JP6443160B2 - Automatic travel control device or automatic travel control system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic travel control device and the like.

  In a system that performs automatic traveling control of multiple vehicles, when a vehicle traveling abnormality occurs, the vehicle in which the traveling abnormality has occurred and the vehicle that travels behind the vehicle are stopped by an instruction from a transmission / reception device installed on the road Is known (Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-157585

However, a vehicle or the like in which a running abnormality has occurred cannot be stopped without an instruction from the outside, and it is necessary to wait for an instruction from the outside in order to deal with the running abnormality.
An object of the present invention is to quickly and flexibly cope with a problem in automatic driving.

  One aspect of the present invention is an acquisition means for acquiring automatic traveling information, which is information related to the state of the own vehicle and the surroundings of the own vehicle, which is necessary for automatic traveling in which the own vehicle travels toward the destination. An automatic traveling means for controlling the traveling direction and speed of the vehicle based on the automatic traveling means, a determining means for determining whether or not a problem relating to the automatic traveling information has occurred, and, if a problem occurs, the content of the problem According to the present invention, the present invention relates to an automatic travel control device comprising: a changing unit that changes a traveling state of the host vehicle or a traveling state of another vehicle.

  According to such a configuration, when a problem occurs in the automatic travel information, the state of travel of the own vehicle or other vehicle is voluntarily changed according to the content of the problem without waiting for an external instruction. it can. Therefore, when a problem occurs in automatic driving, it can be dealt with quickly and flexibly.

  In addition, the code | symbol in the parenthesis described in the claim shows the correspondence with the specific means as described in embodiment mentioned later as one aspect, Comprising: The technical scope of this invention is limited is not.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of an automatic traveling control system. It is explanatory drawing about automatic driving | running | working. It is a flowchart of an abnormality handling process. It is explanatory drawing of the warning screen displayed by an automatic travel control apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows a mode in the case of carrying out an emergency stop of the own vehicle. It is explanatory drawing which shows a mode in the case of canceling | releasing automatic driving | running | working and transferring a driving authority to a user. It is explanatory drawing which shows a mode in the case of stopping the own vehicle in an evacuation area.

Embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[Description of configuration]
The automatic travel control system 1 of the present embodiment is a system for performing automatic travel of one or a plurality of vehicles, and includes a center 10, an environment information detection device 20, an automatic travel control device 30, and the like (see FIG. 1).

  The center 10 is a device that is monitored by an operator and controls automatic traveling of the vehicle in a specific area, and includes a center control unit 11, an operator HMI 12, a communication device 13, and the like. The center 10 may be configured as a PC.

  The center control unit 11 is a computer including a CPU, RAM, ROM, HDD, and the like. The center control unit 11 performs processing for automatically traveling a vehicle traveling in a specific area according to a program stored in the ROM or a program loaded in the RAM. The center control unit 11 stores map data.

  The map data includes static information such as road and structure shapes and lane information, and dynamically changing information such as traffic regulations, accidents, traffic jams, vehicles, pedestrians, signals, etc. on each road. It may be configured as a dynamic map composed of In such a case, the center control unit 11 updates the dynamic map as needed based on information acquired from the outside.

  The operator HMI 12 is configured as a keyboard, a touch panel, a mouse, a speaker, a voice input device, a display, and the like. The operator HMI 12 accepts an input operation from the operator, notifies the center control unit 11 and notifies the operator of various information from the center control unit 11.

The communication device 13 performs wireless communication with the automatic travel control device 30 and the environment information detection device 20.
The environment information detection device 20 is installed on the side of a road together with the communication device 21 that performs wireless communication with the center 10 and the automatic travel control device 30. The environment information detection device 20 detects the road situation and transmits the road situation to the center 10 and the automatic travel control device 30 via the communication device 21. The environment information detection device 20 may be configured as a camera, a millimeter wave radar, a rider, or the like that monitors a road as an example.

  The automatic travel control device 30 includes a vehicle control unit 31, various actuators such as a steering actuator 32a, a drive actuator 32b, and a brake actuator 32c, a vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a, an occupant monitoring sensor 33b, a surroundings monitoring sensor 33c, and the like. Various sensors are provided. The automatic travel control device 30 includes a map database 34, an occupant HMI & input device 35, a communication device 36, a center communication device 37, and the like. These devices and parts may be configured as one device, or may be distributed among a plurality of devices and connected via an in-vehicle LAN or the like.

