WO2023145739A1

WO2023145739A1 - Map information system, in-vehicle device, and management server

Info

Publication number: WO2023145739A1
Application number: PCT/JP2023/002144
Authority: WO
Inventors: 智堀畑; 真也阿部
Original assignee: 株式会社デンソー
Priority date: 2022-01-26
Filing date: 2023-01-24
Publication date: 2023-08-03

Abstract

In a map information system (100), when periphery information detected by a periphery detection sensor (21) is different from the map information, an information generating part (61) generates processed information obtained by processing the periphery information. The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the periphery information, and includes at least information obtained by extracting, from the peripheral information, a portion different from the map information. The information extracted from the periphery information is quantitative information quantified by numerical values. As a result, the amount of data is smaller than that of the periphery information, but it is possible to collect detailed information on different portions rather than simple flags.

Description

Map information system, in-vehicle device and management server

Cross-reference to related applications

This application is based on Patent Application No. 2022-010351 filed in Japan on January 26, 2022, and the content of the underlying application is incorporated by reference in its entirety.

The disclosure in this specification relates to a map information system that manages map information, an in-vehicle device, and a management server.

The device described in Patent Document 1 compares the position, shape, etc. of features detected by an external sensor mounted on a vehicle with feature information stored in a storage unit as map data. Then, when it is determined that there is a change in the feature detected by the external sensor, the difference information is transmitted to the server. The server updates the advanced map database based on the difference information.

WO2017/212639

In Patent Document 1, when the feature information contained in the advanced map database is different from the position and shape of the map detected by the sensor mounted on the vehicle that actually traveled on the site, the difference Send information or measurement data detected by the sensor to the server.

Since the difference information uses flags, there is the problem that it is not possible to grasp the degree of change in features from the difference information. For example, when the change identification flag described in Patent Document 1 indicates a change in the position of a feature, there is a problem that it is unclear whether the amount of change was just barely enough to be the change identification flag, or whether the position has changed significantly. Also, when uploading measurement data, there is a problem that the amount of data is too large and the communication load increases.

Therefore, the object of the disclosure is made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and a map information system, an in-vehicle device, and a management server that can collect detailed difference information while suppressing an increase in the amount of data. intended to provide

The present disclosure employs the following technical means to achieve the aforementioned objectives.

The map information system disclosed herein is a map information system that manages map information stored in a storage unit located in a vehicle, and includes surrounding information detected by a surrounding detection sensor mounted on the vehicle and map information. is different from the above, includes an information generation unit that generates processed information by processing the surrounding information, the processed information has a smaller amount of information than the surrounding information, and at least the difference between the surrounding information and the map information in a portion different from the map information. Contains quantitative information that quantifies the difference.

According to such a map information system, when the surrounding information detected by the surrounding detection sensor mounted on the vehicle is different from the map information, the processed information obtained by processing the surrounding information is generated by the information generation unit. . The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information, and includes at least quantitative information that quantifies the difference between the peripheral information and the map information in a portion different from the map information. As a result, the amount of data is smaller than that of the peripheral information, but it is possible to collect detailed information on different parts rather than simple flags.

Further, the disclosed in-vehicle device is an in-vehicle device that is mounted on a vehicle and used, and includes a storage unit that stores map information, surrounding information detected by a surrounding detection sensor mounted on the vehicle, and map information. are different, an information generation unit that generates processed information obtained by processing the peripheral information, and a vehicle communication unit that communicates with the management server, which transmits the processed information or the peripheral information to the management server, and receives new information from the management server. a vehicle communication unit that receives map information; and a map update unit that updates the map information in the storage unit when new map information is received from the management server. Quantitative information that quantifies the difference between the map information and the surrounding information of the part different from the map information is included, and the information generation unit generates the processed information when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is within the allowable range. If it is out of the allowable range, the vehicle communication unit stops generating the processing information. If it is in the allowable range, the vehicle communication unit transmits the processing information to the management server. Send peripheral information to the management server.

According to such an in-vehicle device, when the surrounding information detected by the surrounding detection sensor mounted on the vehicle is different from the map information, the processed information obtained by processing the surrounding information is generated by the information generation unit. The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information, and includes at least quantitative information that quantifies the difference between the peripheral information and the map information in a portion different from the map information. As a result, the amount of data is smaller than that of the peripheral information, but it is possible to collect detailed information on different parts rather than simple flags. Since such processing information is transmitted to the management server, the management server can use the processing information to determine whether or not the map has been updated.

Furthermore, the disclosed management server is a management server that communicates with in-vehicle devices installed in a plurality of vehicles and manages map information stored in a storage unit of the in-vehicle devices, and performs server communication that communicates with the in-vehicle devices. a reliability calculation unit that receives processed information from a plurality of in-vehicle devices and statistically processes the plurality of processed information to calculate a reliability indicating the accuracy of the map information; and a control unit for controlling the server communication unit to transmit the updated map information to the in-vehicle device when updating the map information, and processing information is generated when the amount of information is less than the surrounding information detected by the surrounding detection sensor mounted on the vehicle, and the surrounding information and the map information are different. Contains quantitative information that quantifies the difference.

