WO2016194135A1

WO2016194135A1 - Vehicle control device and vehicle control method

Info

Publication number: WO2016194135A1
Application number: PCT/JP2015/065902
Authority: WO
Inventors: 三浦　雅博; 出口　欣高
Original assignee: 日産自動車株式会社
Priority date: 2015-06-02
Filing date: 2015-06-02
Publication date: 2016-12-08

Abstract

The present invention comprises: detection means (41-47) that detect periphery information for a vehicle; actuator means (80-82) used in vehicle travel control; a capacity determination means (63) that determines whether or not at least one capacity has reduced among the detection capacities of the detection means (41-47) and the capacities of the actuator means (80-82); a travelable route calculation means (64) that calculates a route that can be traveled in a capacity-reduced state, if a determination is made by the capacity determination means (63) that at least one capacity among the detection capacities and the capacities of the actuator means (80-82) has reduced; a refuge area setting means (65) that sets as a new destination a refuge area on the travelable route calculated by the travelable route calculation means (64); and a travel route determination means (66) that determines a travel route that reaches the refuge area set by the refuge area setting means (65).

Description

Vehicle control apparatus and vehicle control method

The present invention relates to a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method.

Conventionally, an autonomous traveling control device capable of performing traveling control according to the state of a vehicle in an emergency is known (Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 discloses a travel plan for stopping a vehicle according to a control guideline determined from a preset emergency stop mode when it is determined that the vehicle needs to be emergency stopped based on abnormality information from an ECU. Reset it.

JP 2011-240816 A

However, in Patent Document 1, when an abnormality is detected, a travelable distance is calculated from the remaining amount of fuel, a candidate stop location is selected, and a new stop position is set. Therefore, in Patent Document 1, when a sensor or actuator fails, it can not be said that the driving action that can be taken is limited and can be reached even if the stop position is set to the remaining travelable distance. It cannot be said that the safety of this is sufficiently secured.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and its purpose is to set an appropriate destination and traveling route that can ensure safety according to the situation of the failure, and safety and reliability of automatic driving. It is providing the vehicle control apparatus and vehicle control method which can improve this.

A vehicle control apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes a detection unit that detects surrounding information of a vehicle and an actuator unit that is used for vehicle travel control, and includes at least one of the detection capability of the detection unit and the capability of the actuator unit. When it is determined whether or not the ability has decreased, and it is determined that at least one ability has decreased, a route that can be driven with the reduced ability is calculated, and a new evacuation area that exists on the route that can be driven is calculated. Set as the destination and determine the travel route to reach the evacuation area.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a vehicle control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the detection range of the sensor group according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a redundant configuration of the actuator according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the first travel route, the retreat area, and the second travel route according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating another example of the first travel route, the retreat area, and the second travel route according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining an operation example of the vehicle control device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

With reference to FIG. 1, the structure of the vehicle control apparatus 1 which concerns on embodiment of this invention is demonstrated. The vehicle control device 1 is applied to a vehicle having an automatic driving function. As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle control device 1 includes a GPS receiver 10, a user input unit 20, a map database 30 in which map information such as road information and facility information is stored, a sensor group 40, and traveling A control unit 60, a steering actuator 80, an accelerator pedal actuator 81, and a brake actuator 82 are provided.

The GPS receiver 10 detects the current location of the vehicle on the ground by receiving radio waves from an artificial satellite. The GPS receiver 10 outputs the detected current position of the host vehicle to the travel control unit 60.

The user input unit 20 is a device for a driver or a passenger to input various information, and displays a screen for setting a destination, for example, on the display. The user input unit 20 outputs information input by the driver or the occupant to the travel control unit 60.

Sensor group 40 (detection means) is a plurality of sensors that are installed in the host vehicle and detect surrounding information of the host vehicle. Specifically, the sensor group 40 includes

cameras

41 and 42, an around view camera 43,

laser range finders

44, 45, 46 and 47, and an actuator sensor 48. Here, functions and detection ranges of the

cameras

41 and 42, the around view camera 43, and the

laser range finders

44, 45, 46, and 47 in the sensor group 40 will be described with reference to FIG.

The

cameras

41 and 42 are cameras having an image sensor such as a CCD (charge-coupled device) or a CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor), and photograph the front of the host vehicle. More specifically, the camera 41 is a camera that detects obstacles (pedestrians, bicycles, two-wheeled vehicles, other vehicles, etc.) and traffic lights existing in front of the host vehicle, and the detection range is a detection range 41a shown in FIG. is there. The camera 41 has an image processing function, and detects information indicating the relationship between the detected front obstacle and the host vehicle, for example, speed and position information of the front obstacle based on the host vehicle, The position, size, and color of the signal light can be detected.

