JP4006319B2 - Vehicle travel control device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a vehicle that includes a radar device for obstacle detection, and that causes a vehicle that travels autonomously based on preset course data to travel while avoiding obstacles ahead of the traveling direction detected by the radar device. The present invention relates to a traveling control apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
For example, in a vast work site such as a mine, when transporting ore over a long distance, a special vehicle such as an unmanned dump truck is used and this vehicle is pre-set with the current course data. A vehicle operation system has been adopted in which the vehicle is autonomously guided based on the travel data of the vehicle to release the vehicle from a harsh working environment.
[0003]
Further, in the above operation system, an obstacle detection radar device is mounted on the vehicle, the obstacle is detected on the road by this radar device, and the detection result (presence or absence of obstacle, position, etc.) is used. Vehicle travel control is performed so as to avoid a collision with an obstacle (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
[0004]
As shown in FIG. 6, a target course (course data) C serving as a guideline for the vehicle T to travel is preset on the track R connecting the excavation site A and the processing facility B in the mine. The vehicle T is autonomously guided on the track R based on (data) C and travel data (position information, speed, etc.) obtained by using a position measurement system such as GPS.
[0005]
Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the obstacle detection by the radar device S mounted on the vehicle T is performed in the determination area Q for obstacle determination generated in the front area of the vehicle T, that is, “search in the traveling direction of the vehicle. It is done in the “must have” area.
[0006]
Here, the determination area Q is an area where the scanning area H of the radar beam irradiated forward from the radar device S and the scheduled traveling area I obtained by extending the vehicle width of the vehicle T in the traveling direction overlap. Yes, the presence or absence of an obstacle is determined only in the determination area Q, and no obstacle is detected outside the determination area Q.
[0007]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-65660 [Problems to be Solved by the Invention]
By the way, the vehicle T traveling along the target course C on the track R is a position (position information) of the own vehicle obtained from the position measurement system, that is, a position (X coordinate, Y coordinate, Z coordinate) as shown in FIG. And the traveling direction (yaw angle θ: attitude angle with respect to the target course) are controlled to travel on the target course C, which is the target. There is often a slight deviation between the course C and the posture of the vehicle T.
[0008]
As shown in FIG. 9, when a deviation occurs in the traveling direction (yaw angle θ) of the vehicle T with respect to the target course C, the determination area Q generated in the front area of the vehicle T is a true determination area (the vehicle T is an error). Rather than the determination area Qt generated in the state of riding on the target course C), it is shifted in the left-right direction (width direction of the track R) as indicated by a one-dot chain line or a two-dot chain line.
[0009]
Incidentally, the deviation of the determination area Q with respect to the true determination area Qt described above increases from the vehicle T toward the front due to the accumulated error, and is, for example, a deviation of about 1 m 100 m ahead of the vehicle T.
[0010]
Here, as shown in FIG. 10, when the determination area Q is deviated from the true determination area Qt, the object Oa on the runway R is out of the true determination area Qt, but the determination area is causing a deviation. The vehicle T is determined to be an obstacle to be applied to Q, and the vehicle T is controlled to decelerate and turn to avoid a collision, or to stop.
[0011]
Further, although the object Ob on the runway R falls on the true determination area Qt, the object Ob is not determined as an obstacle because it is out of the determination area Q where the deviation occurs, and the travel control for avoiding the collision is performed. Since this is not done, the vehicle T may collide with the object Ob.
[0012]
As described above, due to the occurrence of a deviation in the determination area Q, a smooth traveling of the vehicle T is obstructed by erroneously detecting an obstacle in the forward region in the traveling direction of the vehicle T. There is a disadvantage that the work efficiency at the site is lowered, and the productivity is lowered.
[0013]
In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle travel control device that can prevent an inappropriate travel of a vehicle due to a deviation in a determination area, and thereby prevent a reduction in work efficiency on site. There is to do.
[0014]
[Means for solving the problems and effects]
To achieve the above object, the traveling control apparatus for a vehicle according to a first aspect of the invention,-out based on the position information of the course data and the vehicle on the road of a radar beam emitted from the radar device to the front of the vehicle The determination area generation means includes a determination area generation means for generating a determination area for obstacle determination in a front area of the vehicle by overlapping a scanning area and a scheduled travel area in which the vehicle width of the vehicle is extended in the traveling direction. And a determination area data correction unit that corrects the determination area data generated in step 2 in a manner that eliminates a shift of the determination area with respect to the road shoulder information based on the road shoulder information of the running road .
[0015]
According to the above configuration, the determination area data generated by the determination area generation unit is corrected based on the shoulder information of the road by the determination area data correction unit, so that an obstacle can be determined in a more accurate determination area. Will be.
[0016]
As a result, inappropriate traveling of the vehicle due to the deviation of the determination area is prevented in advance, and therefore the traveling control device for a vehicle according to the invention of claim 1 reduces the work efficiency at the site. Can be prevented.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments.
