Vehicle control device, vehicle control method, and storage medium

Abstract

A vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a storage medium that can more appropriately control vehicle driving. The vehicle control device includes: a first recognition unit that recognizes left and right two road dividing lines based on the output of a detection device and outputs them as first left and right road dividing lines; a second recognition unit that recognizes left and right two road dividing lines based on map information and outputs them as second left and right road dividing lines; a judgment unit that judges whether there is a deviation between the first and second left road dividing lines and a deviation between the first and second right road dividing lines; a setting unit that, when the judgment unit judges that there is a deviation only in one of the groups of the first and second left road dividing lines and the groups of the first and second right road dividing lines, sets the position offset by a prescribed width from the other group to the side of one group as the center of the driving road on which the vehicle will drive in the future; a generation unit that generates a driving road based on the center of the driving road set by the setting unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a storage medium. Background Art

[0002] Regarding the control of autonomous driving in the case where the lane division lines of the lane in which the vehicle is traveling cannot be detected, research is being promoted. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2019-53596 discloses the following technique: Among the width of the road determined based on the surrounding information obtained by the first acquisition means and the width of the road indicated by the information of the road obtained by the second acquisition means, the driving control of the vehicle is performed based on the smaller width. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In the conventional technique, regardless of the correctness of the acquired information, the smaller road width is always selected. As a result, in the case where the selected information is incorrect, inappropriate driving control of the vehicle may sometimes be performed.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and one of its objects is to provide a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a storage medium that can perform more appropriate driving control of a vehicle.

[0005] The vehicle control device, the vehicle control method, and the storage medium of the present invention adopt the following configuration.

[0006] (1): A vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present invention includes: a first recognition unit that recognizes, as a first left road division line and a first right road division line, the left and right two road division lines that divide the lane in which the vehicle is located, based on the output of a detection device that detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle; a second recognition unit that recognizes, as a second left road division line and a second right road division line, the left and right two road division lines that divide the lane in which the vehicle is located, based on map information; a determination unit that determines whether there is a deviation between the first left road division line and the second left road division line, and determines whether there is a deviation between the first right road division line and the second right road division line; a setting unit that, when the determination unit determines that there is a deviation in only one of the groups of the first left road division line and the second left road division line, and the group of the first right road division line and the second right road division line, sets the position obtained by offsetting the other group of the first left road division line and the second left road division line, and the group of the first right road division line and the second right road division line, by a specified width toward the side of the one group as the center of the driving road on which the vehicle will travel in the future; and a generation unit that generates the driving road based on the center of the driving road set by the setting unit, and the setting unit sets the specified width based on the smaller value of the width between the first left road division line and the first right road division line, and the width between the second left road division line and the second right road division line.

[0007] (2): Based on the above (1) aspect, the determination unit determines whether there is the deviation based on the deviation amount between the first left road division line and the second left road division line, and the determination unit determines whether there is the deviation based on the deviation amount between the first right road division line and the second right road division line, and the deviation amount is a deviation amount related to the vertical distance between the first left road division line and the second left road division line, the angle between the first left road division line and the second left road division line, the vertical distance between the first right road division line and the second right road division line, or the angle between the first right road division line and the second right road division line.

[0008] (3): Based on the above (2) aspect, the determination unit determines that there is the deviation when the deviation amount is equal to or greater than a threshold value, and the determination unit sets the threshold value based on the amount of change in the curvature of the first left road division line or the first right road division line.

[0009] (4): Based on the solution in (1) above, the vehicle control device further includes: a driving control unit that controls the steering, acceleration, and deceleration of the vehicle without relying on the operation of the driver of the vehicle; and a mode determination unit that determines the driving mode of the vehicle as any one of a plurality of driving modes including a first driving mode and a second driving mode. The second driving mode is a driving mode in which the tasks assigned to the driver are lighter than those in the first driving mode. At least a part of the plurality of driving modes, including the second driving mode, are driving modes controlled by the driving control unit. When the tasks related to the determined driving mode are not executed by the driver, the mode determination unit changes the driving mode of the vehicle to a driving mode with heavier tasks. When the driving mode of the vehicle is the second driving mode and the generation unit generates the driving route, the mode determination unit continues the second driving mode.

[0010] (5): Based on the solution in (4) above, the vehicle control device further includes a third recognition unit that recognizes the driving trajectory of the preceding vehicle. When the driving trajectory recognized by the third recognition unit intersects with the first left road dividing line or the first right road dividing line, the mode determination unit changes the driving mode of the vehicle from the second driving mode to the first driving mode.

[0011] (6): The vehicle control method of other solutions of the present invention causes a computer mounted on the vehicle to perform the following processing: Based on the output of a detection device that detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle, identify the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as a first left road dividing line and a first right road dividing line; Based on map information, identify the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as a second left road dividing line and a second right road dividing line; Determine whether there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and determine whether there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line; In the case where only one of the groups of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line is determined to have the deviation, set the position after offsetting a specified width from the other group of the group of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line to the side of the one group as the center of the driving road on which the vehicle will travel in the future; Generate the driving road based on the center of the driving road; and Set the specified width based on the smaller value of the width between the first left road dividing line and the first right road dividing line, and the width between the second left road dividing line and the second right road dividing line.

