Driver assistance control system

Abstract

This system helps prevent rear-end collisions with following vehicles while driving assistance, including deceleration and stopping control, is in operation. [Solution] The driver assistance control device 7 of the vehicle 100 is configured to stop the vehicle 100 on the roadside if it is determined that the driver of the vehicle 100 is in an abnormal state where it is difficult to continue driving the vehicle 100. The device is configured to stop the vehicle 100 on the roadside if there are no surrounding vehicles driving on the shoulder behind the vehicle 100, and to stop the vehicle 100 in the driving lane if there are surrounding vehicles driving on the shoulder behind the vehicle 100. If surrounding vehicles are driving on the roadside, the device is configured to stop the vehicle 100 on the roadside if it is determined that the surrounding vehicles will stop based on information obtained via the communication device 6, which includes at least one of the surrounding vehicle's accelerator data and brake data.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a driving support control device.

Background Art

[0002] In Patent Document 1, as a conventional vehicle driving control device, it is configured to determine whether a driver is in an abnormal state, and when the driver is in an abnormal state, perform deceleration stop control to decelerate the host vehicle and hold the host vehicle in a stopped state.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] If deceleration stop control is performed without considering the following vehicle, there is a risk that the following vehicle will collide with the host vehicle while the host vehicle is decelerating or being held in a stopped state due to the deceleration stop control.

[0005] The present invention has been made paying attention to such problems, and an object thereof is to suppress a collision with a following vehicle during driving support including deceleration stop control.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To solve the above problems, a vehicle driving assistance control device according to one aspect of the present invention is configured to perform driving assistance, including deceleration and stop control, which decelerates the vehicle and keeps it stopped, in response to the vehicle driver determining that there is an abnormal condition that makes it difficult to continue driving the vehicle. During the performance of driving assistance, if there are no surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle, the vehicle is stopped on the shoulder; if there are surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle, the vehicle is stopped in the driving lane; and if a surrounding vehicle is traveling on the shoulder, the vehicle is stopped on the shoulder if it is determined that the surrounding vehicle will stop based on information obtained via a communication device, which includes at least one of the surrounding vehicle's accelerator data and brake data. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to this aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent being rear-ended by a following vehicle during driving assistance, including deceleration and stopping control. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a schematic diagram of a vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This flowchart illustrates some of the control processes during driver abnormality response driving assistance according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, similar components will be given the same reference numerals.

[0010] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a vehicle 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0011] Vehicle 100 includes a peripheral sensor 1, a vehicle sensor 2, a driver sensor 3, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 4, an actuator 5, a communication device 6, and a control device 7. The peripheral sensor 1, vehicle sensor 2, driver sensor 3, HMI 4, actuator 5, communication device 6, and control device 7 are each connected to communicate via an in-vehicle network 9 that conforms to standards such as a controller area network.

[0012] The surrounding sensor 1 is a sensor for generating surrounding data that represents the conditions around the vehicle 100. In this embodiment, the vehicle 100 is equipped with one or more external cameras 11 as the surrounding sensor 1 for taking pictures of the area around the vehicle 100.

[0013] The external camera 11 captures images of the area around the vehicle 100 at a predetermined frame rate (for example, 10 Hz to 40 Hz) and generates an ambient image showing the area around the vehicle 100. Each time the external camera 11 generates an ambient image, it transmits the generated ambient image to the control device 7 as ambient data.

[0014] In addition to the external camera 11, the vehicle 100 may also be equipped with a distance measuring sensor as a surrounding sensor 1 to measure the distance to targets and features in its vicinity. Examples of distance measuring sensors include LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), which measures distance based on the reflected light emitted by radar, and millimeter-wave radar sensors, which measure distance based on the reflected waves emitted by radio waves.

[0015] Vehicle sensor 2 is a sensor for acquiring vehicle data representing the state of vehicle 100. Vehicle 100 according to this embodiment includes, as vehicle sensor 2, a speed sensor 21 that acquires speed data indicating the vehicle's speed, a positioning sensor 22 that acquires current position data indicating the vehicle's current position such as latitude and longitude, a steering sensor 23 that acquires steering data related to steering operations such as steering grip, steering torque, and steering angle, an accelerator sensor 24 that acquires accelerator data related to accelerator operations such as accelerator pedal operation amount, and a brake sensor 25 that acquires brake data related to brake operations such as brake pedal operation input. However, vehicle sensor 2 is not limited to these sensors. The data acquired by each sensor 21 to 25 is transmitted to the control device 7 as vehicle data.

