JP7480628B2 - Vehicle control device and vehicle control system - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a vehicle control device, an alarm device, and a vehicle control system.

Patent document 1 discloses technology for autonomous driving during traffic jams.

JP 2005-324661 A

For example, in a traffic jam, a first vehicle may change lanes and cut in front of a second vehicle. If the second vehicle is performing automated driving at level 3 or higher, for example, the driver of the second vehicle may not be looking ahead. If the driver of the second vehicle is not looking ahead, it is difficult for the driver of the first vehicle to communicate with the driver of the second vehicle. As a result, the driver of the first vehicle cannot change lanes with confidence.

In one aspect of the present disclosure, it is preferable to provide a vehicle control device, a notification device, and a vehicle control system that enable a vehicle driver to change lanes with peace of mind.

One aspect of the present disclosure is a vehicle control device (5) including: a cutting-in vehicle detection unit (51) configured to detect a cutting-in vehicle (7) attempting to cut in front of a vehicle (13) when the vehicle is driving autonomously; an acceptance judgment unit (53) that judges whether or not to accept the cutting-in of the cutting-in vehicle when the cutting-in vehicle detection unit detects the cutting-in vehicle; and a vehicle control unit (55) that controls the vehicle so that the space (101) in front of the vehicle is enlarged when the acceptance judgment unit judges that the cutting-in is to be accepted.

According to a vehicle control device which is one aspect of the present disclosure, the driver of the cutting-in vehicle can change lanes with peace of mind.
Another aspect of the present disclosure is an alarm device (3) mounted on a first vehicle (7), comprising: a communication unit (19) configured to receive information from a second vehicle (13) indicating whether the second vehicle accepts the first vehicle to cut in front of the second vehicle; and an alarm unit (21) configured to notify a driver of the first vehicle of the content of the information received by the communication unit.

According to the notification device which is another aspect of the present disclosure, the driver of the first vehicle can make a lane change with peace of mind.
Another aspect of the present disclosure is a vehicle control system (1) including an alarm device (3) mounted on a first vehicle (7) and a vehicle control device (5) mounted on a second vehicle (13).

The vehicle control device includes an intruding vehicle detection unit (51) configured to detect the first vehicle attempting to cut in front of the second vehicle when the second vehicle is performing autonomous driving, an acceptance judgment unit (53) that judges whether to accept the intruding of the first vehicle when the intruding vehicle detection unit detects the first vehicle, a vehicle control unit (55) that controls the second vehicle so that the space (101) in front of the second vehicle is enlarged when the acceptance judgment unit judges that the intruding is to be accepted, and a second vehicle communication unit (54) configured to transmit information representing the judgment result of the acceptance judgment unit.

The notification device includes a first vehicle communication unit (19) configured to receive the information transmitted by the second vehicle communication unit, and a first vehicle notification unit (21) configured to notify the driver of the first vehicle of the contents of the information received by the first vehicle communication unit.

According to the vehicle control system, which is another aspect of the present disclosure, the driver of the first vehicle can change lanes with peace of mind.

1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a vehicle control system. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the notification device. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle control device. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of an autonomous driving ECU. 5 is a flowchart showing a process executed by a first vehicle and a notification device. 5 is a flowchart showing a process executed by a second vehicle and a vehicle control device. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a first vehicle and an accepting vehicle. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the contents of a notification in a first vehicle. FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing the content of a notification in a second vehicle.

Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to the drawings.
First Embodiment
1. Overall Configuration of Vehicle Control System 1 The overall configuration of the vehicle control system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 1. The vehicle control system 1 includes an alarm device 3 and a vehicle control device 5. The alarm device 3 is mounted on a first vehicle 7. The first vehicle 7 is a vehicle that can be manually driven.

The first vehicle 7 includes, in addition to the alarm device 3, a communication module 9, an input device 10, and a display 11. The communication module 9 can perform wireless communication with a communication target that exists outside the first vehicle 7. The input device 10 accepts input operations from the driver of the first vehicle 7 (hereinafter referred to as the first driver). The display 11 is installed in the passenger compartment of the first vehicle 7. The display 11 can display images. The first driver can view the images displayed on the display 11.

Furthermore, the first vehicle 7 has the same configuration as a general vehicle. The first vehicle 7 has turn signals 12 on both the right and left sides. When the first vehicle 7 changes course to the right, it can blink the right turn signal 12. When the first vehicle 7 changes course to the left, it can blink the left turn signal 12.