Also, the camera 42 is a camera that captures a distance farther than the camera 41, and detects an obstacle present in the distance. The detection range of the camera 42 is a detection range 42a shown in FIG. Similarly to the camera 41, the camera 42 also has an image processing function, and can detect information indicating the relationship between the obstacle in the far distance and the host vehicle.

The around view camera 43 is composed of a total of four cameras installed at the front, rear, and side of the host vehicle, and detects the white line in the vicinity of the host vehicle, other vehicles in the adjacent lane, and the like. The detection range of the around view camera 43 is a detection range 43a shown in FIG.

Laser range finders 44 to 47 are installed on the front right side, front left side, rear right side, and rear left side of the host vehicle, respectively, on the right front side, left front side, right rear side, and left rear side of the host vehicle. Detect obstacles to be detected. Specifically, the laser range finders 44 to 47 scan the laser beam within a certain angle range, receive the reflected light at that time, and detect the time difference between the laser emission time and the light reception time of the reflected light. The distance and angle between the vehicle and the obstacle are detected. The detection ranges of the laser range finders 44 to 47 are detection ranges 44a to 47a shown in FIG. 2, respectively.

Actuator sensor 48 detects the output values of steering actuator 80 (actuator means), accelerator pedal actuator 81 (actuator means), and brake actuator 82 (actuator means).

Sensor group 40 outputs the detected information to travel control unit 60. In addition, the sensor which comprises the sensor group 40 is not restricted to said thing, For example, you may use a laser sensor, a millimeter wave radar, an ultrasonic sensor, etc.

Returning to FIG. 1, the continuation of the configuration of the vehicle control device 1 will be described.
The traveling control unit 60 is based on information acquired from the GPS receiver 10, the user input unit 20, the map database 30, and the sensor group 40, and includes a steering actuator 80, an accelerator pedal actuator 81, a brake actuator 82 (hereinafter simply referred to as various actuators). ) To realize automatic driving. The map database 30 may be stored in a car navigation device mounted on the host vehicle, or may be stored on a server. When the map database 30 is stored on the server, the traveling control unit 60 can acquire map information at any time by communication. The traveling control unit 60 is a computer including, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, a data bus connecting them, and an input / output interface. The CPU performs predetermined processing according to a program stored in the ROM.

The travel control unit 60 includes a destination setting unit 61, a first travel route determination unit 62, a detection capability calculation unit 63, a travelable route calculation unit 64, a retreat area determination unit 65, and a second travel route determination unit. 66, a switching determination unit 67, a driving action plan determination unit 68, a vehicle control policy determination unit 69, and a vehicle control unit 70.

The destination setting unit 61 sets a destination based on information acquired from the user input unit 20. Then, the destination setting unit 61 outputs the set destination to the first travel route determination unit 62 and the travelable route calculation unit 64.

The first travel route determination unit 62 determines the destination from the current location based on the destination acquired from the destination setting unit 61, the current location of the host vehicle acquired from the GPS receiver 10, and the map information acquired from the map database 30. The optimal first travel route to the ground is determined. The optimal first travel route is, for example, a route that can be reached from the current location to the destination in the shortest distance or the shortest time. The first travel route determination unit 62 outputs the determined first travel route to the switching determination unit 67. The first travel route is a route including a travel lane level, and is a route on the assumption that all the sensor groups 40 are operating normally.

The detection capability calculation unit 63 (capability determination means) calculates the detection capability of the sensor group 40 based on the information acquired from the sensor group 40, and determines whether or not the detection capability is reduced. In addition, the detection capability calculation unit 63 determines whether or not the driving capability of various actuators is reduced based on information acquired from the actuator sensor 48. When the detection capability calculation unit 63 detects a sensor having a reduced detection capability or an actuator having a decrease in drive capability, the detection capability calculation unit 63 outputs information related to the sensor or actuator to the travelable route calculation unit 64 and the switching determination unit 67.

Subsequently, an example of a method for determining a decrease in the detection capability of the sensor group 40 performed by the detection capability calculator 63 will be described. The detection capability calculation unit 63 calculates the difference between the output values of the sensor group 40 (laser range finders 44 to 47) having a redundant configuration, so that the detection capability of a sensor whose output value is smaller than the other sensors is reduced. It can be judged as a sensor. Further, the detection capability calculation unit 63 may compare the output values of the laser range finders 44 to 47 with the map information. In addition, the detection capability calculation unit 63 calculates the difference between the output value during normal operation and the current output value for the cameras 41 and 42 (including the around view camera 43), so that the current output value is normal operation. It can be determined that a camera having a lower detection capability is a camera having a smaller output value than the current output value.

