JP6806582B2 - Vehicle driving support control device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention particularly relates to a vehicle driving support control device that appropriately prompts a driver to hold the steering wheel even in a vehicle having an automatic steering function and an automatic starting function.

In recent years, in vehicles, various technologies using driving support control and automatic driving control have been developed and put into practical use so that the driver can drive more comfortably and safely. For example, when there is no preceding vehicle, constant speed driving control is performed to maintain the set vehicle speed, and when a preceding vehicle is detected, following driving control is performed to make the own vehicle follow the preceding vehicle while maintaining the following inter-vehicle distance. The Cruise Control (ACC: Adaptive Cruise Control) system with automatic maintenance control of the inter-vehicle distance is one such technology.

Recently, a system in which the applicable area of this ACC system has been expanded to a low speed area (0 [Km / h] ~) and a traffic jam tracking function has been put into practical use. In the ACC system equipped with this traffic jam tracking function, when the stop of the preceding vehicle to be followed is detected, the ACC system activates the following automatic start control. Then, the own vehicle is automatically stopped following the preceding vehicle, and after that, when the start of the preceding vehicle is detected, the own vehicle is automatically started following the start.

For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-207426 (hereinafter, Patent Document 1), the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle is the determination threshold value between the operation input by the driver during the stop and the elapse of the set time. In the driving support device of the vehicle that allows the vehicle to start when the speed exceeds, it is determined that the elapsed time from the operation input is longer than the cancel determination time for determining immediately after the driver's operation input, and the preceding vehicle is less than the set vehicle speed. A technique for canceling a start permission when it is determined that the vehicle is in a stopped or substantially stopped state is disclosed.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2011-207426

By the way, in a vehicle equipped with automatic driving control such as an automatic steering function and an automatic start function as disclosed in Patent Document 1 as described above, steering control and start / stop control are automatically performed, so that even if the driver steers. Safety can be ensured even if the wheel is not held. However, considering changes in the traffic environment, it is necessary to enable the driver to hold the steering wheel in order to maintain safety reliably. On the other hand, the driver may not need to hold the steering wheel, as in the case when the vehicle is stopped. For this reason, it is conceivable to warn the driver that the steering wheel is not held when the steering wheel is not held for a predetermined time or longer while driving, but the steering is performed when the vehicle decelerates and tries to stop. If the non-holding time of the wheel exceeds a predetermined time and an alarm prompting the steering wheel to be held is issued, the driver may feel uncomfortable.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and is a vehicle driving support control device capable of improving safety by appropriately urging the driver to hold the steering wheel in consideration of the traveling state of the vehicle. Is intended to provide.

One aspect of the vehicle driving support control device of the present invention is a steering holding state detecting means for detecting the holding state of the steering wheel of the driver, and counting the steering wheel non-holding time after the driver releases the steering wheel. The steering wheel non-holding time counting means, the warning means for activating the warning control when the steering wheel non-holding time exceeds a preset threshold value, and the predicted stop time until the own vehicle decelerates and stops. preset, if the stop predicting means for predicting a deceleration stop of within the stop prediction time from the current vehicle speed and deceleration, deceleration stop of within the stopping predicted time by the stop predicting means is predicted, the It is equipped with an alarm prohibition means for prohibiting the operation of the alarm control.

According to the vehicle driving support control device according to the present invention, it is possible to improve safety by appropriately urging the driver to hold the steering wheel in consideration of the traveling state of the vehicle without any discomfort.

It is a schematic block diagram of the driving support control device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart of the vehicle driving support program which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a characteristic diagram of the stop prediction time set according to the vehicle speed which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a time chart which shows an example of the driving support control which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 indicates a driving support control device mounted on the vehicle, and the driving support control device 1 has a control unit (ACC_ECU) 30. The ACC_ECU 30 is mainly composed of a well-known microcomputer equipped with a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and the ROM stores fixed data such as a control program and various tables for realizing a preset operation.

An in-vehicle camera 2 is connected to the input side of the ACC_ECU 30 via an image processing unit (IPU) 3. In the present embodiment, an example in which a stereo camera having a main camera 2a and a sub camera 2b is adopted as the in-vehicle camera 2 will be described. Both cameras 2a and 2b are fixedly mounted on the upper part of the front part of the vehicle interior (for example, both sides of the rearview mirror) while maintaining a certain distance. The image signals of the driving environment in front of the own vehicle captured by both cameras 2a and 2b are transmitted to the IPU3.

