KR20230114782A - A GROUP DRIVING system for autonomous vehicles that can intuitively join and leave THE GROUP DRIVING - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a platooning system for autonomous vehicles that can intuitively join or leave platooning.
Accordingly, a platooning system of autonomous vehicles according to an aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of autonomous vehicles performing platooning and a server supporting platooning, wherein the server receives platooning information of the plurality of autonomous vehicles. transmit to another self-driving vehicle.

Description

A platooning system for autonomous vehicles that can intuitively join and leave THE GROUP DRIVING

The present invention relates to a platooning system, and more particularly, to a platooning system for autonomous vehicles capable of intuitively joining or leaving the platooning.

Vehicles may be classified into internal combustion engine vehicles, external combustion engine vehicles, gas turbine vehicles, electric vehicles, and the like, depending on the type of prime mover used.

Autonomous vehicles are vehicles that can drive automatically without human intervention. Driverless cars drive autonomously by recognizing the surrounding environment with radar, LIDAR (light detection and ranging), GPS, and camera and designating a destination. Unmanned vehicles that are already in practical use include unmanned vehicles operated by the Israeli military that patrol preset routes and unmanned operation systems such as dump trucks that are operated at overseas mines or construction sites.

The first core technologies of these self-driving vehicles are the unmanned car system and the actual system. It is a technology that builds an unmanned car system in reality as well as simulation in the laboratory. It implements driving devices such as accelerators, decelerators, and steering devices to suit unmanned operation, and enables control using computers, software, and hardware installed in unmanned cars. do.

The second key technology is to receive and process visual information using vision and sensors. It is the basis of autonomous driving for unmanned operation, and it is a technology that accepts image information and extracts necessary information from the image. This uses not only a CCD (charge-coupled device) camera, but also sensors such as ultrasonic sensors and range filters to fuse information necessary for distance and driving, allowing obstacle avoidance and unexpected situations to be dealt with through analysis and processing.

The third core technology is the integrated control system and operation monitoring fault diagnosis system technology. This technology establishes an operation monitoring system that monitors vehicle operation and gives appropriate commands according to frequently changing situations, analyzes various situations generated by individual processors and sensors, diagnoses system failures, and provides appropriate information to the operator. or to perform the function of notifying an alarm.

The fourth key technology is intelligent control and intelligent driving devices. This technology generates control commands based on mathematical analysis using actual vehicle models as an unmanned driving technique. Intelligent forward control is a system based on radar guide technology that maintains the distance from the vehicle in front or obstacles by adjusting the speed on its own without the driver manipulating the pedals. When the driver inputs the distance to the vehicle in front, the long-range radar attached to the front of the vehicle detects the location of the vehicle in front, maintains a constant speed, decelerates or accelerates, and comes to a complete stop if necessary, which is useful in poor visibility weather.

The fifth applied technology is the lane departure prevention system. This is a technology in which a camera installed inside detects the lane and informs the driver of an unintended deviation situation.

The sixth applied technology is a parking assist system. When the driver searches for the assist button, puts the reverse gear in and presses the brake pedal, the car adjusts the steering to assist in parallel parking in reverse. It automatically guides the vehicle from the starting point to the parking space based on infrastructure as well as vehicle-mounted sensors to save unnecessary time and energy when parking, thereby minimizing cost and environmental pollution.

The seventh applied technology is an automatic parking system. This is a technology in which the driver stops the car in front of the parking lot, turns off the engine, gets off, and presses the remote control lock switch twice in a row. am.

The eighth applied technology is a blind spot information guidance system. Sensors mounted on both sides of the car determine if there is another vehicle in the blind spot that is not visible through the side mirror and warn the driver. .

The biggest advantage of autonomous driving is that driving speed and traffic management data match, so it helps fuel efficiency by avoiding repeated stops by adjusting the control device more evenly, and that it can be used by people who cannot drive, such as the elderly, children, and the disabled. will be. In addition, it has the advantage of solving fatigue caused by long-time driving, greatly reducing the risk of traffic accidents, speeding up traffic flow on the road and reducing traffic congestion.