The travelable route calculation unit 64 (travelable route calculation means) has a decrease in detection capability or drive capability based on the information of the sensor having decreased detection capability or the actuator having decreased drive capability acquired from the detection capability calculation unit 63. The route that can travel from the current location to the destination in the state is calculated. The travelable route calculation unit 64 outputs the calculated route to the save area determination unit 65.

The evacuation area determination unit 65 (evacuation area setting means) determines an evacuation area that exists on the travelable route acquired from the travelable route calculation unit 64. The evacuation area is a stop place when the vehicle needs to be urgently stopped, for example, a public facility or a parking lot in a park. The evacuation area is registered in the map database 30 in advance. The evacuation area determination unit 65 outputs the determined evacuation area to the second travel route determination unit 66.

The second travel route determination unit 66 (travel route determination means) determines the travel route from the current location to the retreat area as the second travel route with the retreat area acquired from the retreat area determination unit 65 as a new destination. That is, the second travel route determination unit 66 has a function of resetting the travel route. The second travel route determination unit 66 outputs the determined second travel route to the switching determination unit 67. Note that the second travel route is a route including the travel lane level as in the first travel route.

The switching determination unit 67 switches between the first travel route and the second travel route in accordance with the information of the sensor having a decreased detection capability or the actuator having the decreased drive capability acquired from the detection capability calculation unit 63. Specifically, thresholds relating to the detection capability of the sensor group 40 and the driving capability of various actuators are set in advance in the switching determination unit 67, and the switching determination unit 67 detects the detection capability and driving capability of the sensor whose detection capability has decreased. Compare the drive capability of the actuator with reduced threshold and the threshold. When the detection capability of the sensor having the reduced detection capability or the drive capability of the actuator having the reduced drive capability is greater than the threshold, the switching determination unit 67 outputs the first travel route to the driving action plan determination unit 68. On the other hand, when the detection capability of the sensor having the reduced detection capability and the drive capability of the actuator having the reduced drive capability are equal to or less than the threshold value, the switching determination unit 67 outputs the second travel route to the driving action plan determination unit 68.

The threshold value is set, for example, as a half value of the output value during normal operation of the sensor group 40, but is not limited thereto. A plurality of threshold values may be set in the switching determination unit 67, and the switching determination unit 67 may change the threshold value used for comparison according to the traveling environment. For example, when the host vehicle is traveling at a high speed (for example, 80 km / h), the switching determination unit 67 can use a threshold value higher than a threshold value used for a normal speed (for example, 50 km / h). On the other hand, when the host vehicle is traveling at a low speed (for example, 30 km / h), the switching determination unit 67 can use a threshold lower than the threshold used at the normal speed.

The driving action plan determination unit 68 determines the driving action plan in real time during traveling based on the travel route switched by the switching determination unit 67 and the information acquired from the sensor group 40. The driving action plan of the present invention is a plan relating to how many meters before the intersection, for example, in the scene of turning right at an intersection existing ahead, the lane change to the right turn lane. Further, since the driving action plan determination unit 68 determines the driving action plan in real time during traveling, in the example of the right turn at this intersection, when the right turn lane is crowded, the above-described lane change is performed to improve safety. It is possible to plan to change lanes to the right turn lane further before the point. Then, the driving action plan determination unit 68 outputs the determined driving action plan to the vehicle control policy determination unit 69.

The vehicle control policy determination unit 69 determines the control policy of the host vehicle based on the driving action plan acquired from the driving action plan determination unit 68. The control policy is a vehicle speed command value or a steering command value for achieving a driving action plan. The vehicle speed command value and the steering command value are explained by taking the above-mentioned right turn of the intersection as an example. When the own vehicle reaches the lane change point, the lane while maintaining a safe distance from other vehicles in the vicinity. This is a command value related to the vehicle speed and steering necessary for the change. Then, the vehicle control policy determination unit 69 outputs the determined control policy (command value) to the vehicle control unit 70.

The vehicle control unit 70 outputs control signals to various actuators according to the control policy acquired from the vehicle control policy determination unit 69, and controls the various actuators.

Next, a redundant configuration of the steering actuator 80 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the steering actuator 80 includes a steering reaction force generation motor 80a and a rack assist motor 80b as drive devices. The steering reaction force generation motor 80a is installed on the steering side, and the rack assist motor 80b is installed on the rack side. The steering reaction force generation motor 80a and the rack assist motor 80b operate in a standby system or a parallel operation system, and have a redundant configuration that functions as a backup performance so that safety can be compensated even if one of them fails. .

