JP2023125206A - Control device - Google Patents

Abstract

To further enhance safety of a self-driving vehicle at a curve.SOLUTION: A control device 10 comprises: a target route setting section 103 which sets a target route of a vehicle on the basis of a surrounding situation of the vehicle; and a follow-up control section 104 which performs route follow-up control of the vehicle on the basis of the target route. The target route setting section 103: determines whether or not the vehicle is under a sharp curve condition that the vehicle is coming close to a sharp curve where a curvature of a road is abruptly changed and a neighboring driving lane exists on an outer side of the sharp curve on the basis of the surrounding situation; and sets a target route for a center of a rear shaft of the vehicle, when determining that the vehicle is under the sharp curve condition, so that the vehicle passes through the curve by allowing wheels thereof on an outer side of the curve to be in the neighboring driving lane.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

One aspect of the present invention relates to a control device related to automatic driving of a vehicle.

Patent Document 1 describes a driving support device that detects a travelable region of a vehicle and sets a target route for the vehicle based on a target trajectory generated so that the vehicle travels in the travelable region. .

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2014-218098

Generally, when setting a target route, a target route centered on the rear axle is set at the center of the driving lane. For example, large vehicles and towed vehicles have long wheelbases and overhangs, so if the target route centered on the rear axle is set in the center of the driving lane at the entrance of a curve, there is a risk that the overhang will run into the adjacent lane.

One aspect of the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to further enhance the safety of an automatic driving vehicle on curves.

A control device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a target route setting unit that sets a target route for the vehicle based on the surrounding situation of the vehicle, and a tracking control unit that performs route tracking control for the vehicle based on the target route. In preparation, the target route setting unit detects, based on the surrounding conditions, that the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve where the curvature of the road changes rapidly, and that there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side of the sharp curve. If it is determined that the condition is a sharp curve, the center of the rear axle of the vehicle is determined so that the vehicle straddles the driving lane and the adjacent lane. Setting the target route and executing the.

In the control device according to one aspect of the present invention, when the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve and there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side to the direction of the sharp curve, the control device allows the vehicle to distinguish between the traveling lane and the adjacent lane. A target route centered on the rear axle of the vehicle is set so that the vehicle travels astride the rear axis. Generally, when setting a target route, a target route centered on the rear axle is set at the center of the driving lane. However, for example, large vehicles and towing vehicles have long wheelbases and overhangs, so if the target route centered on the rear axle is set in the center of the driving lane at the entrance of a curve, there is a risk that the overhang will run into the adjacent lane. be. In this regard, the control device according to one aspect of the present invention determines whether or not the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve and there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side of the sharp curve (i.e., sharp curve condition). If the condition is determined to be a sharp curve, the target route centered on the rear axle is set not in the center of the driving lane but on the adjacent lane side so that the vehicle travels astride the driving lane and the adjacent lane. In this case, the vehicle enters a portion of the adjacent lane before the sharp curve. As a result, a portion of the adjacent lane is collapsed before a sharp curve, preventing other vehicles traveling in the adjacent lane from entering the lane, and also avoids a situation where the overhang suddenly crashes into the adjacent lane at the entrance of the curve. . This makes it possible to further improve the safety of the autonomous vehicle when driving on sharp curves.

When the target route setting unit determines that the condition is a sharp curve, the target route setting unit recognizes the white line that is the boundary line between the driving lane and the adjacent lane based on the surrounding conditions, and sets the white line as the target route centered on the rear axle of the vehicle. You may. According to such a configuration, it is possible to more reliably and easily set a target route centered on the rear axis so that the vehicle travels across the driving lane and the adjacent lane.

When the target route setting unit determines that the condition is a sharp curve, the target route setting unit recognizes two white lines that are the boundaries of the driving lane based on the surrounding situation, and moves the middle line between the two white lines by a predetermined amount to the adjacent lane. A line offset to the side may be set as the target route centered on the rear axis of the vehicle. According to this configuration, by slightly changing the control under normal conditions other than sharp curve conditions (control for setting the target route in the center of the driving lane), it is possible to realize control under sharp curve conditions. A target route can be easily set so that the vehicle travels across the driving lane and the adjacent lane. In addition, since it can be carried out in the same way as normal control, for example, even if the white line that is the boundary line with the adjacent lane cannot be recognized temporarily, the vehicle will be able to drive so that it straddles the driving lane and the adjacent lane. A target route can be set to

According to one aspect of the present invention, the safety of an automated driving vehicle on a curve can be further improved.

