the communication cannot be continued.

A communication device according to an aspect of the present invention is a communication device that is provided in a vehicle and performs vehicle-to-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication, and forms a directional beam directed to another vehicle or a roadside communication device of a communication partner by a directional antenna. A wireless communication unit that performs wireless communication with the communication partner, an obstacle detection unit that detects that a communication obstacle has entered the wireless propagation path between the vehicle and the communication partner, and the wireless propagation path An edge detection unit that detects an edge of an outer edge shape of the communication obstacle when the communication obstacle that has entered is seen from the own vehicle, and the directional antenna when the communication obstacle enters the wireless propagation path. And a control unit for controlling the wireless communication unit so as to change the direction of the directional beam from the direction toward the communication partner to the edge toward the communication obstacle.
In the communication device, further comprising a measuring unit for measuring a communication strength between the own vehicle and the communication partner, the edge detecting unit, the obstacle detecting unit detects the communication obstacle, and the measurement The edge of the communication obstacle may be detected when the communication strength measured by the unit is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value.
In the communication device, the edge detection unit detects a plurality of edges of the communication obstacle, and the control unit changes a direction of the directional beam to a direction toward one of the plurality of edges. The measurement unit measures the communication strength between the host vehicle and the communication partner when the direction of the directional beam is changed to the direction toward the one edge, and the control unit is The wireless communication unit may be controlled so as to change the direction of the directional beam toward the other edge of the plurality of edges when the communication intensity is equal to or lower than the threshold value.
In the communication device, the edge detection unit detects a plurality of edges of the communication obstacle, and the control unit causes the directional beam to simultaneously move in a plurality of directions toward at least two edges of the plurality of edges. The wireless communication unit may be controlled so as to be formed.

In the communication device, the communication partner is a vehicle in front of or behind the own vehicle moving on the same travel route as the own vehicle, and the communication obstacle is between the own vehicle and the vehicle in the front or rear. It may be another vehicle that has been interrupted.
In the communication device, the edge detection unit includes an imaging device that images the communication obstacle, and detects an edge of the communication obstacle based on an image of the communication obstacle captured by the imaging device. Good.
In the communication device, the frequency band of the wireless communication may be a high frequency band of 1 GHz or higher.

  A vehicle according to another aspect of the present invention is a vehicle including any one of the communication devices described above.

  A communication method according to still another aspect of the present invention is a communication method for performing inter-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication, wherein a directional beam is formed by a directional antenna toward another vehicle of a communication partner or a roadside communication device. Wirelessly communicating with a communication partner, detecting that a communication obstacle has entered the wireless propagation path between the vehicle and the communication partner, and the communication obstacle having entered the wireless propagation path Detecting the edge of the outer edge shape of the communication obstacle when viewed from the direction of the own vehicle, and when a communication obstacle enters the wireless propagation path, the direction of the directional beam by the directional antenna is Changing from a direction toward the communication partner to a direction toward the edge of the communication obstacle.

  A program according to still another aspect of the present invention is a program executed by a computer or a processor provided in a communication device that is provided in a vehicle and performs vehicle-to-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication, and is a communication partner other vehicle using a directional antenna. Alternatively, a program code that forms a directional beam toward the roadside communication device and wirelessly communicates with the communication partner, and a program that detects that a communication obstacle has entered the wireless propagation path between the vehicle and the communication partner. A code, a program code for detecting an edge of an outer edge shape of the communication obstacle when the communication obstacle entering the wireless propagation path is viewed from the vehicle, and a communication obstacle enters the wireless propagation path. Program code that changes the direction of the directional beam from the directional antenna from the direction toward the communication partner to the edge of the communication obstacle.

  According to the present invention, while avoiding the interference of other radio waves, even if a communication obstacle suddenly enters the propagation path of wireless communication with the communication partner of vehicle-to-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication, Wireless communication can be continued.