According to such a management server, when the surrounding information detected by the surrounding detection sensor mounted on the vehicle is different from the map information, processed information obtained by processing the surrounding information is received. The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information, and includes at least quantitative information that quantifies the difference between the peripheral information and the map information in a portion different from the map information. As a result, the amount of data is smaller than that of the peripheral information, but it is possible to collect detailed information on different parts rather than simple flags. The management server receives such processed information, and the reliability calculation unit calculates the reliability indicating the certainty of the map information using a plurality of pieces of processed information. Therefore, when the reliability of the processed information is high, the update determination unit can determine whether or not the map has been updated using the highly reliable processed information.

The figure which shows the whole structure of the map update system of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the structure of the vehicle-mounted system 10. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing processing of the in-vehicle device 60; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of a management server 80; 8 is a flowchart showing processing of a server control unit 83; 4 is a flowchart showing another process of the in-vehicle device 60; 8 is a flowchart showing another process of the server control unit 83;

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7. FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a map information system 100 of this embodiment. The map information system 100 updates map information stored in the vehicle storage unit 30 located in the vehicle 200 . The map information system 100 includes an in-vehicle system 10 mounted on a vehicle 200 and a management server 80 installed at an arbitrary position outside the vehicle 200 . In-vehicle system 10 and management server 80 can communicate via communication network 300 .

First, the configuration of the in-vehicle system 10 will be explained using FIG. The in-vehicle system 10 includes an in-vehicle sensor 20 , a vehicle storage section 30 , a vehicle communication section 40 , a vehicle control section 50 and an in-vehicle device 60 . These are connected to the in-vehicle LAN 11 and communicate with each other via the in-vehicle LAN 11 . Vehicle communication unit 40 is a communication unit that performs wireless communication, and communicates with another device such as management server 80 via communication network 300 .

The vehicle-mounted sensor 20 is a sensor mounted on the vehicle 200 to detect various information used for vehicle control. The in-vehicle sensor 20 includes a surrounding detection sensor 21 , a GNSS receiver 24 , an inertial sensor 25 and a driver operation detection sensor 26 . In addition, as the in-vehicle sensor 20, other sensors such as a sensor for detecting the state of the driver may be provided.

The surrounding detection sensor 21 is a sensor that is mounted on the vehicle 200 and detects various objects existing around the vehicle 200 . Objects also include planar objects such as pavement markings and lane markings. FIG. 2 shows a camera 22 and a lidar 23 as the peripheral detection sensor 21 . Camera 22 captures an image in front of vehicle 200 . Moreover, the camera 22 may be configured to photograph the sides and rear of the vehicle 200 . The lidar 23 detects the positions of objects existing around the vehicle 200 by projecting and receiving light. Periphery detection sensor 21 may include, in addition to or instead of these, other sensors that detect objects existing in the vicinity of vehicle 200, such as millimeter wave radar. The periphery detection sensor 21 stores the periphery information, which is the raw information detected by the sensor, in the vehicle storage unit 30 .

The GNSS receiver 24 receives navigation signals transmitted by navigation satellites of the GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System), which is a satellite navigation system, and sequentially calculates the current position based on the received navigation signals. Inertial sensor 25 is a sensor that detects inertia occurring in vehicle 200, and includes one or both of an acceleration sensor and an angular velocity sensor. The GNSS receiver 24 and the inertial sensor 25 are sensors for successively detecting the current position of the vehicle 200 . Since a change in the current position indicates the behavior of vehicle 200 , GNSS receiver 24 and inertial sensor 25 are sensors that detect information indicating the behavior of vehicle 200 .

The driver operation detection sensor 26 is a sensor that detects an input operation performed by the driver to change or maintain the behavior of the vehicle 200 . The driver operation detection sensor 26 is an accelerator sensor, a brake sensor, a steering sensor, a shift position sensor, and the like.

The vehicle storage unit 30 is writable and stores various information. The vehicle storage unit 30 does not always have to be mounted on the vehicle 200 and may be detachable from the vehicle 200 . For example, after the user stops the vehicle 200, the vehicle storage unit 30 may be detached and used by being connected to another information terminal at another location, for example, at a company.

A flash memory can be used for the vehicle storage unit 30. A map database (hereinafter referred to as a map DB) is stored in the vehicle storage unit 30 . The map DB contains map information. The map information includes sign information specifying the types of road signs, road markings, and lane markings. Road signs, pavement markings and lane markings are mandated by law and are provided to ensure the safe and smooth movement of traffic on roads. Road signs are, for example, information signs, warning signs, regulatory signs and instruction signs. The label information is information for specifying these types and contents. Map information is realized by map information called a high-precision map, for example.

A high-definition map is a three-dimensional map that contains information about features that exist around roads. Features include traffic lights, road signs, billboards and buildings. The signboard displays the store name and the like. The information about the traffic light is traffic light information specifying the traffic light, such as the coordinates of the traffic light, the shape of the signal, the size and the direction of the traffic light. A high-definition map includes not only three-dimensional information but also two-dimensional information existing on the road surface. The two-dimensional information is, for example, the type of road marking, the position of the road marking, the position of the marking line, and the type of the marking line.

