JPH11102157A - Automatic traveling control system for vehicle and computerized road map - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain an automatic traveling control system of vehicles in which the traveling control is made to be fitted to actual traveling environments and sensations of drivers by adopting the system constitution in which information for traveling control are made to be stored in computerized road information. SOLUTION: The entrance point and the advance point of automatic traveling control are prelimianrily stored on all roads at this side of nodes every node to be included in reproduced computerized road information. A control planning means is provided with a means making entrance points and advance points existing on a pre-set scheduled traveling path selectively effective. For example, the entrance point (e) and the advance point (s) of the automatic traveling control are selected as to each node existing on the scheduled path and positional coordinates in the two-dimensional space of respective points and an attribute indicating whether the point is the entrance point or the advance point are preserved in a memory being in an arithmetic part as traveling control data. That is, the entrance point en and the advance point sh are selected as to an node H and a control plan is established by using them to be stored in the memory.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic cruise control system for a vehicle, also called an ACC system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, navigation systems for supporting driving of vehicles have been commercialized. In this navigation system, an optimal travel route to a destination point designated by a driver is selected on a road map reproduced from a CD-ROM and displayed on a screen, and the vehicle's own vehicle detected by positioning means such as a GPS receiver is selected. The position is displayed on the road map, and guidance by voice output of a message or the like is performed in front of a place requiring a course change such as an intersection.

[0003] An ACC system that automatically controls the traveling speed and the steering (steering) by combining the navigation system with a vehicle radar device or the like has been studied for commercialization. In the various ACC systems described above, when the driver performs a braking operation, the vehicle may pass through a special place on a road such as an intersection or a junction under the state of automatic driving control. The automatic cruise control is automatically interrupted upon detection, and the automatic cruise control is restored by the operation of the recovery command switch (resume switch) by the driver.

In the conventional navigation system, when a point outside the road is set as a destination point for navigation, a perpendicular is drawn from the destination to the nearest road, and a node between the perpendicular and the nearest road is set as the destination. You have set. With this configuration, if the nearest road to the destination is an expressway, and if there is no exit from this expressway near this destination, the navigation ends on the expressway far before the destination. There is. In order to solve this problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-15 / 1995 discloses a navigation system provided with a restriction means for restricting the setting of a highway as a navigation destination.
No. 9792.

Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-125565,
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 8-194896 discloses that when a navigation system detects a forward curve or a corner, the traveling speed of the host vehicle is automatically reduced or an alarm is issued so that the vehicle can pass the curve or corner safely. An ACC system with a configuration is disclosed. In addition, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.
Japanese Patent No. 94896 discloses a configuration in which a curve corresponding to an intersection is excluded from control targets.

[0006]

In the automatic driving system proposed in the past, information for control was insufficient, and in many cases, the driver had to intervene. For example, if the automatic navigation control is performed by the conventional navigation technology, it is expected that inappropriate control will be performed due to lack of information on the actual road environment. Specifically, it is assumed that the driving control ends after passing through the exit of the expressway, or that the driving control ends on a pedestrian crossing, or that the driving control ends at a railroad crossing. You. The present invention has been made in view of these problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an automatic cruise control system that is suitable for an actual cruise environment and that more closely matches the feeling of a driver of a vehicle.

Further, the conventional navigation system has a function of setting a target such as an expressway interchange, a station, a store or the like as a destination or a departure point, and performing a route guidance. However, in the prior art, regardless of the status and configuration of each interchange, the points where route guidance ends are standardized, and guidance may end at a position a certain distance before each interchange. It could not be applied to cruise control. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to set an arbitrary point as a target point of the automatic driving control and to end the automatic driving at an optimum position that matches the actual shape and structure of each interchange. .

[0008]

An automatic cruise control system for a vehicle according to the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems of the prior art comprises a computerized road information storage means (CD) storing road information.
ROM), means for reproducing the digitized road information, position detecting means for detecting the position of the own vehicle, and a planned traveling route of the own vehicle to a destination point designated based on the reproduced digitized road information. An automatic travel control system comprising: an automatic travel control unit configured to control automatic travel of the vehicle along the set scheduled travel route. In addition to the conventional display map information and route guidance information, the control planning means (control point setting means) controls entry, exit, acceleration,
Control point information for decelerating, and control start and end point information corresponding to the destination are stored. Also,
Each node of the electronic map information means (here, a node refers to a point connecting straight line segments of each road in the electronic road data. Therefore, nodes in the electronic road map information include:
This includes intersections, curves, and highway interchanges. ) Stores these pieces of point information corresponding to each node.

