Autonomous driving control system and method

Abstract

The present invention relates to an autonomous driving control system and method. An autonomous driving system for a vehicle includes: an autonomous module configured to control at least one of the following during autonomous driving: steering of the vehicle; braking of the vehicle; and acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle; and a driving control module configured to: enable and disable autonomous driving; determine a future time of a period for starting autonomous driving; and at least one of: selectively delaying the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and canceling the period for autonomous driving.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The information provided in this section is for the purpose of presenting the background of the present disclosure in general. To the extent described in this section, the work of the currently named inventors, and aspects of this specification that may not be eligible as prior art in other respects at the time of filing, are not expressly or implicitly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.

[0002] The present disclosure relates to vehicles, and more particularly to systems and methods for accessing and preventing access to autonomous vehicle operation. Background Art

[0003] Vehicles include one or more torque generating devices, such as internal combustion engines and / or electric motors. The passengers of the vehicle ride in the passenger compartment (or passenger cabin) of the vehicle.

[0004] An autonomous driving system drives the vehicle completely independently of a human driver. For example, the autonomous driving system controls the acceleration, braking, and steering systems of the vehicle independently of the driver.

[0005] A semi-autonomous driving system drives the vehicle partially independently of a human driver. For example, the semi-autonomous driving system can control the steering system independently of the driver, while relying on the driver to set a target speed for the semi-autonomous driving system to achieve by controlling the acceleration and braking systems. Summary of the Invention

[0006] In one aspect, an autonomous driving system for a vehicle includes: an autonomous module configured to control during autonomous driving at least one of: the steering of the vehicle; the braking of the vehicle; and the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle; and a driving control module configured to: enable and disable autonomous driving; determine a future time for a period of time to start autonomous driving; and at least one of: selectively delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and cancel the period of time for autonomous driving.

[0007] In a further aspect, the driving control module is configured to: determine a second future time after the future time at which an event may occur and end the period of time for autonomous driving; and cancel the period of time for autonomous driving when the period of time between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than a predetermined period of time.

[0008] In a further aspect, the driving control module is configured to: determine the probability that the event will occur at the second future time; and cancel the period of time for autonomous driving when both: (a) the period of time between (b) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than the predetermined period of time; and the probability that the event will occur is greater than a predetermined value.

[0009] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to enable autonomous driving at the future time in at least one of the following cases: (a) the time period between the future time and (b) the second future time is greater than the predetermined time period; and the probability of the event occurring is less than the predetermined value.

[0010] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to selectively adjust one or more parameters of the autonomous driving based on driver input during autonomous driving.

[0011] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to adjust the lane positioning during autonomous driving based on driver actuation of the steering wheel during autonomous driving.

[0012] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to adjust the steering at intersections during autonomous driving based on driver steering during autonomous driving.

[0013] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to: determine a driver's situational awareness value based on input from a driver monitoring system; and based on the situational awareness value, implement at least one of the following: selectively delay the start of the autonomous driving until after the future time; and cancel the time period of the autonomous driving.

[0014] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to, when the situational awareness value is less than a predetermined value, implement at least one of the following: selectively delay the start of the autonomous driving until after the future time; and cancel the time period of the autonomous driving.

[0015] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to: determine whether the current speed of the vehicle should be adjusted before starting the autonomous driving; and when the current speed should be adjusted, implement at least one of the following: selectively delay the start of the autonomous driving until after the future time; and cancel the time period of the autonomous driving.

[0016] In a further feature, the driving control module is further configured to selectively advance the start of the autonomous driving before the future time.

[0017] In a further feature, the driving control module is configured to: determine a second future time after the future time at which an event may occur and end the time period of the autonomous driving; and advance the start of the autonomous driving such that the time period of the autonomous driving between the future time and the second future time is at least the predetermined time period.

[0018] In one aspect, an autonomous driving method for a vehicle includes: during autonomous driving, controlling at least one of the following: the steering of the vehicle; the braking of the vehicle; and the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle; selectively enabling and disabling autonomous driving; determining a future time of a time period to start autonomous driving; and at least one of the following: selectively delaying the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and canceling the time period of autonomous driving.

[0019] In a further aspect, the autonomous driving method further includes: determining a second future time after the future time at which an event may occur and end the time period of autonomous driving; and canceling the time period of autonomous driving when a time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than a predetermined time period.

[0020] In a further aspect, the autonomous driving method further includes: determining a probability that the event will occur at the second future time; and canceling the time period of autonomous driving when both (a) the time period between (b) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than the predetermined time period; and the probability that the event will occur is greater than a predetermined value.

[0021] In a further aspect, the autonomous driving method further includes enabling autonomous driving at the future time when at least one of the following is the case: (a) the time period between (b) the future time and (b) the second future time is greater than the predetermined time period; and the probability that the event will occur is less than the predetermined value.

[0022] In a further aspect, the autonomous driving method further includes selectively adjusting one or more parameters of the autonomous driving based on driver input during autonomous driving.

[0023] In a further aspect, the autonomous driving method further includes adjusting the lane positioning during autonomous driving based on driver actuation of the steering wheel during autonomous driving.

[0024] In a further aspect, the autonomous driving method further includes adjusting the steering at an intersection during autonomous driving based on driver steering during autonomous driving.

[0025] In a further aspect, the autonomous driving method further includes selectively advancing the start of autonomous driving before the future time.