It is a block diagram showing an example of composition of an automatic driving system concerning this embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the behavior of a vehicle before a sharp curve. It is a figure explaining target route setting in normal times. It is a figure explaining target route setting before a sharp curve. 2 is a flowchart showing a control procedure executed by the control device shown in FIG. 1. FIG.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In addition, in the following description, the same or equivalent elements are given the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an automatic driving system 1. As shown in FIG. The automatic driving system 1 is installed in a vehicle and controls automatic driving of the vehicle. The automatic driving system 1 includes, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver 20, a map database 30, a surrounding situation sensor 40, a vehicle condition sensor 50, a communication device 60, a traveling device 70, and a control device 10. , is equipped with.

The GPS receiver 20 receives signals transmitted from a plurality of GPS satellites, and calculates the position and orientation of the vehicle based on the received signals. The GPS receiver 20 transmits the calculated information to the control device 10.

The map database 30 is a database that stores in advance information indicating the boundary position of each lane on the road. The map database 30 is stored, for example, in a predetermined storage device.

The surrounding situation sensor 40 detects the surrounding situation of the vehicle. As the surrounding situation sensor 40, for example, a lidar, a radar, a camera, etc. are used. Lidar uses light to detect targets around the vehicle. Radar uses radio waves to detect targets around a vehicle. The camera captures images of the surroundings of the vehicle. The camera captures an image including, for example, a white line (lane boundary line) in front of the vehicle. The surrounding situation sensor 40 transmits detected information to the control device 10.

Vehicle condition sensor 50 detects the driving condition of the vehicle. Examples of the vehicle condition sensor 50 include a vehicle speed sensor, a steering angle sensor, a yaw rate sensor, and a lateral acceleration sensor. The vehicle speed sensor detects the speed of the vehicle. The steering angle sensor detects the steering angle of the vehicle. The yaw rate sensor detects the yaw rate of the vehicle. The lateral acceleration sensor detects lateral acceleration acting on the vehicle. Vehicle condition sensor 50 transmits detected information to control device 10 .

The communication device 60 performs, for example, V2X communication (vehicle-to-vehicle communication and road-to-vehicle communication). Specifically, the communication device 60 performs V2V communication (vehicle-to-vehicle communication) with other vehicles. Furthermore, the communication device 60 performs V2I communication (road-to-vehicle communication) with surrounding infrastructure. Through V2X communication, the communication device 60 can obtain information regarding the environment around the vehicle. The communication device 60 transmits the acquired information to the control device 10. Note that the communication device 60 may receive driving route instructions from the outside, for example, by V2X communication. The driving route instruction includes information that enables generation of the entire route (the entire route traveled by the vehicle).

The traveling device 70 includes a steering device, a drive device, a braking device, a transmission, and the like. The steering device steers the wheels. The drive device is a power source that generates driving force. Examples of the drive device include an engine and an electric motor. The braking device generates braking force.

The control device 10 performs automatic driving control that controls automatic driving of a vehicle. The control device 10 is a microcomputer equipped with a processor, a storage device, and an input/output interface. The control device 10 is also called an ECU (Electronic Control Unit). The control device 10 receives various information through an input/output interface. The control device 10 then performs automatic driving control based on the received information.

The control device 10 includes an acquisition section 101, an overall route generation section 102, a target route setting section 103, and a follow-up control section 104 as functional blocks. These functional blocks are realized by the processor of the control device 10 executing a control program stored in a storage device. The control program may be stored in a computer-readable recording medium.

The acquisition unit 101 acquires information necessary for automatic driving control. The information acquisition process by the acquisition unit 101 is repeatedly executed in a predetermined cycle. The acquisition unit 101 acquires the position and direction of the vehicle from the GPS receiver 20. The acquisition unit 101 acquires information regarding road lanes and the like from the map database 30. The acquisition unit 101 acquires information indicating the situation around the vehicle detected by the surrounding situation sensor 40 (information including at least information regarding white lines (lane boundaries)). The acquisition unit 101 acquires information indicating the state of the vehicle detected by the vehicle state sensor 50. The acquisition unit 101 acquires information such as driving route instructions from the communication device 60 .

The overall route generation unit 102 generates an overall route (the entire route traveled by the vehicle) based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit 101 (information including at least a driving route instruction). The overall route generation unit 102 generates the overall route by taking into consideration information such as the position and direction of the vehicle, road lane information, information about the surroundings of the vehicle, and information indicating the state of the vehicle, in addition to the driving route instruction. May be generated.

