Vehicle control device, storage medium and vehicle control method

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control device, a storage medium and a vehicle control method. The vehicle control device has a driving lane planning unit, which generates a first driving lane plan according to the current position of the vehicle, map information and navigation route; a lane change planning unit, which generates a first lane change plan indicating the movement of the vehicle between lanes according to the first driving lane plan or surrounding environment information; and an interval determination unit, which determines whether there is a control transfer request interval for requesting the driver to transfer the driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control at a position less than a first reference distance from the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves, or whether there is a lane change scheduled interval for planning to move from the lane after the vehicle moves to the lane before the vehicle moves at a position less than a second reference distance when the first lane change plan has been generated, and the lane change planning unit terminates the first lane change plan when there is a control transfer request interval or a lane change scheduled interval.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control device, a storage medium storing a computer program for vehicle control, and a vehicle control method. Background Art

[0002] The automatic control system mounted on the vehicle generates a navigation route for the vehicle based on the vehicle's current position, the vehicle's destination, and a navigation map. The automatic control system controls the vehicle to travel along the navigation route by estimating the vehicle's current position using map information. In addition, the automatic control system controls the vehicle's movements, including movement between lanes.

[0003] When the automatic control system determines that it is difficult to drive the vehicle by automatic control, the automatic control system notifies the driver of a control transfer request so as to transfer the driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control. The driver who receives the notification starts manual control of the vehicle after performing an operation to agree to the control transfer request (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0004] Prior art literature

[0005] Patent Literature

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-159885 Summary of the invention

[0007] Depending on the terrain on which the vehicle is traveling, there may be a control transfer request interval for the driver to request control transfer in order to transfer the driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control in the lane after the vehicle has moved between lanes. When the position of the control transfer request interval is immediately before the lane after the vehicle has moved, the automatic control system notifies the driver of the control transfer request immediately after the vehicle has moved lanes.

[0008] However, if the control transfer request is notified immediately after the vehicle has moved lanes, the driver may be confused and feel uncomfortable with driving under automatic control of the vehicle.

[0009] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a vehicle control device that prevents excessive notification of a control transfer request to a driver and allows the driver to feel comfortable with driving under automatic control of the vehicle.

[0010] According to one embodiment, a vehicle control device is provided. The vehicle control device includes: a driving lane planning unit that generates a first driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle travels in a first driving section of the navigation route based on a current position of the vehicle, map information, and a navigation route; a lane change planning unit that generates a first lane change plan indicating movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the first driving lane plan or surrounding environment information; and a section determination unit that determines, when the first lane change plan has been generated, whether there is a control transfer request section that requests a driver to transfer driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control at a position less than a first reference distance from a position on the lane after the vehicle moves, or whether there is a lane change planned section that plans to move from the lane after the vehicle moves to the lane before the vehicle moves at a position less than a second reference distance from a position on the lane after the vehicle moves, and when there is the control transfer request section or the lane change planned section, the lane change planning unit terminates the first lane change plan.

[0011] In addition, the vehicle control device preferably also includes a position estimation unit for estimating the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves, the driving lane planning unit for generating a second driving lane plan indicating the driving lane in which the vehicle travels in the second driving section of the navigation route based on the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves, the map information, and the navigation route, and the lane change planning unit for generating a second lane change plan indicating the movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the second driving lane plan.

[0012] In addition, in the vehicle control device, it is preferred that the lane change planning unit sets, as the lane change planned interval, an automatic lane change planned interval in which the vehicle is planned to move between lanes by automatic control, or a manual lane change planned interval in which the vehicle is planned to move between lanes by manual control, based on the second driving lane plan.

[0013] Furthermore, in the vehicle control device, it is preferred that the lane change planning unit generates the first lane change plan based on the first driving lane plan, or the surrounding environment information, or a request for movement between lanes issued by the driver, and the interval determination unit determines whether there is the control transfer request interval or the lane change scheduled interval when the first lane change plan has been generated.

[0014] According to another embodiment, a non-transitory storage medium is provided, storing a computer program for controlling a vehicle. The computer program for controlling a vehicle causes a processor to execute: generating a first driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle is to drive in a first driving section of the navigation route based on a current position of the vehicle, map information, and a navigation route; generating a first lane change plan indicating movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the first driving lane plan or surrounding environment information; and, if the first lane change plan has been generated, determining whether there is a control transfer request section requesting a driver to transfer driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control at a position less than a first reference distance from a position on the lane after the vehicle has moved, or whether there is a lane change scheduled section in which the vehicle is to move from the lane after the vehicle has moved to the lane before the vehicle has moved at a position less than a second reference distance from a position on the lane after the vehicle has moved, wherein, if there is the control transfer request section or the lane change scheduled section, causing the processor to execute the termination of the first lane change plan.

[0015] According to another embodiment, a vehicle control method is provided. In the vehicle control method, a vehicle control device executes: generating a first driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle travels in a first driving section of the navigation route based on the current position of the vehicle, map information, and the navigation route; generating a first lane change plan indicating movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the first driving lane plan or surrounding environment information; if the first lane change plan has been generated, determining whether there is a control transfer request section requesting the driver to transfer the driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control at a position less than a first reference distance from the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves, or whether there is a lane change scheduled section in which the vehicle moves from the lane after the vehicle moves to the lane before the vehicle moves at a position less than a second reference distance from the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves; and if there is a control transfer request section or a lane change scheduled section, the vehicle control device executes to terminate the first lane change plan.

[0016] The vehicle control device according to the present disclosure prevents the driver from being excessively notified of a control transfer request, thereby making the driver feel comfortable with the driving of the vehicle under automatic control. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 It is a diagram for explaining the outline of the operation of the vehicle control system according to the first embodiment.

