Taxi system

Abstract

A taxi system (10) includes: a plurality of taxi vehicles (VT) that transport a user to a destination by autonomous driving; and a management center (14) that, when a specified protection condition is satisfied, instructs one or more driverless taxi vehicles (VTa) to perform a protected driving in which the driverless taxi vehicles (VTa) protect a group of manned taxi vehicles (Gvt) composed of one or more manned taxi vehicles (VTb) while driving. When the driverless taxi vehicles (VTa) receive an instruction to perform the protected driving, the driverless taxi vehicles (VTa) protect the group of manned taxi vehicles (Gvt) by driving adjacent to the group of manned taxi vehicles (Gvt) in the front and rear.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This specification discloses a taxi system having a plurality of taxi vehicles that transport a user to a destination by autonomous driving in a state where no driver is on board. Background Art

[0002] In recent years, it has been proposed to use autonomous driving vehicles capable of autonomous driving as taxi vehicles. For example, a technique of providing a taxi service using an autonomous driving vehicle is disclosed in Patent Document 1. In Patent Document 1, in a case where traveling by autonomous driving cannot be performed due to an unexpected situation, the taxi vehicle is driven by remote operation.

[0003] Prior Art Documents

[0004] Patent Documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2017-174208

[0006] Furthermore, in the case of an autonomous driving taxi vehicle, of course, no driver is on board. Therefore, if no taxi user is on board (that is, if not in a passenger-carrying state), the taxi vehicle becomes an unmanned vehicle. Conventionally, such an unmanned taxi vehicle has traveled independently without cooperating with a manned taxi vehicle with a user on board. In other words, conventionally, no research has been conducted on improving the safety of manned taxi vehicles by using unmanned taxi vehicles. Therefore, in the prior art, there is room for further improvement in improving the safety of passengers in taxi vehicles. Summary of the Invention

[0007] Therefore, this specification discloses a taxi system that can further improve the safety of users.

[0008] The taxi system disclosed in this specification is characterized by including: a plurality of taxi vehicles that transport a user to a destination by autonomous driving in a state where no driver is on board; and a management device that manages the plurality of taxi vehicles. The management device manages the plurality of taxi vehicles by dividing them into manned taxi vehicles with the user on board and unmanned taxi vehicles without the user on board. The management device, when a prescribed protection condition is satisfied, instructs one or more of the unmanned taxi vehicles to execute a protection driving of traveling while protecting a manned taxi group composed of one or more of the manned taxi vehicles. The unmanned taxi vehicle, when receiving an instruction to execute the protection driving, protects the manned taxi group by traveling adjacent to the manned taxi group in front, behind, or on the left or right.

[0009] By adopting this configuration, the driverless taxi vehicle functions as a "shield" to protect the manned taxi vehicle, thus further enhancing the safety of users.

[0010] In this case, it may also be that the protection condition includes the existence of the driverless taxi vehicle that meets the transferable condition of being able to reach the manned taxi group within a specified protection reference time and having at least a part of the driving route overlapping with the driving route of the manned taxi group. When there is a driverless taxi vehicle that meets the transferable condition, the management device instructs the execution of the protection driving for this driverless taxi vehicle.

[0011] By adopting this configuration, the driverless taxi vehicle can be transferred for the protection of the manned taxi vehicle without changing its moving destination. As a result, the safety of users can be improved without reducing the usage efficiency of the taxi vehicle.

[0012] In addition, it may also be that the protection condition includes a protection request sent from the user of the manned taxi vehicle. When the management device receives the protection request, it instructs the protection driving for the driverless taxi vehicle without a set task.

[0013] By adopting this configuration, the safety of users who highly desire safety can be reliably improved.

[0014] In addition, it may also be that the protection condition includes that there is a vulnerable person on board the manned taxi vehicle. When there is a manned taxi vehicle with a vulnerable person on board, the management device instructs the protection driving for the driverless taxi vehicle without a set task.

[0015] By adopting this configuration, the vulnerable people who require higher safety can be appropriately protected.

[0016] In addition, it may also be that the taxi vehicle includes a road surface sensor for sensing the road surface condition. When the driverless taxi vehicle is driving immediately in front of the manned taxi group for the protection driving, it sends the sensing result of the road surface sensor to the manned taxi group as the protection target.