Recently, platooning of autonomous vehicles has emerged. Platoon driving refers to a method of grouping and controlling multiple vehicles in an autonomous driving system. Accordingly, prior art literature discloses a method for controlling group driving in which a leader vehicle and follower vehicles traveling by receiving a control signal from a communicator of the leader vehicle drive in a cluster. However, in order to smoothly commercialize platooning, research on the process of newly joining and leaving a platoon is required, but prior art literature does not recognize this.

Korean Patent Publication No. 2019-0096864 (2019. 08. 20.)

The present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a platooning system for autonomous vehicles that can intuitively join or leave platooning.

A platooning system for self-driving vehicles according to an aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of self-driving vehicles performing platooning and a server supporting platooning, wherein the server transmits platooning information of the plurality of autonomous vehicles. transmit to other self-driving vehicles.

In this case, the cluster driving information may include a degree of path matching of each vehicle.

In addition, when the another self-driving vehicle selects the platooning information, the server may generate a control signal for allowing the another self-driving vehicle to join the platooning.

In addition, in order to newly join platooning, an autonomous vehicle newly joining platooning or an autonomous vehicle already performing platooning may display a joining path.

In addition, the location or direction of the joining route may be indicated.

The present invention displays the degree of matching of routes when self-driving vehicles are driven in platooning, so that platooning can be performed even for vehicles whose routes partially overlap, joins the cluster according to intuitive group selection, and similarly facilitates clustering. There are advantages to opting out.

1 is a configuration diagram of a platooning system for autonomous vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing the self-driving vehicle in FIG. 1 in more detail.
FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing the sensing unit in FIG. 2 in more detail.
4 is a configuration diagram showing the output unit in FIG. 2 in more detail.
5 is a configuration diagram showing the control unit in FIG. 2 in more detail.
6 to 15 are diagrams illustrating an operation of a platooning system for autonomous vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, the embodiments disclosed in this specification will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the same or similar components are given the same reference numerals regardless of reference numerals, and redundant description thereof will be omitted.

The suffixes "module" and "unit" for components used in the following description are given or used together in consideration of ease of writing the specification, and do not have meanings or roles that are distinct from each other by themselves.

In addition, in describing the embodiments disclosed in this specification, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known technology may obscure the gist of the embodiment disclosed in this specification, the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In addition, the accompanying drawings are only for easy understanding of the embodiments disclosed in this specification, the technical idea disclosed in this specification is not limited by the accompanying drawings, and all changes included in the spirit and technical scope of the present invention , it should be understood to include equivalents or substitutes.

Terms including ordinal numbers, such as first and second, may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited by the terms. These terms are only used for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another.

It is understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another element, it may be directly connected or connected to the other element, but other elements may exist in the middle. It should be. On the other hand, when an element is referred to as “directly connected” or “directly connected” to another element, it should be understood that no other element exists in the middle.

Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

In this application, terms such as "comprise" or "have" are intended to designate that there is a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in the specification, but one or more other features It should be understood that the presence or addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof is not precluded.

Hereinafter, a cluster driving system for autonomous vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. 1 is a configuration diagram of a cluster driving system for autonomous vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing the autonomous vehicle in FIG. 1 in more detail, and FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram in FIG. A configuration diagram showing the sensing unit in more detail, FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram showing the output unit in FIG. 2 in more detail, FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing the control unit in FIG. 2 in more detail, and FIGS. 6 to 15 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the platooning system for autonomous vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, first, a platooning system 1000 of autonomous vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention includes autonomous vehicles 100_1 to 100_n performing platooning and a server 200 supporting platooning. It is done by At this time, at least one of the autonomous vehicles may be a vehicle that joins the cluster later.

At this time, the group driving may be performed according to a group driving signal transmitted from the server 200 or by generating a control signal from the leader vehicle 100_1 to control driving of other vehicles. Here, the platoon driving may be performed in an arrangement. That is, for effective cluster driving, it may be desirable to perform cluster driving by occupying not only one lane but also multiple lanes. Accordingly, in this embodiment, it is preferable that vehicles form specific columns and rows in a plurality of lanes to perform cluster driving.

To this end, the autonomous vehicle 100 includes an input unit 110, a sensing unit 120, an output unit 130, a control unit 140, a communication unit 150, and a driving unit 160.