  The steering actuator 32a is a part that controls the steering angle of the host vehicle, the drive actuator 32b is a part that controls an engine and a driving motor that are the power of the host vehicle, and the brake actuator 32c is a brake that controls the host vehicle. It is a part to control.

  The vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a is a sensor that detects a vehicle state quantity that is the state of the host vehicle. The vehicle state quantity includes, for example, a steering angle control state (yaw rate, steering angle, direction, etc.), a drive control state (wheel speed, acceleration, etc.), a braking control state (brake hydraulic pressure, etc.) , Current position information of the host vehicle, and the like. Note that the position information of the host vehicle is detected based on a signal received from a GPS satellite. Of course, the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a which detects vehicle state quantities other than these may be provided.

The occupant monitoring sensor 33b is a sensor that detects the state of the user who is in the host vehicle, and is configured, for example, as an in-vehicle camera that captures the interior of the vehicle.
The peripheral monitoring sensor 33c is configured to detect the presence of an object (another vehicle, a pedestrian, an obstacle, etc.) existing around the own vehicle, the positional relationship between the object and the own vehicle, a road width, a white line, a road sign, and the like. It is a sensor that detects information. The periphery monitoring sensor 33c is configured as, for example, a camera outside the vehicle configured as a stereo camera, a millimeter wave radar, a rider, a sonar, or the like.

  The vehicle control unit 31 is a computer provided with a CPU, RAM, ROM and the like. The vehicle control unit 31 receives a signal from the above-described sensor and controls the above-described actuator. Further, the vehicle control unit 31 operates in accordance with a program stored in the ROM, and executes processing to be described later.

The map database 34 stores map data. The map data may be configured as the dynamic map described above.
The occupant HMI & input device 35 is a part that receives an input operation from the user and notifies various information, and is configured as a key switch, a touch panel, a speaker, a voice input device, a display, and the like.

The communication device 36 performs wireless communication with an in-vehicle device such as the automatic travel control device 30 mounted on another vehicle and the environment information detection device 20.
The center communication device 37 performs wireless communication with the center 10.

[Description of operation]
(1) About automatic travel First, automatic travel by the automatic travel control system 1 will be described.

  Registered in the center control unit 11 are user IDs and attributes (whether or not a driver's license is held, etc.) of a user who uses a vehicle that performs automatic driving. The center control unit 11 stores the vehicle ID of the vehicle on which the automatic travel control device 30 is mounted, and periodically acquires position information and the like from each vehicle, and stores them in association with the vehicle ID. Yes.

  When the center control unit 11 acquires the vehicle ID of the vehicle that starts automatic driving, the user ID of the user who uses the vehicle, the destination, and the like, the center control unit 11 automatically operates based on the map data, the position information of the vehicle, the destination, and the like. Specify the travel route. The vehicle ID, user ID, destination, and the like may be input by the operator, or may be configured so that the automatic travel control device 30 receives input from the user and transmits the automatic travel control device 30 to the center 10. .

  Then, the center control unit 11 transmits an automatic travel route to the automatic travel control device 30 of the vehicle that starts the automatic travel, and the automatic travel control device 30 moves the host vehicle to the destination along the received automatic travel route. Start automatic driving to run. The explanatory diagram of FIG. 2 shows a state in which the vehicle 100 automatically travels to the destination 110 along the automatic travel route 120.

  During the automatic travel control, the vehicle control unit 31 periodically acquires the vehicle state quantity relating to the behavior of the vehicle such as the position information of the own vehicle, the yaw rate, the steering angle, the vehicle speed, the brake hydraulic pressure, etc. by the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a. . And based on these information, various actuators are controlled, and the advancing direction, vehicle speed, etc. of the own vehicle are controlled so that the own vehicle is located on the automatic travel route. Further, the vehicle control unit 31 periodically transmits the position information of the own vehicle to the center 10 via the center communication device 37, and the center 10 stores the position information of the vehicle in association with the vehicle ID.

  Moreover, the vehicle control unit 31 detects the surrounding information of the own vehicle by the periphery monitoring sensor 33c. The vehicle control unit 31 is based on information acquired from an in-vehicle device such as the automatic travel control device 30 mounted on another vehicle or the environment information detection device 20 installed on the roadside via the communication device 36. Information may be grasped. Further, the peripheral information may be grasped based on the dynamic map stored in the map database 34. Then, the vehicle control unit 31 controls the vehicle speed and the traveling direction of the host vehicle based on the surrounding information, thereby avoiding a collision between the host vehicle and an object, or adjusting the traveling position of the host vehicle on the road or lane. Or change the lane in which the vehicle travels.

