JP2020102010A - Automated driving support system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an automatic driving support system capable of ensuring safe driving of a vehicle without concerns even in driving areas where there are concerns or safety issues, when the vehicle is driven in a mixture of automated driving and manual driving.SOLUTION: The automatic driving support system includes: a plurality of vehicles A1 to A6 capable of automated driving and manual driving to a destination; a specified driving area α where a part of a road network for the vehicle is designated as a driving area that only allows for automated driving; forcing means 31 and 33 for forcing each vehicle to be driven with automated driving only when the vehicle is driven within the specified driving area; and governing means 31 and 33 for allowing each vehicle forced to be driven with automated driving to be driven with automated driving only in the specified driving area under a given governance.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to an automatic driving support system that supports traveling of a vehicle.

For vehicles capable of automatic driving, research is being conducted on an automatic driving support system that reduces the burden of manual operation on the driver and travels to the destination, as disclosed in Patent Document 1.
By the way, the purpose of an autonomous driving vehicle is to drive the vehicle to the destination by making full use of steering wheel operation, accelerator operation, and brake operation when the destination is set and automatic driving is turned on. On the other hand, there is a demand for the driver to drive the vehicle to the destination by himself/herself.

Therefore, even a vehicle that is currently capable of automatic driving can be driven to a destination by manual operation. Of course, it depends on safety.

JP, 2018-86874, A

In the case of such a vehicle that can be selected between automatic driving and manual driving, on the road, a vehicle traveling in automatic driving and a vehicle traveling in manual driving are mixed.
However, while it is easy to ensure safety for vehicles that are automatically driven, for vehicles that are manually driven, there is concern about overlooking the front and surroundings, so safety at intersections etc. Is difficult.

Moreover, when manual driving is selected, unlike automatic driving, it is often necessary to ensure safety by visual inspection. In addition, when waiting for a manual signal, there are many behaviors that cause traffic congestion, such as starting a vehicle after securing a vehicle-to-vehicle distance each time a preceding vehicle stops, and it is difficult to obtain smooth running.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to ensure safety when a vehicle travels in a mixture of automatic driving and manual driving, even if the vehicle is in a driving area where there is concern or safety. Provide an automatic driving support system that can be expected to drive.

Aspects of the present invention include a plurality of vehicles that can be automatically driven to a destination and can be manually driven to the destination, and a part of a region of a road network on which the vehicles run can be driven only by the automatic driving. The designated driving area designated as an area, the compulsory means for forcibly changing each vehicle to automatic driving only when the vehicle travels in the designated driving area, and the designated driving area for each vehicle forced to automatic driving As far as the inside is concerned, it is supposed to be equipped with a governing means for automatically traveling under a predetermined governance.

According to the present invention, when a vehicle travels in a mixture of automatic driving and manual driving, all vehicles are automatically driven under a predetermined rule only when traveling in a specific designated traveling area. Since the system was used, by including the driving area where concerns and safety are difficult in the designated driving area, it is hoped that the concern will be eliminated in the same driving area and that the safety of the vehicle will be ensured. it can.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a main configuration of a designated traveling area and governing means of an automatic driving support system, which is an aspect according to an embodiment of the present invention. The block diagram which shows the main structures of each vehicle. The flowchart explaining the situation of the vehicle which runs in a designated driving area. The flowchart explaining the situation of a vehicle following FIG.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described based on an embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4.
1(a) and 1(b) and FIGS. 2(a) and 2(b) show a main configuration of an automatic driving support system S (hereinafter referred to as a governance system S).
That is, the symbol α in FIG. 1A indicates a designated traveling area designated as a traveling region in which only a vehicle in automatic driving travels only a part of the road network. For example, the designated travel area α is set to a place that is often concerned about manual driving, a place where smooth running is required, or the like. The designated traveling area α is hereinafter referred to as “automatic driving area α”.

Here, the autonomous driving area α is, for example, a road network in which an area around the intersection β (traffic light: present) where an accident is likely to occur is designated as an example. Then, a plurality of vehicles, for example vehicles A1 to A6, travel in this automatic driving area α (assumed). The method of setting the automatic driving area α will be described later.
The vehicles A1 to A6 permitted to travel in the automatic driving area α are limited to vehicles in which a driving method such as automatic driving or manual driving can be selected.

Here, as the vehicles A1 to A6, for example, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the electric power of the battery 3 mounted on the vehicle body 1 drives the motor 7 (motor) via the inverter 5 to drive the vehicle. An electric car is used. Of course, the vehicles A1 to A6 running on the engine may be used.
In each of the vehicles A1 to A6, a driver (not shown) operates the accelerator pedal 9 or the brake pedal 11 to perform start/stop operation, and the steering wheel 13 is operated to change the traveling direction of the vehicle. That is, each vehicle A1 to A6 reaches the destination by performing a manual operation such as a steering wheel operation, an accelerator operation, and a brake operation while confirming the route information from the current location to the destination acquired by the vehicle-mounted navigation device 21. Drive (manual operation). Of course, the blinker operation is also included. Reference numeral 24 in FIG. 2A indicates a turn signal sensor for detecting the turn signal operation.