(A) And (b) is a side view and a top view of a plurality of vehicles in a row running concerning this embodiment, respectively. (A) And (b) is a side view and a top view which respectively show a mode of interception of inter-vehicle communication when other vehicles interrupt between a plurality of vehicles in platooning running concerning this embodiment, respectively. The functional block diagram which shows an example of the main structures of the vehicle which concerns on this embodiment. The rear view which shows the edge of the detection target of an interruption vehicle. The flowchart which shows an example of the beam control of the inter-vehicle communication of the vehicle which concerns on this embodiment. The flowchart which shows the other example of the beam control of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication of the vehicle which concerns on this embodiment. The flowchart which shows the further another example of the beam control of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication which concerns on this embodiment. The flowchart which shows the further another example of the beam control of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication which concerns on this embodiment.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1A and 1B are a side view and a top view, respectively, of a plurality of vehicles 10 and 20 according to the present embodiment that are running in a row. In the present embodiment, the traveling lane on the left side in the traveling direction of the road 90 having two lanes on one side, which is the travel route, is defined as the vehicle (hereinafter also referred to as a “following vehicle”) 10 as the rear first vehicle and the preceding second vehicle. Vehicles 20 (hereinafter also referred to as “preceding vehicles”) are traveling in the same direction. The following vehicle 10 and the preceding vehicle 20 are performing platooning traveling at a predetermined inter-vehicle distance while performing inter-vehicle communication. The vehicles 10 and 20 are automobiles such as passenger cars, trucks and buses.

  For vehicle-to-vehicle communication between the following vehicle 10 and the preceding vehicle 20, radio waves such as microwaves and millimeter waves are used. The frequency of inter-vehicle communication may be, for example, several hundred MHz lower than 1 GHz, or may be a high frequency band of 1 GHz or higher. Further, the frequency of inter-vehicle communication may be 700 MHz band (715 MHz to 725 MHz) or 5.8 GHz band (5770 MHz to 5850 MHz) used in ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems) and CACC (Cooperative Adaptive Control). ..

  Directional antennas 11f and 21f for vehicle-to-vehicle communication with front vehicles, sensors 12f and 22f for detecting communication obstacles such as front vehicles, and front images are captured on the front surfaces of the vehicles 10 and 20, respectively. Cameras 13f and 23f are provided as image pickup devices for performing the above. Similarly, on the rear surface of each of the vehicles 10 and 20, directional antennas 11b and 21b for vehicle-to-vehicle communication with the vehicle behind, sensors 12b and 22b for detecting communication obstacles such as the vehicle behind, and the rear. Cameras 13b and 23b as image pickup devices for picking up images are provided.

  The directional antennas 11f, 21f, 11b, and 21b of the vehicles 10 and 20, respectively, are indicated by broken lines in the figure in order to suppress interference by other radio waves such as road reflection waves other than direct waves during vehicle-to-vehicle communication. Form a narrow beam. The narrow beam may be, for example, a beam having a beam width of 20 degrees or less. The directional antennas 11f, 21f, 11b, 21b may be configured by a single antenna element or may be an array antenna in which a plurality of antenna elements are arranged one-dimensionally, two-dimensionally or three-dimensionally.

  When performing vehicle-to-vehicle communication using a narrow beam, you may use the synchronous system which performs beam matching using a pilot signal. For example, the pilot signal from the following vehicle 10 is transmitted to the preceding vehicle 20 with a narrow beam, the preceding vehicle 20 detects the narrow beam pilot signal in the wide beam mode or the omnidirectional beam mode, and the preceding signal is detected based on the detection result. The direction of the narrow beam of the vehicle 20 is adjusted.

  When wireless communication is performed by a direct beam of a narrow beam using a directional antenna for inter-vehicle communication between the vehicles 10 and 20, when a communication obstacle such as another vehicle suddenly enters the propagation path of the wireless communication, The wireless communication between 10 and 20 may be interrupted, and it may not be possible to continue the inter-vehicle communication.