The IPU 3 acquires the driving environment information around and in front of the own vehicle based on the image information from the in-vehicle camera 2. Then, based on this driving environment information, information on the lane marking line, the preceding vehicle traveling in front of the own vehicle, and the oncoming vehicle approaching from the front is acquired, and further, a pedestrian or a two-wheeled vehicle trying to cross the front of the own vehicle ( Acquire obstacle detection information consisting of moving obstacles such as bicycles and motorcycles, curbs on the shoulders of roads, and fixed obstacles such as guardrails and trees.

Further, a well-known navigation device 5, an automatic driving switch 6, a front side sensor 7, a vehicle speed sensor 8, a front-rear acceleration sensor 9, an accelerator opening sensor 10, a biological detection sensor 11 for a steering wheel, and the like are connected to the input side of the ACC_ECU 30. Has been done.

The navigation device 5 holds map information including information such as roads, intersections, and altitudes in a storage means, and receives signals from GPS (Global Positioning System) satellites to acquire the position information (latitude, Based on latitude, altitude, movement direction, etc.), the current location of the own vehicle is displayed on the map information displayed on a monitor (not shown). If the destination is set, the guidance route from the current location to the destination is displayed on the map information of the monitor.

The automatic driving switch 6 is a group of switches related to driver's driving support control. For example, a compound that arbitrarily selects normal driving (switch OFF) and automatic driving (switch ON) and sets a set vehicle speed during ACC operation. It is a switch and is installed at a position that can be operated by the driver, such as the instrument panel and steering handle in front of the driver's seat.

The front side sensor 7 is an ultrasonic sensor, a millimeter wave radar, a microwave radar, an infrared sensor, a laser radar, or the like. In this embodiment, for example, the front side sensor 7 is attached to the left and right door mirrors, respectively, but is attached to the ridge of the front bumper. It may be attached. The front side sensor 7 monitors an area from the diagonally front left and right to the side, which is difficult to recognize from the image from the in-vehicle camera 2 described above, and tries to approach the own vehicle and slip through, or is in front of the own vehicle. Detects pedestrians trying to cross and moving obstacles such as two-wheeled vehicles (bicycles, motorcycles).

Further, the vehicle speed sensor 8 detects the vehicle speed of the own vehicle, the front-rear acceleration sensor 9 detects the front-rear acceleration of the own vehicle, and the accelerator opening sensor 10 detects the accelerator opening degree from the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal of the driver.

Further, the biological detection sensor 11 for the steering wheel is, for example, a sensor provided on the steering wheel as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-90834 to detect the biological signal of the driver. In the present embodiment, the biological detection sensor 11 is a sensor. The biological detection sensor 11 for the steering wheel detects the holding state of the steering wheel of the driver. That is, the steering wheel biological detection sensor 11 is provided as a steering holding state detecting means.

On the other hand, a throttle actuator 21 for opening and closing the throttle valve of the electronically controlled throttle and a brake drive unit 22 are connected to the output side of the ACC_ECU 30.

The brake drive unit 22 is provided with a main brake actuator 23 and an auxiliary brake actuator 24, and the main brake actuator 23 is a hydraulic pressure supplied from a hydraulic control unit (HCU) provided in the brake drive unit 22. The brake is increased or decreased to adjust the braking force with respect to the main brake 23a such as the disc brake provided on each wheel. On the other hand, the auxiliary brake actuator 24 operates the auxiliary brakes 24a such as the drum type brakes provided on the left and right rear wheels when the vehicle is stopped to maintain the stopped state of the own vehicle. The main brake 23a can also obtain a desired braking force by the foot brake operation performed by the driver.

Further, a power steering motor drive unit 25 is connected to the output side of the ACC_ECU 30. Then, the power steering motor drive unit 25 has a target control amount (target steering angle, target steering torque) for preventing deviation from the lane calculated by ACC_ECU 30, and a target course set based on the preceding vehicle locus and the lane shape. The target control amount (target steering angle, target steering torque) for traveling following the vehicle is output, and steering support or automatic steering steering control is executed.

Further, a display unit 26 such as an alarm lamp and a notification unit 27 such as a buzzer and a speaker are connected to the output side of the ACC_ECU 30 as alarm means. The display unit 26 may be, for example, a multi-information display (MID) provided in a combination meter in front of the driver's seat, or may use a monitor of the navigation device 15.

