JP2021064204A - Vehicle and remote control system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a vehicle and remote control system, which allow a driver to comfortably use remote control.SOLUTION: A vehicle provided herein comprises: an authorization unit for allowing a remote control device outside the vehicle to provide remote control; a transmission unit configured to transmit peripheral information on the host vehicle acquired from sensors to the remote control device; a reception unit configured to receive remote control signals input by an operator outside the vehicle via the remote control device; a travel control unit configured to run the vehicle according to the remote control signals; and a display variation unit configured to change teh display state of a pilot lamp provided in the vehicle cabin according to the number of operators available for the remote control.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

The present invention relates to vehicles and remote control systems.

Patent Document 1 discloses a technique that gives a sense of security to an occupant by displaying operator information including an image of the operator on a monitor while the vehicle is remotely controlled by the operator.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-158149

However, when the occupant uses the remote control, the number of operators who can perform the remote control is unknown, so there is room for improvement from the viewpoint of using the remote control with peace of mind.

In consideration of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to obtain a vehicle and a remote control system in which the occupant can use the remote control with peace of mind.

The vehicle according to claim 1 includes a permission unit that permits remote control by a remote control device outside the vehicle, a transmission unit that transmits peripheral information of the own vehicle acquired from sensors to the remote control device, and the remote control unit. A receiving unit that receives a remote control signal input by an operator outside the vehicle via an operating device, a traveling control unit that runs the vehicle based on the remote control signal, and a vehicle according to the number of operators that can be remotely controlled. It has a display changing unit that changes the display state of the indicator lamp provided in the room.

In the vehicle according to claim 1, remote control by a remote control device is permitted by the permission unit. This enables remote control of the vehicle by an operator outside the vehicle. At this time, the operator can grasp the peripheral information of the own vehicle by transmitting the peripheral information of the own vehicle acquired from the sensors by the transmission unit to the remote control device. Then, the reception unit of the vehicle receives the remote control signal input by the operator, and the travel control unit drives the vehicle based on the received remote control signal. That is, in a state where remote control is permitted, the operator remotely controls the vehicle.

Further, the display changing unit changes the display state of the indicator lamp provided in the vehicle interior according to the number of operators who can be remotely controlled. As a result, the occupant can grasp whether the number of operators who can be remotely controlled is large or small just by looking at the indicator light.

In the vehicle according to claim 2, in claim 1, the display changing unit changes the color of the indicator light according to the number of operators who can be remotely controlled.

In the vehicle according to claim 2, the occupant can check whether the number of operators capable of remote control is large or small by checking the color of the indicator light.

The vehicle according to claim 3 acquires operator information according to claim 1 or 2, for each operator, acquiring at least one information of the number of times of travel on the planned travel route, the number of times of travel for each vehicle type, and the operable vehicle type. It further includes a rating calculation unit that calculates a rating for each operator according to the information acquired by the operator information acquisition unit, and a rating display unit that displays the rating to the occupant.

In the vehicle according to claim 3, the occupant can select an operator based on the rating for each operator displayed by the rating display unit. In addition, since the rating is calculated according to the number of times the vehicle has traveled on the planned travel route, the number of times the vehicle has traveled for each vehicle type, and at least one piece of information on the type of vehicle that can be driven, remote control can be used with peace of mind by selecting an operator with a high rating. can do.

For the vehicle according to claim 4, in claim 3, the rating calculation unit sets the rating of the operator who has a lot of experience in remote control of the own vehicle higher than the rating of the operator who has little experience in remote control of the own vehicle. To do.

In the vehicle according to claim 4, the rating of the operator who has experience in remote control of the own vehicle tends to be high. Therefore, if an operator with a high rating is selected, there is a high possibility that the same operator as before will be requested to perform remote control, and the variation in operation will be reduced.

The remote control system according to claim 5 includes the vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 4, and a remote control device provided outside the vehicle and capable of remotely controlling the vehicle.

In the remote control system according to claim 5, the vehicle can be remotely controlled to a predetermined location based on the remote control signal transmitted by the operator via the remote control device.

As described above, according to the vehicle and remote control system according to the present invention, the occupant can use the remote control with peace of mind.

It is a figure which shows the schematic structure of the remote control system which concerns on embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware composition of a vehicle. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware configuration of a remote control device. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the functional structure of a vehicle. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the functional structure of a remote control device. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the flow of display change processing.

