JP7204316B2 - VEHICLE CONTROL DEVICE AND VEHICLE CONTROL METHOD USING THE SAME - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method using the same, and in particular, an occupant intervenes in vehicle operation in a driving assistance state or an automatic driving state (hereinafter referred to as an automatic driving state) in which the vehicle is mainly operated. and a vehicle control method using the same.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a driver generally operates an automobile or the like by operating a brake pedal, an accelerator pedal, and a steering handle. 2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in order to reduce traffic accidents, a driving support device has appeared that assists a driver's operation and automatically stops a vehicle in an emergency or the like. Furthermore, an automatic driving support device that automatically drives a vehicle without almost requiring a driving operation such as steering by a driver is becoming popular.

Patent Document 1 discloses an automatic driving support device that allows a vehicle control ECU to control all the accelerator operation, brake operation, and steering wheel operation, which are operations related to the behavior of the vehicle, so that automatic driving can be performed without depending on the operation of the driver. is disclosed. The automatic driving support device described in this document drives and controls an engine device, a brake device, an electric power steering, etc., and performs automatic driving until the interruption timing on the guidance route.

Patent Literature 2 discloses a technical matter in which the seat is placed in a relax mode during automatic driving for the purpose of reducing driver fatigue during automatic driving. Specifically, when the vehicle is automatically driven, the seat is moved rearward and the seat back is tilted rearward. By doing so, it is possible to keep the driver away from the steering wheel, not to interfere with steering by automatic driving, and to reduce fatigue of the driver.

On the other hand, even if self-driving vehicles with self-driving functions appear on the market, not all vehicles traveling on roads will be self-driving vehicles. is expected to continue for some time. In the future, even if only self-driving vehicles run on roads, the crew will still have to operate the vehicle when the road is under construction or when there are many people, bicycles, etc. on the road. It is expected that

In addition, in the automatic driving state, the seat is in the relaxed position as described above. Therefore, when the passenger needs to operate the vehicle in the automatic driving state, the passenger changes the posture from the relaxed posture to the driving posture. should be changed to That is, the occupant must raise his upper limbs and move his entire body forward of the vehicle in order to operate the pedals and steering handle. Changing the posture in a short period of time imposes a heavy burden on the occupant. Furthermore, it is known that the takeover time required to transition from the automatic operation state to the manual operation state generally requires at least several seconds to 20 seconds. When an unexpected situation occurs in a state, it is difficult to quickly deal with the situation. Furthermore, in the relaxed posture, it is considered that the occupant's attentiveness and forward visibility are greatly reduced, so it is considered difficult to accurately grasp the risks that exist in front of the vehicle.

Patent Document 3 describes an invention for operating a vehicle using a mouse-type device. Specifically, in the invention described in this document, a mouse-type device is placed near the seat in the vehicle interior, and the vehicle can be steered by operating the mouse-type device.

Furthermore, Patent Document 4 describes an invention for operating a vehicle using a controller. Specifically, when an obstacle exists in the vicinity of the vehicle, reaction force control is performed on the controller in order to prevent the vehicle from advancing toward the obstacle.

JP 2015-178332 A JP 2016-168972 A JP 2016-199245 A JP 2007-223564 A

However, the control described in Patent Document 4 merely controls the reaction force so that the controller is not operated in a restricted direction. Therefore, if the occupant operates the controller beyond the reaction force, the vehicle may move excessively against the occupant's intention, and the vehicle may behave unsafely.

Furthermore, as described above, when a vehicle passes through a road under construction or a road with many pedestrians, bicycles, etc., it is required to operate the vehicle carefully. However, simply applying a reaction force to the controller or the mouse-type device does not give the occupant a sufficient sense of moderation, and it may not be easy to carefully operate the vehicle by operating the controller or the like.

Furthermore, when there is a limit to the running of the vehicle, simply applying a reaction force to the operation device does not allow the occupant to appropriately obtain feedback on the operation, and the fear associated with operating the operation device cannot be obtained. I had a problem that I felt.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its object is to respond to a movement instruction device operated by an occupant when the occupant intervenes in vehicle operation while the vehicle is in an automatic driving state. To provide a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method that enable an occupant to appropriately operate a vehicle by applying an appropriate reaction force to the vehicle.

A vehicle control device of the present invention is disposed in a vehicle capable of realizing an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which a driver performs driving operations according to instructions from an input device . A movement instruction device that is separate from the input device and has a shape that can be held by an occupant and outputs a movement signal according to the amount of movement; A vehicle calculation and instruction device for operating the vehicle, an instruction device placement unit disposed near the seat on which the occupant sits and having an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves, and the occupant a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operation force of the operation when the movement instruction device is operated to move, and the vehicle operation instruction device is configured to generate a reaction force when the vehicle is in the automatic driving state. , when a hindrance that is judged to have a certain degree of possibility of hindering automatic driving appears, a reaction force control period for applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device is provided, and the reaction force control period is , a first reaction force control period, and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period, and in the first reaction force control period, the movement instructing device is provided with The reaction force is greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the obstruction cause, and during the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is greater than that during the first reaction force control period. is smaller than the reaction force at and larger than before the vehicle calculation and instruction device discovers the cause of obstruction.