  Further, the vehicle control unit 31 performs deceleration, stop of the host vehicle, a traveling direction, a change of an automatic travel route, etc. based on an instruction from an in-vehicle device such as the automatic travel control device 30 mounted on another vehicle, A collision with the other vehicle may be avoided.

(2) Abnormal handling process Next, when a problem occurs in the abnormal state quantity detected by the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a during automatic running, an abnormal handling process for changing the running state of the host vehicle or another vehicle. Will be described (FIG. 3). This process is executed at regular timing by the automatic travel control device 30 during automatic travel.

  In S200, the vehicle control unit 31 determines whether there is an abnormality in the vehicle state quantity related to the behavior of the host vehicle detected by the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a based on a signal from the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a (for example, the vehicle state It is determined whether or not the amount has been acquired and whether or not the vehicle state amount is normal.

  Note that the vehicle state quantity related to the behavior of the host vehicle may be, for example, a vehicle state quantity related to the steering angle control, drive control, or braking control of the host vehicle. The vehicle state quantity related to the steering angle control may be, for example, a steering angle, an electric angle of a steering motor that controls the steering angle, a current flowing in the steering motor, a steering torque, or the like. Further, the vehicle state quantity related to the drive control may be, for example, a vehicle speed, a wheel speed, a current flowing in the drive motor, or the like. The vehicle state quantity related to the brake control is, for example, a brake hydraulic pressure or the like. There may be.

If a positive determination is obtained (S200: Yes), the process proceeds to S205, and if a negative determination is obtained (S200: No), the process proceeds to S215.
In S205, the occupant HMI & input device 35 notifies the user that the host vehicle is to be urgently stopped on the spot. Specifically, after displaying a warning screen 300 indicating that an abnormality has occurred on the display, a warning screen 301 indicating an emergency stop may be displayed (FIG. 4). Further, at this time, it may be notified through the speaker that an abnormality has occurred or that an emergency stop will occur. At this time, the cause of the emergency stop (the occurrence of an abnormality in the vehicle state quantity related to the behavior of the host vehicle) may also be notified.

  Thereafter, the vehicle control unit 31 causes the host vehicle to stop urgently. When an abnormality occurs in the vehicle state quantity related to the steering angle control, the power supply to the steering control is stopped, and the maximum acceleration ( Alternatively, the host vehicle may be decelerated within a range in which the user is not injured (maximum acceleration within a range that does not cause injury), and an emergency stop may be performed. In addition, when an abnormality occurs in the vehicle state quantity related to drive control, power supply to drive control is stopped, and either one of the hydraulic brake and parking brake is used and emergency stop is performed in the same manner. Also good. Also, if an abnormality occurs in the vehicle state quantity related to braking control, power supply to the braking control is stopped, and an emergency stop is similarly performed using either the regenerative brake or the parking brake. Also good.

  In order to avoid a collision, the steering angle may be controlled simultaneously with deceleration to change the traveling direction. Further, the host vehicle may be urgently stopped using a brake device provided separately from the regenerative brake, hydraulic brake, parking brake, and the like.

  In subsequent S210, the vehicle control unit 31 informs other vehicles, pedestrians, and the like that travel around the host vehicle that the emergency stop will occur, and ends this process. Specifically, for example, an emergency stop warning may be issued by sounding a horn or emitting a headlight, a blinker, or the like, or an emergency such as a display that can be seen from outside the vehicle, Versa Lighter, or Patlite (registered trademark). You may display that it stops, or may output the sound of emergency stop toward the outside of a vehicle with a speaker.

  In addition, the vehicle control unit 31 performs wireless communication with an in-vehicle device mounted on another vehicle around the host vehicle via the communication device 36, and an emergency is performed via a display device or a speaker mounted on the other vehicle. You may alert | report that it will stop. Further, the vehicle control unit 31 may instruct the in-vehicle device of the other vehicle to stop, decelerate, change course, or the like for avoiding a collision with the own vehicle that makes an emergency stop by wireless communication. At this time, if the automatic traveling by the automatic traveling control device 30 is performed in the other vehicle, the instruction may be given to the vehicle control unit 31 of the other vehicle, the vehicle control unit 31, the center 10 or the like. On the other hand, in order to avoid a collision with the host vehicle, it may be instructed to change the automatic travel route of the other vehicle.