The vehicle control device 5 is mounted on the second vehicle 13. The second vehicle 13 is capable of level 3 or higher automated driving. In this specification, the level of automated driving is the level of automated driving defined by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Autonomous driving is a function that automatically performs driving operations in place of the driver of the second vehicle 13 (hereinafter referred to as the second driver). In level 3 automated driving, the system executes all dynamic driving tasks in a limited area. However, if it is difficult to continue the operation of the automated driving, the second driver responds appropriately to the system's request for intervention, etc.

2. Configuration of the notification device 3 The configuration of the notification device 3 will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. As shown in Figure 1, the notification device 3 includes a microcomputer having a CPU 15 and a semiconductor memory such as a RAM or a ROM (hereinafter, referred to as a memory 17).

Each function of the notification device 3 is realized by the CPU 15 executing a program stored in a non-transitive physical recording medium. In this example, the memory 17 corresponds to the non-transitive physical recording medium storing the program. Furthermore, the program is executed, and a method corresponding to the program is performed. Note that the notification device 3 may include one microcomputer or multiple microcomputers.

As shown in FIG. 2, the notification device 3 includes a first vehicle communication unit 19, a first vehicle notification unit 21, and a first vehicle judgment unit 22. The functions of each component of the notification device 3 will be described later. The notification device 3 is electrically connected to a communication module 9, an input device 10, and a display 11. The notification device 3 can perform wireless communication using the communication module 9. The notification device 3 obtains a signal corresponding to an input operation accepted by the input device 10. The notification device 3 can display an image using the display 11.

3. Configuration of the vehicle control device 5 The configuration of the vehicle control device 5 will be described with reference to Fig. 3 and Fig. 4. As shown in Fig. 3, the vehicle control device 5 includes an automatic driving system 25, a locator ECU 27, a cruise control ECU 29, a surroundings monitoring sensor 31, a display unit 33, an operation device 35, and a communication module 37. The components of the vehicle control device 5 are connected to each other via a communication bus 39 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

The autonomous driving system 25 includes an autonomous driving ECU 41 and a driving assistance ECU 43. The autonomous driving ECU 41 is an in-vehicle ECU that realizes the autonomous driving function. The autonomous driving ECU 41 realizes, for example, autonomous driving of level 3 or higher.

In addition to the components that realize autonomous driving, the autonomous driving ECU 41 also includes, as shown in FIG. 4, an intruding vehicle detection unit 51, an acceptance judgment unit 53, a second vehicle communication unit 54, a vehicle control unit 55, an input unit 57, a second vehicle notification unit 59, a distance acquisition unit 61, and an intruding judgment unit 62. The functions of each component of the autonomous driving ECU 41 will be described later.

The driving assistance ECU 43 is an in-vehicle ECU that realizes driving assistance operations that assist the second driver in driving. The driving assistance ECU 43 realizes, for example, advanced driving assistance of about level 2 or partially automated driving.

The locator ECU 27 includes a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver and an inertial sensor, etc. The locator ECU 27 combines the positioning signal received by the GNSS receiver, the measurement results of the inertial sensor, and the vehicle speed information output to the communication bus 39, etc., to sequentially measure the position, traveling direction, etc. of the second vehicle 13. The locator ECU 27 sequentially outputs locator information to the communication bus 39. The locator information is information that represents the position, traveling direction, etc. of the second vehicle 13.

The locator ECU 27 further includes a map database 71. The map database 71 is mainly composed of a large-capacity storage medium. A large amount of map data is stored in the storage medium. The map data includes three-dimensional map data and two-dimensional map data. The three-dimensional map data is so-called high-precision map data. The three-dimensional map data includes information necessary for advanced driving assistance and automated driving. The three-dimensional map data includes three-dimensional shape information of roads, detailed information on each lane, the positions of branching points for each lane, the positions of merging points, etc.

The locator ECU 27 reads map data for the area around the current position of the second vehicle 13 from the map database 71. The locator ECU 27 provides map information together with locator information to the driving assistance ECU 43 and the autonomous driving ECU 41, etc. The map information includes the map data read from the map database 71.

In addition, instead of using the locator ECU 27, the vehicle control device 5 may acquire locator information and map information from a user terminal such as a smartphone or a navigation device, and provide the acquired locator information and map information to the driving assistance ECU 43 and the autonomous driving ECU 41, etc.