The remote control system 10 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. The dimensional ratios in the drawings are exaggerated for convenience of explanation and may differ from the actual dimensional ratios.

As shown in FIG. 1, the remote control system 10 includes a vehicle 12, a remote control device 14, and a server 16. Further, the vehicle 12, the remote control device 14, and the server 16 are connected by a predetermined network 18.

The vehicle 12 of the present embodiment includes a traveling control unit 20. Further, the vehicle 12 is configured to be switchable between a manual driving mode and a remote control mode (remote control mode). In the manual drive mode, the vehicle 12 is operated by an occupant (driver) of the vehicle 12. To drive. On the other hand, in the remote control mode, the travel control unit 20 drives the vehicle 12 based on the remote control signal input from the remote control device 14.

The remote control device 14 is provided outside the vehicle 12, and is configured so that the remote control signal input by the operator is transmitted to the vehicle 12 through the network 18. Further, the remote control device 14 includes a control unit 22. Further, the remote control device 14 includes an input device 68 for the operator to input a remote control signal (see FIG. 3).

The server 16 stores operator information in a predetermined area. For example, information such as the number of operators that can be remotely controlled and the travel history of each operator is stored in the server 16 and is updated periodically.

(Hardware configuration of vehicle 12)
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the vehicle 12. As shown in FIG. 2, the travel control unit 20 of the vehicle 12 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit: processor) 24, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 26, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 28, a storage 30, and a communication interface 32. And the input / output interface 34 are included. Each configuration is communicably connected to each other via a bus 23.

The CPU 24 is a central arithmetic processing unit that executes various programs and controls each unit. That is, the CPU 24 reads the program from the ROM 26 or the storage 30, and executes the program using the RAM 28 as a work area. The CPU 24 controls each of the above configurations and performs various arithmetic processes according to the program recorded in the ROM 26 or the storage 30.

The ROM 26 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 28 temporarily stores a program or data as a work area. The storage 30 is composed of an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive), and stores various programs including an operating system and various data. In the present embodiment, the ROM 26 or the storage 30 stores a remote control program for driving the vehicle 12 by remote control, a display change program for changing the display of the indicator light 46 described later, and the like.

The communication interface 32 is an interface for the vehicle 12 to communicate with the remote control device 14, the server 16, and other devices, and is used by standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), FDDI, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark). Be done.

A GPS (Global Positioning System) device 36, a camera 38, a millimeter-wave radar 40, a laser radar 42, a vehicle driving device 44, and an indicator light 46 are connected to the input / output interface 34. The GPS device 36 receives GPS signals from a plurality of GPS satellites and positions the own vehicle. The GPS device 36 improves the positioning accuracy as the number of receivable GPS signals increases.

A plurality of cameras 38 are provided on the outer panel of the vehicle 12, and take an image of the surroundings of the vehicle 12. The millimeter wave radar 40 measures the reflected wave of the emitted radio wave to detect an obstacle around the vehicle 12. The laser radar 42 scans the laser beam and measures the reflected light to detect an obstacle around the vehicle 12.

The vehicle driving device 44 drives the vehicle 12 based on a signal input by the occupant or the operator. That is, the vehicle drive device 44 includes a steering actuator, an accelerator actuator, and a brake actuator.

The indicator light 46 is provided at a position visible to the occupant in the passenger compartment, and is provided, for example, on the instrument panel at the front of the passenger compartment. Further, the indicator lamp 46 is configured to be able to light and blink in a plurality of colors.

(Hardware configuration of remote control device 14)
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the remote control device 14. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 22 of the remote control device 14 includes a CPU 52, a ROM 54, a RAM 56, a storage 58, a communication interface 60, and an input / output interface 62. Each configuration is communicably connected to each other via a bus 50.

The CPU 52 is a central arithmetic processing unit that executes various programs and controls each unit. That is, the CPU 52 reads the program from the ROM 54 or the storage 58, and executes the program using the RAM 56 as a work area. The CPU 52 controls each of the above configurations and performs various arithmetic processes according to the program recorded in the ROM 54 or the storage 58.

The ROM 54 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 56 temporarily stores a program or data as a work area. The storage 58 is composed of an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive), and stores various programs including an operating system and various data.

The communication interface 60 is an interface for the remote control device 14 to communicate with the vehicle 12, the server 16, and other devices, and is used by standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), FDDI, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark). Be done.