A vehicle control device of the present invention is disposed in a vehicle capable of realizing an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which a driver performs driving operations according to instructions from an input device . A movement instruction device that is separate from the input device and has a shape that can be held by an occupant and outputs a movement signal according to the amount of movement; A vehicle calculation and instruction device for operating the vehicle, an instruction device placement unit disposed near the seat on which the occupant sits and having an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves, and the occupant a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operation force of the operation when the movement instruction device is operated to move, and the vehicle operation instruction device is configured to generate a reaction force when the vehicle is in the automatic driving state. , when a hindrance that is judged to have a certain degree of possibility of hindering automatic driving appears, a reaction force control period for applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device is provided, and the reaction force control period is , a first reaction force control period, and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period, and in the first reaction force control period, the movement instructing device is provided with The reaction force is greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the obstruction cause, and during the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is greater than that during the first reaction force control period. The reaction force applied to the movement instruction device in the second reaction force control period is less than the reaction force in the movement instruction time, and is greater than the reaction force before the vehicle operation and instruction device discovers the obstruction cause. It is characterized by increasing with the passage of time.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the vehicle operation instruction device notifies the occupant of the presence of the hindrance cause before applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device. do.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, a storage section is provided near the instruction device mounting section, and when the movement instruction device is stored in the storage section, operation of the vehicle via the movement instruction device becomes invalid. It is characterized by becoming

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, when the movement instruction device is stored in the storage portion, the movement instruction device is charged.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the vehicle operation instruction device displays the details of the operation of the movement instruction device on a display device.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the pointing device mounting portion is incorporated in the center console of the vehicle.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the seat on which the passenger sits is in a relaxed position during the reaction force control period.

The vehicle control method of the present invention is applied to a vehicle capable of realizing an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which the driver performs driving operations according to instructions from an input device . A movement instruction device that is separate from the device and has a shape that can be held by an occupant and outputs a movement signal according to the amount of movement; a vehicle operation instruction device that performs arithmetic processing and operates the vehicle; an instruction device mounting portion that is disposed near a seat on which the passenger sits and has an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves; A vehicle control method using a vehicle control device comprising: a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operation force of the operation when the movement instruction device is operated to move, wherein the vehicle is automatically driven. When a cause of obstruction that is judged to have a certain degree of possibility of obstructing automatic driving appears during the state, a reaction force control period is provided for applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device, and the reaction force is provided. As control periods, a first reaction force control period and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period are set, and the movement instructing device is set in the first reaction force control period. the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is set to be greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the obstruction cause, and in the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is increased to the first It is characterized by being smaller than the reaction force during the reaction force control period and larger than before the vehicle arithmetic and instruction device discovers the cause of hindrance.

A vehicle control device of the present invention is disposed in a vehicle capable of realizing an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which a driver performs driving operations according to instructions from an input device . A movement instruction device that is separate from the input device and has a shape that can be held by an occupant and outputs a movement signal according to the amount of movement; A vehicle calculation and instruction device for operating the vehicle, an instruction device placement unit disposed near the seat on which the occupant sits and having an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves, and the occupant a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operation force of the operation when the movement instruction device is operated to move, and the vehicle operation instruction device is configured to generate a reaction force when the vehicle is in the automatic driving state. , when a hindrance that is judged to have a certain degree of possibility of hindering automatic driving appears, a reaction force control period for applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device is provided, and the reaction force control period is , a first reaction force control period, and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period, and in the first reaction force control period, the movement instructing device is provided with The reaction force is greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the obstruction cause, and during the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is greater than that during the first reaction force control period. is smaller than the reaction force at and larger than before the vehicle calculation and instruction device discovers the cause of obstruction. Therefore, the occupant can operate the movement instruction device arranged near the seat to operate the vehicle without operating the steering wheel or pedals in the automatic driving state, thereby avoiding the cause of obstruction. Here, road construction can be cited as an example of the obstruction. Further, by applying a reaction force to the movement instruction device, the vehicle can be safely operated via the movement instruction device. Furthermore, by applying a relatively large reaction force to the movement instruction device during the second reaction force control period, it is possible to improve the operation accuracy of the movement instruction device and improve the sense of moderation and security of the occupant. .

A vehicle control device of the present invention is disposed in a vehicle capable of realizing an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which a driver performs driving operations according to instructions from an input device . A movement instruction device that is separate from the input device and has a shape that can be held by an occupant and outputs a movement signal according to the amount of movement; A vehicle calculation and instruction device for operating the vehicle, an instruction device placement unit disposed near the seat on which the occupant sits and having an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves, and the occupant a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operation force of the operation when the movement instruction device is operated to move, and the vehicle operation instruction device is configured to generate a reaction force when the vehicle is in the automatic driving state. , when a hindrance that is judged to have a certain degree of possibility of hindering automatic driving appears, a reaction force control period for applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device is provided, and the reaction force control period is , a first reaction force control period, and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period, and in the first reaction force control period, the movement instructing device is provided with The reaction force is greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the obstruction cause, and during the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is greater than that during the first reaction force control period. The reaction force applied to the movement instruction device in the second reaction force control period is less than the reaction force in the movement instruction time, and is greater than the reaction force before the vehicle operation and instruction device discovers the obstruction cause. It is characterized by increasing with the passage of time. Therefore, by gradually increasing the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device during the second reaction force control period, the occupant operating the movement instruction device can more preferably obtain a sense of moderation and a sense of security.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the vehicle operation instruction device notifies the occupant of the presence of the hindrance cause before applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device. do. Therefore, the occupant can more quickly recognize the existence of the obstruction, and can perform safe operation more quickly.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, a storage section is provided near the instruction device mounting section, and when the movement instruction device is stored in the storage section, operation of the vehicle via the movement instruction device becomes invalid. It is characterized by becoming Therefore, when the occupant does not use the movement instruction device, by placing the movement instruction device on the placing portion and disabling its function, the occupant may inadvertently touch the movement instruction device. It is possible to prevent unintended vehicle operation from being performed.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, when the movement instruction device is stored in the storage portion, the movement instruction device is charged. Therefore, by charging the movement instruction device when it is not in use, the movement instruction device can be easily charged.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the vehicle operation instruction device displays the details of the operation of the movement instruction device on a display device. Therefore, the occupant can easily know the details of his or her own operation by displaying the details of the operation of the movement instruction device on the display device.