[0018] Figure 2 It is a schematic configuration diagram of a vehicle on which the vehicle control system according to the first embodiment is installed.

[0019] Figure 3This is an example of an operation flow related to the vehicle control process of the vehicle control system according to the first embodiment.

[0020] Figure 4 This is a diagram for explaining an example of vehicle control processing when there is a control transfer request section in the lane after the movement.

[0021] Figure 5 This is an example of an operation flow related to the vehicle control process of the vehicle control system according to the second embodiment.

[0022] Figure 6 1 is a diagram for explaining an example of vehicle control processing when there is a lane change planned section in the lane after the movement.

[0023] Figure 7 FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining another example of the vehicle control process when there is a lane change planned section in the lane after the movement.

[0024] Figure 8 FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining another example of the vehicle control process when there is a lane change planned section in the lane after the movement.

[0025] Fig. 9 This is an example of an operation flow related to the vehicle control process of the vehicle control system according to the third embodiment.

[0026] (Explanation of symbols)

[0027] 1: vehicle control system; 2: camera; 3: positioning information receiver; 4: navigation device; 5: user interface; 5a: display device; 10: vehicle; 11: map information storage device; 12: position estimation device; 13: object detection device; 14: driving lane planning device; 15: driving planning device; 16: vehicle control device; 17: in-vehicle network; 21: communication interface; 22: memory; 23: processor; 231: driving lane planning unit; 232: lane change planning unit; 233: position estimation unit; 234: interval determination unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the operation outline of the vehicle control system 1 according to the first embodiment. Figure 1 , an overview of operations related to vehicle control processing of the vehicle control system 1 disclosed in this specification is described.

[0029] The vehicle 10 travels on a lane 51 of a road 50 having lanes 51 and 52. The lane 51 and the lane 52 are divided by a lane dividing line 53. The navigation route R generated by the vehicle control system 1 indicates that the vehicle 1 travels straight on the road 50.

[0030] The vehicle control system 1 generates a driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle 10 travels in the nearest driving section of the navigation route R based on the current position P1 of the vehicle, map information, and the navigation route R.

[0031] Here, the vehicle control system 1 generates a lane change plan for moving from the lane 51 to the lane 52, for example, based on the driving lane plan or the surrounding environment information or the lane movement request issued by the driver, and estimates the position P2 of the vehicle 10 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves. The surrounding environment information includes, for example, information about other vehicles traveling in front of the vehicle 10.

[0032] There is a control transfer request section TD1 for requesting the driver to transfer the driving of the vehicle 10 from automatic control to manual control at a position L1 in the travel direction from the position P2 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 has moved. The control transfer request section TD1 is set before the automatic control prohibition area R1 where the vehicle control system 1 does not allow the driving of the vehicle 10 under automatic control.

[0033] exist Figure 1 In the example shown, the distance L1 between the position P2 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves and the control transfer request interval TD1 is a distance less than the first reference distance. The first reference distance is a distance at which, after the vehicle 10 under automatic control has finished moving between lanes, even if a control transfer request is notified in the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves, the driver can calmly perform an operation to agree to the control transfer request and start manual control of the vehicle 10 as long as it is greater than this distance. If the distance L1 is less than the first reference distance, there is a possibility that the driver cannot calmly perform an operation to agree to the control transfer request when a control transfer request is notified after the lane movement.

[0034] Assuming that the vehicle 10 moves from the lane 51 to the lane 52, the vehicle 10 enters the control transfer request interval TD1 immediately after the vehicle 10 moves. The vehicle control system 1 notifies the driver of the control transfer request after the vehicle 10 enters the control transfer request interval TD1. When the driver is notified of the control transfer request, he must understand the situation around the vehicle and start driving the vehicle 10 through manual control. Therefore, when the control transfer request is notified immediately after the vehicle 10 moves between lanes, there is a possibility that the driver will feel panic about the automatic control driving.

[0035] Therefore, when the distance L1 between the position P2 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves and the control transfer request interval TD1 is less than the first reference distance, the vehicle control system 1 stops the lane change plan from the lane 51 to the lane 52 and continues driving in the lane 51. Thus, the vehicle control system 1 prevents the driver from being notified of the control transfer request just after the vehicle 10 moves between lanes, so that the driver feels comfortable with the driving of the vehicle 10 under automatic control.

[0036] Figure 2 1 is a schematic diagram of a vehicle 10 equipped with a vehicle control system 1. The vehicle 10 includes a camera 2, a positioning information receiver 3, a navigation device 4, a user interface (UI) 5, a map information storage device 11, a position estimation device 12, an object detection device 13, a driving lane planning device 14, a driving planning device 15, and a vehicle control device 16. Furthermore, the vehicle 10 may also include a distance measuring sensor (not shown) for measuring the distance between the vehicle 10 and surrounding objects, such as a LiDAR sensor.

[0037] The camera 2, the positioning information receiver 3, the navigation device 4, the UI 5, the map information storage device 11, the position estimation device 12, the object detection device 13, the driving lane planning device 14, the driving planning device 15 and the vehicle control device 16 are communicatively connected via an in-vehicle network 17 in accordance with specifications such as a controller area network.

[0038] The camera 2 is an example of a camera unit provided in the vehicle 10. The camera 2 is installed in the vehicle 10 in a manner facing the front of the vehicle 10. The camera 2 captures a camera image representing the environment of a predetermined area in front of the vehicle 10, for example, at a predetermined period. The camera image can represent a road included in the predetermined area in front of the vehicle 10 and road features such as lane dividing lines on the road surface. The camera 2 has a two-dimensional detector composed of an array of photoelectric conversion elements sensitive to visible light, such as CCD or C-MOS, and a camera optical system that forms an image of the area to be photographed on the two-dimensional detector.