A display device 64, a speaker 66, and an input device 68 are connected to the input / output interface 62. The display device 64 is a device for displaying the image around the vehicle 12 and the information of the instruments of the vehicle 12 to the operator, and includes a monitor and the like. The display device 64 may be configured by a plurality of monitors.

The speaker 66 is a device for outputting voice to the operator, and is used, for example, for talking with an occupant of the vehicle 12. The input device 68 is a device for the operator to input a remote control signal to the remote control device 14. As the input device 68, for example, an input device that imitates the cockpit of the vehicle 12 can be applied. In this case, the operator can remotely control the vehicle as if he / she is driving the actual vehicle.

Further, as another input device, a controller that can be grasped by the operator and is provided with a plurality of buttons may be applied. Such a controller may have a shape imitating a controller used in a computer game. In this case, even an operator with a disability can remotely control the vehicle 12.

(Functional configuration of vehicle 12)
The vehicle 12 constituting the remote control system 10 realizes various functions by using the above hardware resources. The functional configuration realized by the vehicle 12 will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, the vehicle 12 has a transmission unit 70, a reception unit 72, a peripheral detection unit 74, a permission unit 76, a travel control unit 78, a remote controllable number acquisition unit 80, and a display change unit 82 as functional configurations. The operator information acquisition unit 84, the rating calculation unit 86, and the rating display unit 88 are included. Each functional configuration is realized by the CPU 24 reading and executing the program stored in the ROM 26 or the storage 30.

The transmission unit 70 transmits the peripheral information of the vehicle 12 acquired from sensors such as the camera 38, the millimeter wave radar 40, and the laser radar 42 to the remote control device 14. In addition to this, the transmission unit 70 may transmit information such as the vehicle speed, the current position, and the planned travel route.

The receiving unit 72 receives the remote control signal input to the input device 68 by the operator via the remote control device 14. The peripheral detection unit 74 detects the peripheral information of the vehicle 12 based on the information acquired from sensors such as the camera 38, the millimeter wave radar 40, and the laser radar 42. The permission unit 76 permits remote control by the remote control device 14 outside the vehicle.

The travel control unit 78 drives the vehicle 12 based on the remote control signal received by the reception unit 72. That is, the vehicle 12 is driven by controlling the vehicle driving device 44 based on the remote control signal.

The remote-controlled number acquisition unit 80 acquires the number of operators who can be remotely controlled. Specifically, the number of operators who can be remotely controlled in a predetermined area is acquired from the information stored in the server 16.

The display changing unit 82 changes the display state of the indicator light 46 provided in the vehicle interior according to the number of remotely controllable operators acquired by the remote controllable number acquisition unit 80. In the present embodiment, as an example, the color of the indicator lamp 46 is changed according to the number of operators that can be remotely controlled.

The operator information acquisition unit 84 acquires the operator information stored in the server 16. The operator information to be acquired is, for example, information such as the number of times the vehicle has traveled on the planned travel route, the number of times the vehicle has traveled for each vehicle type, and the types of vehicles that can be driven.

The rating calculation unit 86 calculates the rating for each operator according to the information acquired by the operator information acquisition unit 84. Specifically, the rating calculation unit 86 calculates the rating for each operator according to at least one piece of information such as the number of times the vehicle has traveled on the planned travel route, the number of times the vehicle has traveled for each vehicle type, the type of vehicle that can be driven, and the experience of remote control of the vehicle 12. To do.

In this embodiment, as an example, the rating calculation unit 86 calculates the rating according to the following four points. The first score is obtained by the number of times of travel on the planned travel route. For example, when the planned travel route of the vehicle 12 is preset, the higher the number of times the planned travel route is remotely controlled, the higher the first score.

In addition, the second score is obtained by the number of times of traveling for each vehicle type. For example, the more times the vehicle type of the same model as the vehicle 12 is remotely controlled, the higher the second score. Further, the third score is obtained according to the type of vehicle that can be driven. For example, the larger the number of vehicle types that can be remotely controlled, the higher the third score. This is because the greater the number of vehicles that can be driven, the more skilled remote control can be expected. The information on the vehicle type that can be remotely controlled is registered in advance by the operator.

The fourth score is obtained based on the experience of remote control of the vehicle 12. For example, an operator who has a lot of experience in remote control of the vehicle 12 has a higher fourth score than an operator who has little experience in remote control of the vehicle 12. That is, an operator who has previously remotely controlled the vehicle 12 by being nominated by an occupant has a higher fourth score than an operator who has never remotely controlled the vehicle 12.