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the pointing device mounting portion is incorporated in the center console of the vehicle. Therefore, the occupant can operate the pointing device mounting section incorporated in the center console by hand without changing the posture toward the front, and can quickly operate the vehicle to avoid the obstruction. .

Further, in the vehicle control device of the present invention, the seat on which the passenger sits is in a relaxed position during the reaction force control period. Therefore, the occupant can operate the pointing device mounting portion while lying on the seat in the relaxed position.

The vehicle control method of the present invention is applied to a vehicle capable of realizing an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which the driver performs driving operations according to instructions from an input device . A movement instruction device that is separate from the device and has a shape that can be held by an occupant and outputs a movement signal according to the amount of movement; a vehicle operation instruction device that performs arithmetic processing and operates the vehicle; an instruction device mounting portion that is disposed near a seat on which the passenger sits and has an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves; A vehicle control method using a vehicle control device comprising: a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operation force of the operation when the movement instruction device is operated to move, wherein the vehicle is automatically driven. When a cause of obstruction that is judged to have a certain degree of possibility of obstructing automatic driving appears during the state, a reaction force control period is provided for applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device, and the reaction force is provided. As control periods, a first reaction force control period and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period are set, and the movement instructing device is set in the first reaction force control period. the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is set to be greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the obstruction cause, and in the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is increased to the first It is characterized by being smaller than the reaction force during the reaction force control period and larger than before the vehicle arithmetic and instruction device discovers the cause of hindrance. Accordingly, the occupant can operate the vehicle by operating the movement instruction device arranged near the seat to avoid the hindrance by operating the vehicle without operating the steering wheel or pedals in the automatic driving state. Further, by applying a reaction force to the movement instruction device of the movement instruction device, the vehicle can be safely operated via the movement instruction device. Furthermore, by applying a relatively large reaction force to the movement instruction device during the second reaction force control period, it is possible to improve the operation accuracy of the movement instruction device and improve the sense of moderation and security of the occupant. .

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a block diagram showing a connection configuration of parts that constitute a vehicle; 1A and 1B are diagrams showing a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the present invention, where FIG. It is a diagram. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure which shows the vehicle control apparatus and vehicle control method which concern on one Embodiment of this invention, (A) is a side view which shows a manual driving state, (B) is a side view which shows an automatic driving state. 1 is a flow chart showing a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the invention; BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a schematic diagram showing a situation in which a vehicle equipped with the vehicle control device travels on a road; 1 is a diagram showing a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a top view showing a situation in which an occupant operates a movement instruction device; FIG. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure which shows the vehicle control apparatus and vehicle control method which concern on one Embodiment of this invention, (A) and (B) are graphs which show the relationship between the stroke and reaction force of a movement instruction|indication apparatus. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a diagram showing a display device displaying an operation state of a movement instruction device;

A vehicle control device 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, in principle, the same reference numerals are used for the same members, and repeated descriptions are omitted. Further, in the following description, up, down, front, back, left, and right directions are used, but left and right are left and right when the vehicle 10 is facing forward.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a vehicle 10 equipped with a vehicle control device 30 according to an embodiment of the invention. Vehicle control device 30 is part of a control mechanism that controls vehicle 10 . As will be described later, the vehicle control device 30 controls the vehicle 10 so that the occupant 11 can operate the vehicle 10 when an obstacle that inhibits automatic driving is found in the direction of travel of the vehicle 10 while automatic driving is being performed. device. The vehicle control device 30 has a movement instruction device 31 , an instruction device placement section 32 , a reaction force generation section 26 , and a vehicle calculation instruction device 14 . Here, the hindrance cause is a cause that can be determined as possibly impeding automatic driving by processing the result of recognizing the outside of the vehicle or the information input from the outside of the vehicle.

The movement instruction device 31 is arranged near the passenger 11 in the interior of the vehicle 10, and is a mouse-type device having a shape and function like a mouse, for example. When the occupant 11 operates the movement instruction device 31 , a movement signal indicating the amount and direction of movement is output to the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 . The vehicle arithmetic and instruction device 14 performs steering and acceleration/deceleration of the vehicle 10 based on the movement signal. That is, the movement instruction device 31 has functions corresponding to the accelerator pedal, the brake pedal, and the steering wheel 24 .

The pointing device placement section 32 is a flat portion on which the mouse-shaped movement pointing device 31 is placed. As will be described later, the pointing device mounting portion 32 is arranged near the seat 20 which is in a relaxed position during automatic driving.