Further, each of the vehicles A1 to A6 can also be automatically driven by the control of the automatic driving control ECU 15 mounted on the vehicle body 1 as shown in FIG. 2B, for example. That is, the automatic driving control ECU 15 is connected to, for example, the inverter 5, the brake actuator 17, the steering wheel actuator 19, and the navigation device 21.
Then, each of the vehicles A1 to A6, when the on/off operation unit 23 connected to the automatic driving control ECU 15 is turned on, based on the route information from the current position to the destination acquired by the navigation device 21, the inverter 5, the brake actuator 17, and the steering wheel. The actuator 19 and blinkers (not shown) travel while being controlled. Further, the automatic driving control ECU 15 is connected to a camera 22 for picking up an image of a situation or a sign in front of the vehicle, an inter-vehicle sensor 25 for detecting a distance to a front vehicle, an obstacle sensor 27 for detecting a distance to an obstacle around the vehicle, and the like. , The vehicle can travel safely while maintaining a predetermined inter-vehicle distance and avoiding interference. That is, each of the vehicles A1 to A6 automatically travels to the destination (automatic driving). Note that reference numeral 11a in FIG. 2A indicates a brake sensor.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1A, a governing device 31 serving as governing means is installed at a point near the intersection β (here, fixed type). This governing device 31 forces each of the vehicles A1 to A6 to automatically drive as long as the vehicles A1 to A6 travel in the autonomous driving area α, and then newly governs each vehicle A1 to A6 based on the governance control information. It is a device for running.
Therefore, the automatic driving control ECU 15 of each of the vehicles A1 to A6 is provided with a vehicle communication unit 15a (corresponding to the communication means of the present application) as shown in FIG.

Further, the governance device 31 is provided with a governance ECU 33 and a governance communication unit 33a used for communication with each of the vehicles A1 to A6. Then, for example, the radio waves transmitted from the governing communication unit 33a are used to set the above-mentioned automatic driving area α (depending on the radio wave intensity), and the vehicles A1 to A6 entering the automatic driving area α are replaced by the vehicles A1 to A1. For example, the automatic running mode for each A6 is forcibly changed (changed) to the governing mode by the governing ECU 33 (means at that time).

The governing mode is not a traveling mode in which the individual vehicles A1 to A6 are emphasized, but a traveling mode in which the movements of the entire vehicles A1 to A6 in the automatic driving area α are grasped or estimated and the vehicles A1 to A6 are governed to travel. Say.
The governing mode will be described. For example, when the autonomous driving control ECU 15 or the governing ECU 33 of each vehicle A1 to A6 enters the autonomous driving area α, for example, the automatic control of the vehicles A1 to A6 is controlled by the governing system S (the governing ECU 33). (Governance mode), the function of transmitting the destination of the vehicles A1 to A6 to the governance system S (governance ECU33) according to the yield, and the functions of the vehicles A1 to A6 preset from the governance system S (governance ECU33). A function for receiving a signal of an automatic driving command (governance mode) is provided.

The governing ECU 33 is provided with a function of governing the movement of each of the vehicles A1 to A6 by focusing on the intersection β and focusing on the intersection β according to the destination. For example, when starting from a signal waiting, regardless of whether there is a preceding vehicle or not, when the traffic lights turn blue, they all start at once (avoiding traffic congestion), and when making a right turn at an intersection β, there is an oncoming vehicle and walking. There are controls such as turning to the right, taking into consideration the presence or absence of passengers and the priority, and making a right turn, taking into consideration the safety at the intersection β and the occurrence of traffic congestion.

That is, in the automatic driving by the governing ECU 33 (under the governing mode), while keeping the same control as the automatic driving control ECU 15, the destinations of all the vehicles A1 to A6 traveling in the autonomous driving area α are taken into consideration, the vehicle A1. ~ A6 is supposed to drive safely and smoothly (government means).
In addition to this, in the governance system S, when exiting from within the automatic driving area α, control is provided so that the vehicles A1 to A6 can smoothly return to the state before entering the automatic area α, and countermeasures when a manual operation action is intervened. The following controls are applied.

For example, in the control for returning to the state before entering, the automatic driving control ECU 15 (vehicles A1 to A6) stores the driving method (automatic driving or manual driving) immediately before entering the automatic driving area α of the vehicles A1 to A6, and automatically When leaving the driving area α, a method of returning to the driving method immediately before entering is used. Incidentally, the governing ECU 33 (the governing device 31) may store the driving method immediately before entering.