  For example, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, when another vehicle 30 interrupts between the preceding vehicle 20 and the following vehicle 10 that form a narrow beam and perform inter-vehicle communication, The interrupting vehicle 30 may interrupt the wireless propagation path of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication, and the vehicle-to-vehicle communication may not be possible.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, when another vehicle 30 interrupts between the preceding vehicle 20 and the following vehicle 10, the narrow beam used by the vehicles 10 and 20 for inter-vehicle communication is changed to the edge of the interruption vehicle 30. I am changing so that it goes to. As a result, it is possible to diffract the narrow-beam radio waves of the vehicles 10 and 20 and avoid interruption of the radio propagation path for inter-vehicle communication, so that inter-vehicle communication can be continued.

  FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the main configuration of the vehicle (subsequent vehicle) 10 according to the present embodiment. The configuration of the preceding vehicle 20 traveling in front of the vehicle 10 is the same as the configuration of the following vehicle 10 in FIG.

  In FIG. 3, the vehicle 10 includes a communication device 100 for performing inter-vehicle communication with a vehicle ahead or behind, and a vehicle drive unit 150 that drives the vehicle 10. The vehicle drive unit 150 is, for example, an engine that drives the vehicle 10, a drive source such as a motor, a drive transmission device that transmits the power of the drive source to a drive output unit such as a tire, and a steering device that changes the traveling direction of the vehicle 10. ..

  The communication device 100 includes a wireless communication unit 110, a front obstacle detection unit 120f and a rear obstacle detection unit 120b as an obstacle detection unit, a front edge detection unit 130f and a rear edge detection unit 130b as an edge detection unit, And a control unit 140.

  The wireless communication unit 110 includes a front antenna unit 111f and a rear antenna unit 111b each having directional antennas 11f and 11b, and a communication processing unit 112.

  The wireless communication unit 110 forms a directional beam consisting of a narrow beam directed to another vehicle that is a communication partner in the front or the rear by using the directional antennas (the front antenna 11f and the rear antenna 11b), and wirelessly communicates with the other vehicle. To do. For example, the wireless communication unit 110 forms a directional beam, which is a narrow beam, toward the rear antenna 21b of the preceding vehicle 20 that is a communication partner in front by the front antenna 11f, and performs wireless communication with the preceding vehicle 20.

  The front antenna section 111f and the rear antenna section 111b respectively include a front antenna 11f and a rear antenna 11b, and a beam control mechanism that controls the beam of each antenna. For example, in the case of mechanical antenna beam control, the beam control mechanism is configured by using an antenna rotating device that rotates the front antenna 11f and the rear antenna 11b around one axis or a plurality of axes and a rotation control device. Further, in the case of electronic antenna beam control, the beam control mechanism is configured by using an ABF (analog beam forming) device, a DBF (digital beam forming) device, a hybrid device combining ABF and DBF, and the like. The ABF includes a phased array using a phase shifter, a multi-beam antenna using a Butler matrix, and the like.

  The communication processing unit 112 amplifies a signal transmitted/received via the front antenna unit 111f and the rear antenna unit 111b, or encodes/modulates data by a predetermined encoding/modulation method to generate a transmission signal, It decodes and demodulates the received signal to generate data.

  The front obstacle detection unit 120f and the rear obstacle detection unit 120b respectively include sensors 12f and 22f such as a stereo camera, a radar, a LiDAR (Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging) device, and a range finder. Each of the obstacle detection units 120f and 120b detects that the vehicle 30 as a communication obstacle has entered the wireless propagation path between the following vehicle (own vehicle) 10 and the preceding vehicle 20 of the communication partner.