[0017] By adopting this configuration, the preceding driverless taxi vehicle functions as an "outrider" for the subsequent manned taxi group, thus further enhancing the safety of the manned taxi group.

[0018] In addition, it may also be that the management device determines the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle during the execution of the protected driving based on at least one of the relative positional relationship between the driverless taxi vehicle and the manned taxi group before the start of the protected driving, whether there is a manually driven vehicle driving adjacently before and after the manned taxi group before the start of the protected driving, and the position of the manned taxi vehicle in which the vulnerable person rides within the manned taxi group.

[0019] With this configuration, the driverless taxi vehicle can be arranged at an appropriate position, and the safety of the manned taxi group can be more reliably improved.

[0020] In addition, it may also be that when the manned taxi group and other manned taxi vehicles not belonging to the manned taxi group can converge within a specified convergence reference time and at least a part of the driving route of the manned taxi group overlaps with the driving routes of the other manned taxi vehicles, the management device instructs the manned taxi group and the other manned taxi vehicles to converge with each other.

[0021] With this configuration, the manned taxi vehicles will actively gather. As a result, the probability of accidents of the manned taxi vehicles can be reduced. In addition, with this configuration, the number of manned taxi groups in the entire taxi system, and thus the number of driverless taxi vehicles protecting the manned taxi groups, can be suppressed to be small.

[0022] In addition, it may also be that the management device manages the driving positions of the manned taxi vehicle, the driverless taxi vehicle, and the manually driven vehicle for which the driver performs driving operations. When the manually driven vehicle and the manned taxi group are adjacent before and after, the management device preferentially selects the position between the manually driven vehicle and the manned taxi group as the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle for protecting the manned taxi group.

[0023] Generally speaking, a manually driven vehicle sometimes takes unexpected actions due to human errors or the like. By inserting the driverless taxi vehicle between the manually driven vehicle and the manned taxi vehicle, the manned taxi vehicle can be more appropriately protected from the influence of the manually driven vehicle.

[0024] According to the taxi system disclosed in this specification, the safety of users of taxi vehicles can be further improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram (image diagram) showing the configuration of the taxi system.

[0026] Figure 2It is a block diagram showing the composition of a taxi vehicle.

[0027] Figure 3 It is a block diagram showing the composition of the management center.

[0028] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram showing the situation of protected driving.

[0029] Figure 5 It is another schematic diagram showing the situation of protected driving.

[0030] Figure 6 It is a diagram explaining the inter-vehicle distance between taxi vehicles during the execution of protected driving.

[0031] Figure 7 It is a diagram showing an example of the driving routes of a manned taxi group and unmanned taxi vehicles.

[0032] Figure 8 It is a diagram showing another example of the driving routes of a manned taxi group and unmanned taxi vehicles.

[0033] Figure 9 It is a diagram showing an example of a score table referred to when calculating scores.

[0034] Figure 10 It is a schematic diagram showing the situation of constructing a manned taxi group.

[0035] Explanation of reference numerals

[0036] 10: Taxi system, 14: Management center, 20: Vehicle controller, 22, 42: Processor, 24, 44: Memory, 26: Driving unit, 28: Vehicle sensor group, 30, 46: Communication I / F, 32: User I / F, 34: Settlement device, 36: Road surface sensor, 40: Management controller, 48: Vehicle DB, 50: User DB, 54: Protection request, 56: Score table, Gvt: Manned taxi group, VT: Taxi vehicle, VTa: Unmanned taxi vehicle, VTb, VTb*: Manned taxi vehicle, Vmanu: Manually driven vehicle. Detailed implementation manner

[0037] Hereinafter, the composition of the taxi system 10 will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram showing the composition of the taxi system 10. The taxi system 10 includes a plurality of taxi vehicles VT and a management center 14.

[0038] The taxi vehicle VT is a vehicle that accepts a commission from a user and transports the user to the destination according to an individual contract. The taxi vehicle VT in this example is a single-occupancy vehicle with a seating capacity of one person. It should be noted that, of course, infants and the like are not counted as passengers and can ride with an adult. In addition, this taxi vehicle VT is an autonomous vehicle that performs all dynamic driving tasks on the vehicle side. Therefore, no driver is on board the taxi vehicle VT.