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment in which a vehicle travel control apparatus according to the present invention is employed in a vehicle operation system in a mine. On a runway 3 that connects a mine excavation site 1 and a processing facility 2, The vehicle (unmanned dump truck) 10 is autonomously guided and traveled in a manner as will be described later.
[0018]
A vehicle 10 traveling on the track 3 is equipped with a millimeter wave radar device 11 (hereinafter referred to as a radar device 11) which is a radar device for detecting an obstacle.
Incidentally, the radar device 11 includes a fixed radar device for scanning on the straight running road 3 and a movable radar that changes the direction in conjunction with the motor in the driving direction of the vehicle 10 to scan the curved running road 3. Including the device.
[0019]
The radar apparatus 11 is not limited to the millimeter wave radar apparatus according to the embodiment that uses millimeter waves as the directional medium to be irradiated, and various types of radar apparatuses such as an optical laser apparatus and a visual sensor apparatus. It goes without saying that can be adopted.
[0020]
The vehicle 10 is equipped with the above-described radar device 11 and is provided with a travel control device 20 as shown in FIG. 2. The travel control device 20 includes a processing unit 21, a travel state measurement unit 22, a communication unit 23, A course data storage unit 24, a travel control unit 25, a determination area generation unit (determination area generation unit) 26, a determination area data correction unit (determination area data correction unit) 27, and the like are included.
[0021]
The traveling state measuring unit 22 of the traveling control device 20 includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) for knowing position information of the vehicle 10, a tire rotation sensor for knowing traveling distance information, and a light for knowing traveling direction information. The current position and traveling state of the vehicle 10 are measured using a fiber gyro, a speed sensor for knowing traveling speed information, and the like.
[0022]
Further, the communication unit 23 of the travel control device 20 exchanges travel data and the like in each vehicle 10 between the central control station 30 that controls all the vehicles 10 operating in the mine and the individual vehicles 10. It is for communication.
[0023]
On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, a target course (course data) 4 that serves as a guide for the vehicle 10 that travels is preset on the runway 3 that connects the excavation site 1 and the processing facility 2. The course 4 is set at a position separated from the shoulder of the runway 3 by a predetermined distance in consideration of various margins (guidance margin, safety margin, etc.) provided on both the left and right sides of the vehicle 10.
[0024]
The target course 4 described above is taught by causing the vehicle 10 to actually travel on the course 4, and at this time, the processing unit 21 of the travel control device 20 is sometimes measured by the travel state measuring unit 22. The momentary travel position (travel trajectory) is stored as course data in the course data storage unit 24, for example, in the form of point sequence position information.
[0025]
Here, the vehicle 10 on the runway 3 is automatically guided based on the target course (course data) 4.
That is, the processing unit 21 of the travel control device 20 travels so that the positional deviation of the vehicle 10 with respect to the target course 4 is corrected based on the comparison between the course data and the travel data output from the travel state measurement unit 22. A steering control command is output to the control unit 25, whereby the vehicle 10 travels on the preset target course 4.
[0026]
On the other hand, the vehicle 10 detects an obstacle in the forward direction of the traveling path 3 by using the mounted radar device 11, and the processing of the traveling control device 20 based on the detection result (presence / absence or position of the obstacle). The unit 21 outputs a steering control command and a speed control command to the travel control unit 25, whereby the vehicle 10 is travel-controlled so as to avoid a collision with an obstacle.
[0027]
The detection of the obstacle on the track 3 is performed in the determination area Q for obstacle determination generated in the front area of the vehicle 10.
The determination area Q is an area in which a scanning area H of a radar beam irradiated in front of the vehicle 10 from the radar device 11 and a scheduled traveling area I obtained by extending the vehicle width of the vehicle T in the traveling direction overlap. As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 4, the determination area generation unit 26 of the travel control device 20 generates the target course (course data) 4 and the position (position information) of the vehicle 10 (Step 101).
[0028]
Next, in the processing unit 21 of the travel control device 20, the determination area (determination area data) Q generated by the determination area generation unit 26 and the road shoulder information on the road 3 are overlapped to overlap the determination area Q. It is determined whether or not there is an error (deviation from the true determination area) (Step 102).
[0029]
Here, as shown in FIG. 5, the mine track 3 in the embodiment has banks 3 </ b> A on the left and right for the purpose of preventing the vehicle 10 from falling.
The shoulder on the runway 3 refers to the boundary between the runway 3 and the bank 3A, that is, the side edge 3a of the runway 3, and the road shoulder information refers to position information on the side edge 3a of the runway 3. This is known survey information that is measured in advance using a position measurement system such as GPS.
[0030]
As a result of the determination in the processing unit 21 of the travel control device 20, if it is determined that there is no error (deviation) in the determination area Q, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. Based on the detection result, the vehicle 10 is controlled to avoid a collision with an obstacle (Step 103).