The vehicle control unit 50 acquires behavior information indicating the behavior of the vehicle 200 and peripheral information indicating objects existing around the vehicle 200 from the in-vehicle sensor 20 . The vehicle control unit 50 also acquires map information from the map DB stored in the vehicle storage unit 30 . The vehicle control unit 50 uses the acquired information to perform vehicle control for controlling the behavior of the vehicle 200 . Vehicle control unit 50 can be realized by a configuration including at least one processor.

An example of vehicle control is signal stop control. Signal stop control is control to stop at a stop line when the light of the target traffic light is red and the vehicle is not traveling in the lane indicated by the arrow light. When a plurality of traffic signals can be detected by the surrounding detection sensor 21 , which one is the target traffic signal is determined from the position and orientation of the traffic signal with respect to the vehicle 200 . In the signal stop control, the signal information stored in the map information is used to identify the target signal from the signals detected by the surrounding detection sensor 21 . Then, the lights that are on at the specified target signal are determined.

Another example of vehicle control is lane keeping control. Lane keeping control is control for automatically traveling in the same lane while successively detecting the positions of the lane markings and the vehicle 200 in the vehicle width direction. Lane keeping control is executed using the position and shape of the lane markings recognized using the periphery detection sensor 21 and the position and shape of the lane markings included in the map information.

The in-vehicle device 60 is mounted on the vehicle 200 and used. The in-vehicle device 60 can be realized by a configuration including at least one processor. For example, the in-vehicle device 60 can be implemented by a computer including a processor, nonvolatile memory, RAM, I/O, bus lines connecting these components, and the like. A program for operating a general-purpose computer as the in-vehicle device 60 is stored in the non-volatile memory. A processor executes a program stored in non-volatile memory while using the temporary storage function of RAM. As shown in FIG. 2, the in-vehicle device 60 has an information generation unit 61, an accuracy calculation unit 62, a map update unit 63, and a setting unit 64 as functional blocks. Execution by these functional blocks means that the method corresponding to the program is executed.

Using at least one of the position of vehicle 200, the weather at the position of vehicle 200, the road surface condition around vehicle 200, and the detection time of the surrounding information, accuracy calculation unit 62 calculates the detection accuracy of surrounding information of surrounding detection sensor 21. Calculate The position of vehicle 200 also includes the reception accuracy of GNSS receiver 24 that determines the position of vehicle 200 . For example, when the reception condition of the GNSS receiver 24 is poor, specifically when the reliability of the GNSS received signal is low or the number of positioning satellites is small, even if the position of the vehicle 200 is determined, the positional accuracy is low. Therefore, in order to calculate the detection accuracy, the position of the vehicle 200 is used in consideration of the GNSS reception accuracy. The detection accuracy of the surrounding detection sensor 21 changes depending on various external factors. For example, when the vehicle 200 is traveling through a group of tall buildings, there are many shadows of the tall buildings on the road surface, and the contrast between the shadows and the sunlight reduces the detection accuracy. In addition, when the vehicle 200 is located in a downtown area, parking on the street reduces the detection accuracy of lane markings, because many vehicles are parked on the street in the downtown area. Further, when the vehicle is traveling through a tunnel, the brightness in the vicinity of the entrance/exit of the tunnel rapidly changes between inside and outside of the tunnel, which lowers the detection accuracy. Therefore, detection accuracy differs depending on the position of vehicle 200 .

In addition, there is a risk that the reception accuracy of the GNSS receiver 24 will also deteriorate in tunnels. Therefore, the reception accuracy of the GNSS receiver 24 differs depending on the position of the vehicle 200 . The reception accuracy of such a GNSS receiver 24 is also included in the detection accuracy.

Also, when road conditions deteriorate due to rain, snow, etc., the detection accuracy of road markings decreases. Therefore, detection accuracy varies depending on the weather at the position of vehicle 200 . For example, whether or not it is raining may be determined based on the operation status of wipers, or weather information may be obtained from another device through vehicle communication unit 40 . Also, during the detection time of the afternoon sun or the morning sun, the position of the sun may be low and it may be difficult for the camera 22 to photograph. Therefore, depending on the detection time, the detection accuracy is lowered.

The accuracy calculation unit 62 calculates the detection accuracy of peripheral information in consideration of the factors that affect the detection accuracy as described above. As described above, for example, when the vehicle 200 is located in a downtown area, the lane marking detection accuracy may be low, so the lane marking detection accuracy is set low. Based on the position of vehicle 200, the weather at the position of vehicle 200, the road surface condition around vehicle 200, and the detection time of the surrounding information, the detection accuracy is set low when there is a risk that the detection accuracy will decrease.

Such detection accuracy is calculated using a preset control map and a formula set based on the correlation. Accuracy calculator 62 calculates the detection accuracy periodically, for example, every few seconds. The accuracy calculation unit 62 stores the calculated accuracy in the vehicle storage unit 30 as accuracy information together with the calculation time and the calculation position.

When the surrounding information detected by the surrounding detection sensor 21 and the map information are different, the information generation unit 61 generates processed information by processing the surrounding information. The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information, and includes at least quantitative information that quantifies the difference between the peripheral information and the map information in a portion different from the map information. The peripheral information is also called measurement data, for example, and the measurement data of the camera 22 is image data. The quantitative information is, for example, a recognition result obtained by subjecting the image data of the camera 22 to image recognition processing and obtaining the image recognition processing. By image recognition processing, for example, information about feature points is quantified and extracted as numerical values. A feature point is a type such as a center of a lane marking, an edge of a lane marking, or a signboard.