[0026] The present invention also includes the following technical solutions.

[0027] Solution 1. An autonomous driving system for a vehicle, comprising:

[0028] An autonomous module configured to control at least one of the following during autonomous driving:

[0029] The steering of the vehicle;

[0030] The braking of the vehicle; and

[0031] The acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle; and

[0032] A driving control module configured to:

[0033] Enable and disable autonomous driving;

[0034] Determine a future time of a time period to start autonomous driving; and

[0035] At least one of the following:

[0036] Optionally delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and

[0037] Cancel the time period of autonomous driving.

[0038] Solution 2. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 1, wherein the driving control module is configured to:

[0039] Determine a second future time after the future time at which an event may occur and end the time period of autonomous driving; and

[0040] Cancel the time period of autonomous driving when the time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than a predetermined time period.

[0041] Solution 3. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 2, wherein the driving control module is configured to:

[0042] Determine the probability that the event will occur at the second future time; and

[0043] Cancel the time period of autonomous driving in both of the following cases:

[0044] (a) The time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than the predetermined time period; and

[0045] The probability that the event will occur is greater than a predetermined value.

[0046] Solution 4. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 3, wherein the driving control module is configured to enable autonomous driving at the future time in at least one of the following cases:

[0047] The time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is greater than the predetermined time period; and

[0048] The probability of the event occurring is less than the predetermined value.

[0049] Solution 5. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 1, wherein the driving control module is configured to selectively adjust one or more parameters of the autonomous driving based on driver input during autonomous driving.

[0050] Solution 6. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 5, wherein the driving control module is configured to adjust the lane positioning during autonomous driving based on the driver actuation of the steering wheel during autonomous driving.

[0051] Solution 7. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 5, wherein the driving control module is configured to adjust the steering at an intersection during autonomous driving based on the driver's steering during autonomous driving.

[0052] Solution 8. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 1, wherein the driving control module is configured to:

[0053] Determine a condition awareness value of the driver based on an input from a driver monitoring system; and

[0054] Based on the condition awareness value, implement at least one of the following:

[0055] Selectively delay the start of the autonomous driving until after the future time; and

[0056] Cancel the time period of the autonomous driving.

[0057] Solution 9. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 8, wherein the driving control module is configured to, when the condition awareness value is less than a predetermined value, implement at least one of the following:

[0058] Selectively delay the start of the autonomous driving until after the future time; and

[0059] Cancel the time period of the autonomous driving.

[0060] Solution 10. The autonomous driving system according to Solution 1, wherein the driving control module is configured to:

[0061] Determine whether the current speed of the vehicle should be adjusted before starting the autonomous driving; and

[0062] When the current speed should be adjusted, implement at least one of the following:

[0063] Optionally delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and

[0064] Cancel the period of autonomous driving.

[0065] Aspect 11. The autonomous driving system according to Aspect 1, wherein the driving control module is further configured to optionally advance the start of autonomous driving to before the future time.

[0066] Aspect 12. The autonomous driving system according to Aspect 11, wherein the driving control module is configured to:

[0067] Determine a second future time after the future time at which an event is likely to occur and end the period of autonomous driving; and

[0068] Advance the start of autonomous driving such that the period of autonomous driving between the future time and the second future time is at least a predetermined period.

[0069] Aspect 13. An autonomous driving method for a vehicle, comprising:

[0070] During autonomous driving, control at least one of:

[0071] The steering of the vehicle;

[0072] The braking of the vehicle; and

[0073] The acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle;

[0074] Optionally enable and disable autonomous driving;

[0075] Determine a future time for the period of starting autonomous driving; and

[0076] At least one of the following:

[0077] Optionally delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and

[0078] Cancel the period of autonomous driving.

[0079] Aspect 14. The autonomous driving method according to Aspect 13, further comprising:

[0080] Determine a second future time after the future time at which an event is likely to occur and end the period of autonomous driving; and

[0081] When the period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than a predetermined period, cancel the period of autonomous driving.

[0082] Solution 15. The autonomous driving method according to Solution 14 further includes:

[0083] Determining the probability that the event will occur at the second future time; and

[0084] Canceling the autonomous driving period in the following two cases:

[0085] (a) The time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than the predetermined time period; and

[0086] The probability that the event will occur is greater than a predetermined value.

[0087] Solution 16. The autonomous driving method according to Solution 15 further includes enabling autonomous driving at the future time in at least one of the following cases:

[0088] (a) The time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is greater than the predetermined time period; and

[0089] The probability that the event will occur is less than the predetermined value.

[0090] Solution 17. The autonomous driving method according to Solution 13 further includes selectively adjusting one or more parameters of the autonomous driving based on driver input during autonomous driving.

[0091] Solution 18. The autonomous driving method according to Solution 17 further includes adjusting the lane positioning during autonomous driving based on driver actuation of the steering wheel during autonomous driving.

[0092] Solution 19. The autonomous driving method according to Solution 17 further includes adjusting the steering at an intersection during autonomous driving based on driver steering during autonomous driving.

[0093] Solution 20. The autonomous driving method according to Solution 13 further includes selectively advancing the start of the autonomous driving to before the future time.