Then, the ACC_ECU 30 outputs a drive signal to the throttle actuator 21 of the electronically controlled throttle and the brake drive unit 22 based on the signals from various sensors and switches, and based on the driving environment information detected by the IPU3, the own vehicle Find out if you have captured the vehicle ahead. As a result, when the preceding vehicle is not captured, the constant speed cruise control (constant speed cruise control) for driving the own vehicle at the set vehicle speed is executed. On the other hand, when the preceding vehicle is captured, follow-up travel control (following cruise control) is performed to follow the preceding vehicle with a predetermined inter-vehicle distance.

Further, the application area of the ACC_ECU 30 is expanded to a low speed area (0 [Km / h] to), and when the stop of the preceding vehicle to be followed is detected based on the image information from the IPU3, the ACC_ECU 30 follows the stop of the own vehicle. Automatically stops, and when the start of the preceding vehicle is detected, the own vehicle is automatically started. More specifically, when the ACC_ECU 30 detects that the preceding vehicle has stopped, the ACC_ECU 30 stops the own vehicle while maintaining a preset inter-vehicle distance, waits until the preceding vehicle starts (following stop), and causes the preceding vehicle to stop. When a start is detected, the own vehicle is automatically started after the preceding vehicle is separated by a preset distance between the starting vehicles (following automatic start control).

Further, as described above, the ACC_ECU 30 performs automatic driving control and the like by coordinating lane departure prevention control for preventing deviation from the lane, lane keep control for traveling following a set target course, and other overtaking control. Execute. As described above, the ACC_ECU 30 has a function as an automatic control means.

Then, the ACC_ECU 30 detects the holding state of the steering wheel of the driver according to the flowchart of the driving support program shown in FIG. 2 described later, and counts the steering wheel non-holding time after the driver releases the steering wheel. The alarm control is activated when the steering wheel non-holding time exceeds a preset threshold value, but when the deceleration stop of the own vehicle is predicted within the preset time, the activation of the alarm control is prohibited.

That is, first, in step 101 (hereinafter, abbreviated as “S”) 101, it is determined whether or not the driver holds the steering wheel based on the signal from the biological detection sensor 11 for the steering wheel.

As a result of the determination in S101, when the driver holds the steering wheel, the steering wheel non-holding time counter ct (tc = 0) and the alarm start time counter ts, which will be described later, are cleared (ts = 0). , Clear the alarm prohibition flag Fs (Fs = 0). Further, the display unit 26 such as the alarm lamp that urges the driver to hold the steering wheel is turned off, the alarm sound by the notification unit 27 such as the buzzer and the speaker is turned off, and the driving support control is programmed to maintain the status quo. Exit.

On the contrary, when the driver does not hold the steering wheel, the process proceeds to S103, the steering wheel non-holding time counter ct is counted up (tk = tk + Δtt: Δtk is the program execution time), the process proceeds to S104, and the predicted stop time te is set. Set. As shown in FIG. 3, the predicted stop time te is set in advance by experiments, calculations, etc. so that the higher the vehicle speed V, the longer the vehicle speed V, as shown in FIG. In the embodiment, when the own vehicle is predicted to stop within the predicted stop time te, the operation of the alarm control is prohibited, and the stop of the operation of the driving support control and the automatic driving control is prohibited.

Then, the process proceeds to S105, and it is determined whether or not the following equation (1) is satisfied to stop the vehicle within the predicted stop time te in the current traveling state.

V-a · te ≤ 0 ... (1)
Here, a is the deceleration detected by the front-rear acceleration sensor 9.

As a result of the determination in S105, if the above-mentioned equation (1) is satisfied and the vehicle is predicted to stop within the predicted stop time te in the current running state, the process proceeds to S106 and the warning prohibition flag Fs is set (Fs). = 1).

Next, the process proceeds to S107 to turn off the display unit 26 such as the alarm lamp, and the process proceeds to S108 to turn off the alarm sound from the notification unit 27 such as the buzzer and the speaker.

Next, the process proceeds to S109, and it is determined whether or not the driving support functions such as the above-mentioned follow-up running control, steering support, or automatic steering steering control are activated (ON), and if these functions are turned ON. , S110, continue these driving support functions (keep them working), and exit the program.

Further, if it is determined in S109 that the driving support functions such as the follow-up running control and the steering control of the automatic steering are in the non-operating (OFF) state, the program is exited as it is.

On the other hand, as a result of the above-mentioned determination in S105, if the above equation (1) is not established and the stop within the predicted stop time te cannot be predicted in the current running state, the process proceeds to S111 and the warning prohibition flag Fs is set (Fs). = 1) Judge whether or not it is done.