On the other hand, the manual operation act is an act of changing the destination or an unexpected situation during the automatic driving in the automatic driving area α, such as a brake operation or the opening of the vehicle door. Is pointed out.
In the governance system S, in the former case, for example, when the driver operates the turn signal, the steering wheel, or the destination setting of the navigation device 21 is changed during the automatic driving of the vehicles A1 to A6 (the destination is changed in either case). ), the automatic driving control ECU 15 serves as a detecting unit to detect the destination to which the vehicles A1 to A6 are heading, and transmits the vehicle A1 to A6 from the vehicle communication unit 15a to the governing ECU 33 to reflect the governing control.

Further, when the brake operation or the door opening is performed during the latter automatic driving, the automatic driving control ECU 15 serves as a detecting unit to detect the action, and the vehicle communication unit 15a serving as the communication unit detects that the same action is performed. It transmits to the governing ECU 33 of the governing system S and asks the governing ECU 33 for an instruction to avoid an unexpected situation caused by the same action.
Specifically, for example, when a brake operation is performed on the vehicles A1 to A6, the brake operation is prioritized and the vehicles A1 to A6 are stopped from the assumption that a dangerous situation occurs. Further, for example, when the door is opened, a brake command is issued to stop the vehicles A1 to A6, and the measures are taken. This vehicle stop state is transmitted from the vehicle communication unit 15a to the governing ECU 33.

Of course, after that, it is confirmed that the brake is off and the vehicle door is “closed”, and when it is determined that the unexpected situation is solved, the vehicle is started, the control is returned to the control, and the control is restarted.
The operation of such a governance system S is shown in the flowcharts of FIGS.
Next, the operation of the governance system S will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

It is now assumed that the vehicle A1 traveling on the road D1 at the crossroad of the intersection β as shown in FIG. 1A moves into the automatic driving area α.
Here, it is assumed that the vehicle A1 is traveling automatically according to the route information to the destination set by the navigation device 21 or is manually driven by the driver to the destination.
When the vehicle A1 approaches the automatic driving area α and receives an instruction radio wave from the governing system S, it is determined that the vehicle A1 has entered the automatic driving area α as in step S1. Then, the process proceeds to step S3, and the driving method (automatic driving, manual driving) immediately before entering is temporarily stored.

When the process proceeds to step S5, control for surrendering the operation control of the vehicle A to the control of the governing system S is performed. At this time, if the driving method of the vehicle A1 is automatic driving by the automatic driving control ECU 15, it is forcibly switched to automatic driving (governance mode) by the governing ECU 33. If it is a manual operation, it is forcibly switched to the automatic operation (governance mode) by the governing ECU 33. That is, as the vehicle A1 enters the autonomous driving area α, the vehicle A1 is forced to operate in the governing mode.

Then, as in step S7, the vehicle A1 transmits the destination information to the governance system S. Subsequently, in the vehicle A1, as in step S9, the governing system S receives the command for automatic driving in the governing mode. As a result, the vehicle A1 enters the control of the governing mode of the governing system S.
The vehicles A2 to A6 traveling on the road D1 and the road D2 at the remaining intersection β are also forced to the governing mode according to the approach of the automatic driving area α.

By forcing the governing mode in this way, the vehicles A1 to A6 are automatically driven under the governing mode of the governing system S as long as they are all in the autonomous driving area α.
Under the governing mode, in addition to directing the vehicles A1 to A6 to their destinations, regardless of whether there is a preceding vehicle while waiting for the traffic light at the intersection β, when the traffic light becomes “blue”, it starts all at once ( Avoiding), when making a right turn at the intersection β, turn right by taking into consideration the presence or absence of an oncoming vehicle, the presence of pedestrians, and the priority, and thereby suppressing the occurrence of traffic congestion and ensuring safety at the intersection β.

By such overall control of the vehicles A1 to A6, the vehicles A1 to A6 can travel safely and smoothly in the automatic driving area α. This is because a vehicle that is only in automatic driving is running in the automatic driving area α (there is no vehicle that is running in manual driving).
It is assumed that, while the vehicle A1 is traveling in the automatic area α, a manual operation by the driver is intervened as in step S11.