[0039] Whenever the camera 2 captures a camera image, it outputs the camera image and the camera image capturing time at which the camera image was captured to the position estimation device 12 and the object detection device 13 via the in-vehicle network 17. The camera image is used in the position estimation device 12 for processing to estimate the position of the vehicle 10. In addition, the camera image is used in the object detection device 13 for processing to detect other objects around the vehicle 10.

[0040] The positioning information receiver 3 outputs positioning information indicating the current position of the vehicle 10. For example, the positioning information receiver 3 can be a GNSS receiver. Whenever the positioning information is acquired in a predetermined reception cycle, the positioning information receiver 3 outputs the positioning information and the positioning information acquisition time when the positioning information is acquired to the navigation device 4 and the map information storage device 11, etc.

[0041] The navigation device 4 generates a navigation route R from the current position of the vehicle 10 to the destination position based on the navigation map information, the destination position of the vehicle 10 input from the UI 5, and the positioning information indicating the current position of the vehicle 10 input from the positioning information receiver 3. The navigation route R includes information on positions such as right turns, left turns, merging, and branching. The navigation device 4 newly generates the navigation route R of the vehicle 10 when a new destination position is set or when the current position of the vehicle 10 deviates from the navigation route R. Whenever the navigation device 4 generates the navigation route R, it outputs the navigation route R to the position estimation device 12 and the driving lane planning device 14 via the in-vehicle network 17.

[0042] UI5 is an example of a notification unit. UI5 is controlled by the navigation device 4 and the vehicle control device 16, etc., and notifies the driver of the driving information of the vehicle 10, the control transfer request, or the request for changing lanes by manual control, etc. In addition, UI5 generates an operation signal corresponding to the operation of the vehicle 10 from the driver. The driving information of the vehicle 10 includes the current position of the vehicle, the navigation route, and other information related to the current and future paths of the vehicle. In order to display the driving information, UI5 has a display device 5a such as a liquid crystal display or a touch panel. In addition, UI5 can also have a sound output device (not shown) for notifying the driver of the driving information, etc. In addition, in UI5, as an input device for inputting the operation information from the driver to the vehicle 10, for example, a touch panel or an operation button is provided. As the operation information, for example, the destination, the passing place, the vehicle speed, the consent of the control transfer request, and other control information of the vehicle 10 can be cited. UI5 outputs the input operation information to the navigation device 4 and the vehicle control device 16 via the in-vehicle network 17.

[0043] The map information storage device 11 stores wide-area map information of a relatively wide range (e.g., a range of 10 km to 30 km square) including the current position of the vehicle 10. The map information includes high-precision map information including three-dimensional information of the road surface, information indicating the type and position of road features or structures such as lane dividing lines on the road, and the legal speed of the road. The map information storage device 11 receives wide-area map information from an external server via a base station through wireless communication via a wireless communication device (not shown) mounted on the vehicle 10 according to the current position of the vehicle 10, and stores the wide-area map information in the storage device. Whenever the positioning information is input from the positioning information receiver 3, the map information storage device 11 refers to the stored wide-area map information, and outputs the map information of a relatively narrow area (e.g., a range of 100 m to 10 km square) including the current position indicated by the positioning information to the position estimation device 12, the object detection device 13, the driving lane planning device 14, the driving planning device 15, and the vehicle control device 16 via the in-vehicle network 17.

[0044] The position estimation device 12 estimates the position of the vehicle 10 at the time of capturing the camera image based on the road features around the vehicle 10 shown in the camera image. For example, the position estimation device 12 compares the lane division lines recognized in the camera image with the lane division lines shown in the map information input from the map information storage device 11, and obtains the estimated position and estimated azimuth of the vehicle 10 at the time of capturing the camera image. In addition, the position estimation device 12 estimates the driving lane on the road where the vehicle 10 is located based on the lane division lines shown in the map information and the estimated position and estimated azimuth of the vehicle 10. Whenever the position estimation device 12 obtains the estimated position, estimated azimuth, and driving lane of the vehicle 10 at the time of capturing the camera image, it outputs this information to the object detection device 13, the driving lane planning device 14, the driving planning device 15, the vehicle control device 16, etc.

[0045] The object detection device 13 detects other objects and their types (e.g., vehicles) around the vehicle 10 based on camera images, etc. The other objects include other vehicles traveling around the vehicle 10. The object detection device 13 tracks the detected other objects and finds the trajectory of the other objects. The object detection device 13 determines the driving lane of the other objects based on the lane dividing lines and the positions of other objects indicated by the map information. The object detection device 13 outputs the object detection information to the driving lane planning device 14 and the driving planning device 15, etc. The object detection information includes information indicating the type of the detected other objects, information indicating the position of the detected other objects, and information indicating the driving lane.

[0046] The driving lane planning device 14 selects a lane in the road where the vehicle 10 is to travel based on the map information, the navigation route R, the surrounding environment information, and the current position of the vehicle 10 at the driving lane plan generation time set in a predetermined cycle, and generates a driving lane plan indicating the predetermined driving lane for the vehicle 10 to travel. The driving lane planning device 14 generates the driving lane plan, for example, in a manner such that the vehicle 10 travels in a lane other than the overtaking lane. Whenever the driving lane plan is generated, the driving lane planning device 14 outputs the driving lane plan to the driving planning device 15. The driving lane planning device 14 is an example of a vehicle control device.