The rating is calculated for each operator based on the above first score, second score, third score, and fourth score.

The rating display unit 88 causes the occupant to display the rating calculated by the rating calculation unit 86. The rating may be displayed on a monitor or the like in the vehicle interior, or may be displayed on a terminal carried by the occupant. Further, in the present embodiment, as an example, the operators are displayed in descending order of rating.

(Functional configuration of remote control device 14)
The remote control device 14 constituting the remote control system 10 realizes various functions by using the above hardware resources. The functional configuration realized by the remote control device 14 will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, the remote control device 14 includes a communication unit 89, a peripheral information display unit 90, and an operation reception unit 92 as functional configurations.

The communication unit 89 communicates with the vehicle 12. That is, the communication unit 89 receives the signal from the vehicle 12. Further, the communication unit 89 transmits a signal to the vehicle 12.

The peripheral information display unit 90 causes the display device 64 to display the peripheral information of the vehicle 12 transmitted to the remote control device 14 by the function of the transmission unit 70 of the vehicle 12. Specifically, the image captured by the camera 38 mounted on the vehicle 12 is displayed on the display device 64. In addition, information on obstacles detected by the millimeter-wave radar 40 and the laser radar 42 is displayed on the display device 64.

The operation reception unit 92 receives the remote operation signal input to the input device 68 by the operator.

(Action)
Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

(Example of display change processing)
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the display change process by the remote control system 10. This display change process is executed by the CPU 24 reading the remote control program from the ROM 26 or the storage 30, expanding it into the RAM 28, and executing it. In addition, the remote control process is periodically executed after a predetermined time.

As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 24 acquires the number N of operators that can be remotely controlled in step S102. Specifically, the CPU 24 acquires the number N of operators who can be remotely controlled in a predetermined area from the information stored in the server 16 by the function of the remote controllable number acquisition unit 80.

Subsequently, the CPU 24 determines in step S104 whether or not the number of people N is larger than the first threshold value. The first threshold is set in advance and may be, for example, 60% of the total number of operators in a predetermined area.

When the CPU 24 determines in step S104 that the number of people N is larger than the first threshold value, the CPU 24 shifts to the process of step S108. Further, when the CPU 24 determines in step S104 that the number of people N is equal to or less than the first threshold value, the CPU 24 shifts to the process of step S106.

The CPU 24 turns on the indicator lamp 46 in green in step S108. Specifically, the indicator lamp 46 is turned on in green by the function of the display changing unit 82. When the indicator light 46 is lit in green, the green color is maintained. Then, the display change process is terminated.

On the other hand, when the number of people N is equal to or less than the first threshold value in step S104, the CPU 24 shifts to the process of step S106, and in this step S106, determines whether or not the number of people N is larger than the second threshold value. The second threshold value is set in advance and is smaller than the first threshold value. For example, the number may be 30% of the total number of operators in a predetermined area.

When the CPU 24 determines in step S106 that the number of people N is larger than the second threshold value, the CPU 24 shifts to the process of step S110. Further, when the CPU 24 determines in step S106 that the number of people N is equal to or less than the second threshold value, the CPU 24 shifts to the process of step S112.

The CPU 24 turns on the indicator light 46 in yellow in step S110. Specifically, the indicator lamp 46 is turned on in yellow by the function of the display changing unit 82. When the indicator light 46 is lit in yellow, the yellow color is maintained. Then, the display change process is terminated.

When the CPU 24 determines in step S106 that the number of people N is equal to or less than the second threshold value, the CPU 24 shifts to the process of step S112, and in this step S112, the indicator lamp 46 is turned on in red. Specifically, the indicator lamp 46 is turned on in red by the function of the display changing unit 82. When the indicator light 46 is lit in red, the red color is maintained. Then, the display change process is terminated.

As described above, in the remote control system 10 of the present embodiment, the display state of the indicator lamp 46 is changed by the display change unit 82. As a result, the occupant can grasp whether the number of operators who can be remotely controlled is large or small just by looking at the indicator light 46. By intuitively grasping the number of operators that can be remotely controlled in this way, the occupants can use the remote control with peace of mind.

In particular, in the present embodiment, the occupant can confirm whether the number of operators capable of remote control is large or small by checking the color of the indicator light 46.