The target route setting unit 103 sets a target route on which the vehicle actually travels in real time based on the overall route generated by the overall route generating unit 102. Specifically, the target route setting unit 103 determines the target route of the vehicle based on information indicating the situation around the vehicle acquired by the acquisition unit 101 (information including at least information regarding white lines (lane boundaries)). Set (details will be explained later). The target route setting by the target route setting unit 103 is repeatedly executed in a predetermined cycle while the vehicle is traveling.

The follow-up control unit 104 performs route follow-up control of the vehicle based on the target route generated by the target route setting unit 103. The follow-up control unit 104 controls each device included in the traveling device 70 using a conventional well-known follow-up control technique so that the vehicle follows the target route.

Next, the processing of the target route setting section 103 described above will be explained in more detail. The target route setting unit 103 is configured to be able to execute target route setting processing under normal conditions and target route setting processing under sharp curve conditions. First, the reason why the target route setting process under sharp curve conditions is necessary will be explained with reference to FIG. 2, and then the target route setting process under normal conditions (see FIG. 3) and the target route under sharp curve conditions Each setting process (see FIG. 4) will be explained.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the behavior of the vehicle before a sharp curve. In the example shown in FIG. 2, a road with two lanes on each side (two lanes L1 and L2) is shown, and in detail, the situation before a sharp curve on the road is shown. Furthermore, vehicles C1 and C2 are shown as automatically driven vehicles to be controlled. In FIG. 2, vehicle C1 represents a vehicle that is subjected to follow-up control based on the target route setting under normal conditions, and vehicle C2 represents a vehicle that is subjected to follow-up control based on the target route setting under sharp curve conditions.

The normal target route setting here is a target route setting in which the target route centered on the rear axle is set in the center of the driving lane (see vehicle C1 in FIG. 2). Here, for example, when the vehicle C1 is a large vehicle or a towing vehicle, the wheelbase and overhang are long, so the target route centering on the rear axle is set to the center of the driving lane L1 by the above-mentioned normal target route setting. In this case, as shown in the state of vehicle C1 in FIG. 2, there is a risk that the front portion of the vehicle suddenly plunges into the adjacent lane L2 at the entrance of a sharp curve.