[0047] In addition, the driving lane planning device 14 determines whether it is necessary to change lanes based on the driving lane plan, map information, the navigation route R, and the current position of the vehicle 10 in the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R, and generates a lane change plan based on the determination result. Specifically, the driving lane planning device 14 determines whether it is necessary to change lanes based on the navigation route R and the current position of the vehicle 10 to move to the lane of the destination position of the vehicle 10. It is determined whether there is a merging from the driving road currently driven by the vehicle 10 to other roads of the merging target (merging), and whether the vehicle 10 exits from the driving road to other roads of the branching target (branching). In merging and branching, the vehicle moves from the lane of the driving road to the lane of other roads, so the lane change is entered. The driving lane planning device 14 can also use the surrounding environment information or the vehicle state information in the determination of whether it is necessary to change lanes. The surrounding environment information includes the position and speed of other vehicles driving around the vehicle 10. The vehicle state information includes the current position of the vehicle 10, the vehicle speed, the acceleration, and the direction of travel. When the lane change plan has been generated, the driving lane planning device 14 outputs the driving lane plan to which the lane change plan has been added to the driving planning device 15 .

[0048] In addition, when a lane change plan has been generated, the driving lane planning device 14 determines whether there is a control transfer request interval requesting the driver to transfer the driving of the vehicle 10 from automatic control to manual control at a distance less than the first reference distance from the position on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves. In addition, the driving lane planning device 14 stops the movement of the vehicle 10 between lanes when there is a control transfer request interval. In addition, the driving lane planning device 14 estimates the position on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves. To this end, the driving lane planning device 14 has a communication interface (IF) 21, a memory 22, and a processor 23. The communication interface 21, the memory 22, and the processor 23 are connected via a signal line 24. The communication interface 21 has an interface circuit for connecting the driving lane planning device 14 to the in-vehicle network 17.

[0049] All or part of the functions of the driving lane planning device 14 are, for example, functional modules implemented by a computer program running on the processor 23. The processor 23 has a driving lane planning unit 231, a lane change planning unit 232, a position estimation unit 233, and a section determination unit 234. Alternatively, the functional modules of the processor 23 may also be dedicated arithmetic circuits provided in the processor 23. The processor 23 has one or more CPUs (Central Processing Units) and their peripheral circuits. The processor 23 may also have other arithmetic circuits such as a logic operation unit, a numerical operation unit, or a graphics processing unit. The memory 22 is an example of a storage unit, for example, a volatile semiconductor memory and a non-volatile semiconductor memory. In addition, the memory 22 stores computer programs and various data used in the information processing executed by the processor 23. The driving lane planning unit 231 generates the above-mentioned driving lane plan, and the lane change planning unit 232 generates the above-mentioned lane change plan. The details of other actions in the driving lane planning device 14 will be described later.

[0050] The driving plan device 15 performs a driving plan process for generating a driving plan representing a predetermined driving trajectory of the vehicle 10 until a predetermined time (e.g., 5 seconds) based on the driving lane plan, map information, the current position of the vehicle 10, the surrounding environment information, and the vehicle state information at a driving plan generation time set in a predetermined cycle. The driving plan is represented as a set of the target position of the vehicle 10 and the target vehicle speed at the target position at each time from the current time to the predetermined time. The cycle for generating the driving plan is preferably shorter than the cycle for generating the driving lane plan. The driving plan device 15 generates the driving plan in a manner that can maintain an interval of more than a predetermined distance between the vehicle 10 and other vehicles. Even if the driving lane plan includes a lane change for moving between lanes of the vehicle 10, if an interval of more than a predetermined distance cannot be ensured between the vehicle 10 and other vehicles, the driving plan device 15 generates the driving plan in a manner that stops the vehicle 10. Whenever the driving plan is generated, the driving plan device 15 outputs the driving plan to the vehicle control device 16.

[0051] When the vehicle 10 is driven by automatic control, the vehicle control device 16 controls various parts of the vehicle 10 according to the current position, vehicle speed and yaw rate of the vehicle 10 and the driving plan generated by the driving plan device 15. For example, the vehicle control device 16 obtains the steering angle, acceleration and angular acceleration of the vehicle 10 according to the driving plan, the vehicle speed and yaw rate of the vehicle 10, and sets the steering amount, accelerator opening or braking amount in a manner to obtain the steering angle, acceleration and angular acceleration. Then, the vehicle control device 16 outputs a control signal corresponding to the set steering amount to an actuator (not shown) that controls the steering wheel of the vehicle 10 via the in-vehicle network 17. In addition, the vehicle control device 16 obtains the fuel injection amount according to the set accelerator opening, and outputs the control signal corresponding to the fuel injection amount to a driving device (not shown) such as an engine of the vehicle 10 via the in-vehicle network 17. Alternatively, the vehicle control device 16 outputs a control signal corresponding to the set braking amount to a brake (not shown) of the vehicle 10 via the in-vehicle network 17. Furthermore, when the vehicle 10 is driven by manual control, the vehicle control device 16 controls the steering wheels, the driving device, or the brakes according to the steering amount, the accelerator opening, or the braking amount input by the driver's operation.

[0052] exist Figure 2 In the description, the map information storage device 11, the position estimation device 12, the object detection device 13, the driving lane planning device 14, the driving planning device 15 and the vehicle control device 16 are set as independent devices, but all or part of these devices can also be configured as one device.

[0053] Figure 3 This is an example of an operation flow related to the vehicle control process of the vehicle control system 1 of the first embodiment. Figure 3 , the vehicle control process of the vehicle control system 1 is described. The driving lane planning device 14 generates a new lane change plan each time according to Figure 3 The action flow chart shown executes the vehicle control processing.

[0054] First, after a new lane change plan is generated, the position estimation unit 233 estimates the position of the vehicle 10 on the lane after the vehicle 10 has moved between lanes according to the lane change plan (step S101 ).

