KR102267262B1 - Active control method and apparatus for recognition of traffic lights of autonomous vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

The active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises the steps of determining whether or not the vehicle is close to the intersection by a preset distance based on vehicle location information. Movement history of a vehicle in front stopped at the intersection It may include determining and stopping the vehicle by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance based on the movement history of the front vehicle.

Description

Active control method and apparatus for recognition of traffic lights of autonomous vehicles

The present invention relates to an active control method and apparatus for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous driving vehicle that divides the stopping distance by judging the driving history of the vehicle in front when stopped by a signal at an intersection during autonomous driving.

In the prior art autonomous vehicle, when a large object that interferes with traffic light recognition exists in front of the vehicle, it actively moves to sense the blocked part to secure a sensing area, and to detect an area that is not well detected by a large object It is possible to actively move the position of the vehicle or the position of the sensor.

However, if the number of autonomous vehicles increases, there will be no vehicles stopping behind large vehicles, which may impede the flow of traffic. Accordingly, there is a problem in that it is difficult to control the traffic light when the vehicle is stopped at the intersection because the traffic light is obscured by the vehicle ahead.

An object of the present invention is to provide an active control method and apparatus for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle.

More specifically, the present invention provides an active control method and apparatus for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle that determines whether the vehicle in front has a previous driving history, separates the control method, and restrains lane change to ensure smooth vehicle flow. would like to provide

The problems of the present invention are not limited to the problems mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

An active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention includes the steps of determining whether the vehicle is close to an intersection by a preset distance based on vehicle location information, and movement of a vehicle in front stopped at the intersection determining a history; The method may include stopping the vehicle by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance based on the movement history of the front vehicle.

According to an embodiment, the active control method for recognizing traffic lights of an autonomous vehicle may further include determining information on traffic lights of the intersection.

According to an embodiment, the determining of the movement history of the front vehicle may determine the presence or absence of the movement history based on sensor tracking information of the front vehicle.

The method may further include stopping by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance so that a lane change is possible when there is a movement history of the front vehicle.

According to an embodiment, the method may further include determining whether there are two or more drivable lanes on the currently driven road.

According to an embodiment, determining whether an emergency light of the vehicle in front is turned on; and determining whether the vehicle in the next lane travels straight ahead.

According to an embodiment, when the emergency light of the vehicle in front is turned on or the vehicle in the next lane travels straight ahead, the method may further include changing a lane and driving.

According to an embodiment, when there is no movement history of the vehicle, the method may further include stopping by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance so that a traffic light of the intersection is recognizable.

According to an embodiment, when the vehicle in front does not move after the signal of the intersection signal is changed, the method may further include changing a lane and driving.

An active control apparatus for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a sensor unit for detecting a driving environment of the vehicle; a driving environment recognition unit that determines whether the vehicle is close to the intersection by a preset distance based on the vehicle location information; a driving condition determination unit for determining a movement history of a vehicle in front that is stopped at the intersection; a control unit controlling the vehicle to stop by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance based on the movement history of the vehicle ahead; and a driving unit for controlling longitudinal and lateral movements of the vehicle by the control unit.

According to an embodiment, the driving environment recognition unit may determine information on traffic lights of the intersection.

According to an embodiment, the driving condition determination unit may determine whether a movement history exists, based on sensor tracking information of the vehicle in front.

According to an embodiment, when there is a movement history of the vehicle in front, the driving condition determination unit may determine to stop by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance so that a lane change is possible.

According to an embodiment, the driving condition determination unit may determine whether there are two or more drivable lanes on a currently driving road.

According to an embodiment, the driving condition determining unit may determine whether the emergency light of the vehicle in front is turned on, and may determine whether a vehicle in a next lane is traveling straight ahead.

According to an embodiment, the driving condition determining unit may further include changing a lane and driving when the emergency light of the front vehicle is turned on or the vehicle in the next lane is traveling straight ahead.

According to an embodiment, when there is no movement history of the vehicle, the driving condition determination unit may stop the vehicle by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance so that a traffic light of the intersection can be recognized.

According to an embodiment, the driving condition determining unit is an active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous driving vehicle that changes lanes when the vehicle in front does not move after the signal of the intersection signal is changed.

Aspects of the present invention are only some of the preferred embodiments of the present invention, and various embodiments in which the technical features of the present invention are reflected are detailed descriptions of the present invention that will be described below by those of ordinary skill in the art can be derived and understood based on

The effects of the active control method and apparatus for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to the present invention will be described as follows.

First, while autonomous driving is driving, there is an advantage that an emergency response can be made to a vehicle that suddenly stops driving in front.

Second, the autonomous vehicle has the advantage of preventing the need for reversing on public roads in advance.

The effects obtainable in the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and other effects not mentioned may be clearly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs from the following description. will be.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings are provided to help understanding of the present invention, and provide embodiments of the present invention together with a detailed description. However, the technical features of the present invention are not limited to specific drawings, and features disclosed in each drawing may be combined with each other to form a new embodiment.
1 is a diagram illustrating a block diagram of an active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a view illustrating an exterior of a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a diagram illustrating a first inter-vehicle distance control situation when there is a movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a block diagram illustrating a first inter-vehicle distance control method when there is a movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a diagram illustrating a second inter-vehicle distance control situation when there is no movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a block diagram illustrating a second inter-vehicle distance control method when there is no movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a flowchart illustrating an active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, an apparatus and various methods to which embodiments of the present invention are applied will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings. The suffixes "module" and "part" for the components used in the following description are given or mixed in consideration of only the ease of writing the specification, and do not have a meaning or role distinct from each other by themselves.

In the description of the embodiment, in the case where it is described as being disposed in "above (above) or below (below)", "before (front) or after (rear)" of each component, "(below)" and "before (front) or after (behind)" include both components in which two components are in direct contact with each other or in which one or more other components are disposed between the two components.

In addition, in describing the components of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), etc. may be used. These terms are only for distinguishing the components from other components, and the essence, order, or order of the components are not limited by the terms. When it is described that a component is “connected”, “coupled” or “connected” to another component, the component may be directly connected or connected to the other component, but another component is between each component. It should be understood that elements may be “connected,” “coupled,” or “connected.”

In addition, terms such as "comprises", "comprises" or "have" described above mean that the corresponding component may be embedded, unless otherwise stated, so that other components are excluded. Rather, it should be construed as being able to further include other components. All terms, including technical and scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs, unless otherwise defined. Terms commonly used, such as those defined in the dictionary, should be interpreted as being consistent with the meaning in the context of the related art, and are not interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless explicitly defined in the present invention.

1 is a diagram illustrating a block diagram of an active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a view showing an exterior of a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

1 and 2 , the active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle includes a sensor unit 110 , a location determination unit 120 , a memory unit 130 , a driving environment recognition unit 140 , and a driving condition determination unit. It may include a unit 150 , a control unit 160 , and a driving unit 170 .

The sensor unit 110 may include a GPS 111 , a front camera 112 , a laser scanner 113 , a short-range radar 114 , a long-range radar 115 , and a V2X module 116 .

The GPS 111 is a module for obtaining the location of the vehicle 100 and may obtain the location of the vehicle 100 using a signal transmitted from a GPS satellite. The GPS 111 may be disposed on the roof of the vehicle 100 .

The front camera 112 may detect an object from an image acquired by the front camera 112 that captures an image in front of the vehicle. The object may include a vehicle in front 200 and a traffic light 10 . The front camera 112 may be a monocular camera or a stereo camera. The front camera 112 may be disposed on the vehicle windshield.

The laser scanner 113 emits a laser pulse signal and receives a reflected pulse signal reflected by an object. The laser scanner 113 may measure the distance to the object based on the time when the laser pulse signal is emitted and the reflected pulse signal is received. In addition, the relative speed with the object may be measured based on the change in the distance over time.

The laser scanner 113 may be disposed at an appropriate location outside the vehicle 100 to detect an object located in the front, rear, or side of the vehicle 100 . The laser scanner 113 may be installed at the lower end of the vehicle front grill and on the side of the vehicle.

The short-range radar 114 and the long-range radar 115 may detect an object based on the transmitted electromagnetic wave, and detect a distance and a relative speed with respect to the detected object.

The short-range radar 114 and the long-range radar 115 may transmit the acquired object information to the driving environment recognition unit 140 . Here, the object information may include distance information from the object.

The short-range radar 114 and the long-range radar 115 may be disposed at appropriate locations outside the vehicle to detect objects located in front, rear, or side of the vehicle. The short-range radar 114 may be disposed on the side of the vehicle, and the long-range radar 115 may be disposed on the front grill of the vehicle.

The V2X module 116 is a module for performing wireless communication with a server or other vehicle. The V2X module 116 includes a module capable of implementing a vehicle-to-vehicle communication (Vehicle-to-vehicle) or vehicle-to-infrastructure communication (Vehicle-to-Infra) protocol.

The location determination unit 120 receives location information from the GPS 111 , receives map information from the memory unit 130 , and receives a front image from the front camera 112 , and the current location of the vehicle can be judged

The memory unit 130 may store map information related to autonomous driving of the vehicle.

The driving environment recognition unit 140 may determine whether the vehicle is close to the intersection based on the current location of the vehicle. Also, the driving environment recognition unit 140 may determine a driving lane in which the vehicle is currently traveling based on the current location of the vehicle.

The driving environment recognition unit 140 may determine the object recognized in front of the vehicle as a static object and a dynamic object based on the object information.

The driving environment recognition unit 140 may determine the state of the traffic light at the intersection based on the image in front of the vehicle. The traffic light state may include red, orange, and green states of the traffic light 10 .

The driving environment recognition unit 140 may determine whether the front vehicle 200 blocks the traffic light 10 based on the front image of the vehicle.

The driving condition determination unit 150 may determine the driving condition. For example, it may be determined whether there is a movement history of the front vehicle 200 . The movement history may be sensor tracking information of the front vehicle 200 .

For example, it may be determined whether there are two or more drivable lanes on a road on which the vehicle 100 currently travels.

The driving condition determination unit 150 may determine a driving strategy. For example, when there are two or more drivable lanes, the vehicle may be stopped after maintaining an inter-vehicle distance to enable lane change.

For example, when there are not two or more drivable lanes or there is no movement history of the vehicle in front of the vehicle 200 , the vehicle may be stopped after maintaining a recognizable inter-vehicle distance by the traffic light 10 .

The driving condition determination unit 150 may change the driving route. For example, when the emergency light of the vehicle in front 200 is turned on or the vehicle in the next lane is traveling straight ahead, the vehicle may be driven in a lane change.

For example, when the emergency light of the front vehicle 200 is off or the vehicle in the next lane does not drive straight, the vehicle may continue to drive without changing the lane.

For example, when the vehicle ahead 200 does not start after the signal of the traffic light 10 is changed to green, the vehicle 100 may drive by changing the driving lane.

For example, when the front vehicle 200 starts after the signal of the traffic light 10 is changed to green. The vehicle 100 may continue to drive without changing a lane.

The controller 160 may control the overall operation of each unit in the vehicle 100 . The control unit 160 may be referred to as an Electronic Control Unit (ECU). The controller 160 may perform system management, vehicle control, and actuator control of the vehicle 100 .

The driving unit 170 may control operations of various devices in the vehicle. The driving unit 170 may include an MDPS 171 and an ESC 172 .

The MDPS (Motor Driven Power Steering, 171) may be a steering device in which a signal sensed through a sensor connected to a steering wheel, ie, a steering wheel, operates a motor in consideration of the speed of the vehicle.

ESC (Electronic Stability Control, 172) may be a device that maintains a stable vehicle posture in an emergency by controlling not only the ABS function but also engine torque.

The controller 160 may control the MDPS 171 and the ESC 172 to control longitudinal and lateral movements of the vehicle 100 .

3 is a diagram illustrating a first inter-vehicle distance control situation when there is a movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3 , when the vehicle 100 arrives at a position 310 approaching the intersection, when the traffic light 10 of the intersection is orange or red, the driving condition determination unit 150 determines the vehicle ahead 200 can determine the movement history of

When there is a movement history of the front vehicle 200, the driving condition determination unit 150 determines the stopping distance ( 320) can be controlled. In this case, the first inter-vehicle distance 340 may be maintained with the front vehicle 200 .

The controller 160 may control the driving unit 170 of the vehicle based on the first inter-vehicle distance 340 . The first inter-vehicle distance 340 has a high probability that the vehicle in front 200 will start again when the traffic light 10 of the intersection is changed to the departure signal, so even if the information on the traffic light 10 of the intersection is not recognized, the vehicle in front It may be a distance close to (200).

4 is a block diagram illustrating a first inter-vehicle distance control method when there is a movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4 , it is determined whether there is a previous driving history of the front vehicle 200 , and when the moving history exists, the first inter-vehicle distance control 410 may be performed.

The first inter-vehicle distance control 410 may be a proportional integral derivative (PID) control. The PID control may be a control in which a proportional control, a proportional-integral control, and a proportional-derivative control are combined.

Accordingly, the first inter-vehicle distance control 410 receives the vehicle speed 401, the relative speed 402, the relative acceleration 403, and the driver setting 404 as inputs, and the engine torque of the vehicle 100 by PID control. 421 and the brake torque 422 can be controlled. The driver setting 404 may include an inter-vehicle distance and responsiveness.

5 is a diagram illustrating a second inter-vehicle distance control situation when there is no movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5 , when the vehicle 100 reaches a position 510 approaching the intersection, when the traffic light 10 of the intersection is orange or red, the driving condition determination unit 150 determines the vehicle ahead 200 can determine the movement history of

When there is no movement history of the front vehicle 200 , the driving condition determination unit 150 determines a location 530 where the vehicle 100 can sense traffic light information based on the location of the front vehicle. It is possible to control the stopping distance 520 to move to . In this case, the second inter-vehicle distance 540 may be maintained with the front vehicle 200 .

The controller 160 may control the driving unit 170 of the vehicle based on the second inter-vehicle distance 540 . The second inter-vehicle distance 540 may be a distance in which traffic light information of the intersection is detected by the front camera 120 of the vehicle and signal recognition is not obstructed by the vehicle in front 200 .

6 is a block diagram illustrating a second inter-vehicle distance control method when there is no movement history according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6 , it is determined whether there is a previous driving history of the front vehicle 200 , and when the moving history does not exist, a second inter-vehicle distance control 412 may be performed.

The second inter-vehicle distance control 412 may be a PID control. The PID control may be a control in which a proportional control, a proportional integral control, and a proportional differential control are combined.

Accordingly, the second inter-vehicle distance control 412 receives the vehicle speed 401, the relative speed 402, the relative acceleration 403, the driver setting 404, and the traffic light recognition distance 405 as inputs, and performs PID control. The engine torque 421 and the brake torque 422 of the vehicle 100 may be controlled. The traffic light recognition distance may be a distance at which the camera of the vehicle 100 can recognize the signal of the traffic light because the traffic light of the intersection is not covered by the vehicle in front.

Accordingly, when the second inter-vehicle distance control 412 including traffic light recognition as an input does not have a moving history of the front vehicle 200, the vehicle detects the traffic light of the intersection with the front camera 120 of the vehicle. The distance between vehicles can be controlled so that the vehicle stops.

7 is a flowchart illustrating an active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7 , the driving environment recognition unit 140 receives the location information of the vehicle 100 received from the location determination unit 120 , and determines whether the vehicle 100 approaches the intersection based on the location information. can be (S110).

When the vehicle 100 approaches the intersection, the driving environment recognition unit 140 may determine the traffic light information to determine whether the traffic light information is orange or red (S120). If the vehicle 100 is not close to the intersection, it may continue to drive.

When the traffic light information is orange or red and the vehicle in front 200 is present, the driving condition determination unit 150 may determine whether there is a movement history of the vehicle in front (S130).

When there is a movement history of the vehicle in front 200 , the driving condition determination unit 150 may determine whether there are two or more driving lanes ( S140 ).

When there are two or more drivable lanes, the driving condition determination unit 150 may stop the vehicle after maintaining a lane-changeable inter-vehicle distance (S150). In this case, if there is a movement history of the front vehicle 200 , the vehicle may be stopped by maintaining the inter-vehicle distance with the front vehicle 200 based on the first inter-vehicle distance control.

After the vehicle is stopped, the driving situation recognition unit may determine the emergency light situation of the front vehicle 200, and may determine whether the vehicle is driving straight ahead in the next lane other than the lane in which the vehicle 100 is currently traveling. Accordingly, the driving condition determination unit 150 may determine that the emergency light of the vehicle in front 200 is turned on or that the vehicle in the next lane is driving straight ahead (S160).

The driving condition determination unit 150 may change the driving route to change the lane when the emergency light of the front vehicle 200 is turned on or the vehicle in the next lane is driving straight ahead (S161).

When the emergency light of the front vehicle 200 is turned on or the vehicle in the next lane does not drive straight, the driving condition determination unit 150 may maintain the current lane and continue driving without changing the lane ( S163 ).

In addition, when the driving condition determination unit 150 does not have a movement history of the front vehicle 200 or there are not two or more drivable lanes, the driving condition determination unit 150 determines a vehicle ahead capable of recognizing a traffic light ( 200), the vehicle may be stopped by maintaining the inter-vehicle distance (S170).

When the traffic light information is changed to green after the vehicle is stopped, the driving condition determination unit 150 may determine whether the vehicle ahead 200 starts ( S180 ).

When the vehicle ahead 200 starts, the driving condition determination unit 150 may continue to drive while maintaining the current lane without changing the lane (S181).

When the front vehicle 200 does not start, the driving route may be changed to change the driving lane to another drivable lane (S183).

The method according to the above-described embodiment may be produced as a program to be executed by a computer and stored in a computer-readable recording medium. Examples of the computer-readable recording medium include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic Tape, floppy disk, optical input data storage system, etc. The computer-readable recording medium is distributed in a network-connected computer system, so that the computer-readable code can be stored and executed in a distributed manner. In addition, functional programs, codes, and code segments for implementing the above-described method can be easily inferred by programmers in the technical field to which the embodiment belongs.

110: sensor unit
120: position determination unit
130: memory unit
140: driving environment recognition unit
150: driving condition determination unit
160: control unit
170: driving unit

Claims (19)

determining whether the vehicle is close to the intersection by a preset distance based on the vehicle location information;
determining a movement history of a vehicle in front that is stopped at the intersection; and
and stopping the vehicle by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance based on the movement history of the vehicle ahead. The method of claim 1,
The active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle further comprising the step of determining information on the traffic light of the intersection. The method of claim 1,
The step of determining the movement history of the vehicle in front includes:
An active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous driving vehicle for determining the presence or absence of a movement history based on sensor tracking information of the vehicle in front. 4. The method of claim 3,
The active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle further comprising the step of stopping by maintaining a first inter-vehicle distance so that a lane change is possible when there is a movement history of the vehicle in front. 5. The method of claim 4,
An active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle, further comprising determining whether there are two or more drivable lanes on a currently driven road. 6. The method of claim 5,
determining whether the emergency lights of the vehicle in front are turned on; and
An active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle, further comprising the step of determining whether a vehicle in the next lane is traveling straight ahead. 7. The method of claim 6,
The active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous driving vehicle, further comprising the step of changing the lane and driving when the emergency light of the front vehicle is turned on or the vehicle in the next lane is traveling straight ahead. 4. The method of claim 3,
If there is no movement history of the vehicle,
The active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle further comprising the step of stopping by maintaining a second inter-vehicle distance so that the traffic light of the intersection can be recognized. 9. The method of claim 8,
The active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle, further comprising the step of changing a lane and driving when the vehicle in front does not move after the signal change of the traffic light at the intersection. A computer-readable recording medium in which a program for realizing an active control method for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is recorded. a sensor unit for sensing the driving environment of the vehicle;
a location determination unit for determining the location of the vehicle;
a driving environment recognition unit that determines whether the vehicle is close to the intersection by a preset distance based on the vehicle location information;
a driving condition determination unit for determining a movement history of a vehicle in front that is stopped at the intersection;
a control unit controlling the vehicle to stop by maintaining an inter-vehicle distance based on the movement history of the vehicle ahead; and
An active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle, comprising a driving unit for controlling longitudinal and lateral movement of the vehicle by the control unit. 12. The method of claim 11,
The driving environment recognition unit
An active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle that determines the traffic light information of the intersection. 12. The method of claim 11,
The driving condition determination unit
An active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle that determines whether there is a movement history based on the sensor tracking information of the vehicle in front. 14. The method of claim 13,
The driving condition determination unit
An active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle that determines to stop by maintaining a first inter-vehicle distance so that a lane change is possible when there is a movement history of the vehicle in front. 15. The method of claim 14,
The driving condition determination unit
An active control device for recognizing traffic lights of autonomous vehicles that determines whether there are two or more drivable lanes on the currently driving road. 16. The method of claim 15,
The driving condition determination unit
An active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle that can determine whether the emergency lights of the front vehicle are turned on, and determine whether a vehicle in the next lane is traveling straight ahead. 17. The method of claim 16,
The driving condition determination unit
The active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous driving vehicle further comprising the step of changing the lane and driving when the emergency light of the front vehicle is turned on or the vehicle in the next lane is traveling straight ahead. 14. The method of claim 13,
The driving condition determination unit
If there is no movement history of the vehicle,
An active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle that stops by maintaining a second inter-vehicle distance so that the traffic light of the intersection can be recognized. 19. The method of claim 18,
The driving condition determination unit
An active control device for recognizing a traffic light of an autonomous vehicle that changes lanes when the vehicle in front does not move after the signal change of the intersection signal light.

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