  5 is an emergency stop point 141 after an abnormality in the steering state control, drive control, or braking control occurs at the abnormality occurrence point 140 in the vehicle 100 that is running automatically. The state when emergency stop is shown. When the vehicle 100 is urgently stopped, the automatic travel control device 30 notifies other vehicles, pedestrians, and the like traveling around the urgent stop. In addition, wireless communication is performed with an in-vehicle device mounted on the other vehicle 130 to notify the emergency stop via the display device, the speaker, or the like of the other vehicle 130, or the other vehicle 130 is stopped or decelerated for avoiding a collision. Or change course.

  On the other hand, in S215, where there is no abnormality in the vehicle state quantity related to the behavior of the host vehicle, the vehicle control unit 31 determines whether or not the accuracy of the position information of the host vehicle has decreased based on the signal received from the GPS satellite. Determine whether.

  The vehicle control unit 31 uses position information detected from the signal from the GPS satellite when the positioning accuracy by the GPS satellite is sufficiently high (within ± 10 cm as an example), otherwise, as an alternative means Position information detected by map matching is used. In map matching, position information with poor positioning accuracy detected based on signals from GPS satellites includes vehicle state quantities detected by the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a, peripheral information acquired by the peripheral monitoring sensor 33c and wireless communication, and the like. It is corrected based on.

  More specifically, the travel distance of the host vehicle is calculated based on wheel speed sensors provided on the left and right wheels of the host vehicle, and the direction of the host vehicle is calculated based on the detected speed difference from the left and right wheel speed sensors. The position information may be corrected based on these. Furthermore, correction may be performed based on the position of the white line registered in the map data and the image of the white line taken by the camera outside the vehicle, and the lateral position on the lane may be calculated with higher accuracy. In addition, when the position information of the own vehicle can be detected with high accuracy by the environment information detection device 20 or the in-vehicle device of another vehicle, the position information may be received from these.

  In S215, as an example, if the positioning accuracy is not within ± 10 cm, it is assumed that the accuracy has decreased (S215: Yes), and the process proceeds to S220. If the positioning accuracy is within ± 10 cm (S215: No), This process ends.

In S220, the vehicle control unit 31 determines whether or not the error of the position information detected by the alternative means (method using map matching) is within an allowable range.
Specifically, for example, an error in position information detected by map matching (an error in the horizontal and vertical directions, an error in the direction of the host vehicle, etc.) is calculated in advance as a trace error. The trace error is calculated based on an error of a sensor used for map matching, an error of map data, and the like.

  Further, for example, an error in position information of the own vehicle that is allowed for automatic traveling without protruding from the road is calculated according to the vehicle width of the own vehicle, the road width of the automatic traveling route, the vehicle speed, and the like. In order to suppress the fear of the user, an allowable error may be calculated by further adding a distance to be secured between the host vehicle and the end of the road. Then, based on the calculation result, it is determined whether or not the trace error is within the allowable range. If it is within the allowable range (S220: Yes), the process proceeds to S255, and if it is outside the allowable range (S220: No), the process proceeds to S225.

  In S225, the vehicle control unit 31 detects the position information of the host vehicle by the alternative means, starts automatic traveling in a state where the vehicle speed is set to be lower than normal, and proceeds to S230. At this time, the occupant HMI & input device 35 may notify the user that the vehicle speed has been reduced by voice or video.

  In S230, the vehicle control unit 31 detects an evacuation area where the host vehicle can be stopped without obstructing the travel of other vehicles and the passage of pedestrians (without contacting objects such as other vehicles and pedestrians). Specifically, based on the map data stored in the map database 34, a roadside belt provided with a stop space and a roadside belt having a sufficient width for stopping are searched from the periphery of the own vehicle, and these are saved. It may be detected as an area. When a dynamic map is used as the map data, it is preferable to detect the evacuation area in consideration of the number and behavior of other vehicles and pedestrians. Further, the presence / absence and behavior of other vehicles and pedestrians may be detected by the periphery monitoring sensor 33c, and the retreat area may be detected based on these.

  In addition to this, the vehicle control unit 31 communicates with the center 10, the environment information detection device 20, and the in-vehicle device mounted on other vehicles, detects the evacuation area based on the peripheral information acquired from these devices, Information indicating the position of the evacuation area may be acquired from these devices.

  In subsequent S235, the vehicle control unit 31 determines whether or not it is possible to transfer the driving authority to the user who is on the host vehicle. Specifically, all three conditions are satisfied: (a) the user has a driving license, (b) the user can start driving, and (c) the user is willing to drive. If this happens, it is considered that the driving authority can be transferred.