  The front edge detection unit 130f and the rear edge detection unit 130b respectively include cameras 13f and 23f as image pickup devices for picking up images of the front or the rear. The edge detection units 130f and 130b perform image processing such as Hough conversion processing and Canny edge detection processing on the image data of the captured image. By this image processing, a plurality of outer edge-shaped edges of the interrupting vehicle 30 are detected when the interrupting vehicle 30 as a communication obstacle that has entered the wireless propagation path of the inter-vehicle communication between the vehicles 10 and 20 is viewed from the own vehicle. To do. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, four edges 301, 302, 303 and 304 of the interrupting vehicle 30 are detected in the four directions of upper, lower, left and right.

  Note that the edge detection location may be one location, two locations, three locations, or five or more locations. Further, the shape of the edge to be detected when viewed from the own vehicle may have a linear shape or a curved shape.

  The front edge detection unit 130f may also serve as the front obstacle detection unit 120f, and the rear edge detection unit 130b may also serve as the rear obstacle detection unit 120b. For example, the front edge detection unit 130f and the rear edge detection unit 130b recognize the vehicle 30 in front of the preceding vehicle 20 in the front image and the rear image, respectively, so that the distance between the following vehicle (own vehicle) 10 and the preceding vehicle 20 is increased. It is possible to detect that the vehicle 30, which is a communication obstacle, has entered the wireless propagation path.

  The control unit 140 includes a processor such as a CPU, a memory, and the like, and performs various controls of the wireless communication unit 110, the vehicle drive unit 150, and the like by reading and executing a predetermined control program. For example, the control unit 140 sets the direction of the directional beam (narrow beam) by the front antenna 11f to the rear antenna of the preceding vehicle 20 when the interrupting vehicle 30 enters the narrow beam radio propagation path with the preceding vehicle 20. The wireless communication unit 110 is controlled so as to change from the direction toward 11b to the direction toward the edge of the interrupting vehicle 30. By thus directing the narrow beam of the front antenna 11f toward the edge of the interrupting vehicle 30, radio waves of the narrow beam can reach the rear antenna 11b of the preceding vehicle 20 by the diffraction by the edge, and the vehicle with the preceding vehicle 20 can be caused. Inter-vehicle communication can be continued.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of beam control of vehicle-to-vehicle communication of the vehicle (subsequent vehicle) 10 according to the present embodiment. The same beam control as in this example may be performed on the preceding vehicle 20 that is performing inter-vehicle communication with the vehicle 10.

  In FIG. 5, when the vehicle 10 detects the interruption vehicle 30 by the front obstacle detection unit 120f (YES in S101), the front edge detection unit 130f causes the front edge detection unit 130f to detect a plurality of edges 301, 302, 303, 304 of the interruption vehicle 30 (FIG. 4). Reference) is detected (S102), and the control unit 140 determines whether or not the inter-vehicle communication with the preceding vehicle 20 succeeds without being interrupted (S103).

  If the inter-vehicle communication is successful (YES in S103), the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 determines that the interrupting vehicle 30 is not a communication obstacle, and ends the control.

  On the other hand, when the inter-vehicle communication is not successful (NO in S103), the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 determines that the interrupting vehicle 30 is a communication obstacle, and detects the plurality of edges 301 detected in S102. From 302, 303, and 304, an edge (for example, the edge 301 at the upper end of the interruption vehicle 30) to which the narrow beam of the front antenna (directional antenna) 11f is directed is selected (S104), and the narrow beam of the front antenna 11f is selected as the selected edge. The wireless communication unit 110 is controlled so as to point at (S105), and it is determined whether the inter-vehicle communication with the preceding vehicle 20 succeeds without being interrupted (S106).

  When the inter-vehicle communication is successful (YES in S106), the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 forms a wireless propagation path with the preceding vehicle 20 due to the diffraction of the radio wave at the edge of the interrupting vehicle 30, and the inter-vehicle communication is performed. When it is determined that it is possible, the control ends.

  On the other hand, when the inter-vehicle communication is not successful (NO in S106), the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 determines that the interrupting vehicle 30 continues to be a communication obstacle, and determines the next edge (for example, the interrupting vehicle 30 The bottom edge 302) is selected (S107) and steps S105 and S106 are repeated. Steps S105 to S107 are repeated until the inter-vehicle communication succeeds or until the plurality of edges 301, 302, 303, 304 detected in S102 are selected.