As a result of this determination, Fs = 1, and it is predicted that the vehicle will stop within the predicted stop time te in the current running state. If the alarm is prohibited, the process proceeds to S112 and the alarm start time counter ts is counted up (ts = ts + Δts). : Δts is the program execution time).

Then, the process proceeds to S113, and it is determined whether or not the alarm start time counter ts has reached the alarm start threshold value tsc or more (ts ≧ tsc) set in advance by experiments, calculations, or the like.

As a result of the determination of S113, when the alarm start time counter ts does not reach the alarm start threshold value tsc (when ts <tsc), the process returns to S106 to prohibit the operation of the alarm control, driving support control, and automatic driving control. Prohibit the stoppage of the operation of.

Further, as a result of the determination of S113, when the alarm start time counter ts becomes equal to or higher than the alarm start threshold value tsc (when ts ≧ tsc), the process proceeds to S114 to clear the alarm start time counter ts (ts = 0). Proceed to S115, clear the alarm prohibition flag Fs (Fs = 0), and proceed to S116.

Further, if the alarm prohibition flag Fs is 0 in the above-mentioned determination of S111, the process proceeds to S116 as it is.

The processing up to S122 after S116, which proceeds after Fs = 0 is determined in S111 or Fs = 0 in S115, is for determining the operation of alarm control, operation support control, and stop of operation of automatic operation control. This is a process. First, in S116, it is determined whether or not the steering wheel non-holding time counter ct has reached the threshold value tc1 or more (tk ≧ tc1) set in advance by experiments, calculations, and the like.

If it is determined in S116 that tc <tc1, the program is exited as it is, and if it is determined that tc ≧ tc1, the process proceeds to S117, the display unit 26 such as the alarm lamp is turned on, and the process proceeds to S118.

In S118, it is determined whether or not the steering wheel non-holding time counter tc has reached the threshold value tc2 or more (tk ≧ tc2) set in advance by experiments, calculations, or the like. In this embodiment, tc1 <tc2.

As a result of the determination of S118, if it is determined that tc <tc2, the program is exited as it is, and if it is determined that tc ≥ tc2, the process proceeds to S119, and the alarm sound by the notification unit 27 such as the buzzer and the speaker is turned on. Proceed to S120.

Proceeding to S120, it is determined whether or not the steering wheel non-holding time counter ct has reached the threshold value tc3 or more (tk ≧ tc3) set in advance by experiments, calculations, or the like. In this embodiment, tc2 <tc3.

If it is determined in S120 that tc <tc3, the program is exited as it is, and if it is determined that tc ≥ tc3, the process proceeds to S121, and the above-mentioned follow-up driving control, steering support, steering control of automatic steering, etc. It is determined whether or not the driving support function is activated (ON).

As a result of the determination of S121, if these functions are turned on, the process proceeds to S122, these driving support functions are turned off (cancelled), and the program is exited.

If it is determined in S121 that the driving support functions such as the follow-up running control and the steering control of the automatic steering are in the non-operating (OFF) state, the program is exited as it is.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the ACC_ECU 30 is configured to have functions as a steering wheel non-holding time counting means, an alarm means, a stop prediction means, and an alarm prohibition means.

An example of the driving support control executed by the above ACC_ECU 30 will be described with reference to the time chart of FIG.

In this example, as shown in the time chart of the vehicle speed V, the own vehicle starts at time t1, accelerates, starts decelerating at time t3, stops at time t6, and then starts again at time t8. An example of accelerating is shown. The restart from time t8 may be performed by either an operation by the driver (accelerator operation or the like) or a driving support function (automatic start function).

In such a traveling vehicle, when the driver releases the steering wheel from the time t2 after the time t1, the steering wheel non-holding time counter tc is counted.

In this way, when the driver keeps his / her hand off the steering wheel from the time t2, the steering wheel non-holding time counter tc becomes the threshold value tc1 or more at the time t4, and the ON area of the display unit 26 such as the alarm lamp etc. Then, at time t5, the threshold value is tc2 or more, the alarm sound is turned on by the notification unit 27 such as a buzzer or a speaker, and at time t9, the threshold value is tc3 or more, and the driving support function is turned off (cancelled).

By the way, when the vehicle is stopped, there is no problem in safety even if the steering wheel is released.