[0009]

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, for each node included in the digitized road information reproduced by the digitized road information reproducing means, all roads before this node are read. The entry point and the entry point of the automatic driving control are stored in advance on the top, and the control planning means includes means for selectively validating the entry point and the entry point existing on the set scheduled traveling route. I have. Further, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the electronic map information storage means stores a target (interchange, restaurant,
The control start point and end point corresponding to the driving control target such as a convenience store), the node entry point and the exit point information for each node are stored, and the schedule from the position intended by the driver to the position is stored. For the optimum route selected by the route setting means, the control planning means creates an automatic operation control plan and performs automatic operation control.

[0010]

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of an automatic traveling control system 10 for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Arithmetic unit 11, GPS receiver 12, GPS correction data receiver 13, computerized road information reproducing unit 14, various sensors 15a to 15n including a vehicle speed sensor, a yaw rate sensor, a steering sensor, and the like, driving of a throttle valve, a brake, and a steering rig. Various actuators 16a to including mechanisms
16 m, a key input unit 17, a display / output unit 18, and a radar device 19. The calculation unit 11 further includes a vehicle control unit 11a, a route calculation unit 11b, a control planning unit 11c,
It is composed of a vehicle position detecting section 11d and a memory 11e. The electronic road information reproducing unit 14a includes the electronic road map 1
As 4a, an existing CD-ROM, DVD, or the like is inserted.

Here, the flow of processing from setting of a destination to creation of travel control data to execution of automatic travel control will be described with reference to FIG. GPS receiver 1
The position of the own vehicle is calculated from the navigation message received from the satellite in 2 and the GPS correction data received by the correction data receiver 13, and is notified to the vehicle position detection unit 11d. The vehicle position detecting unit 11d notifies the digitized road information reproducing unit 14 of the position of the own vehicle notified from the GPS receiver 12,
The digitized road information reproducing unit 14 reproduces a part of the digitized road information corresponding to the notified position of the vehicle from the CD-ROM, and transfers it to the vehicle position detecting unit 11d. The vehicle position detection unit 11d reads the reproduced and transferred electronic road information,
The position of the vehicle on the road map is determined by collating with the position of the vehicle notified from the GPS receiver 12 (S in FIG. 9).
1).

The digitized road information reproduced from the CD-ROM includes a variety of information, such as display information for screen display, guidance information for navigation, and control information for automatic driving. It is included. The display road map included in the digitized road information is displayed /
The data is transferred to the output unit 18 and displayed on a display device such as a liquid crystal display panel, and is also used as data for calculation in the calculation unit 11.

When the driver receives the destination selected from the destination data from the key input unit 17 from the key input unit 17 prior to the start of the automatic driving (S2 in FIG. 9), the route calculation unit 11b calculates the destination from the current position of the vehicle. The optimum travel route up to this point is searched based on a known and appropriate method such as the Dijkstra method, and is displayed on the display / output unit 18 on a screen. The start point of the travel control here uses the target closest to the current position as the travel control start point, and uses the start position information corresponding to the target. If the driver agrees with the driving route displayed on the screen as it is or by partially modifying the key, this is set as the optimum driving route (FIG. 9).
S3).

Here, when the planned route is set by the route calculation unit 11b, the control planning unit 11c controls the planned route before each node existing on the planned traveling route and needing to change the control speed. A vehicle speed plan is created so as to change appropriately, and this vehicle speed control plan is stored in the memory 11e (S4 in FIG. 9).