[0012] (7): A storage medium of another solution of the present invention stores a program, and the program causes a computer mounted on a vehicle to perform the following processing: Based on the output of a detection device that detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle, identify the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as a first left road dividing line and a first right road dividing line; Based on map information, identify the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as a second left road dividing line and a second right road dividing line; Determine whether there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and determine whether there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line; When it is determined that there is a deviation in only one of the groups of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line, set the position after offsetting a specified width from the other group of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line to the side of the group with the deviation as the center of the driving road for the vehicle to drive in the future; Based on the center of the driving road, generate the driving road; and Set the specified width based on the smaller value of the width between the first left road dividing line and the first right road dividing line, and the width between the second left road dividing line and the second right road dividing line.

[0013] According to the solutions of (1) to (7), the driving control of the vehicle can be performed more appropriately. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0014] Figure 1 It is a structural diagram of a vehicle system 1 using the vehicle control device of the embodiment.

[0015] Figure 2 It is a functional structural diagram of the first control unit and the second control unit.

[0016] Figure 3 It is a diagram showing an example of the correspondence relationship between the driving mode, the control state of the vehicle M, and the tasks.

[0017] Figure 4 It is a diagram for explaining the outline of the operation of the vehicle control device of the present embodiment.

[0018] Figure 5 It is a diagram showing an example of the deviation amount measured for the determination by the deviation determination unit.

[0019] Figure 6 It is a diagram showing an example of the threshold value used for the determination by the deviation determination unit.

[0020] Figure 7 This is a diagram for explaining the outline of the exception handling performed by the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment.

[0021] Figure 8 This is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of operations performed by the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment. Detailed Embodiment

[0022] Hereinafter, embodiments of the vehicle control device, vehicle control method, and storage medium of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0023] [Overall Structure]

[0024] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of a vehicle system 1 using the vehicle control device according to the embodiment. The vehicle equipped with the vehicle system 1 is, for example, a two-wheeled, three-wheeled, or four-wheeled vehicle, and its drive source is an internal combustion engine such as a diesel engine or a gasoline engine, an electric motor, or a combination thereof. The electric motor operates using the generated electric power generated by a generator connected to the internal combustion engine, or the discharge power of a secondary battery or a fuel cell.

[0025] The vehicle system 1 includes, for example, a camera 10, a radar device 12, a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) 14, an object recognition device 16, a communication device 20, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 30, a vehicle sensor 40, a navigation device 50, an MPU (Map Positioning Unit) 60, a driving operation member 80, an autonomous driving control device 100, a driving force output device 200, a braking device 210, and a steering device 220. These devices and equipment are interconnected through a multi-channel communication line such as a CAN (Controller Area Network) communication line, a serial communication line, a wireless communication network, etc. It should be noted that Figure 1 The structure shown is only an example, and a part of the structure may be omitted, or other structures may be added.

[0026] The camera 10 is, for example, a digital camera using a solid-state imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). The camera 10 is installed at any part of the vehicle (hereinafter, this vehicle M) equipped with the vehicle system 1. When photographing the front, the camera 10 is installed at the upper part of the front windshield, the back of the in-vehicle rearview mirror, etc. The camera 10 periodically and repeatedly photographs the periphery of the vehicle M. The camera 10 may be a stereo camera.

[0027] The radar device 12 emits radio waves such as millimeter waves to the periphery of the host vehicle M, and detects the radio waves (reflected waves) reflected by an object to detect at least the position (distance and azimuth) of the object. The radar device 12 is installed at an arbitrary position of the host vehicle M. The radar device 12 can also detect the position and speed of an object by the FM-CW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave) method.

[0028] The LIDAR 14 irradiates light (or an electromagnetic wave with a wavelength close to light) to the periphery of the host vehicle M and measures the scattered light. The LIDAR 14 detects the distance to an object based on the time from light emission to light reception. The irradiated light is, for example, pulsed laser light. The LIDAR 14 is installed at an arbitrary position of the host vehicle M.

[0029] The object recognition device 16 performs sensor fusion processing on the detection results of a part or all of the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 to recognize the position, type, speed, etc. of an object. The object recognition device 16 outputs the recognition result to the autonomous driving control device 100. The object recognition device 16 can also directly output the detection results of the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 to the autonomous driving control device 100. The object recognition device 16 can also be omitted from the vehicle system 1.

[0030] The communication device 20 communicates with other vehicles existing in the periphery of the host vehicle M, for example, using a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, Bluetooth (registered trademark), DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), etc., or communicates with various server devices via a radio base station.

[0031] The HMI 30 presents various information to the occupants of the host vehicle M and accepts input operations performed by the occupants. The HMI 30 includes various display devices, speakers, buzzers, touch panels, switches, buttons, etc.

[0032] The vehicle sensor 40 includes a vehicle speed sensor that detects the speed of the host vehicle M, an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration, a yaw rate sensor that detects the angular velocity about the vertical axis, an azimuth sensor that detects the orientation of the host vehicle M, etc.