As a specific example, when at least one of the following three conditions is satisfied, (a) the user may be regarded as having a driver's license.
(1) When the user gets on the host vehicle, an input indicating that the user has a driver's license is accepted.

(2) Information indicating that the user has a driving license is registered in the center control unit 11.
(3) The user sets a driver's license in the holding part provided in the own vehicle.

Further, for example, when at least one of the following four conditions is satisfied, (b) the user may be regarded as a state in which driving can be started.
(1) It can be determined that the user is awake based on the flapping state grasped from the face image of the user taken by the in-vehicle camera (occupant monitoring sensor 33b).

(2) It can be determined that the user is sufficiently aware of the shift of driving authority based on the state of the line of sight grasped from the face image of the user taken by the in-vehicle camera.
(3) It can be determined that the user is awake based on the signal from the biological signal measuring instrument provided on the seat of the host vehicle.

  (4) From the user's image photographed by the in-vehicle camera, the user is properly seated in the driver's seat, and the user's limbs are arranged at positions where the handle, accelerator, and brake can be operated.

Further, for example, when at least one of the following four conditions is satisfied, (c) the user may be considered to have an intention to drive.
(1) The user pressed the automatic travel release button.

(2) An operation indicating that driving is performed via a touch panel or the like (occupant HMI & input device 35) is accepted.
(3) An utterance indicating that the voice input device (occupant HMI & input device 35) is driving is detected.

(4) Operations such as steering wheel, accelerator and brake were accepted.
When the driving authority can be transferred (S235: Yes), the process proceeds to S240. When the driving authority cannot be transferred (S235: No), the process proceeds to S245.

  In S240, the vehicle control unit 31 cancels the automatic travel and shifts the driving authority to the user sitting in the driver's seat. At this time, the occupant HMI & input device 35 notifies the user that automatic driving is to be cancelled. Specifically, after displaying a warning screen 300 indicating that an abnormality has occurred on the display, a warning screen 303 indicating canceling automatic driving may be displayed (FIG. 4). Further, at this time, it may be notified through the speaker that an abnormality has occurred by voice or that automatic driving is to be cancelled. In addition, at this time, a factor for canceling the automatic travel (a decrease in the accuracy of the position information) may also be notified. And this process is complete | finished and driving | running | working of the own vehicle by the driving operation by the user who is seated on the driver's seat is started after that.

  In the explanatory diagram of FIG. 6, in the vehicle 100 that is traveling automatically, the accuracy of the position information is reduced at the abnormality occurrence point 150, but the accuracy of the position information detected by the alternative means is within an allowable range. Therefore, the situation when the driving authority is transferred to the user is shown. In this case, since the driving authority can be transferred to the user, automatic driving is canceled at the driving start point 151 and driving by the user is started.

  On the other hand, in S245, the vehicle control unit 31 causes the host vehicle to automatically travel to the evacuation area and stops the host vehicle in the evacuation area. At this time, the occupant HMI & input device 35 notifies the user that the host vehicle stops in the evacuation area. Specifically, after displaying a warning screen 300 indicating that an abnormality has occurred on the display, a warning screen 302 indicating stopping in the evacuation area may be displayed (FIG. 4). Further, at this time, it may be notified through the speaker that an abnormality has occurred by voice or that the vehicle will stop in the evacuation area. At this time, the cause of stopping in the evacuation area (the accuracy of the position information has decreased, but the user has failed to transfer the driving authority) may also be notified.

  In subsequent S250, the vehicle control unit 31 informs other vehicles, pedestrians, and the like that travel around the host vehicle that the vehicle is stopped, and ends this process. Specifically, for example, a stop warning may be issued by sounding a horn or emitting a headlight, a blinker, etc., or a display indicating that the display is stopped from outside the vehicle, a bar writer, a patrol light, etc. is displayed. Or, a sound indicating that the vehicle stops outside the vehicle may be output by a speaker.

  In addition, the vehicle control unit 31 performs wireless communication with an in-vehicle device mounted on another vehicle around the host vehicle via the communication device 36, and stops via a display device or a speaker mounted on the other vehicle. You may alert | report to do. Further, the vehicle control unit 31 may instruct the in-vehicle device of the other vehicle to stop, decelerate, change course, or the like to avoid a collision with the own vehicle that stops in the retreat area by wireless communication. At this time, if the automatic traveling by the automatic traveling control device 30 is performed in the other vehicle, the instruction may be given to the vehicle control unit 31 of the other vehicle, the vehicle control unit 31, the center 10 or the like. On the other hand, in order to avoid a collision with the host vehicle, it may be instructed to change the automatic travel route of the other vehicle.