The driving control ECU 29 is an electronic control device that mainly includes a microcontroller. The driving control ECU 29 generates vehicle speed information based on detection signals from wheel speed sensors. The wheel speed sensors are provided on the hubs of each wheel of the second vehicle 13. The vehicle speed information is information that indicates the current driving speed of the second vehicle 13. The driving control ECU 29 sequentially outputs the vehicle speed information to the communication bus 39.

The driving control ECU 29 has at least the functions of a brake control ECU and a drive control ECU. The driving control ECU 29 continuously controls the braking force generated on each wheel of the second vehicle 13 and the output control of the power source of the second vehicle 13 based on one of the operation commands based on the driving operation of the second driver, the control commands from the driving assistance ECU 43, and the control commands from the autonomous driving ECU 41.

The perimeter monitoring sensor 31 is an autonomous sensor that monitors the environment surrounding the second vehicle 13. The perimeter monitoring sensor 31 can detect targets present in the periphery of the second vehicle 13. In particular, the perimeter monitoring sensor 31 can detect the first vehicle 7. The perimeter monitoring sensor 31 can also detect that the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7 is flashing. The perimeter monitoring sensor 31 provides detection information to the driving assistance ECU 43, the autonomous driving ECU 41, and the like via the communication bus 39. The detection information is information that indicates the position and speed of the detected target, whether the turn signal 12 is flashing, and the like.

The perimeter monitoring sensor 31 includes, for example, a camera unit 73 and a millimeter wave radar 75. The camera unit 73 may include a monocular camera or a compound eye camera. The camera unit 73 can capture, for example, the forward range, lateral range, and rear range of the second vehicle 13. The detection information includes, for example, at least one of the imaging data generated by the camera unit 73 capturing an image of the periphery of the second vehicle 13 and the analysis results of the imaging data.

The millimeter wave radar 75 emits millimeter waves or quasi-millimeter waves toward the surroundings of the second vehicle 13. The millimeter wave radar 75 receives waves reflected by targets. The detection information includes, for example, the detection results of the millimeter wave radar 75. The perimeter monitoring sensor 31 may further include a lidar, a sonar, etc.

The display unit 33 is mainly composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display or an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display. The display unit 33 displays various images on a display screen. The display unit 33 is installed in the passenger compartment of the second vehicle 13.

The operation device 35 is an input unit that accepts input operations by the second driver, etc. Examples of input operations include input operations related to activation and deactivation of the autonomous driving function, and input operations related to whether or not to cut in. Cutting in refers to the first vehicle 7 cutting in front of the second vehicle 13 after changing lanes. Examples of input operations related to whether or not to cut in include an input operation to accept the cut in and an input operation to reject the cut in.

Examples of the operation device 35 include a touch panel superimposed on the display screen of the display unit 33, a steering switch provided on the spokes of the steering wheel, an operation lever provided on the steering column, and a voice input device that recognizes the contents of speech by the second driver.

The communication module 37 is capable of wireless communication with a communication target located outside the second vehicle 13 .
4. Processing Executed by the First Vehicle 7 and the Notification Device 3 Processing executed by the first vehicle 7 and the notification device 3 will be described with reference to Fig. 5, Fig. 7, and Fig. 8. The processing shown in Fig. 5 is processing executed when the first vehicle 7 performs a lane change from the pre-transition lane 87 to the post-transition lane 77 as shown in Fig. 7. The processing shown in Fig. 5 is processing executed, for example, when there is congestion around the first vehicle 7.

In step 1 of FIG. 5, as shown in FIG. 7, the first vehicle 7 flashes the turn signal 12 on the side of the post-transition lane 77. Flashing the turn signal 12 indicates an intention to cut in front of the accepting vehicle 79. The accepting vehicle 79 is another vehicle traveling in the post-transition lane 77. When the first vehicle 7 performs a lane change, the first vehicle 7 cuts in front of the accepting vehicle 79. The accepting vehicle 79 may or may not be the second vehicle 13.

In step 2, the first vehicle judgment unit 22 uses the communication module 9 to perform vehicle-to-vehicle communication with the accepting vehicle 79 and determines whether the accepting vehicle 79 is the second vehicle 13. The second vehicle 13 corresponds to an autonomous vehicle. If the accepting vehicle 79 is the second vehicle 13, this process proceeds to step 3. If the accepting vehicle 79 is not the second vehicle 13, this process ends.