The information generation unit 61 also includes coordinate conversion processing as processing of peripheral information. The coordinate conversion processing includes, for example, conversion from absolute coordinates to the host vehicle coordinate system, conversion from the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84) to the Cartesian coordinate system, and the like. An absolute coordinate system is a coordinate system in which the coordinates of data points are represented by latitude, longitude, and elevation. The host vehicle position coordinate system is a coordinate system in which coordinates from the host vehicle position to data points are expressed in the vehicle width direction, vehicle length direction, and vehicle height direction.

The information generation unit 61 also calculates the height of the feature and extracts the color of the feature as processing of the surrounding information. The extraction of the color of the feature, for example, in the case of road surface paint, is compressed into either white, yellow, or unknown information. In other words, color information such as road paint is quantified into values corresponding to simplified colors. The information generator 61 also extracts the type of difference information, the magnitude of the difference, the number of feature points, and the like from the peripheral information. As a result, the processed information is quantified and the amount of data is smaller than that of the peripheral information.

When the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is the difference in the position of the target feature, the information generation unit 61 uses the amount of change in the position of the feature as quantitative information. Differences between the surrounding information and the map information include, for example, differences in the positions of features, differences in the positions of road markings, and differences in the line type of lane markings.

If there is a difference of, for example, 100 mm in the position of the feature between the surrounding information and the map information, the quantitative information includes information including the amount of change of 100 mm. The quantitative information may also include the coordinates of the position of the feature in the surrounding information. The coordinates of the position of the feature are the coordinates of a reference point set in advance on the feature, such as the center point of the feature. The amount of change is the amount of change in the reference point. The amount of change may also include the direction in which the position of the feature changed, that is, vector information.

If there is a difference between the sign information of the surrounding information and the sign information of the map information, the information generation unit 61 generates processed information that includes both the sign information of the surrounding information and the sign information of the map information. For example, if the peripheral information has dashed lane markings and the map information has solid lane markings, the processing information includes information that the peripheral information has dashed lane markings and map information has solid lane markings. including information. In other words, the processed information includes both peripheral information and map information.

When the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is the difference in the presence or absence of the target feature, the information generation unit 61 generates processed information including presence information indicating the presence or absence of the feature, in addition to the quantitative information. . For example, if there are road signs in the surrounding information but no road signs in the map information, there is a difference in the presence or absence of road signs. In this case, the information generation unit 61 generates processed information so that the surrounding information includes existence information indicating that there is a road sign. Conversely, for example, if there are no road signs in the surrounding information but there are road signs in the map information, there is a difference in the presence or absence of road signs. In this case, the information generation unit 61 generates processed information so that the surrounding information includes presence information indicating that there is no road sign. The presence information may include information specifying a feature that has a difference in presence or absence. For example, the plurality of features included in the surrounding information may include information specifying one of the plurality of features included in the map information, for example, if there is no road sign, the road sign. .

Also, when the information generation unit 61 determines that construction is being performed on the road on which the vehicle is traveling using the surrounding information, it stops generating processing information. The presence or absence of road construction is determined from signboards indicating construction work, workers on the road, guidance staff, lane guidance displays, lane regulations, and construction schedule information distributed in advance. In the case of construction work, the vehicle communication unit 40 may be controlled to transmit peripheral information instead of processing information. Further, since there is a possibility that the map information needs to be updated due to construction work, information indicating that construction work is being carried out may be transmitted to the management server 80 .

The information generation unit 61 also generates processed information when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is within the allowable range, and stops generating processed information when the difference is outside the allowable range. If the difference is large, it is necessary to identify the cause of the large difference. Therefore, when the difference is out of the allowable range, the vehicle communication unit 40 is controlled so as to transmit peripheral information instead of processing information.

The processing information also includes information on detection accuracy. Specifically, the processing information includes detection accuracy information calculated by the accuracy calculation unit 62 . When the detection accuracy is lower than a predetermined detection accuracy, the information generation unit 61 stops generating processing information using peripheral information with low detection accuracy. The predetermined detection accuracy is an index for determining whether or not the surrounding information should be trusted. If the peripheral information is detected with low accuracy, the reliability of the peripheral information is low, so the reliability of the processed information is also low. Control is performed so as not to generate such low-reliability processing information.

Also, the detection accuracy of peripheral information varies depending on the sensor. For example, the reception accuracy of the GNSS receiver 24 may be low, but the detection accuracy of the camera 22 may be high. In such a case, the generation of processed information using the GNSS receiver 24 is stopped, but the processed information using the camera 22 is generated.

When transmitting the processed information, the in-vehicle device 60 compresses or reduces the processed information so that it is equal to or less than a predetermined communication limit. The vehicle communication unit 40 then transmits the compressed or reduced processed information to the management server 80 .

Also, if the data size of the peripheral information is equal to or smaller than the threshold, the in-vehicle device 60 may transmit the peripheral information as it is without processing. The in-vehicle device 60 may generate the processed information every 100 ms, for example, and stop generating when the processed information reaches a predetermined threshold value or more, for example, 600 bytes or more. Then, the in-vehicle device 60 may collect and transmit a plurality of pieces of generated processing information.