The input unit 110 is a device that receives a user input for driving. In case of manual mode, the input unit 110 of the autonomous vehicle 100 may include a steering input device, an acceleration input device, and a brake input device. In addition, the input unit 110 serves to input the destination of the self-driving vehicle, and the control unit 140 controls driving or receives information from the server 200 according to the input destination and continuously sets a route. It is preferable that platooning is performed when these routes or destinations overlap with each other among autonomous vehicles. On the other hand, in case of overlapping routes, it is preferable in terms of predictability to output such information to the outside of the vehicle by the output unit 130 to be described later. In addition, the input unit 110 can select another cluster group to join the cluster or input to leave the cluster by inputting leave the cluster while driving in the cluster.

Meanwhile, the sensing unit 120 for autonomous driving may include a radar 121 and a lidar 122 and may further include a camera 123. First, the radar 121 may generate information about an object outside the self-driving vehicle 100 by using radio waves. The radar 121 may include an electromagnetic wave transmitter, an electromagnetic wave receiver, and at least one processor electrically connected to the electromagnetic wave transmitter and electromagnetic wave receiver, processing a received signal, and generating data about an object based on the processed signal. there is.

The radar 121 may be implemented in a pulse radar method or a continuous wave radar method in terms of radio wave emission principles. The radar 121 may be implemented in a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) method or a frequency shift keyong (FSK) method according to a signal waveform among continuous wave radar methods. The radar 121 detects an object based on a Time of Flight (TOF) method or a phase-shift method through electromagnetic waves, and measures the position of the detected object, the distance to the detected object, and the relative speed. can be detected. In this case, the radar 121 may be disposed at an appropriate location outside the vehicle to detect an object located in front, rear or side of the vehicle.

The lidar 122 may generate information about an object outside the self-driving vehicle 100 by using laser light. The LIDAR 122 is electrically connected to the light transmitter (not shown), the light receiver (not shown), and the light transmitter and the light receiver, processes the received signal, and generates data for an object based on the processed signal. It may include at least one processor that

The lidar 122 may be implemented in a Time of Flight (TOF) method or a phase-shift method. The lidar 122 may be implemented as a driven or non-driven type. When implemented as a driven type, the lidar 122 is rotated by a motor and may detect objects around the autonomous vehicle 100. When implemented as a non-driving type, the lidar 122 may detect an object located within a predetermined range with respect to the vehicle by light steering. The autonomous vehicle 100 may include a plurality of non-driven lidars. The lidar 122 detects an object based on a time of flight (TOF) method or a phase-shift method using a laser light medium, and calculates the position of the detected object, the distance to the detected object, and the relative speed. can be detected. At this time, the lidar 122 may be disposed at an appropriate location outside the vehicle to detect an object located in the front, rear, or side of the vehicle.

Meanwhile, the camera 123 may generate information about an object outside the self-driving vehicle 100 by using an image. At this time, the camera 123 may capture an image of a target outside the vehicle.

The camera 123 may include at least one lens, at least one image sensor, and at least one processor electrically connected to the image sensor to process a received signal and to generate object data based on the processed signal. can

The camera 123 may be at least one of a mono camera, a stereo camera, and an AVM (Around View Monitoring) camera. The camera 123 may obtain position information of an object, distance information to the object, relative speed information to the object, and motion information of the object by using various image processing algorithms.

For example, the camera 123 may obtain distance information and relative speed information with respect to the object based on a change in the size of the object over time in the obtained image. In addition, the camera 123 may obtain distance information and relative speed information with an object through a pinhole model, road profiling, and the like.

In addition, the camera 123 may obtain basic information about motion, such as distance information to an object, relative speed information, and other people's hand gestures, based on disparity information from a stereo image obtained from a stereo camera. there is.

The camera 123 may be mounted in a position where a field of view (FOV) can be secured in the vehicle in order to photograph the outside of the vehicle. The camera 123 may be disposed close to the front windshield inside the vehicle to obtain an image of the front of the vehicle. Furthermore, the camera 123 may be disposed around a front bumper or a radiator grill. The camera 123 may be disposed close to the rear glass inside the vehicle to obtain an image behind the vehicle. In this case, the camera 123 may be disposed around a rear bumper, a trunk, or a tailgate. The camera 123 may be disposed close to at least one of the side windows in the interior of the vehicle in order to acquire an image of the side of the vehicle. Alternatively, the camera 123 may be disposed around side mirrors, fenders, or doors.