[0016] The driver sensor 3 is a sensor for generating driver data that represents the driver's state. In this embodiment, the vehicle 100 includes a driver monitor camera 31 as the driver sensor 3 for capturing the driver's appearance, including the driver's face. The driver monitor camera 31 captures the driver's appearance at a predetermined frame rate (for example, 10 Hz to 40 Hz) and generates an appearance image showing the driver's appearance. Each time the driver monitor camera 31 generates an appearance image of the driver, it transmits the generated appearance image to the control device 7 as driver data.

[0017] HMI4 is a user interface for exchanging information between the vehicle 100 and its occupants. HMI4 includes output devices 41 for notifying the vehicle occupants through their bodily senses (e.g., sight, hearing, and touch) and input devices 42 for the vehicle occupants to perform input and response operations. Output devices 41 include, for example, displays (e.g., meter displays, center displays, head-up displays, etc.) and speakers. Input devices 42 include, for example, touch panels and microphones.

[0018] HMI4 notifies the vehicle occupant of information corresponding to the output signal received from the control device 7 via the output device 41, and transmits the data input by the vehicle occupant via the input device 42 to the control device 7.

[0019] HMI4 may be pre-mounted on the vehicle 100, or may be a terminal such as a smartphone owned by the vehicle occupant (driver and passengers). In the latter case, for example, information exchange may be performed by communicating via short-range wireless communication between the vehicle 100 and the vehicle occupant's terminal, or communication may be performed between the vehicle occupant's terminal and an external server (not shown), and information exchange may be performed indirectly via the server.

[0020] The actuator 5 is a device used for the driving control of the vehicle 1 hundred. The vehicle 100 according to the present embodiment includes, as the actuator 5, an acceleration actuator 51 that performs acceleration control of the vehicle 100 (for example, at least one of an engine and a motor), a brake actuator 52 that performs brake control of the vehicle 100 (for example, a hydraulic actuator), and a steering actuator 53 that performs steering control of the vehicle 100 (for example, a steering motor).

[0021] The communication device 6 performs vehicle-to-vehicle communication with other vehicles (hereinafter referred to as "surrounding vehicles") existing around the vehicle 100 and transmits and receives vehicle information. The vehicle information includes, for example, accelerator data related to accelerator operation such as the operation amount of the accelerator pedal (accelerator throttle in the case of a two-wheeled vehicle) of the vehicle that is the transmission source, brake data related to brake operation such as the operation input of the brake pedal (brake lever in the case of a two-wheeled vehicle), current position data indicating the current position, travel lane data indicating the travel lane, speed data indicating the travel speed, and the like. The communication device 6 transmits each data such as the accelerator data of the vehicle 100 to the surrounding vehicles, and transmits each data such as the accelerator data of the surrounding vehicles received from the surrounding vehicles to the control device 7. Note that the communication with the surrounding vehicles is not limited to such direct communication via vehicle-to-vehicle communication, and may be indirect communication via an external server (not shown).

[0022] The control device 7 is an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) including a communication unit 71, a storage unit 72, and a processing unit 73.

[0023] The communication unit 71 includes an interface circuit for connecting the control device 7 to the in-vehicle network 9. The communication unit 71 supplies various data received from the outside to the processing unit 73. Also, the communication unit 71 outputs various signals output from the processing unit 73 to the outside.

[0024] The storage unit 72 has a storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid Disk Drive), or a semiconductor memory, and stores various computer programs and data used in the processing by the processing unit 73.

[0025] The processing unit 73 has one or more CPUs (Central Processing Unit) and its peripheral circuits, and executes various computer programs stored in the storage unit 72. The processing unit 73 is, for example, a processor. The processing unit 73 may further have other arithmetic circuits such as a logical arithmetic unit, a numerical arithmetic unit, or a graphic processing unit. By executing processing according to a computer program, the processing unit 73 functions as an abnormal state determination unit 81, a recognition unit 82, and a driving support unit 83, and operates as a functional unit (module) that realizes a predetermined function. In the following description, when explaining the processing with the functional units 81 to 83 as the subject, it indicates that the processing unit 73 is executing a program that realizes each of the functional units 81 to 83.

[0026] Hereinafter, the content of specific processing performed in the control device 7 will be described. That is, the content of each of the functional units 81 to 83 realized by the processing unit 73 executing processing according to a computer program will be described.

[0027] The abnormal state determination unit 81 determines whether the driver is in an abnormal state (hereinafter simply referred to as "abnormal state") that makes it difficult to continue driving, for example, due to a sudden change in physical condition. In this embodiment, the abnormal state determination unit 81 determines that the driver is in an abnormal state if a predetermined abnormal estimated state continues for a predetermined determination time T1[s].