[0094] Based on the detailed description, claims, and drawings, other aspects of the applicability of the present disclosure will become apparent. The detailed description and specific examples are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Description of the Drawings

[0095] The present disclosure will be more fully understood through the detailed description and the drawings, in which:

[0096] Figure 1 is a functional block diagram of an exemplary vehicle system;

[0097] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of a vehicle including an example of an external sensor and a camera;

[0098] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a driving module;

[0099] Figure 4 includes example diagrams of autonomous and non-autonomous (e.g., manual) driving over time; and

[0100] Figures 5 - 7 includes a flowchart depicting an exemplary method of controlling autonomous driving.

[0101] In the drawings, reference numerals may be repeated to identify similar and / or identical elements. Detailed Description

[0102] A vehicle may include one or more cameras and / or one or more sensors for autonomous driving. A control module may determine whether to execute or disable autonomous driving. The control module may make a decision to maximize the use of autonomous driving and minimize the use of non-autonomous driving.

[0103] However, frequently enabling and disabling the use of autonomous driving may reduce the user's trust in autonomous driving. Additionally, a driver may take one or more actions during autonomous driving to indicate the driver's expectations, intentions, etc.

[0104] This application relates to a control module that monitors the environment, driver intent, and situation awareness, historical data, and information from other vehicles and / or infrastructure to determine whether to automatically enable, disable, or reschedule a planned autonomous driving. For example, when the period of autonomous driving will be short, e.g., when the probability of an event occurring that will cause the end of autonomous driving is greater than a predetermined value, the control module may delay or disable the execution of the autonomous driving event. When the driver's situation awareness is low and / or when the vehicle speed should change before the start of autonomous driving, the control module may avoid delaying or disabling the execution of the autonomous driving event.

[0105] The control module also selectively adjusts the scope of autonomous driving based on the driver's actions during autonomous driving. For example, when the driver has historically steered the vehicle at an intersection, the control module can adjust the scope of autonomous driving so that the driver can more freely steer the vehicle at the intersection and / or adjust the scope of autonomous driving to steer similarly to the steering completed by the driver. As another example, when the driver moves the vehicle's left / right position within its lane based on a vehicle in another lane, the control module can adjust the scope of autonomous driving to the left / right lane positioning created by the driver. The control module can also adjust the scope of autonomous driving for other situations, such as if the driver has historically continued through a yellow traffic signal, continue through the yellow traffic signal, if the driver has historically turned right at a red traffic signal, turn right at the red traffic signal, etc.

[0106] Now refer to Figure 1 , which presents a functional block diagram of an exemplary vehicle system. Although a vehicle system for a hybrid vehicle is shown and will be described, the present disclosure is also applicable to non-hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, and other types of vehicles.

[0107] The engine 102 can burn an air / fuel mixture to generate drive torque. The engine control module (ECM) 106 controls the engine 102. For example, the ECM 106 can control the actuation of engine actuators, such as the throttle, one or more spark plugs, one or more fuel injectors, valve actuators, camshaft phasers, exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valves, one or more supercharging devices, and other suitable engine actuators.

[0108] The engine 102 can output torque to the transmission 110. The transmission control module (TCM) 114 controls the operation of the transmission 110. For example, the TCM 114 can control the gear selection within the transmission 110 and one or more torque transfer devices (e.g., torque converters, one or more clutches, etc.).

[0109] The vehicle system can include one or more electric motors. For example, the electric motor 118 can be implemented within the transmission 110, as shown in the example of Figure 1 . The electric motor can act as a generator or a motor at a given time. When acting as a generator, the electric motor converts mechanical energy into electrical energy. This electrical energy can be used, for example, to charge the battery 126 via the power control device (PCD) 130. When used as a motor, the electric motor generates torque, which can be used, for example, to supplement or replace the torque output by the engine 102. Although an example of one electric motor is provided, the vehicle can include zero or more than one electric motor.

[0110] The power inverter module (PIM) 134 can control the electric motor 118 and the PCD 130. The PCD 130 applies power (e.g., DC) from the battery 126 to the (e.g., AC) electric motor 118 based on a signal from the PIM 134, and the PCD 130 provides the power output by the electric motor 118 to the battery 126, for example. In various embodiments, the PIM 134 can be referred to as an inverter module.

[0111] The steering control module 140 controls the steering / rotation of the vehicle's wheels, for example, based on the driver turning the steering wheel in the vehicle and / or a steering command from one or more vehicle control modules. The steering wheel angle sensor (SWA) monitors the rotational position of the steering wheel and generates the SWA 142 based on the position of the steering wheel. As an example, the steering control module 140 can control vehicle steering via the EPS motor 144 based on the SWA 142. However, the vehicle can also include another type of steering system.

[0112] The electronic brake control module (EBCM) 150 can selectively control the vehicle's brakes 154. The vehicle's modules can share parameters via the controller area network (CAN) 162. The CAN 162 can also be referred to as a vehicle area network. For example, the CAN 162 can include one or more data buses. Various parameters can be provided by a given control module to other control modules via the CAN 162.

[0113] Driver inputs can include, for example, the accelerator pedal position (APP) 166 that can be provided to the ECM 106. A cruise control input 168 can also be input from the cruise control system to the ECM 106. In various embodiments, the cruise control system can include an adaptive cruise control system. The brake pedal position (BPP) 170 can be provided to the EBCM 150. The position 174 of the park, reverse, neutral, drive lever (PRNDL) can be provided to the TCM 114. The ignition state 178 can be provided to the body control module (BCM) 180. For example, the ignition state 178 can be input by the driver via an ignition key, button, or switch. At a given time, the ignition state 178 can be one of off, accessory, drive, or crank.