In step 3, the first vehicle notification unit 21 notifies the first driver using the display 11. The notification indicates that the receiving vehicle 79 is the second vehicle 13. The first driver can recognize from the notification that the receiving vehicle 79 is the second vehicle 13.

In step 4, the first vehicle judgment unit 22 judges whether or not "checking" information has been received. "Checking" information is information transmitted by the second vehicle 13 in step 24, which will be described later. If the second vehicle 13 transmits "checking" information, the communication module 9 receives the "checking" information. If "checking" information has been received, the process proceeds to step 5. If "checking" information has not been received, the process proceeds to step 8.

In step 5, the first vehicle notification unit 21 displays a notification 81 shown in Fig. 8 to the first driver using the display 11. The notification 81 displays "Checking for interrupt permission".
In step 6, the first vehicle judgment unit 22 judges whether or not the "no cutting in" information has been received. The "no cutting in" information is information transmitted by the second vehicle 13 in step 27, which will be described later. The "no cutting in" information is information indicating that the second vehicle 13 does not accept the first vehicle 7 to cut in front of the second vehicle 13.

If the second vehicle 13 transmits "cannot cut in" information, the communication module 9 receives the "cannot cut in" information. If the "cannot cut in" information is received, the process proceeds to step 7. If the "cannot cut in" information is not received, the process proceeds to step 8.

In step 7, the first vehicle notification unit 21 uses the display 11 to display the notification 83 shown in FIG. 8 to the first driver. The notification 83 displays "Interruption not possible. Execution not possible." The notification 83 contains the information that "interruption not possible."

In step 8, the first vehicle judgment unit 22 judges whether or not "cut in permission" information has been received. The "cut in permission" information is information transmitted by the second vehicle 13 in step 28, which will be described later. The "cut in permission" information is information indicating that the second vehicle 13 accepts the first vehicle 7 to cut in front of the second vehicle 13.

If the second vehicle 13 transmits "allowed to cut in" information, the communication module 9 receives the "allowed to cut in" information. If the "allowed to cut in" information is received, the process proceeds to step 9. If the "allowed to cut in" information is not received, the process returns to before step 8.

In step 9, the first vehicle notification unit 21 uses the display 11 to display the notification 85 shown in FIG. 8 to the first driver. The notification 85 displays "Interruption possible. Executable." The notification 85 also displays "Increased space ahead."

As shown in Fig. 7, the forward space 101 is the space between the second vehicle 13 and the preceding vehicle 103. The preceding vehicle 103 is a vehicle that is traveling just before the second vehicle 13 in the post-transition lane 77. "Increasing the forward space" indicates that the forward space 101 is expanding. "Increasing the forward space" corresponds to the content of the control that the vehicle control unit 55 of the second vehicle 13 plans to execute in step 29, which will be described later. The notification 85 is the content of the "allowed to cut in" information.
In addition, when the first driver sees the notification 85 and confirms that the space ahead 101 has expanded, he or she can manually drive the first vehicle 7 to cut in front of the second vehicle 13 and perform a lane change.

In step 10, the first vehicle judgment unit 22 judges whether or not "cut-in confirmation" information has been received. The "cut-in confirmation" information is information transmitted by the second vehicle 13 in step 33, which will be described later. If the second vehicle 13 transmits the "cut-in confirmation" information, the communication module 9 receives the "cut-in confirmation" information. If the "cut-in confirmation" information has been received, the process proceeds to step 11. If the "cut-in confirmation" information has not been received, the process ends.
If the first vehicle 7 cuts in after the notification 85 is displayed in step 9, a positive determination is made in step 30, which will be described later, and the second vehicle 13 does not transmit the "cut in" information. If the first vehicle 7 does not cut in, a negative determination is made in step 30, which will be described later, and the second vehicle 13 may transmit the "cut in" information.

In step 11, the first vehicle judgment unit 22 displays a question on the display 11 asking whether the first driver intends to cut in. In response to the displayed question, the first driver performs an input operation on the input device 10 to indicate whether or not the first driver intends to cut in.

In step 12, the first vehicle judgment unit 22 judges whether or not the first driver intends to cut in based on the input operation performed on the input device 10. If it is judged that the first driver intends to cut in, the process proceeds to step 13. If it is judged that the first driver does not intend to cut in, the process proceeds to step 14.