  According to the control of FIG. 5, even if another vehicle 30 interrupts while the vehicle 10 forms a narrow beam with the preceding vehicle 20 to perform inter-vehicle communication, the edge of the interruption vehicle 30 Since it is possible to avoid interruption of the wireless propagation path between the vehicles 10 and 20 due to the diffraction of the radio wave, the vehicle-to-vehicle communication can be continued.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing another example of beam control for vehicle-to-vehicle communication of the vehicle (subsequent vehicle) 10 according to the present embodiment. It should be noted that in FIG. 6, description of portions similar to those in the beam control in FIG. 5 is omitted.

  In FIG. 6, the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 acquires the data of the received power in the inter-vehicle communication with the preceding vehicle 20 from the wireless communication unit 110, and determines whether the received power is equal to or more than a predetermined threshold value. (S201). If the received power is equal to or higher than the predetermined threshold value (YES in S201), it is determined that there is no possibility of the vehicle 30 interrupting the wireless propagation path between the vehicles 10 and 20, and the control ends.

  On the other hand, when the received power is smaller than the threshold value (NO in S201), the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 determines that there is a possibility that the vehicle 30 interrupting the wireless propagation path between the vehicles 10 and 20 may be interrupted. The interrupting vehicle 30 is detected by the front obstacle detecting unit 120f (S202). Subsequent steps S202 to S208 are the same as steps S101 to S107 in FIG.

  In particular, according to the control of FIG. 6, when there is no possibility of interruption of the vehicle 30 that interrupts the wireless propagation path between the vehicles 10 and 20, the process of detecting a communication obstacle ahead is not performed, so the communication device It is possible to suppress an increase in control load in 100.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing still another example of the beam control of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication of the vehicle (subsequent vehicle) 10 according to the present embodiment. Note that, in FIG. 7, description of the same parts as those in the beam control of FIG. 5 will be omitted.

  In FIG. 7, when the inter-vehicle communication is not successful after the detection of the interrupting vehicle 30 (S301) and the detection of the plurality of edges 301, 302, 303, 304 of the interrupting vehicle 30 (S302) (NO in S303), The control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 simultaneously forms a plurality of narrow beams (for example, four narrow beams in this example), and simultaneously forms a narrow beam for each of the detected plurality of edges 301, 302, 303, 304. The wireless communication unit 110 is controlled so as to point (S304).

  Particularly, according to the control of FIG. 7, as compared with the case where the success or failure of inter-vehicle communication is confirmed by pointing a narrow beam while sequentially selecting one edge from the plurality of detected edges 301, 302, 303, 304. Thus, the time from the detection of the interrupting vehicle 30 to the completion of the control for continuing the inter-vehicle communication becomes shorter.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing still another example of the beam control of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication of the vehicle (subsequent vehicle) 10 according to the present embodiment. Note that, in FIG. 8, description of the same parts as those of the beam control in FIGS. 5 and 7 will be omitted.

  In FIG. 8, the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 obtains the data of the received power in the inter-vehicle communication with the preceding vehicle 20 from the wireless communication unit 110, and determines whether the received power is equal to or more than a predetermined threshold value. (S401). When the received power is equal to or higher than the predetermined threshold value (YES in S401), it is determined that there is no possibility of the interruption of the vehicle 30 that interrupts the wireless propagation path between the vehicles 10 and 20, and the control ends.

  On the other hand, when the received power is smaller than the threshold value (NO in S401), the control unit 140 of the vehicle 10 determines that there is a possibility of the interruption of the vehicle 30 that interrupts the wireless propagation path between the vehicles 10 and 20, The interrupting vehicle 30 is detected by the front obstacle detecting unit 120f (S402). Subsequent steps S402 to S405 are the same as steps S301 to S304 in FIG.