When the occupant 11 operates the movement instruction device 31, the reaction force generating section 26 generates a reaction force that opposes the operation force. Since the reaction force generator 26 applies the reaction force to the movement instruction device 31, the occupant 11 can operate the vehicle 10 more safely, and can obtain a sense of moderation and a sense of security when operating the vehicle.

In order to realize automatic driving, the vehicle 10 includes a vehicle calculation instruction device 14, an input device 12, an external environment recognition device 13, a vehicle driving device 16, a steering device 17, a braking device 15, and a seat. A drive 19 is provided.

The vehicle calculation instruction device 14 is control means for the vehicle 10, and is, for example, an electronic control unit (ECU) including a calculation device that performs various calculations. The vehicle calculation instruction device 14 automatically drives the vehicle 10 by controlling the vehicle driving device 16, the steering device 17, and the braking device 15 based on input information and the like input from the input device 12 and the vehicle external environment recognition device 13. . In addition, the vehicle operation instruction device 14 switches between a normal manual driving state in which the driver performs driving operations according to instructions from the input device 12 and an automatic operation state in which the vehicle operation instruction device 14 automatically drives the vehicle.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 accelerates or decelerates the vehicle 10 based on a signal input from the movement instruction device 31 when the passenger 11 intervenes in vehicle control in an automatic driving state. and a motion control device for steering.

The braking device 15 is braking means for decelerating and stopping the vehicle 10 . The braking device 15 is, for example, a brake or the like that is operated by a signal from the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 .

The seat driving device 19 is composed of a motor or the like that drives the position and orientation of the seat 20 based on instructions from the vehicle calculation instruction device 14, as shown in FIG.

In the automatic driving state, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 executes various calculations based on information from the vehicle external environment recognition device 13 and the like, and constantly monitors the current driving state, the external environment, and the like. The vehicle arithmetic and instruction device 14 controls the braking device 15, the vehicle driving device 16, the steering device 17, and the like, and performs appropriate automatic driving according to the current situation. Thus, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 has an automatic driving function, and can automatically perform main driving operations of the vehicle 10 . Further, when the vehicle 10 is in the automatic driving state, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 drives the seat driving device 19 to place the seat 20 in the relaxing position shown in FIG. 3(B). Here, the relaxed position is a position and posture in which the seat 20 is moved rearward and the seat back 22 is reclined so that the driver can relax and the automatic driving is not hindered during the automatic driving state.

Further, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 shifts the driving state of the vehicle 10 from the automatic driving state to the manual driving state based on the input information input from the input device 12 or the vehicle external environment recognition device 13 . Further, at this time, the vehicle arithmetic and instruction device 14 drives the seat driving device 19 to move the seat 20 shown in FIG. 17 and a braking device 15 can be operated. Here, the driving position is the position and posture of the seat 20 in which the steering wheel 24 and the brake pedal can be easily operated during manual driving.

The configuration of the vehicle control device 30 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 2A is a top view showing the front right side of the interior of the vehicle 10, and FIG. 2B is a perspective view showing the vehicle control device 30. FIG.

Referring to FIG. 2(A), a seat 20 is arranged in front of the interior of the vehicle 10, and an occupant 11 who is a driver who operates the vehicle 10 is seated on the seat 20 on the right side. A center console 25 is arranged between the seats 20 . The center console 25 is a box-shaped portion elongated in the front-rear direction between the seats 20 .

Referring to FIG. 2B, in the present embodiment, center console 25 incorporates vehicle control device 30 . The vehicle control device 30 includes a movement instruction device 31, an instruction device mounting section 32 on which the movement instruction device 31 is mounted, a reaction force generating section 26, and a vehicle calculation instruction device 14 (not shown). there is

The movement instruction device 31 has a shape like a pointing stick such as a mouse, and has a size and a shape that can be held by the occupant 11 by hand from above. The movement instruction device 31 outputs an electric signal indicating the amount of movement, movement speed, movement direction, etc. to the vehicle operation instruction device 14 described above. The movement instruction device 31 may be connected to the vehicle operation instruction device 14 by wire, or may be connected to the vehicle operation instruction device 14 wirelessly.

An upper surface of the center console 25 is formed with an instruction device mounting portion 32 serving as an operation surface on which the movement instruction device 31 is mounted. The pointing device mounting portion 32 is formed as a flat surface that allows the movement pointing device 31 to slide. The movement amount of the movement instruction device 31 may be detected by the movement instruction device 31 itself, or may be detected by the instruction device mounting section 32 .

A storage portion 28 for storing the movement instruction device 31 is formed in the rear part of the upper surface of the center console 25 . The storage section 28 is formed, for example, by partially recessing the center console 25 and formed slightly larger than the movement instruction device 31 . The movement instruction device 31 is housed in the housing portion 28 in the normal manual operation state and the automatic operation state. Therefore, the movement instruction device 31 is arranged at a location where the arm of the occupant 11 is unlikely to come into contact during normal times. As a result, it is possible to prevent the hands of the occupant 11 who steers the vehicle 10 from coming into contact with the movement instruction device 31 in the manual operation state. Further, it is possible to prevent the occupant 11 lying on the upper surface of the seat 20 from unnecessarily contacting the movement instructing device 31 in the automatic driving state.

Here, the movement instruction device 31 housed in the housing section 28 may be charged. This charging may be contact charging or non-contact charging. By performing charging in this manner, the movement instruction device 31 can be easily charged, and it is possible to prevent the movement instruction device 31 from running out of power when the vehicle 10 is operated urgently during automatic operation.