[0028] An abnormal condition is a state in which the driver can be considered to be in an abnormal state. Examples of abnormal conditions include the driver having their eyes closed, the driver having poor posture, and, unless a hands-free driving assistance system is in place, the driver not operating the steering wheel. Poor posture of the driver refers to a state in which the driver is slumped over, looking down, leaning backward, or has their head or upper body tilted or fallen to the side due to muscle relaxation caused by loss of consciousness, etc., or a state in which the driver is arching their back due to rigidity caused by epilepsy, etc.

[0029] Whether the driver has their eyes closed, their posture is poor, or the steering wheel is not being operated can be determined, for example, from the driver's appearance based on the image from the driver monitoring camera 31. Furthermore, whether the steering wheel is not being operated can be determined, for example, based on data acquired by the steering sensor 23, or based on that data and the image from the driver monitoring camera 31.

[0030] The recognition unit 82 recognizes objects and features around the vehicle 100. For example, the recognition unit 82 sequentially inputs the surrounding image received from the external camera 11 into a classifier to recognize objects such as other vehicles, motorcycles, and pedestrians, as well as features such as curbs, fences, and other similar structures (hereinafter referred to as "boundary structures") and road markings (e.g., lane markings defining driving lanes) within the surrounding image. The classifier can be, for example, a convolutional neural network (CNN) having multiple convolutional layers connected in series from the input side to the output side. The recognition unit 82 also calculates the distance from the vehicle 100 to the objects and features and calculates the position of the objects and features by using, for example, the standard size of the objects and features stored in the memory unit 72 for each type of object and feature, and the size of the objects and features recognized in the surrounding image. Note that the method of recognizing objects and features is not limited to this method, and various known methods may be used for recognition.

[0031] The driver assistance unit 83 controls the actuators 5 based on the targets and features recognized by the recognition unit 82, and provides driver assistance that includes vehicle driving control of the vehicle 100. In this embodiment, the driver assistance unit 83 can provide driver assistance that includes vehicle driving control of the vehicle 100 at a driving control level of Level 3 as defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), that is, at a driving control level that does not require the driver to operate each actuator 51 to 53 or monitor the surroundings. The driver assistance unit 83 can also provide driver assistance that includes vehicle driving control of the vehicle 100 at a driving control level in which the driver is involved in driving the vehicle 100, for example, at a driving control level of Level 1 or Level 2 as defined by the SAE.

[0032] As one of the driving assistance functions that involves driving control of the vehicle 100, the driver assistance unit 83 performs driver abnormality response driving assistance to respond to the driver abnormality when it is determined that the driver is in an abnormal state. Specifically, when the driver assistance unit 83 determines that the driver is in an abnormal state, it first performs notification control, such as a control warning (alarm), to the driver via the HMI 4. Then, after a predetermined time T2[s] has elapsed since the notification started, it performs deceleration stop control to decelerate the vehicle 100 and keep the vehicle 100 in a stopped state. In other words, driver abnormality response driving assistance includes notification control and deceleration stop control, which includes deceleration control and stop hold control. In addition, during driver abnormality response driving assistance, the driver assistance unit 83 takes measures to inform surrounding vehicles of the driver abnormality of the vehicle 100 (for example, by turning on the hazard lights).

[0033] Here, when implementing deceleration and stopping control, if road users outside the vehicle, especially following vehicles, are not taken into consideration, there is a risk of a rear-end collision with a following vehicle occurring as a result of the deceleration and stopping control. Therefore, in this embodiment, when deceleration and stopping control is in effect, if there are no surrounding vehicles (typically motorcycles) traveling on the shoulder behind vehicle 100, vehicle 100 is stopped on the shoulder, and if there are surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind vehicle 100, vehicle 100 is stopped in the driving lane. This reduces the risk of contact with following vehicles when there are vehicles traveling on the shoulder, but in that case, vehicle 100 is stopped in the driving lane, so there is a risk of contact with other following vehicles traveling in the driving lane while it is stopped. In addition, stopping in the driving lane makes it difficult to rescue a driver who has become abnormal and may cause traffic congestion.

[0034] In this embodiment, if there is a following vehicle traveling on the shoulder of the road, it is determined whether the following vehicle is about to stop based on vehicle information (for example, either or both of accelerator data and brake data) obtained from the following vehicle via the communication device 6. If it is determined that the following vehicle is about to stop, the vehicle 100 is stopped on the shoulder of the road even if there is a following vehicle traveling on the shoulder of the road.