[0039] Here, "autonomous driving" means that the vehicle performs almost all dynamic driving tasks. For example, it refers to any one of levels 3 to 5 defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in the United States. Level 3 is the following driving mode: in specific locations such as highways, all dynamic driving tasks are automated, but driver operation is required in case of emergency. In addition, level 4 is the following driving mode: all dynamic driving tasks are automated only in specific locations, and responses in case of emergency are also automatically handled. Level 5 is a driving mode that can perform autonomous driving under almost all conditions without restrictions such as location, which is the so-called "fully autonomous driving".

[0040] The management center 14 manages multiple taxi vehicles VT by classifying them into manned taxi vehicles VTb and unmanned taxi vehicles VTa. It should be noted that hereinafter, without distinguishing between manned taxi vehicles VTb and unmanned taxi vehicles VTa, they are only referred to as "taxi vehicles VT". The manned taxi vehicle VTb is a taxi vehicle VT with a user on board. Usually, the manned taxi vehicle VTb is in the "occupied state" of transporting the user to the destination based on an individual contract with the user. The unmanned taxi vehicle VTa is a taxi vehicle VT without a user on board. Usually, the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa is in any one of the "empty state" of waiting for passengers until a new usage contract is established, the "pick-up state" of moving towards a user located far away, and the "out-of-service state" of moving towards a specified out-of-service station for charging or the like. The management center 14 communicates with each of the multiple taxi vehicles VT respectively to grasp the driving state (and thus the presence or absence of a user) of each taxi vehicle VT and the location of the taxi vehicle VT.

[0041] In addition to managing the status of the taxi vehicle VT, the management center 14 also manages the dispatching of the taxi vehicle VT. Specifically, the management center 14 calculates the ideal configuration of the taxi vehicle VT in consideration of requests from users, the distribution of taxi vehicles VT and people in the city, etc., and outputs a dispatching instruction to the taxi vehicle VT. In addition, the management center 14 instructs some driverless taxi vehicles VTa to execute protected driving, which means driving while protecting the manned taxi vehicle VTb, and this will be described later. The taxi vehicle VT travels according to various instructions from the management center 14.

[0042] Next, the configurations of the taxi vehicle VT and the management center 14 will be described. Figure 2 FIG. is a block diagram showing the configuration of the taxi vehicle VT. The drive unit 26 is a device that generates mechanical driving force for the taxi vehicle VT to travel, and includes, for example, a prime mover, a power transmission device, a braking device, a suspension device, a steering device, etc. The vehicle sensor group 28 includes a plurality of sensors for sensing various information required for the taxi vehicle VT to travel. The vehicle sensor group 28 includes, for example, sensors for sensing the surrounding environment of the taxi vehicle VT (such as cameras, LiDAR, millimeter wave radars, ultrasonic sensors, etc.), sensors for sensing the current position of the taxi vehicle VT (such as GPS, etc.), sensors for sensing the driving state of the taxi vehicle VT (such as acceleration sensors, gyro sensors, etc.), etc. The information sensed by the vehicle sensor group 28 is sent to the vehicle controller 20. The vehicle controller 20 calculates the acceleration / deceleration amount and steering amount of the taxi vehicle VT based on the information sensed by the vehicle sensor group 28, and drives the drive unit 26.

[0043] The communication I / F (interface) 30 uses communication technology to communicate with information devices outside the vehicle. In this case, the information devices as communication objects include, for example, the management center 14, other taxi vehicles VT, information terminals held by users, etc. Such communication can be carried out using mobile data communication provided by a mobile phone company, short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), or a dedicated communication line.

[0044] The user I / F 32 is a device that presents information to the user and accepts operations from the user. The user I / F 32 has, for example, an output device for outputting information to the user and an input device for accepting the user's operations. The output device can include, for example, at least one of a display, a speaker, and a light. In addition, the input device can include, for example, at least one of a touch panel, a keyboard, a switch, a lever, a pedal, and a microphone.