[0055] Next, the section determination unit 234 determines whether there is a control transfer request section at a distance less than the first reference distance from the position on the lane after the vehicle 10 has moved (step S102 ).

[0056] If there is a control transfer request section (step S102 —Yes), the lane change planning unit 232 stops generating the lane change plan (step S103 ), and a series of processing ends. The lane change planning unit 232 stops generating the same lane change plan until the vehicle 10 passes through the control transfer request section.

[0057] If there is no control transfer request section (step S102 - No), a series of processing ends.

[0058] Next, refer to the following Figure 4 , further illustrating an operation example of the above-mentioned vehicle control system 1.

[0059] Figure 4 The lane change planning unit 232 generates a lane change plan D1 for moving from the traveling lane 51 to the adjacent lane 52 based on a lane movement request from the driver, for example.

[0060] The position estimation unit 233 estimates the position P2 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves. The position estimation unit 233 calculates the product of the most recent average speed of the vehicle 10 and the predetermined time as the distance L2, and estimates the position P2 on the lane 52 that has advanced from the current position P1 of the vehicle 10 in the traveling direction by a distance L2 as the position on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves. As the predetermined time, for example, the maximum time or average time estimated to be required for changing lanes by automatic control, or the time required for a normal driver to change lanes by manual control can be used.

[0061] In addition, the position estimation unit 233 may estimate the position P2 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves from the current position P1 of the vehicle 10 to the position P2 on the lane 52 of the predetermined distance in the traveling direction. The predetermined distance may be the maximum distance estimated to be required for lane change or the distance required for a normal driver to change lanes by manual control.

[0062] Furthermore, the position estimation unit 233 calculates the distance L2 which is the product of the moving time, which is the quotient obtained by dividing the distance between the center line of the lane 51 being traveled and the center line of the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves by the lateral moving speed, and the most recent average speed of the vehicle 10. The position estimation unit 233 may estimate the position P2 on the lane 52 that has advanced the distance L2 from the current position P1 of the vehicle 10 toward the traveling direction as the position on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves. For example, the steering angle for moving from the lane 51 to the lane 52 is determined based on the current position P1 of the vehicle 10, and the lateral moving speed is determined based on the steering angle and the most recent average speed of the vehicle 10.

[0063] The driving lane planning unit 231 refers to the map information and determines that there is an automatic control prohibited area R2 and a control transfer request area TD2 in the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R on the lane 52. Figure 4 In the example shown, the front lane 52 disappears from the automatic control prohibition area R2. In this way, the automatic control prohibition area is set in front of the place where the lane or road disappears. In addition, the control transfer request section TD2 is arranged in front of the automatic control prohibition area R2. The automatic control prohibition area and the control transfer request section are registered in the map information. In addition, when only the automatic control prohibition area is registered in the map information and the control transfer request section is not registered, the driving lane planning device 14 can also set the control transfer request section in front of the automatic control prohibition area based on the automatic control prohibition area registered in the map information.

[0064] As the automatic control prohibited area R2, there can also be cited an area with terrain where the vehicle control system 1 cannot safely control the movement of the vehicle, an area not equipped with a high-precision map, and an area where the vehicle's automatic control driving is temporarily prohibited. As an area with terrain where the vehicle control system 1 cannot safely control the movement of the vehicle, there can be cited terrain with a curve with a large radius of curvature, terrain with a large slope, terrain including road markings such as stop lines, terrain including intersections, terrain including bus stations, terrain where the road where the vehicle is traveling merges with other roads and the merging section for merging with other roads is short, terrain where the width of the road is so narrow that the vehicle control system 1 cannot safely control the movement of the vehicle, and terrain with a width that multiple vehicles can travel side by side laterally but without lane dividing lines. As an area not equipped with a high-precision map, there can be cited an area in front of a toll booth in a dedicated road for automobiles, a service area, or a parking area. As an area where the vehicle's automatic control driving is temporarily prohibited, there can be cited a construction section or an area notified of dropped object information.

[0065] The control transfer request section TD2 is set from the start position of the automatic control prohibition area R2 to a position a distance L3 ahead and is set in the lane 52. The distance L3 is a distance in which the driver who has been notified of the control transfer request can easily perform an operation to agree to the control transfer request and start manual control of the vehicle 10.

[0066] The section determination unit 234 calculates the distance L4 of the lane 52 between the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves and the start position of the control transfer request section TD2 based on the map information, and determines that the distance L4 is less than the first reference distance. The first reference distance is a distance at which the driver can calmly perform an operation of agreeing to the control transfer request and start manual control of the vehicle 10 even if the control transfer request is notified in the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves between lanes after the vehicle 10 under automatic control ends, as long as it is greater than the first reference distance.

[0067] Since there is a control transfer request section less than the first reference distance from the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves, the lane change planning unit 232 stops the lane change plan D1 for moving from the lane 51 to the lane 52. The lane change planning unit 232 stops the newly generated lane change plan for moving from the lane 51 to the adjacent lane 52 until the vehicle 10 passes through the control transfer request section TD2.

[0068] As described above, the vehicle control device prevents the driver from being notified of a control transfer request immediately after the vehicle moves between lanes, thereby preventing the driver from being excessively notified of a control transfer request, thereby making the driver feel comfortable with driving under automatic control of the vehicle.

[0069] Next, refer to the following Figures 5 to 9 , other embodiments of the vehicle control system are described. Regarding the structures not described in other embodiments, the description of the first embodiment is appropriately applied.

[0070] In the vehicle control system 1 of the second embodiment, the section determination unit 234 of the processor 23 of the driving lane planning device 14 determines whether there is a lane change planned section for moving from the lane after the movement to the lane before the movement at a distance less than the second reference distance from the position on the lane after the movement of the vehicle 10. In addition, the lane change planning unit 232 stops the movement of the vehicle 10 between lanes if there is a lane change planned section.