Furthermore, when the movement instruction device 31 is stored in the storage section 28, the function of the movement instruction device 31 is disabled, and only when the movement instruction device 31 is placed on the instruction device placement section 32, the movement instruction device 31 is disabled. function can be enabled. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the occupant 11 from unintentionally operating the movement instruction device 31 .

The vehicle control device 30 includes a reaction force generating section 26 that generates a reaction force against the operating force when the occupant 11 operates the movement instruction device 31 . Magnetism generating means such as an electromagnet can be employed as the reaction force generating section 26 . The reaction force generator 26 is composed of, for example, an electromagnet that generates magnetic flux and a magnetic body that attracts or repels this magnetic flux. As an example of a specific configuration, the reaction force generator 26 is composed of an electromagnet incorporated in the movement instruction device 31 and a magnetic material incorporated in the instruction device mounting portion 32 .

The vehicle control device 30 described above is arranged near the hand of the passenger 11 lying on the seat 20 in the automatic driving state. Therefore, when operating the vehicle 10 to be described later in the automatic driving state, the occupant 11 can easily hold and operate the movement instruction device 31 of the vehicle control device 30 . At this time, the occupant 11 can operate the vehicle 10 by sliding the movement instruction device 31 while confirming the state in front of the vehicle 10 without looking at the movement instruction device 31. - 特許庁That is, the occupant 11 can blindly operate the movement instruction device 31 .

The configuration of the seat 20 in the manual operation state and the automatic operation state will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3A is a side view showing the position and orientation of the seat 20 in the manual operation state, and FIG. 3B is a side view showing the position and orientation of the seat 20 in the automatic operation state.

Referring to FIG. 3A, in a manual driving state in which vehicle 10 is driven by occupant 11, seat 20 is in a driving position suitable for manual driving. Here, the seat 20 is composed of a seat cushion 21 , a seat back 22 and a headrest 23 .

In the driving position, the longitudinal position of the seat 20 is relatively forward so that the occupant 11 can depress the accelerator and brake pedals and steer the steering wheel 24. there is For the same reason, the seat back 22 is in an upright state.

Referring to FIG. 3B, in the automatic driving state in which the vehicle operation instruction device 14 drives the vehicle 10, the position and posture of the seat 20 are set to a relaxing position suitable for relieving driver fatigue. Specifically, the seat 20 is moved rearward as compared to the driving position described above. As a result, the occupant 11 is moved rearward, so that the occupant 11 can extend his/her legs forward, and fatigue during boarding the vehicle can be reduced. Further, the occupant 11 can be kept away from the steering wheel 24, a brake pedal (not shown), etc., and the occupant 11 is prevented from unintentionally contacting the steering wheel 24, etc. in the automatic driving state.

Furthermore, the seat back 22 is in a reclined state compared to the driving position. Further, the upper surfaces of the seat cushion 21 and the seat back 22 are shaped like continuous flat surfaces. Therefore, the occupant 11 can recline the upper half of the body, and can reduce fatigue when boarding the vehicle. Furthermore, in the relaxed position, the seat 20 may be moved upward as a whole. As a result, in the automatic driving state, the position of the head of the occupant 11 is raised, and the visibility of the occupant 11 can be satisfactorily secured.

Based on the flowchart of FIG. 4 and also referring to the above drawings, a vehicle control method in which the passenger 11 manually operates the vehicle 10 during automatic operation using the above-described vehicle control device 30 will be specifically described.

First, in step S10, the vehicle 10 is automatically driven. Specifically, referring to FIG. 1, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 executes various calculations based on information from the vehicle exterior environment recognition device 13 and the like, and constantly monitors the current running state, the external environment, and the like. . The vehicle arithmetic instruction device 14 controls the braking device 15, the vehicle drive device 16, the steering device 17, etc. based on the input instruction of the passenger 11 or when the vehicle arithmetic instruction device 14 determines that automatic driving can be performed. , appropriate automatic driving according to the current situation. In this step, the passenger does not need to operate the vehicle 10, so the seat 20 is in the relaxed position shown in FIG.

In step S<b>11 , the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 determines whether or not a hindrance that hinders the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 has appeared. Here, the hindrance causes include road construction and accidents in the traveling direction of the vehicle 10, pedestrians and bicycles existing on or around the road in the traveling direction of the vehicle 10, and backlighting of the vehicle 10. The situation in front of the vehicle cannot be confirmed by the external environment recognition device 13 due to a change in the weather, and extreme bad weather can be mentioned. In the following, construction work is exemplified as a hindrance. Here, the inhibitory cause is sometimes referred to as risk. Also, the operation to approach the cause of obstruction can be interpreted as the operation in the anti-safety direction.

Referring to the schematic diagram of FIG. 5, a two-lane road 50 is illustrated, and the vehicle 10 is traveling in the right lane. A construction section 51 exists in the right lane in the traveling direction of the vehicle 10, and road construction is being performed in the construction section 51. For example, when the vehicle exterior environment recognition device 13, which is a stereo camera unit, recognizes the construction section 51, the vehicle operation instruction device 14 determines that the construction section 51 is the cause of obstruction. Here, the cause of obstruction may be discovered using a device or system other than the vehicle exterior environment recognition device 13, for example, using VICS (registered trademark) (Vehicle Information and Communication System) or GPS (Global Positioning System). may be used to discover the cause of the blockage.