In addition, when transmitting peripheral information, the in-vehicle device 60 divides the peripheral information so that the amount of traffic is less than or equal to the communication limit. The vehicle communication unit 40 then transmits the divided processing information to the management server 80 . The in-vehicle device 60 may control the vehicle communication unit 40 to transmit the processed information to the management server 80 at an arbitrarily set upload timing. The upload timing is, for example, each time vehicle control ends. Also, the upload timing may be when the vehicle 200 is started, that is, when the ignition switch is turned on. Also, the upload timing may be periodic. After uploading the stored information from the vehicle communication unit 40 to the management server 80 , the in-vehicle device 60 may delete the uploaded information from the vehicle storage unit 30 .

The setting unit 64 sets whether or not to transmit the processing information and peripheral information to the management server 80 . The setting unit 64 sets whether or not transmission is permitted, for example, by being set by the driver. The processing information and peripheral information set by the driver, that is, when the driver agrees, are transmitted to the management server 80 .

For example, on the display screen of the navigation device, the screen "Can you send it? YES, NO" is displayed, and the driver selects whether or not to send it. It may also be possible to request disclosure of personal information.

Also, when information is sent and received, the crew may be notified that information is being sent and received, for example, by voice output and screen display. Further, during transmission/reception, the passenger may be allowed to stop or cancel the transmission/reception.

The map update unit 63 updates the map information in the map DB when new map information is given. Further, when the vehicle communication unit 40 receives new map information from the management server 80, the map update unit 63 updates the map information in the map DB.

Next, the control of the information generation unit 61 and the accuracy calculation unit 62 will be explained using the flowchart of FIG. The flowchart shown in FIG. 3 is repeatedly executed by the in-vehicle device 60 in a short period of time.

In step S1, the surrounding information and the map information are compared, and the process proceeds to step S2. In step S2, it is determined whether or not there is a difference between the surrounding information and the map information. If there is a difference, the process proceeds to step S3.

In step S3, since there is a difference, it is determined whether or not the difference is within the allowable range.

In step S4, since it is within the allowable range, it is determined whether or not the detection accuracy of the peripheral information is higher than the predetermined detection accuracy. finish.

In step S5, since the detection accuracy is high, processing information is generated, and the process moves to step S6. The processing information also includes accuracy information regarding detection accuracy. In step S6, the processing information is controlled to be transmitted from the vehicle communication unit 40 to the management server 80, and this flow ends.

In step S7, since it is out of the allowable range, control is performed so that the surrounding information and accuracy information are transmitted from the vehicle communication unit 40 to the management server 80, and this flow ends.

As a result, if there is a difference between the surrounding information and the map information, the processed information is sent to the management server 80. Also, if the difference is out of the allowable range, the peripheral information is sent to the management server 80 .

Next, the configuration of the management server 80 will be explained using FIG. The management server 80 communicates with the in-vehicle devices 60 installed in the plurality of vehicles 200 and manages the map information stored in the vehicle storage unit 30 of the in-vehicle devices 60 . The management server 80 includes a server communication section 81, a server storage section 82, and a server control section 83, as shown in FIG. Server communication unit 81 is a communication unit that communicates with vehicle communication unit 40 via communication network 300 . The server communication unit 81 may be connected to the communication network 300 by wire, or may be connected to the communication network 300 wirelessly.

The server storage unit 82 stores a distribution map DB. The distribution map DB is a database storing map information to be distributed to the vehicle 200 in order to update part or all of the map DB stored in the vehicle storage unit 30 . Therefore, the latest map information is stored in the distribution map DB.

The server control unit 83 can be realized by a configuration including at least one processor. For example, the server control unit 83 can be realized by a computer including a processor, nonvolatile memory, RAM, I/O, bus lines connecting these components, and the like. A program for operating a general-purpose computer as the server control unit 83 is stored in the nonvolatile memory. A processor executes a program stored in non-volatile memory while using the temporary storage function of RAM.

When the server communication unit 81 receives the processing information or the peripheral information and the accuracy information, the server control unit 83 controls the server storage unit 82 to store the received information together with the time of reception. Further, when the map information in the distribution map DB is updated, server control unit 83 controls server communication unit 81 to transmit the updated map information to vehicle 200 .

By accumulating information from the in-vehicle device 60, the server control unit 83 can grasp, for example, changes in the processing information in chronological order. For example, if the positional deviation in the processing information of a certain feature was initially several millimeters, but after a few days it has become several tens of millimeters, the position of the feature has changed due to factors such as construction work. It can be predicted that Therefore, it is possible to grasp the cause of the generation of the processing information at an earlier stage.

Also, as shown in FIG. 4, the server control unit 83 has a reliability calculation unit 84, a detection accuracy determination unit 85, and an update determination unit 86 as functional blocks. Execution by these functional blocks means that the method corresponding to the program is executed.

The detection accuracy determination unit 85 uses at least one of the position of the vehicle 200, the weather at the position of the vehicle 200, the road surface condition around the vehicle 200, and the detection time of the surrounding information to detect the surrounding information of the surrounding detection sensor 21. Determine precision. The detection accuracy determination unit 85 also takes into account the accuracy information transmitted from the in-vehicle device 60 to determine the detection accuracy. For example, when the accuracy information of in-vehicle device 60 does not include weather information, detection accuracy determination unit 85 acquires weather information from another device and uses it to determine detection accuracy. In other words, the final detection accuracy is determined using information that is not included in the accuracy information of the in-vehicle device 60 but that can be obtained by the detection accuracy determination unit 85 .