[0033] The navigation device 50 includes, for example, a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver 51, a navigation HMI 52, and a route determination unit 53. The navigation device 50 stores first map information 54 in a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a flash memory. The GNSS receiver 51 determines the position of the host vehicle M based on signals received from GNSS satellites. The position of the host vehicle M can also be determined or supplemented by an INS (Inertial Navigation System) using the output of the vehicle sensor 40. The navigation HMI 52 includes a display device, a speaker, a touch panel, keys, etc. Part or all of the navigation HMI 52 can be shared with the aforementioned HMI 30. The route determination unit 53 determines, for example, a route (hereinafter, the on-map route) from the position of the host vehicle M determined by the GNSS receiver 51 (or an arbitrarily input position) to the destination input by the occupant using the navigation HMI 52. The first map information 54 is information representing the shape of a road, for example, by showing road segments and nodes connected by the road segments. The first map information 54 can include the curvature of the road, POI (Point Of Interest) information, etc. The on-map route is output to the MPU 60. The navigation device 50 can also perform route guidance using the navigation HMI 52 based on the on-map route. The navigation device 50 can be implemented, for example, by the functions of a terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal held by the occupant. The navigation device 50 can also send the current position and the destination to a navigation server via the communication device 20 and obtain a route equivalent to the on-map route from the navigation server.

[0034] The MPU 60 includes, for example, a recommended lane determination unit 61 and stores second map information 62 in a storage device such as an HDD or a flash memory. The recommended lane determination unit 61 divides the on-map route provided by the navigation device 50 into a plurality of blocks (for example, divided every 100 [m] in the vehicle traveling direction) and determines a recommended lane for each block with reference to the second map information 62. The recommended lane determination unit 61 makes a decision on which lane from the left to drive in. When there is a branch point in the on-map route, the recommended lane determination unit 61 determines the recommended lane in such a way that the host vehicle M can drive on a reasonable route for traveling to the branch destination.

[0035] The second map information 62 is map information with higher accuracy than the first map information 54. The second map information 62 includes, for example, information on the center of a lane, or information on the boundary of a lane. In addition, the second map information 62 may also include road information, traffic restriction information, address information (address and postal code), facility information, telephone number information, information on prohibited sections where the following-described mode A or mode B is prohibited, and the like. The second map information 62 can also be updated at any time by communicating with other devices via the communication device 20.

[0036] The driving operation member 80 includes, for example, an accelerator pedal, a brake pedal, a shift lever, a steering wheel, a variable steering gear, a joystick, and other operation members. A sensor for detecting an operation amount or the presence or absence of an operation is installed in the driving operation member 80, and the detection result is output to a part or all of the automatic driving control device 100, or the driving force output device 200, the braking device 210, and the steering device 220.

[0037] The automatic driving control device 100 includes, for example, a first control unit 120 and a second control unit 160. The first control unit 120 and the second control unit 160 are respectively implemented, for example, by a hardware processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (software). In addition, a part or all of these components may also be implemented by hardware (circuit unit; including circuitry) such as an LSI (Large Scale Integration), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and may also be implemented by the cooperation of software and hardware. The program can be pre-stored in a storage device (a storage device having a non-volatile storage medium) such as an HDD or a flash memory of the automatic driving control device 100, or can be stored in a removable storage medium such as a DVD or a CD-ROM, and loaded into the HDD or flash memory of the automatic driving control device 100 by attaching the storage medium (non-volatile storage medium) to a driving device. The automatic driving control device 100 is an example of a "vehicle control device", and the combination of the action plan generation unit 140 and the second control unit 160 is an example of a "driving control unit".

[0038] Figure 2It is a functional structure diagram of the first control unit 120 and the second control unit 160. The first control unit 120 includes, for example, an identification unit 130, an action plan generation unit 140, and a mode determination unit 150. The first control unit 120 implements, for example, functions based on AI (Artificial Intelligence) and functions based on a pre-given model in parallel. For example, the function of "identifying intersections" can be implemented as follows: Parallelly execute the identification of intersections based on deep learning, etc., and the identification based on pre-given conditions (signals, road markings, etc. that can perform pattern matching), score both, and comprehensively evaluate. Thereby, the reliability of autonomous driving is ensured.

[0039] The identification unit 130 includes, for example, an object identification unit 132, a road marking identification unit 134, a map matching unit 136, and a preceding vehicle trajectory identification unit 138. The road marking identification unit 134 is an example of a "first identification unit", the map matching unit 136 is an example of a "second identification unit", and the preceding vehicle trajectory identification unit 138 is an example of a "third identification unit".

[0040] The object identification unit 132 identifies the position of an object existing around the own vehicle M, as well as states such as speed and acceleration, based on information input from the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 via the object identification device 16. The position of the object is identified, for example, as a position on an absolute coordinate with the representative point (center of gravity, center of drive shaft, etc.) of the own vehicle M as the origin, and is used for control. The position of the object can also be represented by a representative point such as the center of gravity or corner of the object, or can be represented by a region. The "state" of the object may include the acceleration, jerk, or "action state" of the object (for example, whether it is currently changing lanes or wants to change lanes).

[0041] The road marking identification unit 134 extracts edge points with a large brightness difference from adjacent pixels in the image output by the camera 10, and connects the edge points to identify the left and right two road markings in the image. At this time, the road marking identification unit 134 identifies the left and right two road markings in such a way that the left and right two road markings are coordinates in a vehicle coordinate system with the representative point of the own vehicle as the origin, the vehicle center axis as the X axis, and the axis orthogonal to the vehicle center axis as the Y axis.