In order to avoid such a situation, in the control by the control device 10 according to the present embodiment, when setting the target route when the sharp curve condition is satisfied, the control device 10 straddles the driving lane L1 and the adjacent lane L2 (traveling lane L1 and adjacent lane L2). A target route centered on the rear axle is set so that the vehicle travels so as to straddle the white line CL that indicates the boundary with the adjacent lane L2 (see vehicle C2 in FIG. 2). The sharp curve condition here means that the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve where the curvature of the road changes rapidly, and that the adjacent vehicle C2 is present on the opposite side of the sharp curve. It is. The curvature of a road that is determined to be a sharp curve is, for example, about 0.01 to 0.08. In addition, the front side of a sharp curve is, for example, about 100 mm to 200 mm before the starting position of the curve. By controlling in this way, a part of the adjacent lane L2 is collapsed before a sharp curve, preventing other vehicles traveling in the adjacent lane L2 from entering, and an overhang etc. is caused in the adjacent lane L2 at the entrance of the curve. You can avoid sudden situations. This makes it possible to further improve the safety of the autonomous vehicle when driving on sharp curves. Note that the target route setting unit 103 may, for example, determine whether a sharp curve condition is satisfied based on the traveling position of the vehicle and information stored in the map database 30, or may determine whether a sharp curve condition is satisfied based on the driving position of the vehicle and information stored in the map database 30, or based on the detection result by the surrounding situation sensor 40. It may be determined whether or not the sharp curve condition is satisfied.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating target route setting during normal times. The target route setting unit 103 performs target route setting using information on road white lines. Specifically, the target route setting unit 103 recognizes two white lines WL1 and WL2 on the left and right, which are the boundaries of the driving lane L1 in which the vehicle C travels, from information detected by the camera of the surrounding situation sensor 40, etc. , the representative point P1 of the white line WL1 and the representative point P2 of the white line WL2 are extracted and plotted at regular intervals. Then, the target route setting unit 103 derives a white line approximate curve AC1 (approximate curve corresponding to the white line WL1), which is an n-dimensional curve that passes through all of the plurality of representative points P1, and an n-dimensional curve that passes through all of the plurality of representative points P2. A white line approximate curve AC2 (an approximate curve corresponding to the white line WL2) is derived. Finally, the target route setting unit 103 sets the intermediate line connecting the midpoints of the white line approximate curves AC1 and AC2 as the target route TL centered on the rear axis. In addition, if only one of the white lines WL1 and WL2 is temporarily recognized due to road surface conditions, etc., it is possible to derive the intermediate line connecting the midpoints from only the information of one white line from prior information on lane width, etc. can. The above is an example of target route setting under normal conditions.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating target route setting before a sharp curve. The target route setting before a sharp curve is similar to the normal target route setting described above in that the information on the white line on the road is used. Specifically, the target route setting unit 103 recognizes two white lines WL1 and WL2 on the left and right, which are the boundaries of the driving lane L1 in which the vehicle C travels, from information detected by the camera of the surrounding situation sensor 40, etc. , the representative point P1 of the white line WL1 and the representative point P2 of the white line WL2 are extracted and plotted at regular intervals. Note that here, it is assumed that there is an adjacent lane L2 adjacent to the driving lane L1. The adjacent lane L2 is a lane adjacent to the driving lane L1 on the opposite side to the direction of the sharp curve. In this case, the white line WL2 is a white line that serves as a boundary line between the driving lane L1 and the adjacent lane L2. The target route setting unit 103 derives a white line approximate curve AC1 (approximate curve corresponding to the white line WL1), which is an n-dimensional curve that passes through all of the plurality of representative points P1, and also derives an n-dimensional curve that passes through all of the plurality of representative points P2. A white line approximate curve AC2 (an approximate curve corresponding to the white line WL2) is derived. The target route setting unit 103 derives an intermediate line connecting the midpoints of white line approximate curves AC1 and AC2, and offsets the intermediate line by a predetermined amount toward the adjacent lane L2 to set the target route TL1 centered on the rear axle. Set. The predetermined amount here is set so that the vehicle C can travel at least astride the driving lane L1 and the adjacent lane L2.

Alternatively, the target route setting unit 103 sets the white line approximate curve AC2, which is an approximate curve corresponding to the white line WL2 that is the boundary line between the driving lane L1 and the adjacent lane L2, as the target route TL2 centered on the rear axle of the vehicle C. It's okay. The target route setting unit 103 sets the target route setting method (setting of the target route TL2) as the basic target route setting method when the sharp curve condition is satisfied, and when the target route setting method cannot be used, the target route setting method described above is used. The target route may be set by a method in which a line offset from the median line is set as the target route TL1 (setting of the target route TL1).

In this embodiment, since it is desired that the vehicle C travels across the adjacent lane L2 when a sharp curve condition is established, the setting of the target route T2 that more reliably realizes such traveling is better than the setting of the target route T1. will also be implemented on a priority basis. That is, in setting the target route T1, for example, depending on the estimation of the lane width, the amount of offset may be too large or too small, and the vehicle C may not be able to travel at the intended position. Also, in a situation where there are many lanes, it may be difficult to branch Although the control behavior may become unstable depending on point recognition, such a situation can be avoided by setting the target route T2, and the vehicle C can be stably driven across the adjacent lane L2. However, in cases such as when the white line WL2 that forms the boundary with the adjacent lane L2 is not recognized temporarily, the target route T1 may be set. Even if the white line WL2 is not recognized, the intermediate line can be estimated from prior information on the lane width as described above, so the target route T1 can be set.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a control procedure executed by the control device 10. As shown in FIG. 5, the control device 10 determines whether a sharp curve condition is satisfied (step S1). Specifically, the control device 10 determines, based on surrounding conditions, that the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve where the curvature of the road changes rapidly, and that there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side of the sharp curve. Determine whether it exists. If it is determined in step S1 that the sharp curve condition is not satisfied, normal target route setting is performed.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1 that the sharp curve condition is satisfied, then it is determined whether or not there is a parallel vehicle in the adjacent lane (step S2). The presence or absence of a parallel vehicle may be determined based on the detection result of the surrounding situation sensor 40, or may be determined based on information from the communication device 60, for example. If it is determined in step S2 that there is a vehicle running in parallel, the vehicle cannot travel across adjacent lanes, so the normal target route setting is performed.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2 that there is no parallel vehicle, then the target route setting before the sharp curve is performed. Specifically, a target route centered on the rear axis of the vehicle is set so that the vehicle travels across the driving lane and the adjacent lane (step S3). Finally, the vehicle follows the route based on the set target route (step S4).