[0031]
On the other hand, as a result of the determination in the processing unit 21 of the travel control device 20, if it is determined that there is an error (deviation) in the determination area Q, the determination area data correction unit 27 (see FIG. 2) of the travel control device 20 In FIG. 5, correction is applied to the determination area data (position data representing the determination area) in a manner that eliminates the error (deviation) of the determination area Q (Step 104).
[0032]
Next, an obstacle on the road 3 is detected in the corrected determination area Q, and the vehicle 10 is controlled to avoid a collision with the obstacle based on the detection result (Step 105).
[0033]
As described above, the data of the determination area generated by the determination area generation unit 26 of the travel control device 20 is excluded from the error (deviation) based on the shoulder information of the road 3 in the determination area data correction unit 27 of the travel control device 20. By correcting in this manner, the accuracy of the determination area on the runway 3 is greatly improved, so that the obstacle is determined in the accurate determination area.
[0034]
Thus, the frequency of erroneously detecting obstacles on the road 3 is reduced, and inappropriate traveling of the vehicle 10 due to the deviation of the determination area Q is prevented in advance, thereby causing a reduction in work efficiency at the site. It becomes possible to prevent.
[0035]
In the above-described embodiment, the known survey information using the position measurement system is used as a method for acquiring the shoulder information of the runway 3. It is also possible to employ a method in which a camera for picking up the vehicle is mounted and image information obtained by this camera is processed to extract the shoulder information of the running road.
[0036]
Incidentally, in the method of extracting the shoulder information from the image information of the in-vehicle camera, when the vehicle 10 traveling on the road approaches the uphill road, it is easy to erroneously detect the uphill slope as an obstacle in the scan by the radar device. On the other hand, since the uphill road can be identified based on the image information, it is possible to prevent the uphill slope from being erroneously detected as an obstacle as much as possible.
[0037]
Further, as a method of acquiring the shoulder information on the runway 3, in addition to using the image information of the in-vehicle camera as described above, for example, various sensors using laser light or the like are mounted on the vehicle 10, while the shoulder of the runway is mounted. It is also possible to employ a method in which reflectors as markers are arranged along the line, and the shoulder information of the road is obtained from the position information of each reflector detected by the sensor.
[0038]
Further, in the above-described embodiment, the position of the side edge (boundary line with the bank 3A) 3a on the runway 3 is adopted as the shoulder information of the runway 3, but a predetermined dimension from the side edge 3a toward the center. It is also possible to define a line shifted by only the shoulder of the runway 3 and adopt the position on this line as the shoulder information.
[0039]
In the above-described embodiment, determination area generation, determination area error determination, determination area data correction, and the like are processed on the vehicle 10 side, but these processes are executed by the central control station 30. The vehicle 10 may be configured to travel control by a command signal transmitted from the central control station 30 based on the processing result.
[0040]
Further, in the above-described embodiment, the example in which the vehicle travel control device according to the present invention is applied to the operation system that performs overall control of all the vehicles by the central control station has been described. It goes without saying that the vehicle travel control apparatus according to the present invention can be effectively applied to an operation system in which all the vehicles are integrated and controlled by communicating travel data.
[0041]
Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which the traveling control device for a vehicle according to the present invention is applied to an operation system in a mine that uses an unmanned vehicle (unmanned dump truck), but a manned vehicle is used. It goes without saying that the present invention can also be applied effectively to the operating system.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of a runway in a mine.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a vehicle travel control apparatus according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a plan view conceptually showing a determination area for obstacle determination.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation mode in the embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view conceptually showing the structure of a runway.
FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of a runway in a mine.
FIG. 7 is a plan view conceptually showing a determination area on a runway.
FIG. 8 is a plan view conceptually showing the position of the vehicle on the runway.
FIG. 9 is a plan view conceptually showing a determination area on a runway.
FIG. 10 is a plan view conceptually showing a determination area on a runway.
[Explanation of symbols]
1: Excavation site,
2: Processing facility
3: Runway,
3a: side edge (shoulder),
3A: Bank
4: Target course (course data),
10: vehicle,
11: Radar device,
20: traveling control device,
21: processing unit,
22: Running state measuring unit,
24: Course data storage unit,
23: Communication Department,
25: Travel control unit,
26: determination area generation unit,
(Judgment area generation means),
27: Determination area data correction unit,
(Judgment area data correction means),
30: Central control station,
H: Scanning area,
Q: Judgment area.

Claims (1)

A vehicle travel control device that includes a radar device for obstacle detection, and that causes a vehicle that travels autonomously based on preset course data to travel while avoiding obstacles ahead of the traveling direction detected by the radar device. Because
-Out based on the position information of the course data and the vehicle on the track, and scanning area of the radar beams emitted from the radar device in front of the vehicle, a travel plan area extended vehicle width of the vehicle in the traveling direction And a determination area generating means for generating a determination area for obstacle determination in the front area of the vehicle,
Determination area data correction means for correcting the data of the determination area generated in the determination area generation means based on the shoulder information of the running road in a manner that eliminates the deviation of the determination area with respect to the shoulder information ;
A vehicle travel control apparatus comprising:

Images