[0042] The map matching unit 136 compares the position of the host vehicle M determined by the navigation device 50, the image captured by the camera 10, the output of the azimuth sensor included in the vehicle sensor 40, etc. with the second map information 62, and identifies on which road and which lane in the map the host vehicle M is traveling. The map matching unit 136 also identifies the left and right road dividing lines that delimit the lane in which the host vehicle M is located, based on the second map information 62. At this time, similar to the road dividing line recognition unit 134, the map matching unit 136 identifies the left and right road dividing lines as coordinates in the vehicle coordinate system. The map matching unit 136 synthesizes the left and right road dividing lines identified by the road dividing line recognition unit 134 and the left and right road dividing lines it has identified in this vehicle coordinate system. For details of these four road dividing lines, refer to Figure 4 described later.

[0043] Based on the image output by the camera 10, the preceding vehicle trajectory recognition unit 138 determines whether there is a preceding vehicle with respect to the host vehicle M, and when it is determined that there is a preceding vehicle with respect to the host vehicle M, obtains the traveling trajectory of the preceding vehicle as coordinate points in the vehicle coordinate system.

[0044] The action plan generation unit 140 generates a target trajectory for the host vehicle M to automatically (independent of the driver's operation) travel in the future in such a way that it travels on the recommended lane determined by the recommended lane determination unit 61 in principle and can cope with the surrounding conditions of the host vehicle M. The target trajectory includes, for example, a speed element. For example, the target trajectory is expressed in a form in which the points (trajectory points) that the host vehicle M should reach are arranged in sequence. The trajectory points are the points that the host vehicle M should reach at regular intervals of travel distance (for example, on the order of several [m]) along the route. In addition, the target speed and target acceleration at regular sampling times (for example, on the order of zero point several [sec]) are generated as part of the target trajectory. Alternatively, the trajectory points may be the positions that the host vehicle M should reach at the sampling times at regular sampling times. In this case, the information on the target speed and target acceleration is expressed in the form of the intervals between the trajectory points. In addition, the action plan generation unit 140 includes a deviation determination unit 142 and a travel road center setting unit 144, but their functions are described later.

[0045] The mode determination unit 150 determines the driving mode of the host vehicle M as one of a plurality of driving modes with different tasks assigned to the driver. The mode determination unit 150 includes, for example, a driver state determination unit 152 and a mode change processing unit 154. Their respective functions are described later.

[0046] Figure 3This is a diagram showing an example of the correspondence between the driving mode and the control state and tasks of the vehicle M. The driving modes of the vehicle M include, for example, five modes from mode A to mode E. In terms of the control state, that is, the degree of automation of the driving control of the vehicle M, mode A is the highest, followed by mode B, mode C, and mode D in descending order, and mode E is the lowest. Conversely, in terms of the tasks assigned to the driver, mode A is the lightest, followed by mode B, mode C, and mode D in ascending order, and mode E is the heaviest. It should be noted that in modes D and E, the control state becomes non-autonomous driving. Therefore, as the autonomous driving control device 100, it is its responsibility to end the control related to autonomous driving and switch to driving support or manual driving. Hereinafter, the content of each driving mode will be exemplified.

[0047] In mode A, it becomes an autonomous driving state, and no tasks such as forward monitoring and holding the steering wheel 82 (steering wheel holding in the figure) are assigned to the driver. However, even in mode A, the driver is required to adopt a body posture that can quickly switch to manual driving in response to the requirements from the system centered on the autonomous driving control device 100. It should be noted that the autonomous driving mentioned here refers to the situation where steering and acceleration / deceleration are controlled in a manner independent of the driver's operation. The front refers to the space in the traveling direction of the vehicle M visually confirmed through the front windshield. Mode A is, for example, a driving mode that can be executed when the vehicle M is traveling on a motor vehicle-only road such as a highway at a speed of 50 [km / h] or less and there is a preceding vehicle to follow. Sometimes it is also called TJP (Traffic Jam Pilot). When this condition is not met, the mode determination unit 150 changes the driving mode of the vehicle M to mode B.

[0048] In mode B, it becomes a driving support state, and the task of monitoring the front of the vehicle M (hereinafter, forward monitoring) is assigned to the driver, but the task of holding the steering wheel 82 is not assigned. In mode C, it becomes a driving support state, and the tasks of forward monitoring and holding the steering wheel 82 are assigned to the driver. Mode D is a driving mode in which the driver needs to perform a certain degree of driving operation for at least one of the steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle M. For example, in mode D, driving support such as ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control) and LKAS (Lane Keeping Assist System) is performed. In mode E, it becomes a manual driving state where both steering and acceleration / deceleration need to be performed by the driver. In modes D and E, of course, the task of monitoring the front of the vehicle M is assigned to the driver.

[0049] When the mode determination unit 150 determines that the driver has not performed a task related to the determined driving mode (hereinafter, the current driving mode), it changes the driving mode of the vehicle M to a driving mode with a heavier task.

[0050] For example, in mode A, when the driver is in a physical posture that cannot respond to the system's request to switch to manual driving (for example, continuously looking away from the permitted area, detecting signs of driving difficulties), the mode determination unit 150 performs the following control: uses the HMI 30 to prompt the driver to switch to manual driving. If the driver does not respond, the vehicle M is made to approach the road shoulder and gradually stop, and the automatic driving is stopped. After stopping the automatic driving, the vehicle enters the state of mode D or E, and the vehicle M can be started by the driver's manual operation. The same applies to "stopping the automatic driving" hereinafter. In mode B, when the driver is not monitoring the front, the mode determination unit 150 performs the following control: uses the HMI 30 to prompt the driver to monitor the front. If the driver does not respond, the vehicle M is made to approach the road shoulder and gradually stop, and the automatic driving is stopped. In mode C, when the driver is not monitoring the front or not holding the steering wheel 82, the mode determination unit 150 performs the following control: uses the HMI 30 to prompt the driver to monitor the front and / or hold the steering wheel 82. If the driver does not respond, the vehicle M is made to approach the road shoulder and gradually stop, and the automatic driving is stopped.