[0045] The settlement device 34 is a device that individually or in cooperation with the management device collects the usage fees of the taxi vehicle VT. Therefore, the settlement device 34 may have a device for collecting usage fees. For example, a change device that counts the amount of cash inserted and gives change as needed, a card reader that processes credit card settlements, an RFID reader / writer that communicates with the IC chip built into the prepaid card, a barcode reader for barcode settlements, etc. In addition, the settlement device 34 may also be a device that obtains access information (such as the user's identification information, password, etc.) for accessing the e-wallet pre-registered by the user and sends the access information to the management center 14. In this case, the management center 14 accesses the user's e-wallet based on the received access information and collects the usage fees.

[0046] The road surface sensor 36 is a sensor that senses the state of the road surface. The road surface sensor 36 may include, for example, at least one of a laser sensor that senses the thickness of each layer of water, ice, and snow on the road surface based on the reflection of laser, a non-contact temperature sensor that measures the temperature of the road surface in a non-contact manner, and a temperature and humidity sensor that measures the temperature and humidity of the surrounding atmosphere. By including such sensors, the road surface sensor 36 can determine whether the road surface is in a dry state, a wet state, a slush state, an ice state, or a snow-covered state. In addition, the road surface sensor 36 may also include a vibration sensor that measures the vibration amount of the taxi vehicle VT. By including the vibration sensor, the road surface sensor 36 can sense the uneven state of the road surface. In addition, the road surface sensor 36 may also have a camera that takes pictures of the road surface. By including the camera, the road surface sensor 36 can sense the type of road surface paving, whether there are foreign objects on the road, etc. The information sensed by the road surface sensor 36 is sent to the vehicle controller 20.

[0047] The vehicle controller 20 controls the driving of the taxi vehicle VT. For example, the vehicle controller 20 grasps the surrounding environment of the taxi vehicle VT based on the sensing results of the vehicle sensor group 28 and controls the driving of the drive unit 26 so that the taxi vehicle VT can drive safely.

[0048] Such a vehicle controller 20 is a computer physically having a processor 22 and a memory 24. In this "computer", a microcontroller that embeds the computer system in an integrated circuit is also included. In addition, the processor 22 refers to a processor in a broad sense, including a general-purpose processor (such as a CPU: Central Processing Unit, etc.), a dedicated processor (such as a GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, an ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, an FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, a programmable logic device, etc.). In addition, the processor 22 does not need to be a physical element, but may include multiple processors physically existing in separate locations. Similarly, the memory 24 does not need to be a physical element, but may be composed of multiple memories physically existing in separate locations. In addition, the memory 24 may include at least one of a semiconductor memory (such as a RAM, a ROM, a solid-state drive, etc.) and a disk (such as a hard disk drive, etc.).

[0049] Next, the configuration of the management center 14 will be described. Figure 3 FIG. is a block diagram showing the configuration of the management center 14. The management center 14 has a management controller 40, a communication I / F 46, a vehicle DB (database) 48, and a user DB 50. The communication I / F 46 communicates with a plurality of taxi vehicles VT via a general communication network or a dedicated communication network. In addition, the communication I / F 46 can also communicate with vehicles other than the taxi vehicle VT, such as a manually driven vehicle in which a driver performs a driving operation, and the position of the manually driven vehicle can be obtained through this communication.

[0050] The vehicle DB 48 is a database that records information on a plurality of taxi vehicles VT constituting the taxi system 10. In the vehicle DB 48, identification information, position, operating status, etc. of each of the plurality of taxi vehicles VT are recorded. In addition, the position of a manually driven vehicle traveling in the service-providing area of the taxi service is also recorded in the vehicle DB 48.

[0051] User information is recorded in the user DB50. As the user information recorded in the user DB50, for example, it includes the identification information, name, contact information, etc. of the user. In addition, among users, there are also users who require particularly careful protection (hereinafter referred to as "vulnerable people"). For example, infants, children, pregnant women, the elderly, etc. are vulnerable people who require careful protection compared to other users. Whether each user is a vulnerable person is also recorded in the user DB50. Moreover, information on the electronic wallets used by users, such as debit account numbers and credit card numbers, can also be registered in the user DB50.