Since the steering actuator 80 has such a redundant configuration, the detection capability calculation unit 63 calculates the difference between the output values of the steering reaction force generation motor 80a and the rack assist motor 80b, thereby driving the steering actuator 80. It is possible to identify an actuator with reduced capacity. Note that the accelerator pedal actuator 81 and the brake actuator 82 may have a redundant configuration.

Next, an example of the first travel route, the evacuation area, and the second travel route will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the first travel route determination unit 62 determines a first travel route (route indicated by a dotted arrow in FIG. 4) that can reach the destination with the shortest distance. At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, when the detection capability of the laser range finder 44 is lowered, it is not preferable to travel on the first travel route because information on the right front side cannot be acquired.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the evacuation area determination unit 65 determines an evacuation area existing on a route that can be traveled in a state where the detection capability of the laser range finder 44 is lowered. Then, the second travel route determination unit 66 determines a second travel route (route indicated by a solid arrow in FIG. 4) that can travel to the retreat area. The second travel route is a route that can travel to the evacuation area by repeating the left turn without making a right turn, and the need for the laser range finder 44 is low compared to the first travel route, improving the safety of automatic driving Can be made.

Next, another example of the first travel route, the evacuation area, and the second travel route will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the first travel route determination unit 62 determines a first travel route (route indicated by a dotted arrow in FIG. 4) that can reach the destination with the shortest distance. At this time, the steering reaction force generation motor 80a shown in FIG. 3 breaks down, and the performance of the backup rack assist motor 80b may not be able to make a right turn due to the surrounding traffic conditions and the shape of the road. .

In such a case, as shown in FIG. 5, the evacuation area determination unit 65 exists on a route where the ability of the steering reaction force generation motor 80a is reduced, that is, on a route that can travel with straight or slow steering. Determine the evacuation area. Then, the second travel route determination unit 66 determines a second travel route (route indicated by a solid arrow in FIG. 5) that can travel to the retreat area. The second travel route is a route that can travel straight to the evacuation area without making a right turn or by slow steering, and the need for the steering reaction force generation motor 80a is low compared to the first travel route. Driving safety can be improved.

In addition, when there are a plurality of evacuation areas, there may be a plurality of second travel routes. Even when there is only one evacuation area, there may be a plurality of second traveling routes. As described above, when there are a plurality of second travel routes, the second travel route determination unit 66 can determine the route having the highest reliability with respect to the sensor having the reduced detection capability as the second travel route. The route having the highest reliability with respect to the sensor having the reduced detection capability is a route that can travel without using the information of the sensor having the reduced detection capability as much as possible. For example, when the detection capability of the camera 41 decreases and the detection accuracy of the traffic signal information decreases, the route with the fewest traffic signals existing up to the evacuation area corresponds to the route with the highest reliability for the sensor with the reduced detection capability. . In addition, the second travel route determination unit 66 selects the route with the highest reliability with respect to the backup performance (steering speed, steering torque, etc. that can be output with the performance of the backup) of the steering actuator 80 whose driving ability has decreased. May be determined as

Next, an operation example of the vehicle control device 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. This process starts when the ignition key of the host vehicle is turned on.

In step S101, the destination setting unit 61 sets the destination input by the driver or the occupant.

In step S102, the first travel route determination unit 62 acquires map information from the map database 30.

In step S <b> 103, the first travel route determination unit 62 acquires information from the sensor group 40.

In step S <b> 104, the first travel route determination unit 62 acquires the current location of the host vehicle from the GPS receiver 10.

In step S105, the first travel route determination unit 62 determines the first travel route based on the destination, the map information, and the current location.

In step S106, the detection capability calculation unit 63 calculates the detection capability of the sensor group 40 and the drive capability of various actuators, and determines whether the detection capability or the drive capability has decreased.

In step S107, the travelable route calculation unit 64 calculates a route that can be traveled in a state where the detection capability of the sensor is reduced or the drive capability of the actuator is reduced.

In step S108, the evacuation area determination unit 65 determines the evacuation area existing on the travelable route calculated in step S107.

In step S109, the second travel route determination unit 66 determines the travel route from the current location to the retreat area as the second travel route with the retreat area determined in step S108 as a new destination.

In step S110, the switching determination unit 67 switches to the first travel route when the detection capability of the sensor whose detection capability has decreased and the drive capability of the actuator whose drive capability has decreased are larger than the threshold value. On the other hand, the switching determination unit 67 switches to the second travel route when the detection capability of the sensor or the driving capability of the actuator is equal to or less than the threshold value.