  In the explanatory diagram of FIG. 7, in the vehicle 100 that is running automatically, the accuracy of the position information is reduced at the abnormality occurrence point 160, but the accuracy of the position information detected by the alternative means is within the allowable range. Therefore, the situation when the host vehicle is stopped in the evacuation area is shown. In this case, since it is impossible to transfer the driving authority to the user, the host vehicle automatically travels to the evacuation area 161 at a low speed and is stopped in the evacuation area 161.

  On the other hand, in S255 that is shifted when the error of the position information detected by the alternative means is within the allowable range, the vehicle control unit 31 continues automatic driving using the position information of the own vehicle detected by the alternative means. This process is terminated.

  At this time, automatic traveling may be performed while the vehicle speed is low. In addition, when performing automatic driving | running | working at low speed, the passenger | crew HMI & input device 35 may alert | report to the user that the vehicle speed was decelerated with an audio | voice or an image | video. Furthermore, when performing automatic traveling at low speed, it is determined whether or not the driving authority can be transferred to the user in the same manner as in S235, and the driving authority may be transferred if possible. By shifting the driving authority, it is possible to arrive at the destination early.

[effect]
According to the automatic travel control device 30 of the present embodiment, when there is a problem that the vehicle state quantity relating to the steering angle control or the like is abnormal or the accuracy of the position information is lowered, the instruction from the center 10 or the like is waited. Instead, the traveling state of the host vehicle or other vehicle is changed spontaneously. Therefore, when a problem occurs in automatic driving, it can be dealt with quickly and flexibly.

  Specifically, when the above-mentioned problem occurs, automatic driving is performed based on position information obtained by alternative means (a method using map matching), the own vehicle is stopped in the evacuation area, or driving authority is given. The user is transferred to the user or the own vehicle is urgently stopped. Therefore, the above problem can be appropriately dealt with.

  In particular, when the accuracy of the position information is lowered, if the error of the position information detected by the alternative means is within an allowable range, the automatic running is continued with the alternative means being used. For this reason, it can suppress giving a disadvantage to a user.

  On the other hand, if the error in the position information detected by the alternative means exceeds the allowable range, the host vehicle is stopped in the evacuation area if the driving authority cannot be transferred to the user. For this reason, the host vehicle can be stopped without obstructing the travel of other vehicles and the passage of pedestrians and the like.

  In addition, when an abnormality in the vehicle state quantity relating to the behavior of the host vehicle such as steering angle control, drive control, or braking control occurs, the host vehicle is urgently stopped. For this reason, it can suppress that automatic driving | running | working is performed based on an abnormal vehicle state quantity.

And when stopping the own vehicle urgently, it is notified to other vehicles around the own vehicle. For this reason, the driver of other vehicles can cope flexibly with the emergency stop of the own vehicle.
Further, when the own vehicle is stopped or the driving authority is shifted, the user who is in the own vehicle is notified of the fact. At this time, a factor such as the stop of the host vehicle is notified. For this reason, it is possible to suppress the user's shaking due to the stop of the own vehicle or the like.

[Other Embodiments]
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention can take a various form, without being limited to the said embodiment.

  (1) In the abnormality handling process of the present embodiment, when a problem occurs in the vehicle state quantity related to the behavior of the host vehicle or the position information of the host vehicle, the traveling state of the host vehicle is changed. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the vehicle control unit 31 is mounted on the vehicle, such as information received from the center 10, the periphery monitoring sensor 33 c, the environment information detection device 20, and the automatic travel control device 30 mounted on other vehicles. When a problem occurs in the peripheral information acquired from the device or the like, the traveling state of the host vehicle may be changed.

  Specifically, for example, when the communication with the center 10 is interrupted, the vehicle control unit 31 may stop the vehicle urgently, or the vehicle control unit 31 may enter the evacuation area detected by the method of the present embodiment. May be stopped.

  In addition, for example, when the vehicle control unit 31 cannot acquire the surrounding information due to the abnormality of the surrounding monitoring sensor 33c, the vehicle control unit 31 may stop the vehicle urgently, or the accuracy of the surrounding information is reduced due to the abnormality. Alternatively, automatic driving may be performed at a low speed. At this time, instead of the peripheral information detected by the peripheral monitoring sensor 33c, automatic driving is performed using peripheral information having the same meaning acquired from the environmental information detection device 20 or the in-vehicle device of another vehicle. Also good.