  In particular, according to the control of FIG. 8, it is possible to suppress an increase in the control load on the communication device 100, and shorten the time from the detection of the interrupting vehicle 30 to the completion of the control for enabling the inter-vehicle communication.

  Note that in the example of FIGS. 7 and 8, four narrow beams are formed at the same time, and the narrow beams are controlled to be simultaneously directed to the four edges 301, 302, 303, 304, respectively. The beam may be simultaneously formed, and the narrow beam may be controlled to be simultaneously directed to each of the two edges selected from the four edges 301, 302, 303, 304. Alternatively, three narrow beams may be formed at the same time, and control may be performed so that the narrow beams are simultaneously directed to each of the three edges selected from the four edges 301, 302, 303, 304.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when vehicle-to-vehicle communication is performed between a plurality of vehicles 10 and 20 that are running in a row, interference of other radio waves such as road surface reflected waves on the surface of the road 90 is generated. In addition to avoiding the above, the wireless communication with the vehicle of the communication partner is continued even if a communication obstacle such as the interrupting vehicle 30 suddenly enters the propagation path of the wireless communication with the vehicle of the communication partner of the inter-vehicle communication. You can

  In the above embodiment, the case of inter-vehicle communication in which wireless communication is performed between the vehicles 10 and 20 has been described, but the present invention is applied to the case of road-to-vehicle communication in which wireless communication is performed between the vehicle and the roadside communication device. Can be similarly applied. In this case, during road-to-vehicle communication between the vehicle and the roadside communication device, interference with other radio waves such as road surface reflected waves on the surface of the road 90 is avoided and the communication partner of the road-to-vehicle communication is used. Even if a communication obstacle such as an interrupting vehicle suddenly enters the propagation path of the wireless communication with the vehicle, the wireless communication with the communication partner vehicle or the roadside communication device can be continued.

  It should be noted that the processing steps and the components of the communication device described in this specification can be implemented by various means. For example, these processes and components may be implemented in hardware, firmware, software, or a combination thereof.

  Regarding hardware implementation, means such as a processing unit used to implement the above steps and components in an entity (for example, various wireless communication devices, Node Bs, terminals, hard disk drive devices, or optical disk drive devices) One or more application specific ICs (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processors (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors , A controller, a microcontroller, a microprocessor, an electronic device, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, a computer, or a combination thereof.

  Also, for firmware and/or software implementations, means such as processing units used to implement the components described above are programs (eg, procedures, functions, modules, instructions) that perform the functions described herein. , Etc.) may be implemented. In general, any computer/processor readable medium embodying firmware and/or software code, means, such as a processing unit, used to implement the steps and components described herein. May be used to implement. For example, firmware and/or software code may be stored in memory and executed by a computer or processor, eg, at the controller. The memory may be mounted inside the computer or the processor, or may be mounted outside the processor. The firmware and/or software code may be, for example, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM), programmable read only memory (PROM), electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM). ), a FLASH memory, a floppy disk, a compact disk (CD), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a magnetic or optical data storage device, etc., and may be stored on a computer or processor readable medium. Good. The code may be executed by one or more computers or processors, or may cause the computers or processors to perform the functional aspects described herein.

  Further, the medium may be a non-transitory recording medium. In addition, the code of the program may be readable and executable by a computer, a processor, or another device or machine, and its format is not limited to a particular format. For example, the code of the program may be any of source code, object code, and binary code, or may be a mixture of two or more of these codes.