[0071] In addition, the driving lane planning unit 231 of the processor 23 of the driving lane planning device 14 generates a driving lane plan after the lane movement in the nearest driving section of the navigation route R based on the position of the vehicle 10 on the lane after the lane movement, the map information, and the navigation route R. In addition, the lane change planning unit 232 generates a lane change plan after the lane movement indicating the movement of the vehicle 10 between lanes based on the driving lane plan after the lane movement.

[0072] Figure 5This is an example of an operation flow related to the vehicle control process of the vehicle control system 1 of the second embodiment. The operations of step S201 and step S204 of this embodiment are the same as step S101 and step S103 of the first embodiment described above.

[0073] In step S202, the driving lane planning unit 231 generates a driving lane plan after the lane movement based on the position of the vehicle 10 after the lane movement, map information, the navigation route R, and the surrounding environment information in the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R. The lane change planning unit 232 determines whether a lane change is required based on the position of the vehicle 10 after the lane movement, the driving lane plan after the lane movement, the map information, and the navigation route R in the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R, and generates a lane change plan based on the determination result.

[0074] Next, the section determination unit 234 determines whether there is a planned lane change section in which the vehicle 10 plans to move from the lane after the movement to the lane before the movement, which is less than the second reference distance from the position of the vehicle 10 on the lane after the movement (step S203 ).

[0075] If there is a lane change planned section (step S203 —Yes), the lane change planning unit 232 stops the generated lane change plan (step S204 ). The lane change planning unit 232 stops generating the same lane change plan until the vehicle 10 passes through the lane change planned section.

[0076] On the other hand, when there is no planned lane change section (step S203 —No), a series of processing ends.

[0077] Next, refer to the following Figure 6 to Figure 8 , further illustrating an operation example of the above-mentioned vehicle control system 1.

[0078] Figure 6 The lane change planning unit 232 generates a lane change plan D2 for moving from the lane 51 to the lane 52 based on a lane movement request from the driver, for example.

[0079] The position estimation unit 233 estimates the position P2 of the vehicle 10 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 moves. The driving lane planning unit 231 refers to the map information and determines that the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R on the lane 52 includes the automatic control prohibited area R3 and the control transfer request section TD3 .

[0080] The driving lane planning unit 231 sets a control transfer request section TD3 on the lane 52 in the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R, so it generates a driving lane plan after the lane movement, which includes the vehicle 10 traveling on the lane 51 before the vehicle 10 reaches the control transfer request section TD3.

[0081] The lane change planning unit 232 generates a lane change plan D3 after the movement to return from the lane 52 after the movement to the lane 51 before the movement based on the driving lane plan after the lane movement, the position P2 of the vehicle 10 in the lane 52 after the movement, the map information, and the navigation route R.

[0082] The lane change planning unit 232 sets, as the lane change plan D3 after the movement, an automatic lane change planned section A1 in which the vehicle 10 is planned to move between lanes by automatic control and a manual lane change planned section M1 in which the vehicle 10 is planned to move between lanes by manual control in the lane 52 .

[0083] In the automatic lane change planned section A1, the vehicle control system 1 attempts to move from the lane 52 of the road 50 to the lane 51 by automatically controlling the driving of the vehicle 10. In the automatic lane change planned section A1, there is a possibility that the vehicle control system 1 cannot move from the lane 52 of the road 50 to the lane 51 by automatically controlling the driving of the vehicle 10 due to the influence of other vehicles, etc. In response to this situation, a manual lane change planned section M1 is set on the traveling direction side of the automatic lane change planned section A1.

[0084] In the manual lane change scheduled section M1, the vehicle control device 16 of the vehicle control system 1 notifies the driver of a request to move from the lane 52 to the lane 51 by manual control via the UI 5. The driving of the vehicle 10 is in an automatic control state, but the vehicle control device 16 controls the steering wheel, the drive device or the brake according to the steering amount, the accelerator opening or the braking amount input by the driver's operation. In the manual lane change scheduled section M1, the driver can drive the vehicle 10 by manual control to move from the lane 52 of the road 50 to the lane 51.

[0085] The lane change planning unit 232 determines the length of the automatic lane change planned section A1 based on, for example, the average speed of the nearest vehicle 10. The lane change planning unit 232 determines the end position A12 of the automatic lane change planned section A1 to be a position on the lane 52 that is a predetermined distance ahead of the start position of the control transfer request section TD3. The lane change planning unit 232 determines the start position A11 of the automatic lane change planned section A1 to be a position on the lane 52 that is a predetermined distance ahead of the end position A12 by the length of the automatic lane change planned section A1. The lane change planning unit 232 sets the manual lane change planned section M1 between the end position A12 of the automatic lane change planned section A1 and the start position of the control transfer request section TD3.

[0086] The section determination unit 234 calculates the distance L5 of the lane 52 between the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves and the start position A11 of the automatic lane change planned section A1 based on the map information, and determines that the distance L5 is less than the second reference distance. The second reference distance is a distance that, after the vehicle 10 under automatic control ends the movement between lanes, the driver will not feel panic about the automatic control driving even if the vehicle 10 is automatically controlled again from the lane 52 after the movement to the lane 51 before the movement. If the distance L5 is less than the second reference distance, there is a possibility that the driver will feel uncomfortable with the automatic control driving when the vehicle 10 moves between lanes under automatic control from the lane 52 after the lane movement to the lane 51 before the movement.

[0087] Since there is an automatic lane change planned section A1 less than the second reference distance from the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves, the lane change planning unit 232 stops the lane change plan D2 for moving from the lane 51 to the lane 52. The lane change planning unit 232 stops the newly generated lane change plan for moving from the lane 51 to the lane 52 until the vehicle 10 passes through the lane change planned sections A1 and M1.