[0052] The management controller 40 controls the dispatching of the taxi vehicle VT based on the use request and protection request sent by the user via the user I / F 32 of its own information terminal or the taxi vehicle VT. The use request is information sent by the user when the user wants to use the taxi vehicle VT. This use request includes at least the destination. In addition, when the user does not take a ride at the current time point but takes a ride at a later time, the use request also includes the pick-up location, pick-up date, and time. The protection request is information sent by the user when the user requests special protection for the taxi vehicle VT to be boarded. This protection request will be described later. In short, the management controller 40 sets the moving position of the taxi vehicle VT based on this use request and protection request, and sends a dispatching instruction to the taxi vehicle VT to make the taxi vehicle VT move to the set moving position.

[0053] In addition, the management controller 40 updates the vehicle DB48 based on the information sent from the taxi vehicle VT and the manually driven vehicle. In addition, the management controller 40 also updates the user DB50 based on the registration information of the user sent from the user. Such a management controller 40 is also composed of a computer having a processor 42 and a memory 44.

[0054] Next, the protected driving performed by such a taxi system 10 will be described. As described above, the taxi vehicle VT is an autonomous driving vehicle that performs all dynamic driving tasks on the vehicle side. The autonomous driving vehicle is designed to ensure the safety of the occupants. However, even such an autonomous driving vehicle is difficult to completely prevent accidents. Especially in an environment where autonomous driving vehicles and manually driven vehicles coexist, sometimes manually driven vehicles may also take unexpected actions, making it difficult to completely prevent accidents. Therefore, in this example, in order to more reliably ensure the safety of users even in the event of an accident, a part of the driverless taxi vehicles VTa perform protected driving. Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram showing the situation of protected driving.

[0055] During protected driving, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa travels adjacent to the manned taxi group Gvt in the front-rear direction. Here, the manned taxi group Gvt refers to a fleet composed of one or more manned taxi vehicles VTb. When specific protection conditions are met, the management center 14 instructs some of the driverless taxi vehicles VTa to travel immediately in front of or behind the manned taxi group Gvt.

[0056] Here, as repeatedly described, the taxi vehicle VT is an autonomous vehicle, and its inter-vehicle distance and speed are controlled to ensure safety. Therefore, generally, accidents between taxi vehicles VT hardly occur. However, there are many phenomena around the taxi vehicle VT that cannot be managed on the side of the taxi system 10. Examples of phenomena that cannot be managed on the side of the taxi system 10 include, for example, the sudden emergence of corresponding pedestrians, unexpected behaviors of other vehicles (especially manually driven vehicles Vmanu), and the occurrence of road surface conditions (such as icing, falling objects, etc.) that have an adverse impact on the driving of the taxi vehicle VT. Due to such phenomena that cannot be managed on the side of the taxi system 10, the taxi vehicle VT may also collide with pedestrians, other vehicles, road structures, etc. (hereinafter collectively referred to as "obstacles").

[0057] Furthermore, there is no user or driver on board the driverless taxi vehicle VTa. Therefore, even if the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is damaged, no human injury will occur. Therefore, in this example, when specific protection conditions are met, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is positioned immediately behind or in front of the manned taxi group Gvt. By adopting this configuration, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa functions as a "shield" for the manned taxi group Gvt and can safely protect the users of the manned taxi vehicle VTb.

[0058] For example, consider the following situation: when the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is traveling immediately behind the manned taxi group Gvt, a manually driven vehicle Vmanu located further behind is about to rear-end the manned taxi group Gvt. In this case, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa blocks the energy of the rear-end collision of the manually driven vehicle Vmanu, thus improving the safety of the manned taxi vehicle VTb.

[0059] In addition, consider the following situation: when the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is traveling immediately in front of the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt, another manually driven vehicle Vmanu located further ahead suddenly stops. In this case, the braking of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is too late, and the driverless taxi vehicle VTa may rear-end the manually driven vehicle Vmanu. On the other hand, the manned taxi vehicle VTb behind has ensured a sufficient distance between itself and the driverless taxi vehicle VTa and the manually driven vehicle Vmanu, so it will not rear-end the manually driven vehicle Vmanu and can stop appropriately. As a result, the safety of the manned taxi vehicle VTb can be improved.