[0114] A vehicle system may include an infotainment module 182. The infotainment module 182 controls the content displayed on a display 184. In various embodiments, the display 184 may be a touchscreen display and sends a signal indicative of a user input to the display 184 to the infotainment module 182. The infotainment module 182 may additionally or alternatively receive signals indicative of user input from one or more other user input devices 185, such as one or more switches, buttons, knobs, etc.

[0115] The infotainment module 182 may receive inputs from a plurality of external sensors and cameras, which are generally illustrated at 186 in Figure 1 For example, the infotainment module 182 may display videos, various views, and / or alerts on the display 184 via inputs from the external sensors and cameras 186.

[0116] The infotainment module 182 may also generate outputs via one or more other devices. For example, the infotainment module 182 may output sound via one or more speakers 190 of the vehicle. The vehicle may include one or more additional control modules (not shown), such as a chassis control module, a battery pack control module, etc. The vehicle may omit one or more of the control modules shown and discussed.

[0117] Inputs from the external sensors and cameras 186 may also be used to control autonomous driving, such as to determine whether to engage or disengage autonomous driving, and / or for one or more other uses.

[0118] A global positioning system (GPS) module 191 receives GPS data from a GPS system. A driver monitoring module 192 includes one or more devices configured to monitor one or more characteristics of a driver of the vehicle. For example, the driver monitoring module 192 may include one or more cameras configured to capture images of the driver and within a passenger compartment of the vehicle, such as for determining facial expressions, one or more gestures, hand placement, and other driver information based on the images.

[0119] A V2X module 193 communicates with other vehicles via a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication protocol and / or communicates with infrastructure via a vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication protocol. V2V communication and V2I communication may more generally be referred to as V2X communication.

[0120] Now refer to Figure 2, which presents a functional block diagram of a vehicle including an example of an external sensor and a camera. The external sensor and the camera 186 include various cameras positioned to capture images and videos of the outside (external) of the vehicle and various types of sensors that measure parameters of the outside (external) of the vehicle. For example, the forward-facing camera 204 captures images and videos within a predetermined field of view (FOV) 206 in front of the vehicle.

[0121] The front camera 208 can also capture images and videos within a predetermined FOV 210 in front of the vehicle. The front camera 208 can capture images and videos within a predetermined distance in front of the vehicle and can be located at the front of the vehicle (e.g., in the front fascia, grille, or bumper). The forward-facing camera 204 can be located more rearwardly, e.g., within the windshield of the vehicle together with the rearview mirror. The forward-facing camera 204 may not be able to capture images and videos of objects within all or at least a portion of the predetermined FOV of the front camera 208 and can capture images and videos at a distance greater than the predetermined distance in front of the vehicle. In various embodiments, only one of the forward-facing camera 204 and the front camera 208 may be included.

[0122] The rear camera 212 captures images and videos within a predetermined FOV 214 behind the vehicle. The rear camera 212 can capture images and videos within a predetermined distance behind the vehicle and can be located at the rear of the vehicle, e.g., near the rear license plate. The right camera 216 captures images and videos within a predetermined FOV 218 on the right side of the vehicle. The right camera 216 can capture images and videos within a predetermined distance on the right side of the vehicle and can be located, for example, below the right rearview mirror. In various embodiments, the right rearview mirror can be omitted, and the right camera 216 can be located near the position where the right rearview mirror would typically be located. The left camera 220 captures images and videos within a predetermined FOV 222 on the left side of the vehicle. The left camera 220 can capture images and videos within a predetermined distance on the left side of the vehicle and can be located, for example, below the left rearview mirror. In various embodiments, the left rearview mirror can be omitted, and the left camera 220 can be located near the position where the left rearview mirror would typically be located. Although exemplary FOVs are shown for illustrative purposes, these FOVs can overlap, e.g., for more accurate and / or inclusive stitching.

[0123] The external sensors and camera 186 also include various other types of sensors, such as radar sensors, light detection and ranging (LIDAR) sensors 250, etc. For example, a vehicle may include: one or more forward-facing radar sensors, such as forward-facing radar sensors 226 and 230; one or more rear-facing radar sensors, such as rear-facing radar sensors 234 and 238. The vehicle may also include: one or more right-side radar sensors, such as right-side radar sensor 242; and one or more left-side radar sensors, such as left-side radar sensor 246. The positions and fields of view of the camera and radar sensors are provided as examples only, and different positions and fields of view may be used. The radar sensors output radar signals around the vehicle. Objects around the vehicle can be detected based on the inputs from the external sensors and camera 186.

[0124] Figure 3 Functional block diagram of an exemplary embodiment including the driving module 304. When autonomous driving is not being performed, as described above, the steering control module 140 controls the steering of the vehicle based on the SWA 142, and the EBCM 150 controls braking based on the BPP 170. Additionally, the acceleration control module 308 controls the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle based on the APP 166 and / or one or more other inputs. For example, the acceleration control module 308 may further control the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle based on the cruise control input 168 in order to adjust the vehicle speed towards or to a target speed. For example, the target speed may be adjusted based on the cruise control input 168. The acceleration control module 308 may control the acceleration and deceleration via at least one of the ECM 106 (which controls the torque of the engine 102) and the TCM 114 (which controls the torque of the electric motor 118).