[0051] The driver state determination unit 152 monitors the driver's state for the above-mentioned mode change and determines whether the driver's state is a state corresponding to the task. For example, the driver state determination unit 152 analyzes the image captured by the driver monitoring camera 70 to perform a posture estimation process and determines whether the driver is in a physical posture that cannot respond to the system's request to switch to manual driving. In addition, the driver state determination unit 152 analyzes the image captured by the driver monitoring camera 70 to perform a gaze estimation process and determines whether the driver is monitoring the front.

[0052] The mode change processing unit 154 performs various processes for mode change. For example, the mode change processing unit 154 instructs the action plan generation unit 140 to generate a target trajectory for stopping at the road shoulder, or gives a work instruction to a driving support device (not shown), or controls the HMI 30 to prompt the driver to take an action.

[0053] The second control unit 160 controls the driving force output device 200, the braking device 210, and the steering device 220 so that the vehicle M passes through the target trajectory generated by the action plan generation unit 140 at a predetermined time.

[0054] Return Figure 2, the second control unit 160 includes, for example, an acquisition unit 162, a speed control unit 164, and a steering control unit 166. The acquisition unit 162 acquires information on the target trajectory (trajectory points) generated by the action plan generation unit 140 and stores this information in a memory (not shown). The speed control unit 164 controls the driving force output device 200 or the braking device 210 based on the speed element attached to the target trajectory stored in the memory. The steering control unit 166 controls the steering device 220 based on the curvature of the target trajectory stored in the memory. The processing of the speed control unit 164 and the steering control unit 166 is realized, for example, by a combination of feedforward control and feedback control. As an example, the steering control unit 166 performs a feedforward control corresponding to the curvature of the road ahead of the vehicle M and a feedback control based on the deviation from the target trajectory in combination.

[0055] The driving force output device 200 outputs a driving force (torque) for driving the vehicle to the drive wheels. The driving force output device 200 includes, for example, a combination of an internal combustion engine, an electric motor, and a transmission, and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) for controlling them. The ECU controls the above structure according to the information input from the second control unit 160 or the information input from the driving operation member 80.

[0056] The braking device 210 includes, for example, a brake caliper, a working cylinder for transmitting hydraulic pressure to the brake caliper, an electric motor for generating hydraulic pressure in the working cylinder, and a brake ECU. The brake ECU controls the electric motor according to the information input from the second control unit 160 or the information input from the driving operation member 80 so as to output a braking torque corresponding to the braking operation to each wheel. The braking device 210 may also include a mechanism for transmitting the hydraulic pressure generated by the operation of the brake pedal included in the driving operation member 80 to the working cylinder via the master cylinder as a backup mechanism. It should be noted that the braking device 210 is not limited to the structure described above, and may also be an electronically controlled hydraulic braking device that controls an actuator according to the information input from the second control unit 160 to transmit the hydraulic pressure of the master cylinder to the working cylinder.

[0057] The steering device 220 includes, for example, a steering ECU and an electric motor. The electric motor, for example, applies a force to a rack-pinion mechanism to change the orientation of the steering wheel. The steering ECU drives the electric motor according to the information input from the second control unit 160 or the information input from the driving operation member 80 to change the orientation of the steering wheel.

[0058] [Operation]

[0059] Hereinafter, with reference to Figure 4The operation of the vehicle control device according to this embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the host vehicle M is traveling in driving mode B. Figure 4 This is a diagram for explaining the outline of the operation of the vehicle control device according to this embodiment. In Figure 4 it, L1 represents the lane in which the host vehicle M is traveling, the dashed line Lcl represents the position in the vehicle coordinate system of the left road dividing line (hereinafter referred to as the "first left road dividing line") of the host vehicle M recognized from the captured image of the camera 10, the dashed line Lcr represents the position in the vehicle coordinate system of the right road dividing line (hereinafter referred to as the "first right road dividing line") of the host vehicle M recognized from the captured image of the camera 10, the thick solid line Lml represents the position in the vehicle coordinate system of the left road dividing line (hereinafter referred to as the "second left road dividing line") of the host vehicle M shown in the second map information 62, and the thick solid line Lmr represents the position in the vehicle coordinate system of the right road dividing line (hereinafter referred to as the "second right road dividing line") of the host vehicle M shown in the second map information 62. Hereinafter, without considering left and right, the road dividing line of the host vehicle M shown by the camera 10 may sometimes be denoted as Lc, and the road dividing line of the host vehicle M shown by the second map information 62 may sometimes be denoted as Lm.