If the above-described hindrance cause appears, that is, if YES in step S11, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 proceeds to step S12. On the other hand, if the material factors described above do not appear, that is, if NO in step S11, the vehicle operation instruction device 14 continues the automatic driving state in step S10.

In step S12, the vehicle operation instruction device 14 notifies the occupant 11 lying on the seat 20 that the obstruction cause has appeared. As a notification method, it is conceivable to utter a predetermined sound from a speaker provided in the vehicle 10, or to display on a display provided in the vehicle 10 that the cause of obstruction has appeared. By performing this notification, as will be described later, the occupant 11 can operate the vehicle 10 using the vehicle control device 30 even in the automatic driving state, and the vehicle 10 can be driven while avoiding the obstacles. can be made

In step S13, the occupant 11 operates the vehicle in order to avoid the obstruction based on the above-described notification. Specifically, referring to FIG. 1 , vehicle operation instruction device 14 temporarily suspends the automatic driving state and permits passenger 11 to intervene in vehicle operation via vehicle control device 30 .

Next, referring to FIG. 2A, the occupant 11 takes out the movement instruction device 31 stored in the storage section 28 with his left hand, and places the movement instruction device 31 on the upper surface of the instruction device mounting section 32. do. By doing so, the vehicle 10 can be operated by the vehicle control device 30 . Here, the moving direction and moving speed of the movement instruction device 31 on the upper surface of the pointing device mounting portion 32 and the moving direction and moving speed of the vehicle 10 are associated with each other. Specifically, when the occupant 11 slides the movement instruction device 31 forward on the upper surface of the instruction device mounting portion 32, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 causes the vehicle 10 to move forward. Further, when the occupant 11 accelerates and slides the movement instruction device 31 on the upper surface of the instruction device mounting portion 32 , the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 accelerates the vehicle 10 . Further, when the occupant 11 slides the movement instruction device 31 leftward on the upper surface of the instruction device mounting portion 32, the vehicle operation instruction device 14 steers the vehicle 10 leftward.

As shown in FIG. 3(B), in this step, the occupant 11 is lying on the seat 20 in the relaxed position, and the movement instruction is given without raising the upper limbs and without moving the entire seat 20 forward. By operating the device 31, the vehicle 10 can be operated. Therefore, the occupant 11 does not need to make a sudden posture change when avoiding the obstruction during the automatic driving state. Further, the occupant 11 can easily and quickly avoid the obstruction by operating the movement instruction device 31 while lying down.

In the present embodiment, when the occupant 11 slides the movement instruction device 31 to operate the vehicle 10 in the automatic driving state, the movement instruction is issued to ensure safety and security when operating the movement instruction device 31. A reaction force control period for applying a reaction force to the device 31 is set. Specifically, in step S13 described above, when the occupant 11 applies an operation force to slide the movement instruction device 31 in order to operate the vehicle 10, the vehicle operation instruction device 14 responds to the operation force. A force is generated from the reaction force generator 26 . Here, the reaction force may also be referred to as resistance force.

This reaction force is illustrated with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, when a construction section 51 that is a cause of obstruction appears in the automatic driving state, the crew member 11 who receives the notification to that effect turns on the movement instruction device 31 to avoid the construction section 51. In order to slide forward and leftward, an operation force F1 directed forward and leftward is applied to the movement instructing device 31 .

If the movement instruction device 31 were simply allowed to slide, the movement amount and movement speed of the movement instruction device 31 could not be restricted, and the actual movement speed and movement direction of the vehicle 10 would not be as intended by the occupant 11 . There is a risk of becoming excessively large. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the reaction force generator 26 gives the movement instruction device 31 a reaction force F2 that opposes the operation force F1 based on an instruction from the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 . The reaction force F2 is directed to the rear right side with respect to the operation force F1 directed to the front left side. The operating force F1 and the reaction force F2 act in opposite directions and have substantially the same magnitude. By applying the reaction force F2 to the movement instruction device 31 in this manner, excessive movement of the movement instruction device 31 can be suppressed. Further, the occupant 11 can obtain feedback from the movement instruction device 31, and the sense of security when operating the vehicle 10 with the movement instruction device 31 can be improved.

In this embodiment, in order to effectively generate the above-described reaction force F2, the vehicle calculation instruction device 14 executes steps S14 and S15 described in detail below. The vehicle calculation instruction device 14 executes a first reaction force period for generating a reaction force from the reaction force generation unit 26 in step S14, and executes a second reaction force period for varying the magnitude of the reaction force in step S15.

Steps S14 and S15 will be described with reference to the graph in FIG. In the graphs of FIGS. 7A and 7B, the horizontal axis indicates the stroke, which is the amount of movement of the movement instruction device 31, and the vertical axis indicates the magnitude of the reaction force generated by the reaction force generating section 26. It shows the Further, in these graphs, the dotted line indicates the magnitude of the reaction force in this embodiment, and the dashed-dotted line indicates the magnitude of the reaction force in the comparative example.

Referring to FIG. 7A, in the comparative example (one-dot chain line) in which the reaction force is simply generated, the reaction force F20 is constant even if the stroke changes. It is not easy to operate it properly, and it is difficult for the occupant 11 to obtain a sufficient sense of moderation and security in response to the sliding motion of the movement instruction device 31 .