In step 13, the first vehicle communication unit 19 transmits the information of “intent to cut in” to the second vehicle 13 using the communication module 9. After step 13, the process proceeds to step 10.
In step 14, the first vehicle communication unit 19 transmits the information "no intention to cut in" to the second vehicle 13 using the communication module 9. After step 14, this process ends.

5. Processing Executed by the Second Vehicle 13 and the Vehicle Control Device 5 Processing executed by the second vehicle 13 and the vehicle control device 5 when the first vehicle 7 is a cutting-in vehicle and the second vehicle 13 is an accepting vehicle 79 will be described with reference to Figures 6, 7 and 9. A cutting-in vehicle is a vehicle that changes lanes from the pre-transition lane 87 to the post-transition lane 77, like the first vehicle 7 shown in Figure 7, and cuts in front of the second vehicle 13. The processing shown in Figure 6 is executed, for example, when there is congestion around the second vehicle 13.

In step 21 of FIG. 6, the vehicle control unit 55 determines whether the mode of the second vehicle 13 is an autonomous driving mode. The autonomous driving mode is a state in which the second vehicle 13 is performing autonomous driving. The autonomous driving mode is, for example, a state in which the second vehicle 13 is performing autonomous driving at level 3 or higher.

If it is determined that the mode of the second vehicle 13 is the autonomous driving mode, the process proceeds to step 22. If it is determined that the mode of the second vehicle 13 is not the autonomous driving mode, the process returns to before step 21.

In step 22, first, the cutting-in vehicle detection unit 51 performs a process of detecting the blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7. The cutting-in vehicle detection unit 51 can detect the blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7 using the periphery monitoring sensor 31. Detecting the blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7 corresponds to detecting a cutting-in vehicle.

If a blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7 is detected, the process proceeds to step 23. If a blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7 is not detected, the process returns to before step 22.
In step 23, first, the distance acquisition unit 61 acquires the limit point distance D. The limit point distance D is the distance from the position of the first vehicle 7 to a limit point 89 located in front of the pre-transition lane 87, as shown in Fig. 7. The distance acquisition unit 61 can calculate the limit point distance D from the absolute position of the second vehicle 13 acquired using the locator ECU 27, the relative position of the first vehicle 7 with respect to the second vehicle 13 acquired using the perimeter monitoring sensor 31, and the absolute position of the limit point 89 acquired using the map DB 71.
The limit point 89 is a point at the limit of a range in which a lane change is possible from the pre-transition lane 87 to the post-transition lane 77. The range from the position of the first vehicle 7 to the limit point 89 is a range in which a lane change is possible from the pre-transition lane 87 to the post-transition lane 77. The limit point 89 is, for example, a point where a road branches off, a point where another road merges, etc.

Next, the acceptance judgment unit 53 judges whether the limit point distance D is equal to or less than a preset threshold. If it is judged that the limit point distance D is equal to or less than the threshold, the second vehicle notification unit 59 uses the display unit 33 to display a notification 91 shown in FIG. 9 to the second driver. The notification 91 displays "Cut-in detected." The notification 91 indicates that a cut-in by the first vehicle 7 has been detected. After the notification 91 is displayed, the process proceeds to step 28. Note that proceeding to step 28 corresponds to accepting the cut-in. If it is judged that the limit point distance D exceeds the threshold, the process proceeds to step 24.

In step 24, the second vehicle communication unit 54 transmits the “checking” information using the communication module 37.
In step 25, the second vehicle notification unit 59 uses the display unit 33 to display a notification 93 shown in Fig. 9 to the second driver. The notification 93 is a display including "cut-in detection". The notification 93 indicates that the cut-in of the first vehicle 7 has been detected.

The notification 93 includes an interrupt refusal section 95. The second driver presses the interrupt refusal section 95 when refusing to interrupt the first vehicle 7. Pressing the interrupt refusal section 95 corresponds to the second driver's input regarding whether or not to interrupt. The input unit 57 detects that the second driver has pressed the interrupt refusal section 95.

In step 26, the acceptance judgment unit 53 judges whether or not to accept the interruption of the first vehicle 7. If the input unit 57 does not detect in step 25 that the second driver has pressed the interruption refusal unit 95, the acceptance judgment unit 53 judges to accept the interruption of the first vehicle 7. If the input unit 57 detects in step 25 that the second driver has pressed the interruption refusal unit 95, the acceptance judgment unit 53 judges not to accept the interruption of the first vehicle 7.