  For example, the vehicle control unit 31 makes an emergency stop of the host vehicle when an abnormality occurs in the communication state between the environmental information detection device 20 and the in-vehicle device of another vehicle and the peripheral information cannot be acquired. Alternatively, when the accuracy of the surrounding information is reduced due to the abnormality, automatic traveling may be performed at a low speed.

Even in such a case, the same effect can be obtained.
(2) Further, the automatic travel control device 30 determines the direction of the own vehicle as follows when the direction of the own vehicle becomes undetectable by the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a or when the detection accuracy decreases. May be detected.

  For example, the heading of the host vehicle may be calculated based on the detected speed difference from the left and right wheel speed sensors. Further, for example, the direction of the host vehicle may be detected from the image of the white line taken by the camera outside the vehicle, and the direction of the host vehicle may be calculated based on the direction and the direction of the white line registered in the map data. For example, when the direction of the own vehicle can be detected with high accuracy by the environment information detection device 20 or the in-vehicle device of another vehicle, the direction of the own vehicle may be received from these.

And you may perform automatic driving | running | working using the direction of the own vehicle obtained in this way. Of course, at this time, automatic driving may be performed in a low speed state.
(3) When the vehicle speed of the host vehicle becomes undetectable by the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a or when the detection accuracy is lowered, the automatic travel control device 30 performs the following procedure. May be detected.

  For example, the vehicle speed may be detected based on a signal from a GPS satellite, or the vehicle speed may be detected based on a change in position information. Further, for example, if a problem occurs in the wheel speed sensor provided on the rolling wheel, the vehicle speed may be detected by a sensor provided on the driving wheel instead of this, or the engine or the driving motor may be used. The vehicle speed may be detected based on the number of rotations such as the number of rotations of a device that transmits power from an engine or the like. Further, for example, the vehicle speed may be calculated based on a change in the distance between the structure detected based on the map data and the periphery monitoring sensor 33c and the host vehicle. In addition, for example, when the vehicle speed of the host vehicle can be detected with high accuracy by the environment information detection device 20 or an in-vehicle device of another vehicle, the vehicle speed of the host vehicle may be received from these.

And you may perform automatic driving | running | working using the vehicle speed of the own vehicle obtained in this way. Of course, at this time, automatic driving may be performed in a low speed state.
(4) When the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a makes it impossible to detect the yaw rate of the own vehicle or when the detection accuracy is lowered, the automatic travel control device 30 performs the yaw rate of the own vehicle as follows. May be detected.

  For example, the yaw rate may be calculated based on the difference between the wheel speeds detected by the left and right wheel speed sensors and the tread of the wheels. Further, the yaw rate may be calculated based on a change in the direction of the host vehicle. Alternatively, a motion model of the host vehicle may be generated based on the vehicle speed or the steering angle of the host vehicle, and the yaw rate may be calculated based on the motion model.

And you may perform automatic driving | running | working using the yaw rate of the own vehicle obtained in this way. Of course, at this time, automatic driving may be performed in a low speed state.
(5) The automatic travel control system 1 of the present embodiment includes a roadside installation device having the same function instead of the center 10 or in addition to the center 10, and includes an automatic travel control device 30 and a roadside installation device. Automatic traveling may be performed by performing wireless communication between them. In addition, it is possible that the roadside installation apparatus acquires information, such as vehicle ID, user ID, destination, position information, etc. which are needed when performing automatic traveling from outside by wireless communication.

  The automatic travel control system 1 includes an in-vehicle device having the same function instead of the center 10 or in addition to the center 10, and performs inter-vehicle communication between the automatic travel control device 30 and the in-vehicle device. Thus, automatic driving may be performed. Note that the in-vehicle device may acquire information such as a vehicle ID, a user ID, a destination, and position information necessary for automatic driving from the outside by wireless communication, or a vehicle in which the in-vehicle device is mounted. The passenger may enter the information.

Even in such a case, the same effect can be obtained.
(6) The functions of one constituent element in the above embodiment may be distributed as a plurality of constituent elements, or the functions of a plurality of constituent elements may be integrated into one constituent element. Further, at least a part of the configuration of the above embodiment may be replaced with a known configuration having the same function. Moreover, you may abbreviate | omit a part of structure of the said embodiment. In addition, at least a part of the configuration of the above embodiment may be added to or replaced with the configuration of the other embodiment. In addition, all the aspects included in the technical idea specified only by the wording described in the claim are embodiment of this invention.