[0088] Figure 7 1 is a diagram for explaining another example of vehicle control processing when there is a lane change scheduled section in the lane after movement. In the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R, it is scheduled that the vehicle 10 travels on the road 60 at the current position P1 and exits to the branch road 70 at the branch position 72. The road 60 on which the vehicle 10 travels has three lanes 61, 62, and 63, and the lanes 61 and 62 are divided by a lane dividing line 64, and the lanes 62 and 63 are divided by a lane dividing line 65. The lane 61 is connected to the lane 71 of the branch road 70 at the branch position 72 between the branch start position 721 and the branch end position 722. The vehicle 10 travels on the lane 62 at the current position P1.

[0089] The lane change planning unit 232 generates a lane change plan D3 for moving from the lane 62 to the lane 63 in order to avoid approaching another vehicle (not shown) located ahead, for example.

[0090] The position estimation unit 233 estimates the position P2 on the lane 63 after the vehicle 10 has moved. Since there is no automatic control prohibited area in the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R, no control transfer request section is set.

[0091] The driving lane planning unit 231 generates a driving lane plan after lane movement in which the vehicle travels in the moved lane 63 in the nearest driving section selected from the navigation route R and then travels in the lane 62 , the lane 61 , and the lane 71 in sequence.

[0092] The lane change planning unit 232 generates a lane change plan D4 for moving from the lane 63 to the lane 71 of the branch road 70 based on the driving lane plan after the lane movement, the position P2 of the vehicle 10 in the lane 63 after the lane movement, the map information, and the navigation route R.

[0093] The lane change planning unit 232 first determines the lane change completion target position 73 on the lane 71 of the branch road 70. Then, the lane change planning unit 232 sets the automatic lane change planned section A2 and the manual lane change planned section M2 on the lane 63, sets the automatic lane change planned section A3 and the manual lane change planned section M3 on the lane 62, and sets the automatic lane change planned section A4 and the manual lane change planned section M4 on the lane 61 as the moved lane change plan D4.

[0094] The lane change planning unit 232 determines the lengths of the automatic lane change planned sections A2 to A4 based on, for example, the distance between the position P2 on the lane 63 after the vehicle 10 has moved and the lane change completion target position 73 and the average speed of the nearest vehicle 10 .

[0095] Then, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the position of the automatic lane change planned section A4 on the lane 61 so that the vehicle 10 can move to the lane change completion target position 73. Then, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the position of the automatic lane change planned section A3 on the lane 62 so that the vehicle 10 can move from the automatic lane change planned section A3 to the automatic lane change planned section A4. Then, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the position of the automatic lane change planned section A2 on the lane 63 so that the vehicle 10 can move from the automatic lane change planned section A2 to the automatic lane change planned section A3.

[0096] Then, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the section on the lane 63 between the end position of the automatic lane change planned section A2 and the branch end position 722 as the manual lane change planned section M2. In addition, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the section on the lane 63 between the end position of the automatic lane change planned section A3 and the branch end position 722 as the manual lane change planned section M3. Furthermore, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the section on the lane 63 between the end position of the automatic lane change planned section A4 and the branch end position 722 as the manual lane change planned section M4.

[0097] The section determination unit 234 calculates the distance L6 along the lane 63 between the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves and the start position A21 of the planned automatic lane change section A2 based on the map information, and determines that the distance L6 is smaller than the second reference distance.

[0098] Since there is an automatic lane change planned section A2 at a position less than the second reference distance from the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves, the lane change planning unit 232 stops the lane change plan D3 for moving from the lane 62 to the lane 63. The lane change planning unit 232 stops the newly generated lane change plan for moving from the lane 62 to the lane 63 until the vehicle 10 passes through the lane change planned sections A2 to A4 and M2 to M4. The vehicle control system 1 reduces the speed of the vehicle 10, for example, to maintain a safe distance from other vehicles ahead.

[0099] Figure 8 FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining another example of the vehicle control process when there is a lane change planned section in the lane after the movement. Figure 8 The example terrain shown is Figure 7 The same, but the current position P1 of the vehicle 10 is Figure 7 The position shown is close to the branching location 72 .

[0100] The lane change planning unit 232 generates a lane change plan D5 for moving from the lane 63 to the lane 71 of the branch road 70 based on the driving lane plan after the lane movement, the position P2 of the vehicle 10 in the lane 63 after the lane movement, the map information, and the navigation route R.

[0101] The lane change planning unit 232 first determines the lane change completion target position 73 on the lane 71 of the branch road 70. The lane change planning unit 232 sets a manual lane change planned section M5 on the lane 63, a manual lane change planned section M6 on the lane 62, and a manual lane change planned section M7 on the lane 63 as the lane change plan D5 after the movement. Since the distance between the position P2 on the lane 63 after the vehicle 10 moves and the branch start position 721 is shorter than the predetermined distance, the automatic lane change planned section is not set.

[0102] The lane change planning unit 232 determines the start positions of the planned manual lane change sections M5 to M7 based on, for example, the distance between the position P2 on the lane 52 after the vehicle 10 has moved and the lane change completion target position 73 and the average speed of the nearest vehicle 10 .

[0103] Then, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the start position M71 of the manual lane change planned section M7 on the lane 61 so that the vehicle 10 can move to the lane change completion target position 73. Then, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the start position M61 of the manual lane change planned section M6 on the lane 62 so that the vehicle 10 can move from the manual lane change planned section M6 to the manual lane change planned section M7. Then, the lane change planning unit 232 determines the start position M51 of the manual lane change planned section M5 on the lane 63 so that the vehicle 10 can move from the manual lane change planned section M5 to the manual lane change planned section M6.