As described above, the determination of whether or not to accept the first vehicle 7 to cut in corresponds to a determination based on the detection of the input unit 57. If it is determined that the first vehicle 7 to cut in is to be accepted, the process proceeds to step 28. If it is determined that the first vehicle 7 to cut in is not to be accepted, the process proceeds to step 27.

In step 27, the second vehicle communication unit 54 transmits "no interrupt" information using the communication module 37. The content of the "no interrupt" information is that the first vehicle 7 will not be allowed to interrupt.

The second vehicle notification unit 59 also uses the display unit 33 to display a notification 97 shown in FIG. 9 to the second driver. The notification 97 is a display including "Cut-in rejected." The notification 97 indicates that the cut-in of the first vehicle 7 will not be accepted. The notification 97 indicates the judgment result of the acceptance judgment unit 53.

In step 28, the second vehicle communication unit 54 transmits "cut-in permission" information using the communication module 37. The "cut-in permission" information includes the acceptance of the cut-in of the first vehicle 7 and the content of the control planned by the vehicle control unit 55. The control planned by the vehicle control unit 55 is to expand the forward space 101 by adjusting the vehicle speed of the second vehicle 13. Expanding the forward space 101 by adjusting the vehicle speed of the second vehicle 13 corresponds to the operation planned by the second vehicle 13.

The second vehicle notification unit 59 also uses the display unit 33 to display a notification 99 shown in FIG. 9 to the second driver. The notification 99 is a display including "Interruption permitted". The notification 99 indicates that the interruption of the first vehicle 7 is accepted. The notification 99 indicates the judgment result of the acceptance judgment unit 53. The notification 99 is also a display including "Increase in front space". "Increase in front space" corresponds to the content of the control that the vehicle control unit 55 plans to execute in step 29, which will be described later.

In step 29, the vehicle control unit 55 adjusts the vehicle speed of the second vehicle 13 so that the forward space 101 is expanded.
In step 30, the cut-in judgment unit 62 judges whether or not the first vehicle 7 has cut in to the forward space 101. The cut-in judgment unit 62 can use the perimeter monitoring sensor 31 to judge whether or not the first vehicle 7 has cut in to the forward space 101.

If it is determined that the first vehicle 7 has cut in to the forward space 101, this process ends. If it is determined that the first vehicle 7 has not yet cut in to the forward space 101, this process proceeds to step 31.
In step 31, similar to step 22, the cutting-in vehicle detection unit 51 performs a process of detecting the blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7. If the blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7 is not detected, the process proceeds to step 32. If the blinking of the turn signal 12 of the first vehicle 7 is detected, the process proceeds to step 33.

In step 32, the second vehicle notification unit 59 notifies the second driver using the display unit 33. The notification content is that the cut-in of the first vehicle 7 has been canceled.
In step 33, the second vehicle communication unit 54 uses the communication module 37 to transmit the “cut-in confirmation” information.

In step 34, the second vehicle communication unit 54 executes a process to receive information of "intent to cut in" or information of "no intent to cut in." The information of "intent to cut in" is the information transmitted by the first vehicle 7 in step 13. The information of "no intent to cut in" is the information transmitted by the first vehicle 7 in step 14.

When the "intent to cut in" information is received, the cut-in judgment unit 62 judges that the first vehicle 7 has the intent to cut in. When the "no intent to cut in" information is received, the cut-in judgment unit 62 judges that the first vehicle 7 has no intent to cut in. When it is determined that the first vehicle 7 has the intent to cut in, the process proceeds to step 30. When it is determined that the first vehicle 7 has no intent to cut in, the process ends.

7. Effects of the vehicle control system 1 (1A) The vehicle control device 5 detects a cutting-in vehicle attempting to cut in front of the second vehicle 13 while the second vehicle 13 is performing autonomous driving. When the vehicle control device 5 detects a cutting-in vehicle, it determines whether or not to accept the cutting-in. When it determines to accept the cutting-in, the vehicle control device 5 controls the second vehicle 13 so that the forward space 101 is expanded. Therefore, the driver of the cutting-in vehicle can change lanes with peace of mind.