Also, when the detection accuracy determination unit 85 receives accuracy information from a plurality of in-vehicle devices 60, it statistically processes the plurality of accuracy information to determine detection accuracy. For example, when the detection accuracy varies in the same time period or the same weather, the detection accuracy is determined using the variance, standard deviation, median value, average value, and the like of the detection accuracy. In other words, if accuracy information is received indicating that a certain vehicle-mounted device 60 has extremely low detection accuracy, but a plurality of other vehicle-mounted devices 60 have high detection accuracy, the information that the detection accuracy is low is erroneous. There is a risk. Therefore, by statistical processing, information with low detection accuracy is handled lightly, and information detected by other multiple in-vehicle devices 60 is handled heavily to determine the detection accuracy.

The reliability calculation unit 84 uses the processed information to calculate the reliability indicating the certainty of the map information. Further, when the processed information is acquired from a plurality of vehicles 200, the reliability calculation unit 84 statistically processes the plurality of processed information to calculate the reliability. Also, the reliability calculation unit 84 calculates the reliability using the detection accuracy determined by the detection accuracy determination unit 85 . The reliability calculation unit 84 acquires traffic volume or average traffic volume via the server communication unit 81 . Then, when a plurality of pieces of processed information are received in a certain time period, the reliability calculation unit 84 compares the number of received processed information with the traffic volume or average traffic volume of the same road in the same time period, and calculates the processed information. Calculate confidence. The reliability calculation unit 84 calculates, for example, a ratio obtained by dividing the number of receptions of processed information by the traffic volume.

As an example, the reliability calculation unit 84 determines that the processed information is correct and calculates a high degree of reliability when similar processed information is acquired at a certain ratio or more. The reliability is evaluated in a plurality of stages, for example, 5 stages, and when the reliability is 5, it is assumed that the reliability is the highest. As described above, the reliability is calculated as 5 when the processed information is obtained at a certain rate or more. Conversely, if the amount of processed information is small even though there is a certain amount of traffic, the reliability of the received processed information is low.

Also, the reliability calculation unit 84 calculates so that the reliability of the processed information with high detection accuracy is high. Further, when the detection accuracy is not low but not high, and similar processing information is received from a plurality of vehicles 200, the reliability calculation unit 84 calculates the reliability of the processing information so as to be high.

When the reliability is calculated by statistical processing, the reliability calculation unit 84 may calculate the reliability for each type of vehicle, for each time period, and for each type of information. For example, different vehicle models may have different detection accuracy of peripheral information. Therefore, obtaining the reliability for each vehicle model enables the reliability to be calculated with higher accuracy. Also, since the reliability may differ depending on the time of day, for example, if the reliability differs between daytime and nighttime, there is a high possibility that the different factors are the brightness of the surroundings. Therefore, the cause of different reliability can be pursued. Further, the reliability may be calculated for each type of information, for example, the reliability of the processed information on the lane markings, the reliability of the positional information on the position of the feature, and the like. The respective reliability levels may have different detection accuracies because the peripheral information to be compared is different. Therefore, by obtaining the reliability level for each type, it is possible to calculate the reliability level with higher accuracy.

The update determination unit 86 uses the reliability to determine whether to update the map information. If the reliability indicating that the map DB is correct is smaller than the threshold, the update determination unit 86 determines that the map DB needs to be updated.

When updating the map information, the update determination unit 86 controls the server communication unit 81 to transmit the updated map information to the in-vehicle device 60 . When the update determination unit 86 determines that it is necessary to update the map information, it creates update map data. Then, the created update map data is transmitted to the in-vehicle system 10 . When the vehicle communication unit 40 receives the update map data, the map update unit 63 updates the map DB. Note that the update map data may be transmitted by specifying the receiving party, or may be transmitted in a broadcast manner without specifying the receiving party. When the update map data is transmitted by broadcasting, the receiving side determines whether or not to update the update map data based on the version of the update map data.

Next, the control of the server control unit 83 will be explained using the flowchart of FIG. The flowchart shown in FIG. 5 is repeatedly executed by the management server 80 in a short period of time.

In step S11, processing information is acquired via the server communication unit 81, and the process proceeds to step S12. In step S12, the reliability calculation unit 84 calculates the reliability using the processing information and the detection accuracy, and the process proceeds to step S13.

In step S13, the update determination unit 86 determines whether or not the map information needs to be updated. If the update is required, the process proceeds to step S14, and if the update is not required, the flow ends. In step S13, the update determination unit 86 uses the threshold value and reliability to determine whether or not update is necessary. For example, if the reliability is 3 or less, it is determined that updating is necessary.

In step S14, it is determined whether or not the map information can be updated, and if so, the process moves to step S15, and if the information is insufficient and cannot be updated, the process moves to step S17. In step S17, since the information is insufficient, a request is sent to the vehicle 200 to upload the processed information, and this flow ends.

In step S15, since updating is necessary, the map information in the distribution map DB is updated, and the process moves to step S15. In step S15, the server communication unit 81 is controlled to transmit the updated map information to the in-vehicle device 60, and this flow ends.