[0125] The autonomous module 312 controls the steering, acceleration, deceleration, and braking of the vehicle during autonomous driving of the vehicle. For example, the autonomous module 312 may detect features and objects around the vehicle based on inputs from the external cameras and sensors 186, and control the steering, acceleration, and deceleration based on these features and objects in order to avoid any detected objects. However, during autonomous driving, the steering control module 140 may override the input from the autonomous module 312 and control the steering based on the SWA 142. Additionally, the acceleration control module 308 may override the input from the autonomous module 312 and control the acceleration and deceleration based on the APP 166, and the EBCM 150 may override the input from the autonomous module 312 and control braking based on the BPP 170. Driver inputs (such as the SWA 142, APP 166, and BPP 170) during autonomous driving may be used to determine driver intent, as discussed further below.

[0126] The driving control module 316 controls whether to perform autonomous driving and, if autonomous driving is performed, controls the scope of autonomous driving. The driving control module 316 can control whether to perform autonomous driving and, if autonomous driving is performed, controls it based on, for example, the input 320 from the external camera and sensor 186, the input 324 from the driver monitoring module 192, the V2X data 328 from the V2X module 193, and the historical data 336 of previous autonomous driving stored in the memory 340. Autonomous driving as used herein can refer to lateral autonomous driving, longitudinal autonomous driving, both lateral and longitudinal autonomous driving, and one or more other aspects of autonomous driving.

[0127] Based on the input 320 from the external camera and sensor 186 at a given time, the driving control module 316 can selectively determine one or more future times to start autonomous driving. In this sense, the driving control module 316 can include a planner that determines the future times. The driving control module 316 can selectively determine the one or more future times based on one or more other inputs. For example, when no object will obstruct autonomous driving after time X, the driving control module 316 can determine to start autonomous driving at the future time X. This includes the transition from manual driving to autonomous driving and the situation where the driver has overridden one or more aspects of autonomous driving but autonomous driving is still being performed.

[0128] The driving control module 316 also predicts the time of an event that will end autonomous driving based on the input 320. One or more other inputs can also be used. The driving control module 316 also determines the probability of these events occurring based on the input 320. These probabilities can be values (e.g., 0 - 100, where an increasing value indicates an increasing likelihood of occurrence) or levels (e.g., low, medium, high, etc.).

[0129] The driving control module 316 selectively postpones, reschedules, advances, or eliminates a future time for starting autonomous driving. For example, when the time period between the future time for starting autonomous driving and the next predicted time for ending autonomous driving is less than a predetermined time period and the probability of an event occurring is high or greater than a predetermined value, the driving control module 316 can postpone, reschedule, advance, or eliminate the future time for starting autonomous driving. This can prevent a short autonomous driving situation that may reduce the driver's confidence in autonomous driving. When at least one of (a) the time period is greater than the predetermined time period and (b) the probability is low or less than the predetermined value occurs, the driving control module 316 can comply with the future time for starting autonomous driving. For example, when the predicted time period for autonomous driving will be short, the driving control module 316 can advance (move closer in time) the future time for starting autonomous driving. For example, a first event with a low probability of causing the end of autonomous driving is followed by a second event with a high probability of causing the end of autonomous driving, and the time period between the future time for starting autonomous driving (before the first event) is less than the predetermined time period, then the driving control module 316 can advance the future time to extend the time period of autonomous driving. For example, the driving control module 316 can advance the future time such that the time period between the future time and the second event is greater than or equal to the predetermined time period. In one or more other situations, the driving control module 316 can postpone, reschedule, eliminate, or adjust the scope of autonomous driving, as further discussed below.

[0130] Figure 4 An example diagram including autonomous and non-autonomous (manual) driving over time 404. The top diagram illustrates determining to start autonomous driving at a future time 408. It is expected that this autonomous driving will end at time 412.

[0131] Since the time period between times 408 and 412 is relatively short and the probability of an event occurring at 408 is high or greater than the predetermined value, the driving control module 316 determines not to perform autonomous driving within the time period between times 408 and 412, for example, so as not to reduce confidence and to improve user satisfaction. The bottom diagram illustrates preventing autonomous driving (and performing manual driving) between times 408 and 412 and continuing until time 416. Autonomous driving is performed after time 416.

[0132] Figure 5 It is a flowchart depicting an exemplary method of controlling autonomous driving. The control begins at 504, where the driving control module 504 receives inputs, such as input 320 from an external camera and sensor 186. The driving control module 316 determines a future time for starting autonomous driving based on these inputs.

[0133] At 508, the driving control module 316 determines a predicted time at which autonomous driving will end after this future time when autonomous driving begins. The driving control module 316 also determines the probability of occurrence of an event that will cause autonomous driving to end. The driving control module 316 determines this probability and predicted time, for example, based on the input.

[0134] At 512, the driving control module 316 determines the time period between the future time when autonomous driving begins and the predicted future time (after this future time) at which autonomous driving will end. At 516, the driving control module 316 determines whether the probability is low or less than a predetermined value and whether the time period is greater than a predetermined time period. If 516 is false, the driving control module 316 does not perform autonomous driving starting at this future time at 520, and the control returns to 504. If 516 is true, the driving control module 316 may prompt the autonomous module 312 to start autonomous driving at this future time at 524.