(1B) The vehicle control device 5 detects the input of the second driver regarding whether or not to accept an interrupt. The vehicle control device 5 determines whether or not to accept the interrupt based on the detection of the input. The second driver can suppress the interrupt by making an input indicating that the interrupt is not to be accepted.

(1C) The vehicle control device 5 notifies the second driver of the result of the decision as to whether to accept the interruption and the content of the control planned by the vehicle control unit 55. The second driver can understand the result of the decision as to whether to accept the interruption and the content of the control planned by the vehicle control unit 55.

(1D) The vehicle control device 5 acquires the limit point distance D. If the limit point distance D is equal to or less than a threshold value, the vehicle control device 5 determines to accept the cut-in regardless of the second driver's intention. If the limit point distance D is short, the cutting-in vehicle can easily change lanes.

(1E) The notification device 3 receives "cut in allowed" information or "cut in not allowed" information from the second vehicle 13. The "cut in allowed" information and the "cut in not allowed" information are information indicating whether the second vehicle 13 accepts the first vehicle 7 to cut in front of the second vehicle 13.

The notification device 3 notifies the first driver of the content of the information "cut in permitted" or "cut in prohibited." The first driver can know whether the second vehicle 13 has accepted the first vehicle 7 cutting in front of the second vehicle 13. If the second vehicle 13 has accepted the first vehicle 7 cutting in front of the second vehicle 13, the first driver can change lanes with peace of mind.

(1F) The information of "cut-in permission" further includes the contents of the control planned by the vehicle control unit 55. When the notification device 3 receives the information of "cut-in permission", it notifies the first driver of the contents of the control planned by the vehicle control unit 55. The first driver can understand the contents of the control planned by the vehicle control unit 55. Therefore, the first driver can make a lane change with even more peace of mind.
<Other embodiments>
Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can be implemented in various modified forms.

(1) In step 10, the first vehicle 7 or the notification device 3 may determine by itself whether or not the cut-in has been completed using a sensor or the like mounted on the first vehicle 7. If it is determined that the cut-in has been completed, this process ends. If it is determined that the cut-in has not been completed, this process proceeds to step 11.
(2) The notification device 3 or the vehicle control device 5 may provide a notification by a method other than displaying an image. For example, the notification device 3 or the vehicle control device 5 may provide a notification by sound or the like.
(3) The vehicle control device 5 may detect a cutting-in vehicle by a method other than detecting the blinking of the turn signal 12. For example, the cutting-in vehicle may be detected based on the position, the moving direction, etc. of the cutting-in vehicle.
(4) The criteria by which the vehicle control device 5 determines whether to accept the cut-in of the cutting-in vehicle can be appropriately selected. For example, the vehicle control device 5 can determine not to accept the cut-in if there is a high possibility that the travel of the second vehicle 13 will be impeded if the cut-in is accepted, based on the situation around the second vehicle 13, etc.

(5) The vehicle control device 5 and the method thereof described in the present disclosure may be realized by a dedicated computer provided by configuring a processor and a memory programmed to execute one or more functions embodied in a computer program. Alternatively, the vehicle control device 5 and the method thereof described in the present disclosure may be realized by a dedicated computer provided by configuring a processor with one or more dedicated hardware logic circuits. Alternatively, the vehicle control device 5 and the method thereof described in the present disclosure may be realized by one or more dedicated computers configured by combining a processor and a memory programmed to execute one or more functions and a processor configured with one or more hardware logic circuits. In addition, the computer program may be stored in a computer-readable non-transient tangible recording medium as instructions executed by a computer. The method for realizing the functions of each part included in the vehicle control device 5 does not necessarily need to include software, and all of the functions may be realized using one or more hardware.

(6) Multiple functions possessed by one component in the above embodiments may be realized by multiple components, or one function possessed by one component may be realized by multiple components. Also, multiple functions possessed by multiple components may be realized by one component, or one function realized by multiple components may be realized by one component. Also, part of the configuration of the above embodiments may be omitted. Also, at least part of the configuration of the above embodiments may be added to or substituted for the configuration of another of the above embodiments.

(7) In addition to the vehicle control device 5 described above, the present disclosure can also be realized in various forms, such as a system including the vehicle control device 5 as a component, a program for causing a computer to function as the vehicle control device 5, a non-transient physical recording medium such as a semiconductor memory on which the program is recorded, a display control method, etc.