Further, in the present embodiment, since the rating for each operator is displayed by the rating display unit 88, the occupant can select the operator based on the displayed rating for each operator.

Further, as in the present embodiment, the rating is calculated according to the number of times the vehicle has traveled on the planned travel route, the number of times the vehicle has traveled for each vehicle type, the type of vehicle that can be driven, and the experience of remote control of the own vehicle. By selecting it, you can use remote control with peace of mind. In particular, the rating of an operator who has experience in remote control of the own vehicle will be high, so if an operator with a high rating is selected, there is a high possibility that the same operator as before will be requested for remote control, and there will be less variation in driving. Become.

Although the embodiments have been described above, it goes without saying that they can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the indicator lamp 46 is lit in green, yellow, or red depending on the number of operators that can be remotely controlled, but the present invention is not limited to this, and other colors may be lit. Alternatively, the light may be turned on so that the color changes from green to red. In addition, a blinking mode may be added. In this case, for example, in the case of green that is close to yellow, by blinking green, it can be intuitively understood that the number of operators that can be remotely controlled is decreasing.

Further, in the above embodiment, the operators are displayed in descending order of rating by the function of the rating display unit 88, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the order of the operators to be displayed may be changed according to the request of the occupant. Further, only operators satisfying a predetermined condition may be displayed. For example, the vehicle 12 may be displayed only for operators who have experience of remote control, or only operators whose corresponding language of the operator is a desired language may be displayed.

Further, in the above embodiment, the rating calculation unit 86 calculates the rating based on the number of times the vehicle has traveled on the planned travel route, the number of times the vehicle has traveled for each vehicle type, the type of vehicle that can be driven, and the experience of remote control of the vehicle 12, but the rating is limited to this. Not done. In addition to this, for example, the rating may be calculated based on the price required for remote control, the language supported by the operator, the evaluation of other users, and the like. Further, after the remote control is completed, the occupant may evaluate the operator himself and reflect the evaluation result in the rating.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the remote-controlled number acquisition unit 80 is provided as the functional configuration of the vehicle 12, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the remote control device 14 may have the function of the remote controllable number acquisition unit 80.

Further, various processors other than the CPU may execute the display change process executed by the CPU 24 by reading the software (program) in the above embodiment. In this case, the processor includes a PLD (Programmable Logic Device) whose circuit configuration can be changed after manufacturing an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), and the like. An example is a dedicated electric circuit or the like, which is a processor having a circuit configuration designed exclusively for the purpose. Further, the display change process may be executed by one of these various processors, or a combination of two or more processors of the same type or different types (for example, a plurality of FPGAs and a combination of a CPU and an FPGA). Etc.). Further, the hardware structure of these various processors is, more specifically, an electric circuit in which circuit elements such as semiconductor elements are combined.

Further, in the above embodiment, the storage 30 and the storage 58 are used as recording units, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, a recording medium such as a CD (Compact Disk), a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), and a USB (Universal Versatile Bus) memory may be used as the recording unit. In this case, various programs are stored in these recording media.

10 Remote control system 12 Vehicle 14 Remote control device 70 Transmitter 72 Receiver 76 Permit 78 Travel control 82 Display change 84 Operator information acquisition 86 Rating calculation 88 Rating display

Claims (5)

A permit unit that allows remote control by a remote control device outside the vehicle,
A transmitter that transmits the peripheral information of the own vehicle acquired from the sensors to the remote control device, and
A receiving unit that receives a remote control signal input by an operator outside the vehicle via the remote control device.
A travel control unit that drives the vehicle based on the remote control signal,
A display change unit that changes the display state of the indicator lights provided in the vehicle interior according to the number of operators that can be remotely controlled.
Vehicles with. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the display changing unit changes the color of the indicator light according to the number of operators that can be remotely controlled. An operator information acquisition unit that acquires at least one information on the number of times the vehicle has traveled on the planned travel route, the number of times the vehicle has traveled, and the type of vehicle that can be driven for each operator.
A rating calculation unit that calculates a rating for each operator according to the information acquired by the operator information acquisition unit, and a rating calculation unit.
A rating display unit that displays the rating to the occupants,
The vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising. The vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the rating calculation unit sets the rating of an operator who has a lot of experience in remote control of the own vehicle higher than the rating of an operator who has little experience in remote control of the own vehicle. The vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and
A remote control device installed outside the vehicle that can remotely control the vehicle,
Remote control system with.

Images