[0135] Figure 6 is a flowchart depicting an exemplary method of controlling autonomous driving. The control starts at 604, where the driving control module 316 determines whether autonomous driving is currently being performed. If 604 is true, the control continues at 608. If 604 is false, the control returns to 604.

[0136] At 608, the driving control module 316 determines whether the driver is manipulating the vehicle, for example, based on the steering wheel angle 142. If 608 is true, the control continues at 612. If 608 is false, the control returns to 604. At 612, the driving control module 316 receives additional inputs, such as APP 166, BPP 170, inputs from external cameras and sensors 186, historical data 336, V2X data 328, and driver monitoring data 324. At 616, the driving control module 316 determines the driver's intention based on the received inputs.

[0137] As an example of determining the driver's intention at 620, the driving control module 316 may determine whether the driver is changing the lane position based on the driving of other vehicles. For example, when another vehicle on the right side of the vehicle drives irregularly or moves from left to right within its lane, the driver may be moving the vehicle to the left within the lane. If 620 is true, the control transfers to 632, where the driving control module 316 adjusts the scope of autonomous driving or disables autonomous driving. Adjusting the scope of autonomous driving may include, for example: allowing the driver to steer; changing the following distance; changing the target position of the vehicle within the lane (left to right); whether to stop when the traffic light turns yellow; whether to turn right at a red light; whether to turn or go straight after a red light; and adjusting one or more other parameters of autonomous driving. If 620 is false, the control may continue at 624.

[0138] As another example, at 624, the driving control module 316 determines whether the driver is turning the vehicle at an intersection. If 624 is true, control transfers to 632, where the driving control module 316 adjusts the scope of autonomous driving or disables autonomous driving. In this example, adjusting the scope of driving can be allowing the driver to turn at the intersection and / or adjusting one or more other parameters of autonomous driving. If 624 is false, control can continue at 628.

[0139] As another example, at 628, the driving control module 316 determines whether the historical data 336 indicates that the driver wants to change one or more parameters of autonomous driving. If 628 is true, control transfers to 632, where the driving control module 316 adjusts the scope of autonomous driving or disables autonomous driving. In this example, adjusting the scope of driving can be: changing the following distance, changing the target positioning of the vehicle within the lane (left to right); whether to stop when the traffic light turns yellow; whether to turn right at a red light; whether to turn or go straight after a red light; and adjusting one or more other parameters of autonomous driving. If 628 is false, at 636, the driving control module 316 can continue autonomous driving and does not adjust the scope of autonomous driving.

[0140] Figure 7 is a flowchart depicting an exemplary method of controlling autonomous driving. Control begins at 704, where the driving control module 316 receives inputs, such as driver monitoring data 324. The driving control module 316 can also receive one or more other inputs, such as inputs from external cameras and sensors 186 and V2X data 328.

[0141] At 708, the driving control module 316 determines one or more situation awareness (SA) values based on these inputs. For example, the driving control module 316 can determine a driver SA value based on the driver monitoring data 324. The driving control module 316 can additionally or alternatively determine a vehicle SA value based on inputs from the external cameras and sensors 186 and / or communications from the V2X module 193. The driver SA value indicates the driver's perception of the current driving situation. The vehicle SA value indicates the vehicle's perception of the current driving situation. For example, the SA value can be a value between 0 and 100, where 100 represents full perception of the driving situation and 0 represents no perception of the driving situation. For example, when the driver monitoring data 324 indicates that the driver is not looking outside the vehicle, when the driver does not have his or her hands on the steering wheel, etc., the driving control module 316 can decrease the driver SA value. For example, when the driver monitoring data 324 indicates that the driver is looking outside the vehicle, when the driver has his or her hands on the steering wheel, etc., the driving control module 316 can increase the driver SA value. The driving control module 316 can, for example, use one or more equations that relate the inputs to the driver SA value to determine the driver SA value. For example, when there is a fault in one or more of the external cameras and sensors 186, when one or more of the external cameras and sensors 186 are blocked, when one or more of the external cameras and sensors 186 are damaged or improperly calibrated, when the signal received by the V2X module 193 is weak (e.g., the signal strength is less than a predetermined value) and / or there are one or more conditions, the driving control module 316 can decrease the vehicle SA value. For example, when the external cameras and sensors 186 are operating normally, when the external cameras and sensors 186 are not blocked, when one or more of the external cameras and sensors 186 are not damaged and are properly calibrated, when the signal received by the V2X module 193 is strong (e.g., the signal strength is greater than a predetermined value) and / or there are one or more conditions, the driving control module 316 can increase the vehicle SA value. The driving control module 316 can, for example, use one or more equations that relate the inputs to the vehicle SA value to determine the vehicle SA value.

[0142] At 708, the driving control module 316 determines whether the driver and vehicle SA values are greater than a predetermined value. If 708 is false, the driving control module 316 can reschedule or disable the upcoming autonomous driving at 712. If the driver SA value is less than the predetermined value, the driving control module 316 can also take one or more actions to prompt the driver to increase his or her SA value. If 708 is true, the control can continue at 716. For example, in an example where the SA value is between 0 and 100, the predetermined value can be calibrated and set to be greater than 50.