[0104] The lane change planning unit 232 determines the end position of each of the planned manual lane change sections M5 to M7 on each lane so as to coincide with the branch end position 722 .

[0105] The section determination unit 234 calculates the distance L7 of the lane 63 between the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves and the start position M51 of the planned manual lane change section M5 based on the map information, and determines that the distance L7 is smaller than the second reference distance.

[0106] Since there is a manual lane change planned section M5 less than the second reference distance from the position P2 on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves, the lane change planning unit 232 cancels the lane change plan D5 for moving from the lane 62 to the lane 63. The lane change planning unit 232 cancels the newly generated lane change plan for moving from the lane 62 to the lane 63 until the vehicle 10 passes through the lane change planned sections M5 to M7.

[0107] As described above, the vehicle control device prevents the vehicle from moving back to the previous lane immediately after moving between lanes, thereby preventing the driver from being excessively notified of a control transfer request, thereby making the driver feel comfortable with driving under automatic control of the vehicle.

[0108] Fig. 9 This is an example of an operation flow related to the vehicle control process of the vehicle control system according to the third embodiment.

[0109] In the vehicle control system 1 of the third embodiment, the lane change plan 14 determines whether there is a control transfer request section at a position less than the first reference distance from the position on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves. If there is no control transfer request section, the lane change plan 14 determines whether there is a lane change planned section for moving from the lane after the movement to the lane before the movement at a position less than the second reference distance from the position on the lane after the vehicle 10 moves.

[0110] The operations of step S301, step S302 and step S305 of this embodiment are the same as step S101 to step S103 of the first embodiment. In addition, the operations of step S303 and step S304 of this embodiment are the same as step S202 and step S203 of the second embodiment.

[0111] In the vehicle control system of the present embodiment, the operations of the above-mentioned first embodiment and second embodiment can be executed.

[0112] As described above, the vehicle control device prevents the vehicle from moving back to the previous lane immediately after moving between lanes, thereby preventing the driver from being excessively notified of a control transfer request, thereby making the driver feel comfortable with the driving of the vehicle under automatic control.

[0113] In the present disclosure, the vehicle control device, the storage medium storing the vehicle control computer program, and the vehicle control method of the above-mentioned embodiments can be appropriately changed as long as they do not deviate from the gist of the present disclosure. In addition, the technical scope of the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments, but also includes the inventions described in the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A vehicle control device, characterized in that: have: a driving lane planning unit that generates a first driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle travels in a first driving section of the navigation route based on a current position of the vehicle, map information, and a navigation route; a lane change planning unit that generates a first lane change plan indicating movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the first driving lane plan or surrounding environment information; as well as a section determination unit that, when the first lane change plan has been generated, determines whether there is a control transfer request section for requesting a driver to transfer driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control at a position less than a first reference distance from a position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves between lanes, When there is the control transfer request section, the lane change planning unit terminates the first lane change plan, continues traveling in the original lane until the vehicle passes the control transfer request section, and terminates the newly generated lane change plan to move from the lane to an adjacent lane.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein: Also features: a position estimation unit for estimating the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves, The driving lane planning unit generates a second driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle travels in a second driving section of the navigation route based on the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves, the map information, and the navigation route. The section determination unit determines whether there is a planned lane change section in which the vehicle is planned to move from a lane after the vehicle moves to a lane before the vehicle moves at a distance shorter than a second reference distance when the first lane change plan is generated. The lane change planning unit generates a second lane change plan indicating movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the second driving lane plan, and sets a manual lane change planned section in which the vehicle is planned to move between lanes by manual control as a lane change planned section based on the second driving lane plan.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein: The lane change planning unit sets, based on the second driving lane plan, a planned automatic lane change section in which the vehicle is planned to move between lanes by automatic control as the planned lane change section.

4. The vehicle control device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein: The lane change planning unit generates the first lane change plan based on the first driving lane plan, the surrounding environment information, or a lane movement request issued by the driver. The interval determination unit determines whether there is the control transfer request interval or the lane change scheduled interval when the first lane change plan has been generated.

5. A storage medium, which is a non-transitory storage medium, storing a computer program for vehicle control, wherein: The vehicle control computer program causes the processor to execute: generating a first driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle travels in a first driving section of the navigation route based on the current position of the vehicle, map information, and the navigation route; generating a first lane change plan indicating movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the first driving lane plan or surrounding environment information, determining, when the first lane change plan has been generated, whether there is a control transfer request interval for requesting the driver to transfer the driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control at a position less than a first reference distance from the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves between lanes, In which, when there is the control transfer request interval, the vehicle control computer program causes the processor to execute the termination of the first lane change plan, continue driving in the original lane until the vehicle passes the side of the control transfer request interval, and terminate the newly generated lane change plan to move from the lane to the adjacent lane.

6. A vehicle control method, In the vehicle control method, the vehicle control device executes: generating a first driving lane plan indicating a driving lane in which the vehicle travels in a first driving section of the navigation route based on the current position of the vehicle, map information, and the navigation route; generating a first lane change plan indicating movement of the vehicle between lanes based on the first driving lane plan or surrounding environment information, determining, when the first lane change plan has been generated, whether there is a control transfer request interval for requesting the driver to transfer the driving of the vehicle from automatic control to manual control at a position less than a first reference distance from the position of the vehicle on the lane after the vehicle moves between lanes, When there is the control transfer request section, the vehicle control device terminates the first lane change plan and continues driving in the original lane until the vehicle passes the control transfer request section, thereby terminating the newly generated lane change plan to move from the lane to an adjacent lane.

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