Next, the upload request will be explained using the flowcharts of FIGS. 6 and 7. As described with reference to FIG. 5, if map information cannot be updated due to lack of information, it is necessary to have the vehicle 200 transmit processing information.

Therefore, the in-vehicle device 60 repeatedly executes the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 in a short period of time. In step S21, it is determined whether or not an upload request has been received. If an upload request has been received, the process proceeds to step S22, and if an upload request has not been received, this flow ends.

In step S22, since the upload request has been received, the corresponding processing information is generated, and the process moves to step S23. The upload request includes information necessary for updating the map information, such as predetermined information of a predetermined point, such as lane marking information. The information generator 61 generates processed information when passing through the point. Further, when the surrounding information corresponding to the vehicle storage unit 30 is stored, the information generation unit 61 generates the processed information from the stored surrounding information.

In step S23, the vehicle communication unit 40 is controlled to transmit the processing information to the management server 80, and this flow ends. Information necessary for updating the map information is thereby transmitted to the management server 80 . Since the upload request is transmitted to a plurality of vehicles 200 all at once, the vehicles 200 traveling near the relevant point respond to the upload request.

When sending processed information in response to an upload request, peripheral information may be sent instead of processed information. In addition, since the amount of data communication increases when the surrounding information is sent, the information can be sent at a place and time when the communication load is less affected, such as after the vehicle 200 has parked in a predetermined place such as a home parking lot. preferable.

Similarly, the management server 80 repeatedly executes the flowchart shown in FIG. 7 in a short period of time. In step S31, it is determined whether or not the processing information corresponding to the upload request has been received. If the processing information has been received, the process proceeds to step S32.

In step S32, since the processing information necessary for updating the map information has been received, the map information is reconstructed using the received processing information, and this flow ends.

As described above, in the map information system 100 of the present embodiment, when the surrounding information detected by the surrounding detection sensor 21 is different from the map information, the processed information obtained by processing the surrounding information is generated by the information generation unit 61. be done. The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information, and includes at least information obtained by extracting from the peripheral information a portion different from the map information. The information extracted from the surrounding information is quantified by numerical values and becomes quantitative information. As a result, the amount of data is smaller than that of the peripheral information, but it is possible to collect detailed information on different parts rather than simple flags.

Further, in this embodiment, when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is the difference in the position of the target feature, the information generation unit 61 generates processed information including quantitative information indicating the amount of change in the position of the feature. to generate As a result, the amount of change in the position of the feature can be known, so it is possible to grasp whether the change in position is slight or not. Therefore, it is possible to collect detailed information such as the amount of change rather than a mere flag. Accordingly, the update determination unit 86 can determine that the map should not be updated when the change in position is minor, and can suppress updating of map information that is not essential.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is the difference in the presence or absence of the target feature, the information generation unit 61 generates the processed information including the existence information indicating the presence or absence of the feature. . Existence information makes it possible to grasp in more detail how the existence of features differs.

Also, in this embodiment, the processing information includes detection accuracy. Detection accuracy is determined by the position of vehicle 200 and the like. The detection accuracy of peripheral information varies depending on the detection conditions due to the advantages and disadvantages of each sensor used. Using such detection accuracy, the reliability of the processing information can be determined. Therefore, it is possible to determine whether there is an update or the like using processed information with high detection accuracy without using processed information with low detection accuracy, in other words, with detection errors or large noise.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the information generation unit 61 stops generating processing information using peripheral information with low detection accuracy when the detection accuracy is lower than a predetermined detection accuracy. As a result, it is possible to suppress transmission of processing information with low detection accuracy to the management server 80 or the like.

In addition, in this embodiment, the information generation unit 61 stops generating processing information when it determines that construction is being performed on the road on which the vehicle is traveling using the surrounding information. On a road under construction, there is a high possibility that the surrounding information is different from the map information, and the need to update the map information using the surrounding information under construction is low. Therefore, on a road under construction, by stopping the generation of processed information, the processing load can be reduced and transmission of unnecessary information to the management server 80 can be suppressed.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the information generation unit 61 generates the processing information when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is within the allowable range, and stops generating the processing information when the difference is outside the allowable range. do. If the difference is large, it is necessary to identify the cause of the large difference. Therefore, if the difference is out of the allowable range, the cause of the large difference can be investigated by stopping the generation of the processing information and transmitting the peripheral information.

Also, in the present embodiment, when transmitting processed information, the processed information is compressed or reduced to a predetermined communication limit or less and transmitted to the management server 80 . As a result, an increase in communication load can be suppressed. In addition, when transmitting the peripheral information, the peripheral information is divided so that the amount of traffic is less than or equal to the communication limit and is transmitted to the management server 80 . As a result, it is possible to reduce the communication load at one time and suppress the occurrence of communication failure due to the transmission of a large amount of data at one time.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the setting unit 64 can set whether or not to transmit the processing information and the peripheral information to the management server 80 . As a result, it is possible to prevent personal information of the occupant generated by the travel of the occupant from being arbitrarily transmitted to a third party.

(Other embodiments)
Although the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present disclosure.

The structures of the above-described embodiments are merely examples, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the scope of these descriptions. The scope of the present disclosure is indicated by the description of the claims, and further includes all changes within the meaning and range of equivalents to the description of the claims.