[0060] The deviation determination unit 142 determines whether there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line Lcl and the second left road dividing line Lml, and determines whether there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line Lcr and the second right road dividing line Lmr. Specifically, the deviation determination unit 142 determines whether the deviation amount of the vertical distance ΔYl between the first left road dividing line Lcl and the second left road dividing line Lml, the angle Δθl between the first left road dividing line Lcl and the second left road dividing line Lml, the vertical distance ΔYr between the first right road dividing line Lcr and the second right road dividing line Lmr, or the angle Δθr between the first right road dividing line Lcr and the second right road dividing line Lmr is equal to or greater than a threshold value. When it is determined that the vertical distance ΔYl, the angle Δθl, the vertical distance ΔYr, or the angle Δθr is equal to or greater than the threshold value, the deviation determination unit 142 determines that there is a deviation. Hereinafter, without considering left and right, the angle Δθl or the angle Δθr may sometimes be denoted as Δθ, and the vertical distance ΔYl or the vertical distance ΔYr may sometimes be denoted as the vertical distance ΔY.

[0061] When the deviation determination unit 142 determines that there is a deviation in only one of the groups of the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml, and the group of the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr, the travel road center setting unit 144 sets the position offset by a specified width Wo from the other group of the group of the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml and the group of the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr to the side of this one group as the center CP of the travel road on which the own vehicle M will travel in the future. At this time, the travel road center setting unit 144 sets the specified width Wo based on the smaller value between the width Wc between the first left road division line Lcl and the first right road division line Lcr and the width Wm between the second left road division line Lml and the second right road division line Lmr. Specifically, the travel road center setting unit 144 sets the specified width Wo to 1 / 2 of the smaller value between the width Wc and the width Wm. That is, Wo = 1 / 2 × min(Wc, Wm) holds. After that, the action plan generation unit 140 generates a target trajectory in such a way that the center of the own vehicle M passes through the set center CP of the travel road. Thus, even when there is a deviation in the recognition of the road division lines of the group on either the left or right side, it is possible to continue the autonomous driving in mode B based on the group of the road division lines for which the recognition has not deviated.

[0062] On the other hand, when the deviation determination unit 142 determines that there is a deviation in both of the groups of the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml, and the group of the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr, the deviation determination unit 142 does not cause the travel road center setting unit 144 to set the center CP of the travel road, but causes the mode determination unit 150 to change the driving mode from mode B to mode C (or a driving mode with a heavier task). Thus, when there is a deviation in the recognition of the road division lines for both the left and right groups, by changing the driving mode to a driving mode with a heavier task, safety can be ensured.

[0063] When the deviation determination unit 142 determines that there is no deviation in both of the groups of the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml, and the group of the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr, the road division lines are normally recognized, so the mode determination unit 150 continues the driving mode of mode B.

[0064] Figure 5 It is a diagram showing an example of the deviation amount measured for determination by the deviation determination unit 142. As Figure 5As shown, the deviation determination unit 142 calculates the vertical distance ΔY between the road division line Lc and the road division line Lm based on the road division line Lc and the road division line Lm recognized by the recognition unit 130, and calculates the angle Δθ between the road division line Lc and the road division line Lm recognized by the recognition unit 130. Here, the road division line Lc and the road division line Lm that are the objects for calculating the vertical distance ΔY and the angle Δθ are the road division line Lc and the road division line Lm within a range of a specified distance (for example, 30 m) from the own vehicle M. In addition, when the road division line Lc and the road division line Lm recognized by the recognition unit 130 are curves instead of straight lines, the deviation determination unit 142 can calculate the vertical distance ΔY and the angle Δθ on the basis of approximating the curve as a straight line.

[0065] The deviation determination unit 142 compares the calculated vertical distance ΔY and angle Δθ with thresholds respectively. Figure 6 It is a diagram showing an example of the threshold used for determination by the deviation determination unit 142. As Figure 6 shown, the deviation determination unit 142 determines whether the vertical distance ΔY is equal to or greater than the first threshold ΔY1 and equal to or less than the second threshold ΔY2, and determines whether the angle Δθ is equal to or greater than the third threshold Δθ1 and equal to or less than the fourth threshold Δθ2.

[0066] When the combination of the vertical distance ΔY and the angle Δθ is within the range of the region R1 where the vertical distance ΔY is equal to or greater than the first threshold ΔY1 and equal to or less than the second threshold ΔY2 and the angle Δθ is equal to or greater than 0 and equal to or less than the third threshold Δθ1, or within the range of the region R2 where the vertical distance ΔY is equal to or greater than 0 and equal to or less than the first threshold ΔY1 and the angle Δθ is equal to or greater than the third threshold Δθ1 and equal to or less than the fourth threshold Δθ2, the deviation determination unit 142 determines that there is a deviation and causes the travel path center setting unit 144 to set the center CP of the travel path.

[0067] Since the region R0 where the vertical distance ΔY is 0 or more and below the first threshold ΔY1, and the angle Δθ is 0 or more and below the third threshold Δθ1 is a normal region, when the combination of the vertical distance ΔY and the angle Δθ is within the range of the region R0, the deviation determination unit 142 determines that there is no deviation. When the combination of the vertical distance ΔY and the angle Δθ is outside the ranges of the region R0, the region R1, and the region R2, the deviation determination unit 142 determines that there is a deviation. However, instead of causing the driving path center setting unit 144 to set the center CP of the driving path, the driving mode is changed from mode B to mode C (or a driving mode with a heavier task). Thus, even when the recognition of the road division line for one of the left and right single-side groups deviates, it is possible to continue the automatic driving in mode B based on the group on the other side where the recognition of the road division line does not deviate, and when the generated deviation is too large (i.e., the vertical distance ΔY is greater than the second threshold ΔY2, or the angle Δθ is greater than the fourth threshold Δθ2), it is possible to ensure safety by changing the driving mode to a driving mode with a heavier task.