The vehicle speed control unit 11a detects various data indicating the traveling state of the host vehicle input from various sensors such as a vehicle speed sensor 15a and a steering sensor 15n, and detects the data according to the vehicle speed control plan stored in the memory 11e. Based on
Various control data for controlling the traveling state is created by performing arithmetic processing in consideration of the position of the vehicle detected by the GPS receiver and the reproduced map data (S5 in FIG. 9). The vehicle speed control unit 11a performs automatic control of the vehicle speed and the steering by instructing these control data to various actuators including the throttle valve 16a and the steering actuator 16m. At this time, the vehicle speed control unit 11a calculates the inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle detected by the radar device 19 including a millimeter wave band FM radar device attached to the front of the vehicle.
The speed of the own vehicle is controlled so as to maintain a safe inter-vehicle distance determined according to the running speed of the own vehicle.

As a specific example of the automatic traveling control of the present invention, a case where a destination or a departure point is set and input as an interchange A during traveling will be described. FIG.
The start point and the end point of the traveling control for the interchange A on the expressway stored in the electronic road information 14a are illustrated. As shown in FIG. 4, prior to automatic driving, the interchange A is input as a desired destination or departure place by the key input 17 and the display / output unit 18. On the expressway before the interchange A in FIG. 2 stored in the electronic road information 14a, the end points e1 and e2 of the automatic driving control and the starting point s of the automatic driving control s
1 and s2 are stored in advance in the electronic road information 14a. In addition, general roads (national roads) that cross this highway
Before the above interchange A, the end points e3 and e4 of the automatic driving control and the starting points s3 and s of the automatic driving control are also set.
4 are stored in advance.

As the data of the end point and the start point of the interchange A, as shown in FIG.
Coordinate data of four end points e1 to e4 and coordinate data of four start points s1 to s4 are registered. The coordinates of the end point and the start point on each road are set at different positions for the departure and start points in consideration of the shape of the interchange as illustrated in FIG. In such a case, it can be shared in either one of the positions.

The control planning unit 11c selects, for each node or interchange existing on the set planned traveling route, only necessary ones from the stored end points for the interchange A in light of the planned traveling route. And activate it. For example, in the example of FIG.
The automatic traveling control when traveling from the left to the right on the highway of the interchange A is enabled with the point e1 as the end point of the automatic traveling. In this case, vehicle speed control is planned as shown in FIG.
The control ends at the end point e1. Returning to FIG. 2B, if the vehicle enters the interchange A from below the interchange A while traveling on a general road,
The end point e3 is selected. Similarly, when it is desired to enter the interchange A from the opposite direction, that is, the general road on the upper side of FIG. 1B, the end point e4 is selected.

When making a route plan to a destination using this interchange as an automatic control start point, for example, the approach point for the A interchange shown in FIG.
In (a), when the traveling vehicle enters the interchange upward from the lower national highway and travels in the left direction (when passing through the tollgate and going on the highway to the left), s1 is set. Selected as starting point. When traveling in the right direction, s2 is set as a start point. On the other hand, in the case of starting the automatic driving on the general road after getting off the highway, s3 or s4 is selected as the starting point.

Next, an example of a case on a general road will be described. FIG. 6 illustrates five entry points e1 to e5 for automatic traveling control and five entry points s1 to s5 for automatic traveling control on five different roads of a general road. As shown in FIG. 6, the entry points e1 to e1 are located at the optimum points for starting and ending the control from the five roads on the five lanes before the five roads.
5 and the entry points s1 to s5 are set and stored in the digitized road information 14a.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of control information set along the planned traveling route. For each node existing on the planned traveling route indicated by the solid line and the arrow indicating the supplementary traveling direction, the entry point e and the exit point s of the automatic traveling control are selected, and the two-dimensional space of each point is selected. Are stored in the memory 11 in the calculation unit 11 as travel control data.
e. That is, for the node H, the entry point en and the exit point sh of the automatic cruise control are selected, a control plan is made using these, and stored in the memory 11e.

However, a plurality of nodes that are close to each other within a predetermined distance are merged and treated as one node in order to reduce the control load due to frequent repetition of entry and exit of automatic cruise control. . That is, FIG.
As for the two nodes J and K approaching to some extent, the entry point sj for the node J and the entry point ek for the intersection K are omitted, and the entry point ej for the node J and the entry point sk for the intersection K are omitted. Are created and stored in the memory 11e. FIG. 5 (b)
Shows an example of a vehicle speed control plan at each node (for example, at an intersection).

The control parameters such as the distances from the nodes of the entry points e and the exit points s and the distances of a plurality of nodes to be merged can be fixed in the system. It can be changed by key input from.