The radar 121, lidar 122, and camera 123 as described above generate a driving driving signal according to the detection of an object in front, and in relation to other vehicles, when driving in a group, when a new vehicle joins, When leaving the vehicle or when an event such as an emergency occurs, the distance between vehicles is detected and adjusted.

In addition, since the sensing unit 120 needs to utilize the location information of the self-driving vehicle, the GPS 124 is essentially further included. In addition, the GPS 124 may include at least one of a general GPS (Global Positioning System) and DGPS (Differential Global Positioning System) to generate location data of the autonomous vehicle 100 . Location data of the self-driving vehicle 100 may be generated based on a signal generated by at least one of the GPS and DGPS.

In this case, the GPS 124 may correct the location data based on at least one of an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and the camera 123 of the sensing unit 120 . Also, the GPS 124 may be referred to as a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS).

Meanwhile, the sensing unit 120 may further include a microphone 125 so that the occupant, in addition to the guardian, may intervene in autonomous driving by voice or the like even if the occupant does not perform a steering operation.

The biometric information sensor 126 senses a passenger's heartbeat, blood pressure, brain wave, etc. to promote safety of the passenger. Meanwhile, the biometric information sensor 126 may additionally perform a function of preventing erroneous boarding by sensing fingerprint and iris information when entering and exiting a vehicle. Utilizing the biometric information sensor 126, the self-driving vehicle 100 can detect that a passenger has boarded or alighted.

The output unit 130 includes a status display module 131, a joining display module 132, a withdrawal display module 133, and an external display module 134.

The status display module 131 serves to display a group of vehicles that have already been clustered, and serves to display the same sign or color on the outside of the clustered vehicles so as to be aware that they are driving in a cluster. In addition, the status display module 132 may also display other clustered vehicles to be identified according to an augmented reality technique inside the clustered vehicles. In addition, the status display module 131 displays the path matching degree of each vehicle in the reference path of the current cluster group transmitted from the server 200 to the outside. Here, the degree of matching of routes represents the degree to which of the group's reference routes are matched and run in a group. Since the display of the status display module 131 is output through the server 200 even from the inside of a vehicle that does not perform clustering, such a vehicle selects and joins the cluster.

The joining display module 132 displays a location where a vehicle to newly join a cluster computed by the controller 140 or the server 200 will enter the group of the cluster. In general, when newly joining a cluster, a method of adding to the rear may be preferable. However, if the shape of the cluster is large or the arrangement between vehicles needs to be adjusted, it may join the cluster in the middle of the cluster group. Accordingly, the joining display module 132 serves to display the point where the cluster group is newly joined to the outside of the vehicle or inside the vehicle.

In addition, the merging display module 132 displays the interval between vehicles running in a cluster. When a distance between vehicles is sensed by the above-described detection unit 120 and the control unit is driven to appropriately maintain the distance, a specific mark or color may be output to the outside or inside.

In addition, if there is a vehicle newly joining the cluster, the merging display module 132 displays a sign different from the above-mentioned specific mark or a color different from the above-mentioned color when the distance between the vehicles at the merging point is widened for entry. can be output.

In addition, the joining display module 132 outputs a path itself to be newly joined. At this time, it is preferable to directly output the route itself to be joined on the road, and it is also preferable to output it so as to confirm it in the interior of the vehicle. The position or direction of the confluence route may be displayed, and the confluence time (merging completion time) is also preferably displayed.

On the other hand, the withdrawal display module 133 allows a vehicle to be withdrawn from among the clustered vehicles to be displayed from other clustered vehicles. At this time, the withdrawal display module 133 displays the point where the vehicle to be withdrawn from the cluster is released from the cluster, either outside or inside the vehicle.

Meanwhile, the controller 140 includes a drive control module 141 and an input/output control module 142. First, the driving control module 141 may be configured as a main ECU and controls the driving unit 160 of the self-driving vehicle 100 .

The driving control module 141 performs a role of autonomously driving in the case of a leader vehicle and maintaining cluster driving through information on the distance between vehicles detected by the sensor in the case of a following vehicle, and a new cluster joining signal or cluster leaving. Based on the signal, the platoon driving interval may be controlled to temporarily widen or narrow.