[0035] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating some of the control functions performed by the driver assistance unit 83 and, consequently, the control device 7 during driver abnormality response driving assistance.

[0036] In step S1, the control device 7 determines whether or not driver abnormality response driving support is in operation. If driver abnormality response driving support is in operation, the control device 7 proceeds to the process in step S2. On the other hand, if driver abnormality response driving support is not in operation, the control device 7 terminates the current process.

[0037] In step S2, the control device 7 determines whether there is a surrounding vehicle traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle 100, that is, whether there is a following vehicle traveling on the shoulder. Whether or not there is a following vehicle traveling on the shoulder may be determined based on the target recognition result by the recognition unit 82, or it may be determined based on the vehicle information if the vehicle information includes data that allows determination of whether or not surrounding vehicles are traveling on the shoulder (for example, current position data of surrounding vehicles or lane data). If there is a following vehicle traveling on the shoulder, the control device 7 proceeds to the process in step S3. On the other hand, if there is no following vehicle traveling on the shoulder, the control device 7 proceeds to the process in step S5.

[0038] In step S3, the control device 7 determines whether it has been able to acquire vehicle information, which includes at least one or both of the accelerator data and brake data of the following vehicle traveling on the shoulder of the road. If the control device 7 has been able to acquire vehicle information of the following vehicle traveling on the shoulder of the road, it proceeds to the process in step S4. On the other hand, if the control device 7 has not been able to acquire vehicle information of the following vehicle traveling on the shoulder of the road, it proceeds to the process in step S6.

[0039] In step S4, the control device 7 determines whether the following vehicle traveling on the shoulder is about to stop, based on the vehicle information of the following vehicle, i.e., accelerator data and brake data, or both. For example, the control device 7 can determine that the following vehicle is about to stop if the accelerator pedal (or accelerator throttle in the case of a motorcycle) has not been operated for a certain period of time or if the brake pedal (or brake lever in the case of a motorcycle) has been operated. If the control device 7 determines that the following vehicle traveling on the shoulder is about to stop, it proceeds to step S5. On the other hand, if the control device 7 determines that the following vehicle traveling on the shoulder is not about to stop, it proceeds to step S6.

[0040] In step S5, the control device 7 slows down the vehicle 100 along the shoulder of the road, brings the vehicle 100 to a stop on the shoulder of the road, and holds it in a stopped state.

[0041] In step S6, the control device 7 slows down the vehicle 100 along the lane it is currently traveling in, brings the vehicle 100 to a stop within the lane, and maintains it in a stopped state.

[0042] The control device 7 (driving support control device) for the vehicle 100 according to this embodiment, as described above, is configured to stop the vehicle 100 on the roadside if there are no surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle 100, if there are surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle 100, and if it is determined that the surrounding vehicle will stop based on information obtained via the communication device 6, including at least one of the accelerator data and brake data of the surrounding vehicle, the control device 7 (driving support control device) for the vehicle 100 is traveling on the roadside if there are surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle 100.

[0043] This makes it possible to stop vehicle 100 on the shoulder, even if there are following vehicles traveling on the shoulder, depending on the driving conditions of those following vehicles. As a result, the risk of collision with other following vehicles traveling in the driving lane while stopped can be reduced.

[0044] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments only represent a part of the application examples of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention to the specific configurations of the above embodiments.

[0045] For example, in the above embodiment, if the shoulder of the road is not recognized, the vehicle 100 may be slowed down and kept in a stopped state within the driving lane.

[0046] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, for example, the computer program executed in the control device 7 may be provided in the form of a computer-readable portable recording medium such as a semiconductor memory, a magnetic recording medium, or an optical recording medium, or it may be provided as a computer program product. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0047] 6. Communication equipment 7. Control devices (driving assistance control devices) 100 vehicles

Claims

[Claim 1] A vehicle driver assistance control device, In response to the determination that the driver of the vehicle is in an abnormal state that makes it difficult to continue driving the vehicle, the system implements driving assistance including deceleration and stop control that slows down the vehicle and keeps it in a stopped state. During the implementation of the aforementioned driving assistance, if there are no surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle, the vehicle will be stopped on the shoulder; if there are surrounding vehicles traveling on the shoulder behind the vehicle, the vehicle will be stopped within the driving lane. When the aforementioned surrounding vehicle is traveling on the shoulder of the road, and the system determines that the surrounding vehicle should stop based on information obtained via the communication device, which includes at least one of the surrounding vehicle's accelerator data and brake data, the system is configured to stop the vehicle on the shoulder of the road. Driver assistance control system.

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