Next, an embodiment including a general road and a highway will be described. FIG. 8 shows that, when a planned traveling route including an expressway is set in the middle of a general road, an advance point s of the automatic driving control is set at a point passing through the α interchange, and the automatic driving control is performed before the β interchange. An example is shown in which an entry point e is set and an optimum route is set using only the section of the expressway as the automatic travel control section. In the case of FIG. 8, since the departure point and the destination are both near the interchange, the section in which the automatic driving is performed is set to be performed only on the expressway.

If such an optimum route is set, FIG.
The node data corresponding to the route of the automatic driving as shown at 0, the entry point and the exit point at the interchange of the expressway are selected, and a control plan of the vehicle speed is created based on these data.

As described above, the starting point and the ending point for the destination included in the digitized map data, and the entry points of the automatic driving control on all conceivable roads for each node (intersection, curve, etc.) The configuration in which the entry point and the entry point are stored in advance and the one having the entry point and the entry point are selectively activated in accordance with the planned travel route planned is exemplified. Also,
For the point data on the map, the control start and end positions can be finely adjusted according to the driver's preference.

[0027]

As described above in detail, in the automatic driving system for a vehicle according to the present invention, since the information for driving control is stored in the electronic road information, the automatic driving control can be performed in a more real driving environment. It is possible to provide an automatic cruise control system suitable for a driver of a vehicle. More specifically, when an interchange is set as the destination of the automatic driving control, the automatic driving control ends at an optimal position with the feel of a drag bar near the exit of the highway, and shifts to a smooth manual driving. , Will be able to enter the interchange.

When automatic driving control is performed on a general road, information on optimal driving control at intersections and curves at intersections and curves is stored in the electronic road map in association with the nodes. Therefore, optimal automatic driving can be realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of an operation of an automatic traveling control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram exemplifying a configuration of control data including an entry point and an exit point for an interchange related to automatic cruise control created in the automatic cruise control system of the embodiment and stored in a data memory.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of entry point data and exit point data in the interchange A.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a case where a key input is made using a highway interchange as a target point.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram of a vehicle speed plan at an end point on an expressway and a node of an ordinary road (an approach point stored near an intersection).

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram of entry and exit data at a node (five difference roads) on a general road.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a planned traveling route of the operation of the automatic traveling control system of the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a specific example of an automatic driving control section when a general road and an expressway are included in many cases.

FIG. 9 is a control flow of the automatic traveling control system of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram showing the determination of a vehicle speed control plan when the optimum traveling route shown in FIG. 8 is planned.

[Explanation of symbols]

 e1 to e4 Entry points for automatic cruise control s1 to s4 Entry points for automatic cruise control H, I, J, K Nodes on the planned travel route eh, ei, ej Entry points for automatic cruise control sh, si, sj Automatic cruise control Entry point 10 Automatic cruise control system 11 Operation section 12 GPS receiver 13 Electronic map reproduction section

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI G08G 1/0969 G08G 1/0969 1/16 1/16 E

Claims (4)

[Claims] An electronic information reproducing means for reproducing electronic road information, a position detecting means for detecting a position of a host vehicle, and a host vehicle to a destination point designated on the basis of the reproduced electronic road information. An automatic travel control system comprising: scheduled travel route setting means for setting the planned travel route; and automatic travel control means for controlling automatic travel along the set planned travel route. An automatic vehicle having a control point setting means for setting, for each node, an entry point for entering the automatic driving control and an entry point for entering the automatic driving control. Travel control system. 2. An electronic information reproducing means for reproducing electronic road information, a position detecting means for detecting a position of the own vehicle, and a host vehicle to a destination designated on the basis of the reproduced electronic road information. An automatic traveling control system that includes an automatic traveling control unit that controls automatic traveling along the preset scheduled traveling route, the automatic traveling control system including: An automatic travel control system for a vehicle, wherein end point data or start point data of travel control is stored in advance corresponding to the destination or departure point of the automatic travel corresponding to each node. 3. An electronic road map, wherein an entry point for entering automatic driving control and an entry point for entering automatic driving control are stored for each node. 4. An electronic road map, wherein a start point for starting automatic driving control and an end point for ending said automatic driving control are stored for each node.