The drive control module 141 may include a power train drive control device, a chassis drive control device, a door/window drive control device, a safety device drive control device, a lamp drive control device, and an air conditioning drive control device. The power train driving control device may include a power source driving control device and a transmission driving control device. The chassis drive control device may include a steering drive control device, a brake drive control device, and a suspension drive control device. Meanwhile, the safety device driving control device may include a seat belt driving control device for controlling seat belts.

In addition, the drive control module 141 includes at least one electronic control device (eg, a control ECU (Electronic Control Unit)). In particular, the vehicle driving device may be controlled based on the received signal. For example, the driving control module 141 may control a power train, a steering device, and a brake device based on a signal received from the sensing unit 120 .

The input/output control module 142 controls the aforementioned output unit 130. First, by specifying the cluster state, all cluster groups are successively checked, and the output is controlled so that these cluster groups are checked inside or outside the vehicle. In addition, the input/output control module 142 calculates and displays a new joining point to the cluster, and controls to display the interval between vehicles during cluster driving. Furthermore, the path of a newly joining vehicle or a vehicle newly entering a cluster is controlled to be displayed, and the path of the vehicle is also controlled to be displayed when leaving the cluster, so that changes in the cluster arrangement are output to predict passengers or surroundings to ensure the possibility.

The communication unit 150 may exchange signals with at least one of the server 200 located outside the self-driving vehicle 100, other self-driving vehicles 100, and user terminals (not shown). To this end, the communication unit 150 may include at least one of a transmission antenna, a reception antenna, a radio frequency (RF) circuit capable of implementing various communication protocols, and an RF element to perform communication.

For example, the communication device may exchange signals with an external device based on C-V2X (Cellular V2X) technology. In addition, the communication unit 150 transmits external devices and signals based on Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) technology based on IEEE 802.11p PHY/MAC layer technology and IEEE 1609 Network/Transport layer technology or Wireless Access in Vehicular Environment (WAVE) standard. can be exchanged.

Meanwhile. As described above, the server 200 transmits platooning information to other autonomous vehicles so that they can join the platoon. At this time, as described above, the server transmits the path matching degree of each vehicle to help determine whether or not to join the cluster.

At this time, when another self-driving vehicle selects the platooning information, the server 200 generates a control signal for allowing the other autonomous vehicle to join the platooning.

The operation of the present invention is exemplified below. 6 to 15 are diagrams illustrating an operation of a platooning system for autonomous vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, as in FIG. 6 , when group driving is performed, the path matching degree is displayed as an example. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 , when information on platooning is selected or an intention to join is input, the user joins the platooning. It is preferable that the merging point and the merging time be formed in the form shown in FIG. 9 , and information shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 is output in existing group vehicles.

In case of leaving the cluster, the input process as shown in FIG. 12 is performed, and information as shown in FIG. 13 is provided to other vehicles. At this time, as shown in FIG. 14, it will be possible to directly input a path to leave, and withdrawal is made in the form shown in FIG. 15, and the display of the cluster state is also canceled.

As such, those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains will be able to understand that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without changing its technical spirit or essential features.

In addition, the present specification and drawings disclose preferred embodiments of the present invention, and although specific terms are used, they are only used in a general sense to easily explain the technical content of the present invention and help understanding of the present invention. It is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that other modified examples based on the technical spirit of the present invention can be implemented in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein.

1000: platooning system for autonomous vehicles
100: autonomous vehicle
110: input unit
120: sensing unit
130: output unit
140: control unit
150: communication department
160: driving unit
200: server

Claims (5)

A plurality of self-driving vehicles performing platooning; and
a server supporting platooning;
including,
The platooning system of autonomous vehicles, characterized in that the server transmits platooning information of a plurality of autonomous vehicles to another autonomous vehicle.
According to claim 1,
The platooning system of autonomous vehicles, characterized in that the platooning information includes a degree of path matching of each vehicle.
According to claim 2,
When the another autonomous vehicle selects the platooning information, the server generates a control signal to allow the another autonomous vehicle to join the platooning.
According to claim 3,
A platooning system for autonomous vehicles, characterized in that autonomous vehicles newly joining platooning or autonomous vehicles already performing platooning display a joining route.
According to claim 4,
The platooning system of autonomous vehicles, characterized in that the location or direction of the joining route is displayed.