[0060] In addition, in this example, when the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is traveling immediately in front of the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt, as Figure 5 shown, the sensing result of the road surface sensor 36 of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is sent to one or more manned taxi vehicles VTb that make up the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt. As the sensing result of the road surface sensor 36, it includes at least one of the dryness of the road surface, the presence or absence of moisture, the presence or absence of icing, the presence or absence of snowmelt, the presence or absence of snow accumulation, the presence or absence of unevenness, the presence or absence of fallen objects, and the type of pavement. When the manned taxi vehicle VTb receives such a sensing result, it adjusts the driving control of the vehicle according to the sensing result. For example, when the manned taxi vehicle VTb receives the presence of a fallen object as the sensing result, it travels in a way to avoid the fallen object. In addition, if the manned taxi vehicle VTb receives the occurrence of road icing as the sensing result, it adjusts its driving control to perform braking and acceleration / deceleration more slowly than usual. In this way, the preceding driverless taxi vehicle VTa sends the road surface state to the subsequent manned taxi vehicle VTb, and thus the driverless taxi vehicle VTa functions as a "pathfinder" for the manned taxi vehicle VTb. And thereby, the safety and comfort of the users of the manned taxi vehicle VTb can be further improved.

[0061] In addition, when protected driving is performed, the distance between the taxi vehicles VT is reduced compared to the case where protected driving is not performed. In addition, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa performs driving control that allows damage to itself compared to the manned taxi vehicle VTb. This will be described with reference to Figure 6 In Figure 6 , the black dots represent the manned taxi vehicles VTb that make up the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt, the white dots represent the driverless taxi vehicle VTa that protects the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt, and the white squares represent the manually driven vehicle Vmanu.

[0062] As Figure 6As shown on the left side, when the inter-vehicle distance between taxi vehicles VT is large, a manually-driven vehicle Vmanu may be likely to cut in between the taxi vehicles VT. In addition, when the inter-vehicle distance between taxi vehicles VT is large, a pedestrian may want to cross the road by walking through the space between the taxi vehicles VT. That is, a pedestrian may suddenly appear in front of an occupied taxi vehicle VTb. In this case, the occupied taxi vehicle VTb needs to take difficult measures to ensure the safety of the pedestrian and also avoid its own damage.

[0063] On the other hand, as Figure 6 shown on the right side, when the inter-vehicle distance between taxi vehicles VT is reduced, the possibility of a manually-driven vehicle Vmanu cutting in between the taxi vehicles VT can be significantly reduced. In addition, when the inter-vehicle distance between taxi vehicles VT is reduced, the probability that a pedestrian crosses between the unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa with a large inter-vehicle distance and the manually-driven vehicle Vmanu instead of crossing between the taxi vehicles VT increases. That is, in this case, the possibility that a pedestrian suddenly appears in front of the unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa becomes higher. At this time, the unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa can take measures to protect the pedestrian even if it damages itself. For example, in order to avoid a collision with the pedestrian, it can take measures such as making a large lateral direction change. When a large lateral direction change is made, the unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa may collide with road structures such as guide rails, and the possibility of damage increases, but even if the unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa is damaged, no human injury will occur. That is, according to the above example, the injuries to both the pedestrian and the users of the occupied taxi vehicle VTb can be effectively reduced.

[0064] Next, the protection conditions for determining whether to execute the above-mentioned protected driving will be described. The management center 14 instructs the unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa to execute protected driving when specific protection conditions are met. These protection conditions are (1) there is an unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa that meets the transferable conditions, (2) a protection request is issued from the user of the occupied taxi vehicle VTb, and (3) the user of the occupied taxi vehicle VTb is any one of the vulnerable groups.