Therefore, when the vehicle is about to stop, if the display unit 26 such as the alarm lamp is activated, the alarm sound is activated by the notification unit 27 such as the buzzer or the speaker, or the driving support function is canceled, the driver instead There is a risk of giving a sense of discomfort.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in the time chart of the alarm prohibition flag Fs in FIG. 4, when the vehicle is predicted to stop within the predicted stop time te, a display unit such as an alarm lamp or the like is displayed. The operation of 26 (alarm at time t4) and the operation of the alarm sound by the notification unit 27 such as the buzzer and speaker (alarm at time t5) are prohibited, and if the driving support function is operating, it is continuously operated as it is, and the driver It is designed so that it does not give a sense of discomfort.

When the vehicle is started again from the time t8, after the alarm start threshold value tsc (indicated by the area SC in FIG. 4), the alarm lamp or the like corresponding to the value of the steering wheel non-holding time counter tc at that time is displayed again. The display unit 26 is activated, the alarm sound is activated by the notification unit 27 such as the buzzer and the speaker, and the driving support function is canceled. In the present embodiment, after the alarm start threshold value tsc, the display unit 26 such as the alarm lamp is operated, the alarm sound is operated by the notification unit 27 such as the buzzer and the speaker, and the driving support function is canceled. However, the alarm start threshold value tsc may be set to 0, and the alarm may be activated and the driving support function may be canceled immediately. Further, in the present embodiment, as a release warning from the steering wheel, an alarm by the display unit 26 such as an alarm lamp, an alarm by an alarm sound by the notification unit 27 such as a buzzer and a speaker, and cancellation of the driving support function are executed. However, the driver may be alerted by the alarm of only one of these or the alarm of a combination of any two of them.

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the holding state of the steering wheel of the driver is detected, the steering wheel non-holding time after the driver releases the steering wheel is counted, and the steering wheel non-holding time is counted. The alarm control is activated when the value exceeds the preset threshold value, but the operation of the alarm control is prohibited when the deceleration stop of the own vehicle is predicted within the preset time. Therefore, it is possible to improve the safety by appropriately urging the driver to hold the steering wheel in consideration of the traveling state of the own vehicle without any discomfort.

1 Driving support control device,
2 In-vehicle camera,
3 Image processing unit 5 Navigation device 6 Automatic driving switch 8 Vehicle speed sensor 9 Front-rear acceleration sensor 10 Accelerator opening sensor 11 Steering wheel biometric detection sensor (steering holding state detection means)
21 Throttle actuator,
22 Brake drive,
25 Power steering motor drive unit,
26 Display (alarm means),
27 Notification unit (alarm means),
30 Control unit (steering wheel non-holding time counting means, alarm means, stop prediction means, alarm prohibiting means, automatic control means)

Claims (5)

Steering holding state detecting means for detecting the holding state of the driver's steering wheel,
A steering wheel non-holding time counting means for counting the steering wheel non-holding time after the driver releases the steering wheel, and
An alarm means that activates alarm control when the steering wheel non-holding time exceeds a preset threshold value, and
A stop prediction means for predicting a deceleration stop within the stop prediction time from the current vehicle speed and deceleration by presetting a stop prediction time until the own vehicle decelerates and stops.
When the vehicle stop prediction means predicts a deceleration stop within the stop prediction time, the alarm prohibition means for prohibiting the operation of the alarm control and the alarm prohibition means
A vehicle driving support control device characterized by being equipped with. The vehicle driving support control device according to claim 1, wherein the alarm control operated by the alarm means is at least one of a visual alarm and an auditory alarm. When the deceleration stop within the predicted stop time is released after the alarm prohibiting means prohibits the operation of the alarm control, the warning means responds to the steering wheel non-holding time after a preset time. The vehicle driving support control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the alarm control is activated. It is equipped with at least one automatic control means of an automatic steering function that automatically steers to prevent deviation from the lane or to follow a set target course, and an automatic start function that automatically starts following a preceding vehicle.
The alarm means activates the alarm control when the steering wheel non-holding time becomes equal to or more than a preset first threshold value, and the steering wheel non-holding time becomes equal to or longer than a preset second threshold value. At that time, the operation of the automatic control means is stopped,
The claim is characterized in that, when a deceleration stop is predicted within the predicted stop time , the alarm prohibiting means prohibits the operation of the alarm control and prohibits the stoppage of the operation of the automatic control means. driving support control apparatus according to any one of claims 3 to 1. When the deceleration stop within the predicted stop time is canceled after the alarm prohibiting means prohibits the operation of the alarm control and the stop of the operation of the automatic control means, the alarm means is preset. The vehicle driving support control device according to claim 4, wherein the alarm control is activated according to the steering wheel non-holding time, and the prohibition of stopping the operation of the automatic control means is released. ..

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