  (7) In addition to the automatic travel control device 30 described above, the present invention is implemented in various forms such as a program for causing a computer to function as the automatic travel control device 30, a medium on which the program is recorded, and a method corresponding to abnormality handling processing. Can also be realized.

[Correspondence with Claims]
The correspondence between the terms used in the description of the above embodiment and the terms used in the description of the claims is shown.

The center 10, the environment information detection device 20, and the automatic travel control device 30 mounted on another vehicle correspond to an example of a function providing device.
Further, the vehicle state quantity detection sensor 33a, the periphery monitoring sensor 33c, the communication device 36, and the center communication device 37 are examples of acquisition means, the vehicle control unit 31 is an example of automatic travel means, and the occupant HMI & input device 35 is an in-vehicle notification means. It corresponds to an example.

  In addition, S200 and S215 of the abnormality handling process correspond to an example of a determination unit, S205, S210, and S225 to S255 correspond to an example of a change unit, S210 corresponds to an example of a vehicle outside notification unit, and S230 corresponds to an example of a detection unit.

  In addition, vehicle state quantities, position information, and peripheral information related to rudder angle control, drive control, and brake control correspond to an example of automatic travel information.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Automatic travel control system, 10 ... Center, 11 ... Center control unit, 12 ... Operator HMI, 13 ... Communication apparatus, 20 ... Environmental information detection apparatus, 21 ... Communication apparatus, 30 ... Automatic travel control apparatus, 31 ... Vehicle control Unit, 32a ... Steering actuator, 32b ... Drive actuator, 32c ... Braking actuator, 33a ... Vehicle state quantity detection sensor, 33b ... Passenger monitoring sensor, 33c ... Perimeter monitoring sensor, 34 ... Map database, 35 ... Passenger HMI & input device, 36 ... communication device, 37 ... center communication device.

Claims (7)

Acquisition means (33a, 33c) for acquiring position information of the own vehicle necessary for automatic traveling for traveling the host vehicle toward the destination and alternative position information of the own vehicle having a lower accuracy than the position information;
Receiving means (37) for receiving an automatic travel route specified based on the position information and the map information from the center;
Automatic traveling means (31) for controlling the traveling direction and speed of the host vehicle based on the automatic traveling route and the position information and performing the automatic traveling;
Transmitting means (31, 37) for transmitting the position information to the center;
Determination means (S215) for determining whether or not the accuracy of the position information has decreased;
Changing means (S210, S225 to S255) for changing the traveling state of the host vehicle or the traveling state of another vehicle when the accuracy of the position information is reduced,
An automatic travel control device (30) characterized by comprising:
The changing means is
If the accuracy of the position information is reduced, perform an alternative automatic travel that is the automatic travel using the alternative position information instead of the position information,
In the case where the accuracy of the position information is reduced, if the alternative position information satisfies a predetermined standard, the vehicle is caused to travel to the destination by the alternative automatic travel.
An automatic travel control device characterized by. In the automatic travel control device according to claim 1,
The changing unit, when the accuracy of the position information decreases, or to continue the automatic travel of the vehicle, or to stop the vehicle, or the self user in the passenger to release the automatic travel To start driving the vehicle,
An automatic travel control device characterized by. In the automatic travel control device according to claim 1 or 2 ,
It further comprises detection means (S230) for detecting a retreat area that can stop the host vehicle without interfering with the traveling of other vehicles,
The change means, when the accuracy of the position information is lowered, if the alternative position information does not satisfy the reference, the vehicle is moved to the evacuation area by the alternative automatic travel and stopped.
An automatic travel control device characterized by. In the automatic travel control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
When the change means changes the traveling state of the host vehicle, the vehicle further includes in-vehicle notification means (35) for notifying a user who is on the host vehicle to that effect,
An automatic travel control device characterized by. In the automatic travel control device according to claim 4 ,
When the change means changes the traveling state of the host vehicle, the in-vehicle notification means further notifies the user that the accuracy of the position information has decreased ,
An automatic travel control device characterized by. In the automatic travel control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
The automatic traveling means performs the automatic traveling based on a dynamic map including surrounding environment information in map information;
An automatic travel control device characterized by. The automatic travel control device (30) according to any one of claims 1 to 6 ,
A function providing device (10, 20, 30) installed outside the host vehicle for providing at least a part of the function of controlling the automatic driving;
An automatic travel control system (1) comprising: