KR20210086783A - Lateral Control Mode Decision Method for Truck Platooning - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a lateral control mode determination method for truck platooning. More specifically, the present invention relates to a control method for laterally controlling an autonomous vehicle group which performs platooning such as large trucks in accordance with a control mode. In accordance with the present invention, the lateral control mode determination method for truck platooning comprises: a step of, when a following vehicle joins a platooning line, receiving preceding vehicle's driving information through a platooning control unit (PCU) and a platooning lateral control system (PLCS) mounted on the following vehicle, and controlling the steering of the following vehicle in a following mode; a step of monitoring the control status of the following vehicle in the PLCS, and detecting a plurality of events; and a step of, when the plurality of events occur, performing one or more of the release of the following mode, the escape from the line, and the switch of control to the driver. In accordance with the present invention, the lateral control mode determination method for truck platooning is able to present an effective lateral control mode determination plan in accordance with the occurrence of an event during platooning.

Description

The Lateral Control Mode Decision Method for Truck Platooning

The present invention relates to a method for determining a platooning lateral control operation mode for trucks, and more particularly to a control method for laterally controlling a group of autonomous vehicles, such as heavy trucks, in platooning according to the operation mode.

Autonomous vehicle technology has been developed to drive only in specific spaces such as parking lots, residences, factories, and companies. However, recently, autonomous driving technology has been applied to public roads as well. In general, autonomous vehicle technology maintains a close distance to the vehicle in front through sensors attached to the front and rear of the vehicle. In addition, it is being developed by focusing on the technology capable of unmanned driving of a single vehicle, such as recognizing the road and driving so as not to deviate from the road, recognizing obstacles, etc.

In this regard, the conventional Korean Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-2019-0096864 (control method of platooning in an autonomous driving system) is a leader vehicle and a follower vehicle that receives a control signal from a communicator of the leader vehicle and drives in a group. A method for controlling platoon driving, the method comprising: monitoring and quantifying a communication state of the platoon driving; checking a communication blind spot between the leader vehicle and the following vehicle when the digitized communication state is less than a preset threshold; when the following vehicle is located in the communication blind spot, checking whether a relative position change of the following vehicle is possible within the group driving; and changing the relative position of the following vehicle within the platoon driving when the relative position of the following vehicle can be changed.

However, the prior art has a problem in that it cannot cope with various other events because it determines only a blind spot that may occur when platooning is performed.

Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2019-0096864

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention supports the smooth transition of control rights when joining/leaving platooning, maintaining, cutting-in other vehicles, and following the preceding vehicle or maintaining the lane by situation according to the situation in the lane change situation, following the preceding vehicle and An object of the present invention is to provide a method for determining a lateral control operation mode for determining a lane keeping simultaneous execution mode and transferring control to a driver when lateral control is impossible.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a Platooning Control Unit (PCU) and a Platooning Lateral Control (PLCS) mounted on the following vehicle when the following vehicle joins the platooning rank. System) receiving driving information of the preceding vehicle and controlling the steering of the following vehicle in a following mode; detecting a plurality of events by monitoring an operating state of the following vehicle in the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS); and performing at least one of releasing the following mode, leaving the queue, or transferring control to a driver when the plurality of events occur. .

According to an embodiment, the controlling of the steering of the following vehicle in the following mode may include checking a vehicle to vehicle (V2V) communication state of the following vehicle with the preceding vehicle or a state of a lane detection sensor. .

According to embodiments, when the communication state or the lane detection sensor state is properly operated, the method may include generating a route for performing a function of following the preceding vehicle and maintaining a lane.

According to an embodiment, the process of monitoring the operating state of the following vehicle may include determining whether a Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) of the following vehicle operates normally.

According to an embodiment, the plurality of events may include a decrease in reliability of lane information of the preceding vehicle or the following vehicle, reception of a lane change request, occurrence of an emergency braking situation, and a platooning lateral control system (PLCS) from the platooning lateral control system (PLCS). It may be at least one of receiving a stop signal of , and occurrence of a cut-in of another vehicle.

Reconfirming the driving information of the preceding vehicle when receiving a request for a decrease in reliability of the lane information or a lane change according to an embodiment; and confirming whether the reliability is restored or a lane change is completed.

In some embodiments, when the emergency braking situation occurs, the method may include controlling the steering until the following vehicle stops.

According to an embodiment, when a stop signal is received from the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS), the process of maintaining the existing lane for a predetermined time may be included.

According to an embodiment, the process of maintaining an existing lane for a predetermined time when a cut-in of the other vehicle occurs; and determining whether the other vehicle departs for the predetermined time period.

According to an embodiment, the method may include maintaining the existing steering as it is when the other vehicle departs, and maintaining the existing lane for a predetermined time when the other vehicle does not depart.

According to the present invention having the configuration as described above, there is an advantage in that it is possible to present an effective lateral control mode determination method according to the occurrence of an event during platooning.

1 shows a control process of a Platooning Control Unit (PCU) and a Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) of the present invention.
2 is a flowchart of a method for determining an operation mode of a freight vehicle platooning lateral control operation according to the present invention.

Terms used in this specification will be briefly described, and the present invention will be described in detail.

The terms used in the present invention have been selected as currently widely used general terms as possible while considering the functions in the present invention, but these may vary depending on the intention or precedent of a person skilled in the art, the emergence of new technology, and the like. In addition, in a specific case, there is a term arbitrarily selected by the applicant, and in this case, the meaning will be described in detail in the description of the corresponding invention. Therefore, the term used in the present invention should be defined based on the meaning of the term and the overall content of the present invention, rather than the name of a simple term.

When a part "includes" a certain element throughout the specification, this means that other elements may be further included, rather than excluding other elements, unless otherwise stated. In addition, terms such as "...unit" and "module" described in the specification mean a unit that processes at least one function or operation, which may be implemented as hardware or software, or a combination of hardware and software. . Also, throughout the specification, when a part is "connected" with another part, this includes not only the case of being "directly connected" but also the case of being connected "with another configuration in between".

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those of ordinary skill in the art can easily carry out the present invention. However, the present invention may be embodied in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. And in order to clearly explain the present invention in the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted, and similar reference numerals are attached to similar parts throughout the specification.

1 shows a control process of a Platooning Control Unit (PCU) and a Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , each vehicle, such as a preceding vehicle or a following vehicle, includes a Platooning Control Unit (PCU) and a Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS). By joining the ranks of platooning, the operation of the control unit and controller can be activated.

When the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) is activated, the following vehicle checks the V2V communication status and sensor operation status for controller operation. can

In addition, if both the V2V communication state and the sensor operation state are operating normally, the preceding vehicle following and lane keeping functions are simultaneously performed, and a path is created for execution and a ready signal is transmitted to the PCU (PLCS stand-by).

In this case, upon receiving a controller operation signal from a Platooning Control Unit (PCU), steering control through a Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) may be started (PLCS active).

2 is a flowchart of a method for determining an operation mode of a freight vehicle platooning lateral control operation according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2 , the present invention includes controlling the steering of the following vehicle in the following mode ( S10 ), detecting a plurality of events ( S20 ), and responding to the plurality of events ( S30 ).

The step (S10) of controlling the steering of the following vehicle in the following mode may include: when the following vehicle joins the platooning rank, the platooning control unit (PCU) mounted on the following vehicle and the platooning control unit (PCU) and the platooning lateral direction The driving information of the preceding vehicle may be received and proceeded through a controller (PLCS: Platooning Lateral Control System).

The step of controlling the steering of the following vehicle in the following mode (S10) may include checking a vehicle to vehicle (V2V) communication state of the following vehicle with the preceding vehicle or a state of a lane detection sensor.

In general, a vehicle network system may refer to a system for providing a safe driving information service, a location information service, a navigation service, an infotainment service, and the like to a moving vehicle.

Due to the development of the vehicle network system, various communication standards and technologies for providing the above services are being actively developed. For example, the vehicle network system includes vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication or between vehicle and infrastructure (V2V). V2I: Vehicle to Infra) communication method may be used.

In addition, according to an embodiment, when the communication state or the lane detection sensor state is normally operated, the method may include generating a route for performing the function of following the preceding vehicle and maintaining a lane ( S20 ).

When the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) is activated, the following vehicle checks the V2V communication status and sensor operation status for controller operation. After creation, the ready signal can be transmitted to the PCU (PLCS stand-by).

V2V communication can communicate with other autonomous vehicles and can be set to enable data communication with a control server in a preceding or following vehicle, and the communication method may include various types of short-distance and long-distance communication methods.

In addition, a network control system may be provided according to an embodiment of the present invention, and in the case of a vehicle running on the same route over a certain distance between a plurality of autonomous vehicles located within a set distance on the current location, the control server By grouping the group (G) may be configured to be driven.

Upon receiving the controller operation signal from the Platooning Control Unit (PCU), the steering control through the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) can be started (S20) (PLCS active).

Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) can cancel the lane keeping function and perform steering control only in the preceding vehicle following mode when the reliability of lane information decreases or lane change occurs in a normal operation situation.

After that, when the reliability of the lane information is restored or the lane change is completed, the preceding vehicle tracking and lane keeping functions can be simultaneously performed again.

The step of detecting the plurality of events ( S30 ) may be performed by monitoring an operating state of the following vehicle in the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS).

According to an embodiment, the process of monitoring the operating state of the following vehicle may further include a process of determining whether a Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) of the following vehicle operates normally.

The plurality of events may include a decrease in reliability of lane information of the preceding vehicle or the following vehicle, reception of a lane change request, occurrence of an emergency braking situation, reception of a stop signal from the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS), It may be at least any one of cut-in occurrences of other vehicles.

The plurality of events are not limited thereto, and include enforcement events for violations of enforcement such as speeding or lane changes in lane-changing restricted areas, airbag deployment, collision or collision accidents, unexpected situations (eg, animal appearance, falling rocks, appearance of obstacles, Accident events such as sudden braking of nearby vehicles or a traffic accident) may be applicable, and the occurrence situation of these events may be applied according to settings.

The step of responding to the plurality of events is a process of performing at least one of releasing the following mode, leaving the queue, or transferring control to the driver when the plurality of events occur.

reconfirming driving information of the preceding vehicle when the reliability of lane information is reduced or a lane change request is received; and confirming whether the reliability is restored or a lane change is completed.

When an emergency braking situation occurs, the method may include maintaining the steering angle until the following vehicle stops.

When the Platooning Control Unit (PCU) determines the driving situation and transmits a control stop signal to the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS), it shifts the driving mode to the lane keeping mode and waits for a certain period of time After transferring control to the driver, the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) can be stopped.

When an emergency braking situation occurs, the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) function may be stopped when the vehicle stops after maintaining the recent steering angle state.

According to another embodiment, the type of accident may be a vehicle-to-vehicle collision accident or a sudden breakdown of the vehicle, whether the vehicle is in a stationary state, or a driver's sudden convulsions or seizures, drowsiness or drunk driving, making normal and stable driving difficult. It may also include a process of classifying whether the vehicle is in a driving state.

When a stop signal is received from the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS), the process of maintaining the existing lane for a predetermined time may be included.

In addition, according to an embodiment, when a cut-in of the other vehicle occurs, the process of maintaining an existing lane for a predetermined time; and determining whether the other vehicle departs for the predetermined time period.

When another vehicle (OV: Other Vehicle) performs cut-in, the lateral control mode is switched to lane keeping mode, and if the cut-in vehicle departs from the rank within a certain period of time, it performs the function of following the preceding vehicle and maintaining the lane at the same time can do.

In the above process, if the OV does not deviate even after a certain period of time has elapsed, control can be transferred to the driver and the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) function can be stopped.

That is, the method may include maintaining the existing steering as it is when the other vehicle departs, and maintaining the existing lane for a predetermined time when the other vehicle does not depart.

The present invention may be applied to a heavy truck according to an embodiment, and provides a method for determining a lateral control operation mode for supporting automatic steering control when heavy trucks platoon. Supports smooth transition of control when joining/leaving platooning, and determines the following vehicle following or lane keeping mode, and simultaneous following vehicle following and lane keeping mode by situation in maintenance, cut-in of other vehicles, and lane change situations, When lateral control is impossible, control can be transferred to the driver.

According to the present invention, it is possible to variously control merging/maintenance/departure/cut-in of platooning by presenting an effective lateral control mode determination method when driving a group of vehicles performing platooning, such as a large truck. There is an advantage.

Although the present invention has been described in detail through representative embodiments above, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that various modifications are possible within the limits without departing from the scope of the present invention with respect to the above-described embodiments. will be. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the described embodiments, but should be defined by all changes or modifications derived from the claims and equivalent concepts as well as the claims to be described later.

Claims (10)

When the following vehicle joins the platooning rank, the driving information of the preceding vehicle is transmitted through the Platooning Control Unit (PCU) and Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) mounted on the following vehicle. receiving the reception and controlling the steering of the following vehicle in a following mode;
detecting a plurality of events by monitoring an operating state of the following vehicle in the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS); and
and performing at least one of releasing the following mode, leaving the group, or transferring control to a driver when the plurality of events occur.
The method of claim 1,
The step of controlling the steering of the following vehicle in the following mode includes:
and checking a vehicle to vehicle (V2V) communication state of the following vehicle with the preceding vehicle or a state of a lane detection sensor.
3. The method of claim 2,
and generating a path for performing a function of following the preceding vehicle and maintaining a lane when the communication state or the lane detection sensor state is normally operated.
The method of claim 1,
The process of monitoring the operating state of the following vehicle,
and determining whether a Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS) of the following vehicle operates normally.
The method of claim 1,
The plurality of events,
Reliability of lane information of the preceding vehicle or the following vehicle is lowered, a lane change request is received, an emergency braking situation occurs, a stop signal is received from the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS), a cut-in of another vehicle -in) at least one of the occurrence of a freight car platooning lateral control operation mode determination method.
6. The method of claim 5,
When the reliability of the lane information is reduced or a lane change request is received,
reconfirming driving information of the preceding vehicle; and
and determining whether the reliability is restored or a lane change is completed.
6. The method of claim 5,
In the event of the emergency braking situation,
and maintaining the steering angle until the following vehicle stops.
6. The method of claim 5,
and maintaining an existing lane for a predetermined time when a stop signal is received from the Platooning Lateral Control System (PLCS).
6. The method of claim 5,
maintaining an existing lane for a predetermined time when a cut-in of the other vehicle occurs; and
and determining whether the other vehicle departs for the predetermined time period.
10. The method of claim 9,
If the other vehicle departs, the existing steering is maintained as it is,
and maintaining an existing lane for a predetermined time when the other vehicle does not depart.

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