In step S111, the driving action plan determination unit 68 determines a driving action plan based on the travel route switched in step S110.

In step S112, the vehicle control policy determination unit 69 determines a vehicle control policy based on the athletic action plan.

In step S113, the vehicle control unit 70 controls various actuators based on the vehicle control policy.

In step S114, the traveling control unit 60 determines whether the destination has been reached using the current location acquired from the GPS receiver 10. If the destination has been reached (Yes in step S114), a series of processing ends. On the other hand, if the destination has not been reached (No in step S114), the process returns to step S102.

As described above, according to the vehicle control device 1 according to the present embodiment, the following operational effects can be obtained.

When the vehicle control device 1 detects a decrease in the detection capability of the sensor or a decrease in the drive capability of the actuator, the vehicle control device 1 calculates a route that can be traveled in a state where the detection capability of the sensor is reduced or in a state where the drive capability of the actuator is reduced. A save area existing on the possible route is determined, and the save area is set as a new destination. Then, the vehicle control device 1 resets the travel route from the current location to the evacuation area. Accordingly, the vehicle control device 1 can reset an appropriate destination (retreat area) and a travel route that can ensure safety according to the detection capability of the sensor or the drive capability of the actuator. Safety and reliability are improved.

Further, since the evacuation area is registered in advance in the vehicle control device 1, the evacuation area can be set during traveling. This improves the safety and reliability of automatic driving.

Further, the vehicle control device 1 can determine the route having the highest reliability for the sensor having the reduced detection capability or the highest reliability for the steering actuator 80 having the reduced driving capability as the second travel route. Thereby, since the vehicle control apparatus 1 can determine a suitable 2nd driving | running route according to a driving | running | working condition, the safety | security and reliability of automatic driving | operation improve.

As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described. However, it should not be understood that the descriptions and drawings constituting a part of this disclosure limit the present invention. From this disclosure, various alternative embodiments, examples and operational techniques will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, when the detection capability of the camera 41 is reduced, the vehicle control device 1 may determine a route without a traffic signal as a second travel route (a route without an arrow traffic signal when there is only an arrow signal) as the second travel route. Good. In addition, when the detection capability of the camera 42 is reduced, the conventional technology does not know the environment in the far distance while driving on the highway, and reduces the speed to a low speed (for example, 50 km / h) in order to earn fuel consumption up to the next parking area There is a risk of traveling. Therefore, when the detection capability of the camera 42 decreases, the vehicle control device 1 determines a retreat area that exists on the general road as a new purpose, and determines a route that reaches this retreat area as a second travel route. Also good. Further, the steering actuator 80 has been described as a reduction in the driving capability of the actuator means. However, the actuator means includes an engine and a motor, which are driving sources of the vehicle, or a hydraulic brake or a regenerative motor that generates a braking force. . Therefore, the present invention can be applied even when the driving ability or braking ability of these actuators is lowered.

41, 42 Camera 43 Around view cameras 44 to 47 Laser range finder 63 Detection capability calculation unit 64 Travelable route calculation unit 65 Retreat area determination unit 66 Second travel route determination unit 80 Steering actuator 81 Accelerator pedal actuator 82 Brake actuator

Claims

Detection means for detecting surrounding information of the vehicle;
Actuator means used for travel control of the vehicle;
Ability judging means for judging whether or not at least one ability of the sensing means and the ability of the actuator means has decreased;
When it is determined by the capability determination means that at least one of the detection capability and the capability of the actuator unit has decreased, a travelable route calculation unit that calculates a route that can be traveled with the decreased capability;
Retreat area setting means for setting a retreat area existing on a travelable route calculated by the travelable route calculation means as a new destination;
A vehicle control apparatus comprising: a travel route determining unit that determines a travel route that reaches the retreat area set by the retreat area setting unit.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the evacuation area setting means sets a evacuation area registered in advance in the map database as a new destination.
3. The vehicle control according to claim 1, wherein the travel route determination unit determines, as a travel route, a route having the highest reliability with respect to the reduced ability when there are a plurality of travelable routes. apparatus.
Determining whether or not at least one of the detection capability of the detection means for detecting the surrounding information of the vehicle and the capability of the actuator means used for driving control of the vehicle has decreased,
If it is determined that the at least one ability has declined, calculate a route that can be run with the ability reduced,
Set the evacuation area that exists on the route that can travel as a new destination,
A vehicle control method, comprising: determining a travel route that reaches the retreat area.