[0143] At 716, the driving control module 316 can determine whether the vehicle speed should be changed (increased or decreased), for example, based on the input 320 from the external cameras and sensors 186 and / or the V2X data 328. The vehicle speed can be increased or decreased, for example, to avoid another vehicle or object, maintain a predetermined following distance, and / or for one or more other reasons. If 716 is true, the control can be transferred to 712 as described above, and the scheduled autonomous driving can be rescheduled (e.g., delayed) or disabled. If 716 is false, the driving control module 316 can continue and enable the scheduled autonomous driving at 720.

[0144] The foregoing description is merely illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit the disclosure, its application, or uses. The broad teachings of the disclosure can be implemented in a variety of forms. Thus, while the disclosure includes specific examples, the actual scope of the disclosure should not be so limited since other modifications will become apparent upon a study of the drawings, the specification, and the following claims. It should be understood that one or more steps within a method can be executed in a different order (or concurrently) without altering the principles of the disclosure. Additionally, although each of the embodiments is described above as having certain features, any one or more of those features described with respect to any embodiment of the disclosure can be implemented in and / or combined with any other features of any other embodiment, even if the combination is not explicitly described. In other words, the described embodiments are not mutually exclusive, and permutations of one or more of the embodiments with each other are still within the scope of the disclosure.

[0145] Spatial and functional relationships between elements (e.g., between modules, circuit elements, semiconductor layers, etc.) are described using a variety of terms, including "connected," "engaged," "coupled," "adjacent," "next to," "on top of," "above," "below," and "disposed." Unless explicitly described as "direct," when describing the relationship between a first and a second element in the disclosure above, the relationship can be a direct relationship in which no other intervening elements exist between the first and second elements, but can also be an indirect relationship in which one or more intervening elements exist between the first and second elements (spatially or functionally). As used herein, the phrase "at least one of A, B, and C" should be construed to mean a logic (A OR B OR C) using non-exclusive logical OR and should not be construed to mean "at least one of A, at least one of B, and at least one of C."

[0146] In the drawings, the direction of an arrow as indicated by the arrowhead generally shows the information flow (e.g., data or instructions) that the illustration is concerned with. For example, when component A and component B exchange various information but the information transmitted from component A to component B is relevant to the illustration, the arrow can point from component A to component B. This one-way arrow does not mean that no other information is transmitted from component B to component A. Additionally, for the information sent from component A to component B, component B can send a request for the information or a receipt confirmation to component A.

[0147] In the present application including the following definitions, the term "module" or the term "controller" may be replaced by the term "circuit". The term "module" may refer to the following, a part of the following, or include the following, namely: application specific integrated circuit (ASIC); digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital discrete circuit; digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital integrated circuit; combinational logic circuit; field programmable gate array (FPGA); processor circuit (shared, dedicated, or group) that executes code; memory circuit (shared, dedicated, or group) that stores code executed by the processor circuit; other suitable hardware components that provide the said function; or a combination of some or all of the above in a system on a chip, for example.

[0148] A module may include one or more interface circuits. In some examples, the interface circuit may include a wired or wireless interface connected to a local area network (LAN), the Internet, a wide area network (WAN), or a combination thereof. The functions of any given module of the present disclosure may be distributed among multiple modules connected via the interface circuit. For example, multiple modules may allow load balancing. In another example, a server (also referred to as remote or cloud) module may perform some functions on behalf of a client module.

[0149] As used above, the term "code" may include software, firmware, and / or microcode, and may refer to programs, routines, functions, classes, data structures, and / or objects. The term "shared processor circuit" encompasses a single processor circuit that executes some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term "group processor circuit" encompasses a processor circuit that, in combination with additional processor circuits, executes some or all of the code from one or more modules. A reference to multiple processor circuits encompasses multiple processor circuits on discrete die, multiple processor circuits on a single die, multiple cores of a single processor circuit, multiple threads of a single processor circuit, or a combination of the above. The term "shared memory circuit" encompasses a single memory circuit that stores some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term "group memory circuit" encompasses a memory circuit that, in combination with additional memory, stores some or all of the code from one or more modules.

[0150] The term "memory circuit" is a subset of the term "computer-readable medium". As used herein, the term "computer-readable medium" does not cover transient electrical or electromagnetic signals propagated through a medium (e.g., on a carrier wave); thus, the term "computer-readable medium" can be considered tangible or non-transitory. Non-limiting examples of non-transitory, tangible computer-readable media are non-volatile memory circuits (e.g., flash memory circuits, erasable programmable read-only memory circuits, or mask read-only memory circuits), volatile memory circuits (e.g., static random access memory circuits or dynamic random access memory circuits), magnetic storage media (e.g., analog or digital tape or hard disk drives), and optical storage media (e.g., CDs, DVDs, or Blu-ray discs).

[0151] The devices and methods described in this application can be implemented in part or in whole by a special-purpose computer created by configuring a general-purpose computer to execute one or more specific functions embodied in a computer program. The above function blocks, flowchart components, and other elements are software specifications that can be converted into a computer program through the routine work of a technician or programmer.

[0152] The computer program includes processor-executable instructions stored on at least one non-transitory, tangible computer-readable medium. The computer program may also include or rely on the stored data. The computer program may cover a basic input / output system (BIOS) that interacts with the hardware of the special-purpose computer, device drivers that interact with specific devices of the special-purpose computer, one or more operating systems, user applications, background services, background applications, etc.