  Also, the description of the embodiments disclosed herein is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to this disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of this disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure should not be limited to the examples and designs described herein, but should be admitted to the broadest extent consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

10 vehicles (following vehicles)
11f Front antenna (directional antenna)
11b Rear antenna (directional antenna)
12f, 12b sensor 13f, 13b camera 20 vehicle (leading vehicle)
21f Front antenna (directional antenna)
21b Rear antenna (directional antenna)
22f, 22b Sensor 23f, 23b Camera 30 Interruption vehicle 100 Communication device 110 Wireless communication part 111f Front antenna part 111b Rear antenna part 112 Communication processing part 120f Front obstacle detection part 120b Rear obstacle detection part 130f Front edge detection part 130b Rear edge Detection unit 140 Control unit 150 Vehicle drive unit

Claims (10)

A communication device provided in a vehicle for performing vehicle-to-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication,
A wireless communication unit that forms a directional beam toward another vehicle or a roadside communication device of a communication partner by a directional antenna to perform wireless communication with the communication partner,
An obstacle detection unit that detects that a communication obstacle has entered the wireless propagation path between the own vehicle and the communication partner,
An edge detection unit that detects an edge of an outer edge shape of the communication obstacle when the communication obstacle that has entered the wireless propagation path is viewed from the own vehicle,
When a communication obstacle enters the wireless propagation path, the wireless communication is performed so that the direction of the directional beam by the directional antenna is changed from the direction toward the communication partner toward the edge of the communication obstacle. And a control unit that controls the unit. The communication device according to claim 1,
Further comprising a measuring unit for measuring the communication strength between the own vehicle and the communication partner,
The edge detection unit detects an edge of the communication obstacle when the obstacle detection unit detects the communication obstacle and the communication intensity measured by the measurement unit is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value. A communication device characterized by the above. The communication device according to claim 2,
The edge detection unit detects a plurality of edges of the communication obstacle,
The control unit controls to change the direction of the directional beam in a direction toward one edge of the plurality of edges,
The measurement unit measures the communication strength between the own vehicle and the communication partner when the direction of the directional beam is changed to the direction toward the one edge,
The control unit controls the wireless communication unit to change the direction of the directional beam to a direction toward another edge of the plurality of edges when the communication intensity is equal to or less than a threshold value. Characterized communication device. The communication device according to claim 2,
The edge detection unit detects a plurality of edges of the communication obstacle,
The communication device, wherein the control unit controls the wireless communication unit such that the directional beam is simultaneously formed in each of a plurality of directions toward at least two edges of the plurality of edges. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The communication partner is a vehicle in front of or behind the host vehicle traveling on the same travel route as the host vehicle,
The communication device, wherein the communication obstacle is another vehicle that is interrupted between the own vehicle and the vehicle in front of or behind the vehicle. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The edge detection unit includes an imaging device that images the communication obstacle, and detects an edge of the communication obstacle based on an image of the communication obstacle captured by the imaging device. .. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
A communication device, wherein the frequency band of the wireless communication is a high frequency band of 1 GHz or higher.   A vehicle comprising the communication device according to claim 1. A communication method for performing vehicle-to-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication,
Forming a directional beam toward the other vehicle or roadside communication device of the communication partner by the directional antenna to perform wireless communication with the communication partner,
Detecting that a communication obstacle has entered the wireless propagation path between the host vehicle and the communication partner,
Detecting an edge of an outer edge shape of the communication obstacle when the communication obstacle that has entered the wireless propagation path is viewed from the own vehicle;
Changing a direction of a directional beam by the directional antenna from a direction toward the communication partner toward an edge of the communication obstacle when a communication obstacle enters the wireless propagation path. A communication method characterized by. A program executed by a computer or a processor provided in a communication device that is provided in a vehicle and performs vehicle-to-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication,
A program code for forming a directional beam directed to another vehicle or a roadside communication device of a communication partner by a directional antenna to perform wireless communication with the communication partner,
A program code for detecting that a communication obstacle has entered the wireless propagation path between the own vehicle and the communication partner,
A program code that detects an edge of an outer edge shape of the communication obstacle when the communication obstacle that has entered the wireless propagation path is viewed from the vehicle.
Program code for changing the direction of the directional beam by the directional antenna from the direction toward the communication partner to the edge of the communication obstacle when a communication obstacle enters the wireless propagation path. A program characterized by that.

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