On the other hand, in this embodiment indicated by the dotted line, reaction force operation is performed as follows. When a cause of obstruction is found in the traveling direction of the vehicle 10, the occupant 11 is informed of the fact, but the reaction force (magnetic force) F10 at that time is relatively small. After the notification is given, when the occupant 11 applies an operation force to the movement instruction device 31 to slide the movement instruction device 31 in order to avoid the hindrance cause, the vehicle operation instruction device 14 gradually applies a reaction force against the operation force. Enlarge. As shown in this graph, the reaction force once reaches a peak immediately after the operation force is applied, and then gradually decreases.

Referring to FIG. 7A, the reaction force control period during which the reaction force generating section 26 generates the reaction force can be divided into a first reaction force generation period and a second reaction force generation period. The first reaction force control period is a stage immediately after the occupant 11 applies the operation force to the movement instructing device 31, and the reaction force (magnetic force) generated by the reaction force generation unit 26 reaches the maximum value F11. The magnitude of the maximum value F11 of the reaction force (magnetic force) is, for example, about several times the magnitude of the reaction force (magnetic force) before the operation force by the occupant 11 is applied. After reaching the maximum value F11, the reaction force gradually decreases. On the other hand, during the second reaction force control period, the reaction force F12 is substantially constant.

In the present embodiment, by maximizing the reaction force during the first reaction force control period, first, in order for the occupant 11 to operate the vehicle 10, the occupant 11 must apply an operation force that exceeds the maximum reaction force F11. 31, it is possible to feel that there is a hindrance in the direction in which the vehicle 10 is traveling. Furthermore, the large reaction force prevents the occupant 11 from operating the movement instruction device 31 in an excessive amount and operating speed, and the vehicle 10 can be operated carefully and finely. That is, in the construction section 51 and its vicinity, the crew member 11 operates the movement instruction device 31 to drive the vehicle 10 carefully while avoiding construction workers, heavy machinery, and the like. Furthermore, in the first half of the first reaction force control period, as the stroke of the movement instruction device 31 increases, the reaction force also gradually increases. is balanced with the reaction force generated from Therefore, when operating the movement instructing device 31, the occupant 11 can obtain a sense of unity, a sense of moderation, and a sense of security.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the magnitude of the reaction force F12 during the second reaction force control period is smaller than the maximum reaction force F11 during the first reaction force control period, and the reaction force before the first reaction force control period is greater than the force F10. By doing so, even after the occupant 11 operates the movement instruction device 31 to overcome the maximum value F11 and operate it, the reaction force generation unit 26 generates a relatively large reaction force F12 to instruct movement. Continue adding to device 31 . This second reaction force control period is, for example, a period during which the vehicle 10 passes through the construction section 51 or its vicinity. Therefore, during the second reaction force control period, that is, when the vehicle 10 passes through the construction section 51, it is possible to prevent the occupant 11 from giving an excessive operation amount or operation speed to the movement instructing device 31.

Referring to FIG. 7B, here, during the second reaction force control period, the reaction force F12 increases as the stroke increases. That is, the reaction force F12 increases as the movement instruction time, which is the time for moving the movement instruction device 31, elapses. Here, the reaction force F12 increases linearly. In this way, by increasing the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device 31 by the reaction force generation unit 26 during the second reaction force control period, the amount of movement of the movement instruction device 31 is increased during the second reaction force control period. In addition, the movement speed is further prevented from becoming excessively high, and the occupant 11 can obtain a more sufficient sense of unity, moderation, and security.

In step S16, it is determined whether or not the above-described obstruction cause has disappeared. For example, when the construction section 51 is out of the field of view of the vehicle exterior environment recognition device 13, which is a stereo camera unit, it is determined that the cause of obstruction has disappeared. When the cause of the obstruction is removed, that is, when the vehicle passes through the construction section 51 and YES in step S16, the vehicle returns to the automatic driving state in step S17, and the vehicle operation instruction device 14 operates the vehicle 10. FIG. On the other hand, if there is a cause of obstruction, that is, if the vehicle 10 is passing through the construction section 51 and step S16 is NO, the process returns to step S13, and the crew member 11 operates the movement instruction device 31 to operate the vehicle 10. to continue.

FIG. 8 shows the screen state of the display device 29 when the above-described movement instruction device 31 is performed. The display device 29 is, for example, a liquid crystal display arranged in the central portion of the instrument panel, etc., and displays map information. Here, the road 50 is displayed in the center of the display device 29 , and the vehicle 10 and the construction section 51 existing in front thereof are also displayed superimposed on the road 50 . Here, it is also possible to employ other devices as the display device 29 , for example, a head-up display can be employed as the display device 29 .

In the present embodiment, an arrow 52 indicates the direction in which the occupant 11 is moving the movement instruction device 31, that is, the direction in which the vehicle 10 is being steered. By doing so, the occupant 11 can more reliably recognize the traveling direction of the vehicle 10 that he or she is operating with the movement instruction device 31 . Therefore, the occupant 11 can control the vehicle 10 more precisely by operating the movement instruction device 31 while viewing the display device 29 in the vicinity of the construction section 51 that is the cause of the obstruction. Here, the direction of travel of the vehicle 10 is indicated by an arrow, but the direction of travel and the course of travel of the vehicle 10 may be indicated by a line.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments.

For example, referring to FIG. 2A, in the above embodiment, the pointing device mounting portion 32 is the upper surface of the center console 25, but the pointing device mounting portion 32 may be placed on another part of the vehicle 10. . Specifically, the pointing device mounting portion 32 can be formed on the upper surface of an armrest (not shown) arranged on the side surface of the seat 20 .