The manual operation act at this time is an act of changing the destination of the vehicle A1. When the destination is changed by the operation of the navigation device 21 as in step S23, or the blinker operation or the steering wheel operation is performed, the operation is automatic driving. It is detected by the control ECU 15 and transmitted to the governing system S, and the governing ECU 33 reflects the destination change in the governing mode.
When the driver of the vehicle A1 performs a brake operation (brake on) as in step S21 instead of changing the destination, the brake operation is prioritized to stop the vehicle (step S31). When the door of the vehicle A1 is opened, the vehicle is stopped by the brake operation according to the command from the governing ECU 33 (step S31). This avoids unexpected situations. The stop signal of the vehicle A1 at this time is transmitted to the governance system S (step S33).
When the driver determines that an unexpected situation has been avoided, the driver stops the brake operation (step S37) or closes the opened door of the vehicle A1 (step S35) to ensure the safety of the vehicle A1 (brake off, door closed). ) Is detected by the governing ECU 33, the vehicle A1 is started by a command from the governing ECU 33 (step A39) and reflected in the automatic driving of the vehicle A1.

The start signal at this time is transmitted to the governance system S (step S41), and the vehicle A1 returns to the automatic driving control under the governance mode.
Incidentally, the governance ECU 33 of the governance system S does not accept any manual action other than a manual operation action (destination change operation, blinker operation, steering wheel operation) that may cause a destination change or an unexpected situation, from ensuring safety (step S25). ).

Of course, the same applies to the vehicles A2 to A6 traveling in other automatic traveling areas α, not limited to the vehicle A1.
On the other hand, if the vehicle A1 travels to a position where the vehicle A1 leaves the autonomous driving area α, that is, a position where the command radio wave of the governance system S does not reach, for example, while the vehicle A1 remains in the autonomous driving mode, the steps S11 to S13 are performed. Then, it is determined that the vehicle A1 has left the automatic driving area α.

By this determination, the automatic driving control ECU 15 of the vehicle A1 returns to the driving method immediately before entering the automatic driving area α.
That is, if the vehicle A1 is in the automatic driving (automatic driving control ECU 15) immediately before entering, it returns to the automatic driving according to the exit (step S17). If the vehicle A1 is in the manual operation immediately before entering, the vehicle returns to the manual operation according to the exit (step S19). The same applies to the other vehicles A2 to A6 as well as the vehicle A1.

That is, in the vehicles A1 to A6, outside the automatic driving control area α, the automatic driving by the automatic driving control ECU 15 of the vehicle or the manual driving is restarted.
As described above, when the vehicles A1 to A6 travel in a mixture of the automatic driving and the manual driving by the governance system S (automatic driving support system) as in the present embodiment, within the specific automatic driving area α (designated driving area). Since all the vehicles A1 to A6 are automatically driven under a predetermined rule when traveling on a vehicle, the designated traveling area α includes a traveling area in which there is concern about manual driving and difficulty in safety. As a result, it can be expected that the concern in the manual driving can be eliminated and that the safety of the vehicles A1 to A6 can be ensured (claim 1).

In addition, when the driver manually intervenes while the vehicle is traveling in the specific automatic traveling area α (designated traveling area), the intervening manual operation is reflected in the governance system S. The vehicles A1 to A6 can be satisfactorily driven regardless of the above (claim 2).
In particular, when the manual operation action changes the destination of the vehicles A1 to A6, the destination may be reflected, and when the manual operation action causes an unexpected situation, an instruction to avoid the unexpected situation may be given. Simple control is required (claims 3 and 4).

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the one embodiment, and may be variously modified and implemented without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the fixed type governance device (government means) is used, but the invention is not limited to this, and a movable governance device may be used. Further, an example in which a part of the road network including the intersection is designated as the designated traveling area has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a traveling region including the road network on another concerned map may be the designated traveling area.

15 Automatic operation control ECU,
15a Vehicle communication unit (communication means)
31,33 Governance device, Governance ECU (Governance means, Enforcement means)
A1 to A6 Vehicle α Automatic driving area (designated driving area)
β intersection

Claims (4)

Multiple vehicles capable of automatic driving to the destination and manual driving to the destination,
A designated traveling area in which a part of the area of the road network on which the vehicle travels is designated as a traveling area only by the automatic driving,
Only when the vehicle travels in the designated traveling area, a compulsory unit that compulsorily changes each vehicle to automatic driving,
An automatic driving support system comprising: a governing unit that automatically drives each vehicle forced to perform the automatic driving under a predetermined rule only within the designated traveling area. Each of the vehicles transmits a intervention of the manual operation action to the governing means when the manual operation action is detected by the detection unit that detects the manual operation action by the driver while traveling in the designated traveling area. Have communication means,
The automatic driving support system according to claim 1, wherein the governing means governs each of the vehicles while reflecting the intervening manual operation act. The manual operation act is an act of changing the destination of the vehicle,
The automated driving support system according to claim 2, wherein the governing means reflects the changed destination on the automated driving under the governance. The manual operation act is an act that causes an unexpected situation,
The automatic driving support system according to claim 2, wherein the governing means instructs the vehicle to take measures to avoid an unexpected situation.

Images