Next, the effects of the control device 10 included in the automatic driving system 1 according to this embodiment will be explained.

The control device 10 according to the present embodiment includes a target route setting unit 103 that sets a target route for the vehicle based on the surrounding situation of the vehicle, a tracking control unit 104 that performs route tracking control for the vehicle based on the target route, Based on the surrounding conditions, the target route setting unit 103 determines that the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve where the curvature of the road changes rapidly, and that there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side of the sharp curve. Determining whether or not a sharp curve condition exists, and if it is determined that a sharp curve condition exists, the rear of the vehicle is Setting a target path centered on the axis;

In the control device 10 according to the present embodiment, when the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve and there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side to the direction of the sharp curve, the vehicle can distinguish between the traveling lane and the adjacent lane. A target route centered around the rear axle of the vehicle is set so that the vehicle travels astride the vehicle. Generally, when setting a target route, a target route centered on the rear axle is set at the center of the driving lane. However, for example, large vehicles and towing vehicles have long wheelbases and overhangs, so if the target route centered on the rear axle is set in the center of the driving lane at the entrance of a curve, there is a risk that the overhang will run into the adjacent lane. be. In this regard, in the control device 10 according to the present embodiment, it is determined whether the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve and there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side to the direction of the sharp curve (i.e., sharp curve condition). In the case of a sharp curve, the target route centered on the rear axle is not set in the center of the driving lane, but is set on the adjacent lane side so that the vehicle travels astride the driving lane and the adjacent lane. In this case, the vehicle enters a portion of the adjacent lane before the sharp curve. As a result, a portion of the adjacent lane is collapsed before a sharp curve, preventing other vehicles traveling in the adjacent lane from entering the lane, and also avoids a situation where the overhang suddenly crashes into the adjacent lane at the entrance of the curve. . This makes it possible to further improve the safety of the autonomous vehicle when driving on sharp curves.

When determining that the condition is a sharp curve, the target route setting unit 103 recognizes a white line that is a boundary line between the driving lane and an adjacent lane based on the surrounding situation, and sets the white line to a target route centered on the rear axle of the vehicle. May be set. According to such a configuration, it is possible to more reliably and easily set a target route centered on the rear axis so that the vehicle travels across the driving lane and the adjacent lane.

When the target route setting unit 103 determines that the condition is a sharp curve, it recognizes two white lines that serve as boundaries between driving lanes based on the surrounding situation, and places the intermediate line between the two white lines adjacent to each other by a predetermined amount. A line offset to the lane side may be set as the target route centered on the rear axle of the vehicle. According to this configuration, by slightly changing the control under normal conditions other than sharp curve conditions (control for setting the target route in the center of the driving lane), it is possible to realize control under sharp curve conditions. A target route can be easily set so that the vehicle travels across the driving lane and the adjacent lane. In addition, since it can be carried out in the same way as normal control, for example, even if the white line that is the boundary line with the adjacent lane cannot be recognized temporarily, the vehicle will be able to drive so that it straddles the driving lane and the adjacent lane. A target route can be set to

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10...Control device, 103...Target route setting part, 104...Following control part.

Claims (3)

a target route setting unit that sets a target route for the vehicle based on the surrounding situation of the vehicle;
a tracking control unit that performs route tracking control of the vehicle based on the target route,
The target route setting section includes:
Based on the surrounding situation, the vehicle is traveling in front of a sharp curve where the curvature of the road changes rapidly, and there is an adjacent lane on the opposite side of the sharp curve. determining whether the condition is met;
If it is determined that the sharp curve condition exists, setting a target route centered on the rear axis of the vehicle so that the vehicle travels so as to straddle the driving lane and the adjacent lane; Control device. The target route setting section includes:
When it is determined that the sharp curve condition exists, a white line that is a boundary line between the driving lane and the adjacent lane is recognized based on the surrounding situation, and the white line is set as a target route centered on the rear axle of the vehicle. The control device according to claim 1. The target route setting section includes:
When it is determined that the sharp curve condition exists, the system recognizes two white lines that serve as boundaries between the driving lanes based on the surrounding conditions, and moves the intermediate line between the two white lines a predetermined amount toward the adjacent lane. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the offset line is set as a target route centered on the rear axis of the vehicle.

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