In the first embodiment described above, the management server 80 is configured outside the vehicle 200, but the configuration is not limited to this. Management server 80 may be mounted on vehicle 200 . Therefore, the in-vehicle device 60 may have the functions of the server control unit 83 such as the update determination unit 86 .

In the first embodiment described above, the map update unit 63 of the in-vehicle device 60 updates the map DB online based on the update map data distributed from the management server 80, but the configuration is limited to this. not a thing Updating of the map DB may be performed offline.

The functions realized by the in-vehicle device 60 and the server control unit 83 in the first embodiment described above may be realized by hardware and software different from those described above, or a combination thereof. In-vehicle device 60 and server control unit 83 may communicate with, for example, another control device, and the other control device may perform part or all of the processing. When the in-vehicle device 60 and the server control unit 83 are realized by electronic circuits, they can be realized by digital circuits including many logic circuits or analog circuits.

In the above-described first embodiment, the in-vehicle device 60 is used in the vehicle 200, but it is not limited to being mounted in the vehicle 200, and at least part of it may not be mounted in the vehicle 200. .

Claims

A map information system for managing map information stored in a storage unit (30) located in a vehicle (200),
an information generating unit (61) for generating processed information by processing the peripheral information when the peripheral information detected by the peripheral detection sensor (21) mounted on the vehicle is different from the map information,
The map information system, wherein the processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information, and includes quantitative information obtained by quantifying a difference between the peripheral information and the map information at least in a portion different from the map information.
2. The information generating unit according to claim 1, wherein, when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is the difference in the position of the target feature, the amount of change in the position of the feature is used as the quantitative information. map information system.
When the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is the difference between the presence or absence of a target feature, the information generation unit performs the processing including the quantitative information and the existence information indicating the presence or absence of the feature. 3. The map information system according to claim 1, which generates information.
Detection that determines detection accuracy of the surrounding information by the surrounding detection sensor using at least one of the position of the vehicle, the weather at the position of the vehicle, the road surface condition around the vehicle, and the detection time of the surrounding information. further comprising an accuracy determination unit (85);
4. The map information system according to claim 1, wherein said processed information includes said detection accuracy.
Detection that determines detection accuracy of the surrounding information by the surrounding detection sensor using at least one of the position of the vehicle, the weather at the position of the vehicle, the road surface condition around the vehicle, and the detection time of the surrounding information. further comprising an accuracy determination unit (85);
4. The information generation unit according to claim 1, wherein, when the detection accuracy is lower than a predetermined detection accuracy, the information generation unit stops generating the processed information using the peripheral information with the low detection accuracy. The map information system described in .
6. The vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the information generation unit stops generating the processing information when it is determined that construction is being performed on the road on which the vehicle is traveling using the surrounding information. The described map information system.
The information generating unit generates the processed information when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is within the allowable range, and stops generating the processed information when the difference is outside the allowable range. A map information system according to any one of claims 1 to 6.
An in-vehicle device mounted and used in a vehicle (200),
a storage unit (30) in which map information is stored;
an information generation unit (61) for generating processed information by processing the surrounding information when the surrounding information detected by the surrounding detection sensor (21) mounted on the vehicle is different from the map information;
a vehicle communication unit (40) that communicates with a management server (80), the vehicle communication unit (40) transmitting the processed information or the peripheral information to the management server and receiving new map information from the management server;
a map update unit (63) for updating the map information in the storage unit when new map information is received from the management server;
The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information, and includes quantitative information that quantifies a difference between the peripheral information and the map information at least in a portion different from the map information,
The information generating unit generates the processed information when the difference between the surrounding information and the map information is within the allowable range, and stops generating the processed information when the difference is outside the allowable range. ,
The in-vehicle device, wherein the vehicle communication unit transmits the processing information to the management server when within the allowable range, and transmits the peripheral information to the management server when outside the allowable range.
The vehicle communication unit
when transmitting the processed information, compressing or reducing the processed information so that it is equal to or less than a predetermined communication limit and transmitting the processed information to the management server;
9. The in-vehicle device according to claim 8, wherein when transmitting the peripheral information, the peripheral information is divided so as to be equal to or less than the communication limit and is transmitted to the management server.
10. The in-vehicle device according to claim 8 or 9, further comprising a setting unit (64) for setting whether the processing information and the peripheral information can be transmitted to the management server.
A management server that communicates with in-vehicle devices (60) mounted in a plurality of vehicles (200) and manages map information stored in a storage unit (30) of the in-vehicle devices,
a server communication unit (81) that communicates with the in-vehicle device;
a reliability calculation unit (84) that receives processed information from a plurality of the on-vehicle devices, statistically processes the plurality of processed information, and calculates a reliability indicating the accuracy of the map information;
an update determination unit (86) that determines whether or not to update the map information using the reliability;
a control unit (83) for controlling the server communication unit to transmit the updated map information to the in-vehicle device when updating the map information;
The processed information has a smaller amount of information than the peripheral information detected by the peripheral detection sensor (21) mounted on the vehicle, is generated when the peripheral information and the map information are different, and is at least the map information. A management server containing quantitative information that quantifies differences between the peripheral information and the map information of different parts.