[0068] It should be noted that in the above description, the first threshold ΔY1, the second threshold ΔY2, the third threshold Δθ1, and the fourth threshold Δθ2 are described as constants. However, in the present embodiment, the deviation determination unit 142 may also set these thresholds based on the amount of change in the curvature of the first left road division line Lcl or the first right road division line Lcl. Here, the amount of change in curvature refers to the time change rate of the curvature R of the road division line Lc shown by the camera 10 at a distance X [m] ahead. For example, it can be calculated as follows: Represent the position of the road division line Lc at a distance X [m] ahead of the own vehicle M by a polynomial, perform a second differentiation of this polynomial with respect to X, and then differentiate it with respect to the time t. By setting the thresholds corresponding to the amount of change in the curvature of the road division line detected by the camera 10 in this way, it is possible to more flexibly determine the deviation in the recognition of the road division line.

[0069] Next, refer to Figure 7 to describe the exception handling performed by the vehicle control device of the present embodiment. Figure 7 is a diagram for explaining the outline of the exception handling performed by the vehicle control device of the present embodiment. In Figure 7Among them, M1 represents the preceding vehicle of the vehicle M, and MT represents the driving trajectory of the preceding vehicle M1. The deviation determination unit 142 determines whether the driving trajectory MT recognized by the recognition unit 130 intersects with the first left road dividing line Lcl or the first right road dividing line Lcr. When it is determined that the driving trajectory MT recognized by the recognition unit 130 intersects with the first left road dividing line Lcl or the first right road dividing line Lcr, regardless of the deviation determination result of the deviation determination unit 142, the mode determination unit 150 changes the driving mode from mode B to mode C (or a driving mode with a heavier task). This is because when the driving trajectory MT intersects with the first left road dividing line Lcl or the first right road dividing line Lcr, considering the possibility that the recognition accuracy of the camera 10 is significantly reduced, the occupants of the vehicle M can be prompted to pay attention by changing to a driving mode with a heavier task. In Figure 7 this case, since the driving trajectory MT intersects with the first right road dividing line Lcr, regardless of the determination result of the deviation determination unit 142, the mode determination unit 150 changes the driving mode from mode B to mode C (or a driving mode with a heavier task).

[0070] Next, refer to Figure 8 to describe the flow of the operation performed by the vehicle control device of the present embodiment. Figure 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the operation performed by the vehicle control device of the present embodiment. The processing of this flowchart is repeatedly executed while the vehicle M is traveling in mode B.

[0071] First, the deviation determination unit 142 determines whether there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line Lcl and the second left road dividing line Lml, or whether there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line Lcr and the second right road dividing line Lmr. (Step S100). When it is not determined that there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line Lcl and the second left road dividing line Lml, or there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line Lcr and the second right road dividing line Lmr, the deviation determination unit 142 executes the processing of step S100 again.

[0072] On the other hand, in the case where it is determined that there is a deviation between the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml, or there is a deviation between the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr, the deviation determination unit 142 then determines whether there are deviations on both sides between the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml, and between the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr (step S101). In the case where it is determined that there are deviations on both sides between the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml, and between the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr, the mode determination unit 150 changes the driving mode from mode B to mode C (or a driving mode with a heavier task).

[0073] On the other hand, in the case where it is not determined that there are deviations on both sides between the first left road division line Lcl and the second left road division line Lml, and between the first right road division line Lcr and the second right road division line Lmr, the deviation determination unit 142 determines whether the travel trajectory MT of the preceding vehicle M1 recognized by the recognition unit 130 intersects with the first left road division line Lcl or the first right road division line Lcr (step S103). In the case where it is determined that the travel trajectory MT of the preceding vehicle M1 recognized by the recognition unit 130 intersects with the first left road division line Lcl or the first right road division line Lcr, the mode determination unit 150 changes the driving mode from mode B to mode C (or a driving mode with a heavier task).

[0074] On the other hand, in the case where it is determined that the travel trajectory MT of the preceding vehicle M1 recognized by the recognition unit 130 does not intersect with the first left road division line Lcl or the first right road division line Lcr, the travel road center setting unit 144 sets a specified width Wo based on the smaller value of the width Wc between the first left road division line Lcl and the first right road division line Lcr and the width Wm between the second left road division line Lml and the second right road division line Lmr, and sets the position offset by the specified width Wo from the division line in the direction where no deviation is determined to the other division line as the center CP of the travel road on which the own vehicle M will travel in the future (step S104). Then, the action plan generation unit 140 generates a target trajectory in such a way that the center of the own vehicle M passes through the set center CP of the travel road (step S105). Thus, the processing of this flowchart ends.

[0075] According to the embodiment described above, the left and right road division lines recognized by the camera 10 are compared with the left and right road division lines shown by the second map information 62 respectively. When the road division lines deviate on only one side, a position offset by a predetermined width from the road division line on the other side is set as the center CP of the driving path on which the own vehicle M will travel in the future, and a target trajectory is generated so as to pass through this center CP. Thereby, the driving control of the vehicle can be performed more appropriately.

[0076] The embodiment described above can be expressed as follows.