[0065] First, with reference to Figure 7 the condition of "(1) there is an unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa that meets the transferable conditions" will be described. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of the driving routes Rtg and Rta of the occupied taxi group Gvt and the unoccupied taxi vehicle VTa. In Figure 7In the figure, black dots represent manned taxi vehicles VTb, and white dots represent unmanned taxi vehicles VTa. The "transferable condition" refers to the condition under which an unmanned taxi vehicle VTa that is traveling independently of a manned taxi group Gvt can be transferred for the protection of the manned taxi group Gvt. Specifically, the transferable condition is the condition that the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa can reach the manned taxi group Gvt within a specified protection reference time and at least a part of the driving route Rta of the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa overlaps with the driving route Rtg of the manned taxi group Gvt. The protection reference time is not particularly limited, but is usually about a few minutes. When the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa is located at a position where it cannot reach the manned taxi group Gvt within the protection reference time, the management center 14 abandons protecting the manned taxi group Gvt by means of this unmanned taxi vehicle VTa. In addition, even if there is no user on board the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa, the management center 14 sets a moving destination for it and the vehicle travels toward the moving destination. When the driving route Rta of this unmanned taxi vehicle VTa does not coincide with the driving route Rtg of the manned taxi group Gvt, the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa and the manned taxi group Gvt cannot travel in cooperation. Therefore, in this case, the management center 14 also abandons protecting the manned taxi group Gvt by means of this unmanned taxi vehicle VTa.

[0066] On the other hand, when the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa can reach the manned taxi group Gvt within the protection reference time and at least a part of the driving route Rta of the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa overlaps with the driving route Rtg of the manned taxi group Gvt, the management center 14 instructs the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa to execute a protection drive for protecting the manned taxi group Gvt. The received unmanned taxi vehicle VTa moves to the front or rear of the manned taxi group Gvt and forms a platoon with the manned taxi group Gvt within the overlapping range of the driving routes to travel. In Figure 7 the example, the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa only executes a protection drive in the area A1 where the driving route Rta overlaps with the driving route Rtg. Thus, by only transferring the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa that travels independently of the manned taxi group Gvt for the protection of the manned taxi group Gvt in the area where the driving routes overlap, the safety of the manned taxi vehicle VTb can be improved without changing the moving destinations of the respective taxi vehicles VT.

[0067] Next, with reference to Figure 8 the protection condition of "(2) A protection request has been issued by the user of the manned taxi vehicle VTb" will be described. Figure 8This is a diagram showing another example of the driving routes Rtg and Rta of the manned taxi group Gvt and the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa. When the management center 14 receives a protection request 54 from the manned taxi vehicle VTb, it instructs the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa without an assigned task to execute a protection drive. Here, a task refers to a business that should be completed in the short term, corresponding to picking up passengers and dropping them off. Therefore, the "unmanned taxi vehicle VTa without an assigned task" refers to the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa in an empty-car state waiting for the next user to appear.

[0068] Here, even if no user boards the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa during passenger pickup or drop-off, its destination is clearly defined, and it is not advisable to change this destination. On the other hand, even if the destination of the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa in an empty-car state waiting for the next user to appear is changed, it will hardly affect subsequent operations.

[0069] When the management center 14 receives a protection request 54 from the user of the manned taxi vehicle VTb, after changing the destination of the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa in an empty-car state, it instructs the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa to execute a protection drive so that the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa can drive to the end together with the manned taxi vehicle VTb. As a result, the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa can execute a protection drive in the area A2 that covers the entire driving route Rtg of the manned taxi group Gvt. And as a result, the safety of the user requesting protection can be more reliably improved.

[0070] In addition, even when there is no protection request 54 from the user, if the management center 14 determines that the user is a vulnerable person, such as an infant, child, pregnant woman, or elderly person, it instructs the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa without an assigned task to execute a protection drive. Whether the user is a vulnerable person can be determined based on the information recorded in the user DB50 or by the user's declaration. Also, a camera for photographing the user can be pre-mounted on the taxi vehicle VT, and the obtained image can be analyzed to determine whether the user is a vulnerable person. In short, when the user is a vulnerable person, a protection drive is executed, thereby more reliably protecting the vulnerable person. It should be noted that when the user is a vulnerable person, the management center 14 sets the destination of the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa in an empty-car state to the same position as the destination of the manned taxi vehicle VTb with a vulnerable person on board, in the same way as when receiving the protection request 54.

[0071] Next, an explanation will be given regarding the determination of the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa at the start of protected driving. As repeatedly described, during protected driving, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa and the manned taxi group Gvt drive adjacent to each other front and rear. Here, at a timing before the start of protected driving, when there is already another driverless taxi vehicle VTa only on one side of the immediate front and the immediate rear of the manned taxi group Gvt, the management center 14 instructs the driverless taxi vehicle VTa that newly starts protected driving to move to the other side of the immediate front and the immediate rear.