1...vehicle control system, 3...alarm device, 5...vehicle control device, 7...first vehicle, 13...second vehicle, 19...first vehicle communication unit, 21...first vehicle alarm unit, 22...first vehicle judgment unit, 41...autonomous driving ECU, 51...cut-in vehicle detection unit, 53...acceptance judgment unit, 54...second vehicle communication unit, 55...vehicle control unit, 59...second vehicle alarm unit, 79...accepting vehicle

Claims (9)

a cut-in vehicle detection unit (51) configured to detect a cut-in vehicle (7) that is about to cut in front of a vehicle (13) when the vehicle (13) is operating autonomously;
an acceptance judgment unit (53) that judges whether or not to accept the cut-in of the cut-in vehicle when the cut-in vehicle detection unit detects the cut-in vehicle;
a vehicle control unit (55) for controlling the vehicle so that a space (101) in front of the vehicle is enlarged when the acceptance judgment unit judges that the cut-in is to be accepted;
a cancellation notification unit configured to notify a driver of the vehicle that the cut-in vehicle has been cancelled when the cut-in vehicle does not cut in the space in front of the vehicle and the blinker of the cut-in vehicle is not detected after the vehicle control unit controls the vehicle so that the space in front of the vehicle is enlarged;
A vehicle control device (5) comprising: The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
an input unit (57) configured to detect an input from a driver of the vehicle regarding whether or not to interrupt;
The vehicle control device, wherein the acceptance determination unit is configured to determine whether or not to accept the interrupt based on detection of the input. The vehicle control device according to claim 1 or 2,
The vehicle control device further comprises an informing unit (59) configured to inform a driver of the vehicle of the judgment result of the acceptance judgment unit and the contents of the control planned by the vehicle control unit. The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
a distance acquisition unit (61) configured to acquire a distance from the position of the cutting-in vehicle to a limit point (89) in front of the lane (87) of the cutting-in vehicle;
A vehicle control device, wherein the acceptance determination unit determines to accept the interrupt when the distance acquired by the distance acquisition unit is equal to or smaller than a preset threshold value. A vehicle control system (1) including an alarm device (3) mounted on a first vehicle (7) and a vehicle control device (5) mounted on a second vehicle (13),
The vehicle control device includes:
an intruding vehicle detection unit (51) configured to detect the first vehicle attempting to intruding in front of the second vehicle when the second vehicle is autonomously driving;
an acceptance judgment unit (53) that judges whether or not to accept the interruption of the first vehicle when the interruption vehicle detection unit detects the first vehicle;
a vehicle control unit (55) for controlling the second vehicle so that a space (101) in front of the second vehicle is enlarged when the acceptance judgment unit judges that the cut-in is to be accepted;
a second vehicle communication unit (54) configured to transmit information representative of the judgment result of the acceptance judgment unit;
a cancellation notification unit configured to notify a driver of the second vehicle that the cut-in of the first vehicle has been canceled when the first vehicle does not cut-into the space in front of the second vehicle and does not detect a blinker of the first vehicle after the vehicle control unit controls the second vehicle so that the space in front of the second vehicle is expanded;
Equipped with
The notification device includes:
a first vehicle communication unit (19) configured to receive the information transmitted by the second vehicle communication unit;
a first vehicle notification unit (21) configured to notify a driver of the first vehicle of the content of the information received by the first vehicle communication unit;
Vehicle control system. 6. A vehicle control system according to claim 5 ,
The vehicle control device further includes an input unit (57) configured to detect an input of a driver of the second vehicle regarding whether or not to interrupt the vehicle;
The vehicle control system, wherein the acceptance determination unit is configured to determine whether to accept the interrupt based on detection of the input. 7. A vehicle control system according to claim 5 ,
The vehicle control system further includes a second vehicle notification unit (59) configured to notify a driver of the second vehicle of the judgment result of the acceptance judgment unit and the content of the control planned by the vehicle control unit. The vehicle control system according to any one of claims 5 to 7 ,
The vehicle control device further includes a distance acquisition unit (61) configured to acquire a distance from a position of the first vehicle to a limit point (89) located ahead of a lane (87) of the first vehicle;
A vehicle control system, wherein the acceptance determination unit determines to accept the interrupt when the distance acquired by the distance acquisition unit is equal to or smaller than a preset threshold value. The vehicle control system according to any one of claims 5 to 7 ,
The vehicle control system, wherein the information further indicates an intended operation of the second vehicle.

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