With reference to FIG. 2(B), in the above embodiment, magnetic force is used as the reaction force applied to movement instructing device 31, but it is also possible to adopt other forms of reaction force. A frictional force generated between the pointing device 31 and the pointing device mounting portion 32 can also be employed as the reaction force.

Referring to FIG. 7A, in the above-described embodiment, the reaction force generator 26 generates the reaction force F10 even when the occupant 11 does not operate the movement instruction device 31. The reaction force can also be zero when the device 31 is not operated.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the vehicle 10 can switch between the manual driving state and the automatic driving state, but the vehicle control device 30 of the present embodiment is applied to the vehicle 10 that runs exclusively in the automatic driving state. can also

10 Vehicle 11 Occupant 12 Input device 13 External environment recognition device 14 Vehicle operation instruction device 15 Braking device 16 Vehicle driving device 17 Steering device 19 Seat driving device 20 Seat 21 Seat cushion 22 Seat back 23 Headrest 24 Steering wheel 25 Center console 26 Reaction force Generation unit 28 Storage unit 29 Display device 30 Vehicle control device 31 Movement instruction device 32 Instruction device placement unit 50 Road 51 Construction section 52 Arrow F1 Operation force F2, F10, F11, F12, F20 Reaction force

Claims (9)

It is installed in a vehicle that can realize an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which the driver performs driving operations according to instructions from the input device,
a movement instruction device that is separate from the input device, has a shape that can be held by an occupant, and outputs a movement signal according to a movement amount;
a vehicle calculation and instruction device that operates the vehicle by performing predetermined calculation processing according to the movement signal output from the movement instruction device;
an instruction device placement unit disposed near the seat on which the passenger sits and having an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves;
a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operating force of the operation when the occupant operates the movement instruction device to move,
When the vehicle is in the automatic driving state, the vehicle operation instruction device outputs the reaction force to the movement instruction device when a hindrance cause that is determined to have a certain degree of possibility of inhibiting automatic driving appears. Provide a reaction force control period to give
The reaction force control period has a first reaction force control period and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period,
In the first reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the hindrance cause,
During the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is smaller than the reaction force during the first reaction force control period, and the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the hindrance cause. A vehicle control device characterized by being larger than before. It is installed in a vehicle that can realize an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are automatically performed and a manual driving state in which the driver performs driving operations according to instructions from the input device ,
a movement instruction device that is separate from the input device, has a shape that can be held by an occupant, and outputs a movement signal according to a movement amount;
a vehicle calculation and instruction device that operates the vehicle by performing predetermined calculation processing according to the movement signal output from the movement instruction device;
an instruction device placement unit disposed near the seat on which the passenger sits and having an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves;
a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operating force of the operation when the occupant operates the movement instruction device to move,
When the vehicle is in the automatic driving state, the vehicle operation instruction device is configured to apply the reaction force to the movement instruction device when an obstacle that is determined to have a certain degree of possibility of inhibiting automatic driving appears. Provide a reaction force control period to give
The reaction force control period has a first reaction force control period and a second reaction force control period that is a period after the first reaction force control period,
In the first reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is greater than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the hindrance cause,
During the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is smaller than the reaction force during the first reaction force control period, and the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the hindrance cause. bigger than before
A vehicle control device, wherein the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device during the second reaction force control period increases as the movement instruction time elapses. 3. The vehicle operation instruction device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle operation instruction device notifies the occupant of the presence of the hindrance cause before applying the reaction force to the movement instruction device. vehicle controller. Furthermore, a storage section is provided in the vicinity of the pointing device mounting section,
4. The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when the movement instruction device is stored in the storage portion, operation of the vehicle via the movement instruction device is disabled. 5. The vehicle control device according to claim 4, wherein the movement instruction device is charged when the movement instruction device is stored in the storage portion. 6. The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the vehicle operation instruction device displays the details of the operation of the movement instruction device on a display device. 7. The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the pointing device mounting portion is incorporated in a center console of the vehicle. 8. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the seat on which the passenger is seated is in a relax position during the reaction force control period. Applied to vehicles that can realize an automatic driving state in which main driving actions are performed automatically, and a manual driving state in which the driver performs driving operations according to instructions from an input device.
a movement instruction device that is separate from the input device, has a shape that can be held by an occupant, and outputs a movement signal according to a movement amount;
a vehicle calculation and instruction device that operates the vehicle by performing predetermined calculation processing according to the movement signal output from the movement instruction device;
an instruction device placement unit disposed near the seat on which the passenger sits and having an operation surface on which the movement instruction device moves;
A vehicle control method using a vehicle control device comprising a reaction force generation unit that generates a reaction force against the operation force of the operation when the occupant operates the movement instruction device to move,
A reaction force control period in which the reaction force is applied to the movement instructing device when an obstacle that is judged to have a certain degree of possibility of inhibiting automatic driving appears when the vehicle is in the automatic driving state. provided,
setting a first reaction force control period and a second reaction force control period, which is a period after the first reaction force control period, as the reaction force control period;
In the first reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is made larger than before the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the hindrance cause,
In the second reaction force control period, the reaction force applied to the movement instruction device is smaller than the reaction force in the first reaction force control period, and the vehicle operation instruction device discovers the hindrance cause. A vehicle control method characterized by making it larger than before.

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