[0153] The computer program may include: (i) descriptive text to be parsed, such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language), XML (eXtensible Markup Language), or JSON (JavaScript Object Notation); (ii) assembly code; (iii) object code generated from source code by a compiler; (iv) source code to be executed by an interpreter; (v) source code to be compiled and executed by a just-in-time compiler, etc. By way of example only, the source code may be written using the syntax of languages including: C, C++, C#, Objective-C, Swift, Haskell, Go, SQL, R, Lisp, Java®, Fortran, Perl, Pascal, Curl, OCaml, Javascript®, HTML5 (HyperText Markup Language Fifth Edition), Ada, ASP (Active Server Pages), PHP (PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor), Scala, Eiffel, Smalltalk, Erlang, Ruby, Flash®, Visual Basic®, Lua, MATLAB, SIMULINK, and Python®.

Claims

1. An autonomous driving system for a vehicle, comprising: An autonomous module configured to control at least one of the following during autonomous driving: Steering of the vehicle; Braking of the vehicle; And Acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle; and A driving control module configured to: Enable and disable autonomous driving; Determine a future time for a period to start autonomous driving; And At least one of the following: Optionally delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and Cancel the period of autonomous driving; Wherein the driving control module is configured to: Determine a condition awareness value of the driver based on an input from a driver monitoring system; and Based on the condition awareness value, implement at least one of the following: Optionally delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and Cancel the period of autonomous driving.

2. The autonomous driving system according to claim 1, wherein The driving control module is configured to: Determine a second future time after the future time at which an event may occur and end the period of autonomous driving; And Cancel the period of autonomous driving when the period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than a predetermined period.

3. The autonomous driving system according to claim 2, wherein, The driving control module is configured to: Determine the probability that the event will occur at the second future time; and Cancel the period of autonomous driving in both of the following cases: (a) The period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than the predetermined period; and The probability that the event occurs is greater than a predetermined value.

4. The autonomous driving system according to claim 3, wherein, The driving control module is configured to enable autonomous driving at the future time in at least one of the following cases: (a) The period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is greater than the predetermined period; and The probability that the event occurs is less than the predetermined value.

5. The autonomous driving system according to claim 1, wherein The driving control module is configured to selectively adjust one or more parameters of the autonomous driving based on driver input during autonomous driving.

6. The autonomous driving system according to claim 5, wherein, The driving control module is configured to adjust the lane positioning during autonomous driving based on driver actuation of the steering wheel during autonomous driving.

7. The autonomous driving system according to claim 5, wherein The driving control module is configured to adjust the steering at an intersection during autonomous driving based on driver steering during autonomous driving.

8. The autonomous driving system according to claim 1, wherein The driving control module is configured to, when the condition awareness value is less than a predetermined value, implement at least one of the following: Optionally delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and Cancel the period of autonomous driving.

9. The autonomous driving system according to claim 1, wherein, The driving control module is configured to: Determine whether the current speed of the vehicle should be adjusted before starting the autonomous driving; and When the current speed should be adjusted, implement at least one of the following: Optionally delay the start of autonomous driving until after the future time; and Cancel the period of autonomous driving.

10. The autonomous driving system according to claim 1, wherein, The driving control module is further configured to optionally advance the start of autonomous driving before the future time.

11. The autonomous driving system according to claim 10, wherein, The driving control module is configured to: Determine a second future time after the future time at which an event may occur and end the period of autonomous driving; And Advance the start of the autonomous driving such that the time period of autonomous driving between the future time and the second future time is at least a predetermined time period.

12. An autonomous driving method for a vehicle, comprising: During autonomous driving, controlling at least one of the following: The steering of the vehicle; The braking of the vehicle; And The acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle; Selectively enabling and disabling autonomous driving; Determining a future time for the time period to start autonomous driving; At least one of the following: Selectively delaying the start of the autonomous driving until after the future time; and Canceling the time period of the autonomous driving; Determining a driver's situation awareness value based on an input from a driver monitoring system; and Based on the situation awareness value, implementing at least one of the following: Selectively delaying the start of the autonomous driving until after the future time; and Canceling the time period of the autonomous driving.

13. The autonomous driving method according to claim 12, further comprising: Determining a second future time after the future time at which an event may occur and ending the time period of the autonomous driving; And When the time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than a predetermined time period, canceling the time period of the autonomous driving.

14. The autonomous driving method according to claim 13, further comprising: Determining the probability of the event occurring at the second future time; And Canceling the time period of the autonomous driving in both of the following cases: (a) The time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is less than the predetermined time period; and The probability of the event occurring is greater than a predetermined value.

15. The autonomous driving method according to claim 14, further comprising enabling autonomous driving at the future time in at least one of the following cases: (a) The time period between (a) the future time and (b) the second future time is greater than the predetermined time period; and The probability of the event occurring is less than the predetermined value.

16. The autonomous driving method according to claim 12, further comprising selectively adjusting one or more parameters of the autonomous driving based on a driver input during autonomous driving.

17. The autonomous driving method according to claim 16, further comprising adjusting the lane positioning during autonomous driving based on a driver actuation of the steering wheel during autonomous driving.

18. The autonomous driving method according to claim 16, further comprising adjusting the steering at an intersection during autonomous driving based on a driver's steering during autonomous driving.

19. The autonomous driving method according to claim 12, further comprising selectively advancing the start of the autonomous driving before the future time.

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