[0077] A vehicle control device includes:

[0078] a storage device that stores a program; and

[0079] a hardware processor,

[0080] The vehicle control device is configured to perform the following processing by executing the program stored in the storage device by the hardware processor:

[0081] Based on the output of a detection device that detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle, identify the left and right two road division lines that divide the lane in which the vehicle is located, and output them as a first left road division line and a first right road division line;

[0082] Based on map information, identify the left and right two road division lines that divide the lane in which the vehicle is located, and output them as a second left road division line and a second right road division line;

[0083] Judge whether there is a deviation between the first left road division line and the second left road division line, and judge whether there is a deviation between the first right road division line and the second right road division line;

[0084] When it is judged that there is a deviation in only one group among the group of the first left road division line and the second left road division line and the group of the first right road division line and the second right road division line, a position offset by a predetermined width from the other group among the group of the first left road division line and the second left road division line and the group of the first right road division line and the second right road division line to the side of the one group is set as the center of the driving path on which the vehicle will travel in the future;

[0085] Based on the center of the driving path, generate the driving path; and

[0086] Set the specified width based on the smaller value between the width between the first left road dividing line and the first right road dividing line, and the width between the second left road dividing line and the second right road dividing line.

[0087] The above embodiments for use illustrate specific embodiments of the present invention, but the present invention is in no way limited by such embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

Claims

1. A vehicle control device, wherein, the vehicle control device includes: a first recognition unit that, based on the output of a detection device that detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle, recognizes the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane in which the vehicle is located, and outputs them as a first left road dividing line and a first right road dividing line; a second recognition unit that, based on map information, recognizes the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane in which the vehicle is located, and outputs them as a second left road dividing line and a second right road dividing line; a determination unit that determines whether there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and determines whether there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line; a setting unit that, when the determination unit determines that there is a deviation in only one of the groups of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line, sets the position obtained by offsetting the other group of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line by a prescribed width toward the side of the one group as the center of the driving road on which the vehicle will travel in the future; and a generation unit that generates the driving road based on the center of the driving road set by the setting unit, wherein the setting unit sets the prescribed width based on the smaller value of the width between the first left road dividing line and the first right road dividing line, and the width between the second left road dividing line and the second right road dividing line.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein, the determination unit determines whether there is a deviation based on the deviation amount between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, the determination unit determines whether there is a deviation based on the deviation amount between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line, wherein the deviation amount is a deviation amount related to the vertical distance between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, the angle between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, the vertical distance between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line, or the angle between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein, the determination unit determines that there is a deviation when the deviation amount is equal to or greater than a threshold value, and the determination unit sets the threshold value based on the amount of change in the curvature of the first left road dividing line or the first right road dividing line.

4. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein, the vehicle control device further includes: a driving control unit that controls the steering, acceleration, and deceleration of the vehicle without relying on the operation of the driver of the vehicle; and A mode determination unit that determines a driving mode of the vehicle as any one of a plurality of driving modes including a first driving mode and a second driving mode, where the second driving mode is a driving mode in which the tasks assigned to the driver are lighter than those in the first driving mode, and at least a part of the plurality of driving modes including the second driving mode is a driving mode controlled by the driving control unit. The mode determination unit changes the driving mode of the vehicle to a driving mode with heavier tasks when the tasks related to the determined driving mode are not performed by the driver. When the driving mode of the vehicle is the second driving mode and the generation unit generates the driving route, the mode determination unit continues the second driving mode.

5. The vehicle control device according to claim 4, wherein the vehicle control device further includes a third recognition unit that recognizes the driving trajectory of the preceding vehicle, when the driving trajectory recognized by the third recognition unit intersects the first left road dividing line or the first right road dividing line, the mode determination unit changes the driving mode of the vehicle from the second driving mode to the first driving mode.

6. A vehicle control method, wherein the vehicle control method causes a computer mounted on the vehicle to perform the following processing: Based on the output of a detection device that detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle, recognize the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as the first left road dividing line and the first right road dividing line; Based on the map information, recognize the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as the second left road dividing line and the second right road dividing line; Judge whether there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and judge whether there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line; When it is determined that there is a deviation in only one of the groups of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line, set the position offset by a specified width from the other group of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line to the side of the group with the deviation as the center of the driving route that the vehicle will travel in the future; Generate the driving route based on the center of the driving route; and Set the specified width based on the smaller value of the width between the first left road dividing line and the first right road dividing line, and the width between the second left road dividing line and the second right road dividing line.

7. A storage medium that stores a program, wherein the program causes a computer mounted on the vehicle to perform the following processing: Based on the output of a detection device that detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle, identify the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as a first left road dividing line and a first right road dividing line; Based on the map information, identify the left and right two road dividing lines that divide the lane where the vehicle is located, and output them as a second left road dividing line and a second right road dividing line; Judge whether there is a deviation between the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and judge whether there is a deviation between the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line; In the case where only one of the groups of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line is determined to have the deviation, set the position offset by a specified width from the other group of the group of the first left road dividing line and the second left road dividing line, and the group of the first right road dividing line and the second right road dividing line to the side of the one group as the center of the driving road on which the vehicle will travel in the future; Generate the driving road based on the center of the driving road; And Set the specified width based on the smaller value of the width between the first left road dividing line and the first right road dividing line, and the width between the second left road dividing line and the second right road dividing line.

Images