[0072] On the other hand, at the start time of protected driving, when there are no other driverless taxi vehicles VTa in the immediate front and the immediate rear of the manned taxi group Gvt, the management center 14 selects either the "immediate front" or the "immediate rear" of the manned taxi group Gvt as the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa that newly starts protected driving. Such a selection of the driving position can be made, for example, based on the relative positional relationship between the driverless taxi vehicle VTa and the manned taxi group Gvt before the start of protected driving. For example, it can be that when the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is located behind the manned taxi group Gvt before the start of protected driving, the "immediate rear" is selected, and when the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is located in front of the manned taxi group Gvt before the start of protected driving, the "immediate front" is selected. By adopting this configuration, the number of times of overtaking by the taxi vehicle VT can be suppressed, and thus the safety can be further improved.

[0073] In addition, as another method, it is also possible to select the position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa that newly starts protected driving based on the presence or absence of a manually driven vehicle that drives adjacent to the manned taxi group Gvt before the start of protected driving. For example, it can be that when there is a manually driven vehicle that drives adjacent to the manned taxi group Gvt, the management center 14 determines the position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa in such a way that the driverless taxi vehicle VTa is inserted between the manually driven vehicle and the manned taxi group Gvt. By adopting this configuration, the safety of the manned taxi vehicle VTb that constitutes the manned taxi group Gvt can be further improved. That is, since the manually driven vehicle is driven by a driver, it sometimes takes unexpected actions due to human errors or the like. By inserting the driverless taxi vehicle VTa between such a manually driven vehicle and the manned taxi group Gvt, the manned taxi vehicle VTb can be appropriately protected from the influence of the manually driven vehicle.

[0074] In addition, as another method, the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa can also be determined based on the position of the manned taxi vehicle VTb with a vulnerable person on board within the manned taxi group Gvt. For example, it can be that when the manned taxi vehicle VTb with a vulnerable person on board is traveling at the front of the manned taxi group Gvt, the "immediate front" of the manned taxi group Gvt (furthermore, the immediate front of the manned taxi vehicle VTb with a vulnerable person on board) is selected as the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa. Similarly, it can be that when the manned taxi vehicle VTb with a vulnerable person on board is traveling at the rear of the manned taxi group Gvt, the "immediate rear" of the manned taxi group Gvt (furthermore, the immediate rear of the manned taxi vehicle VTb with a vulnerable person on board) is selected as the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa. By adopting this configuration, the vulnerable can be protected more reliably.

[0075] Furthermore, as another method, based on the conditions as described above, scores Pf and Pr can be calculated respectively for the "immediate front" and the "immediate rear", and the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa can be determined based on the magnitude relationship between the two scores Pf and Pr. In this regard, reference is made to Figure 9 for an explanation. Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of the score table 56 referred to when calculating the scores Pf and Pr. In Figure 9 , a1 to a3 all represent specific numerical values. In the first column of the score table 56, the conditions considered when calculating the scores are recorded, and in the second and third columns, the values added to the immediate front score Pf and the immediate rear score Pr when the corresponding conditions are met are recorded. Therefore, for example, when there is a manually driven vehicle in the immediate front of the manned taxi group Gvt, the value a1 is added to the immediate front score Pf. Similarly, when there is a manually driven vehicle in the immediate rear of the manned taxi group Gvt, the value a1 is added to the immediate rear score Pr. Moreover, when a vulnerable person is on board the frontmost vehicle of the manned taxi group Gvt, the value a2 is added to the immediate front score Pf. Hereinafter, similarly, when the conditions in the first column are met, the corresponding values are added to the corresponding scores. The management center 14 compares the finally obtained immediate front score Pf with the immediate rear score Pr. Then, when Pf ≥ Pr, the "immediate front" of the manned taxi group Gvt is selected as the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa, and when Pf < Pr, the "immediate rear" of the manned taxi group Gvt is selected as the driving position of the driverless taxi vehicle VTa.

[0076] Thus, by calculating scores for the immediately preceding and immediately following scenarios respectively, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa can be configured in a more suitable position, and the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt can be protected more efficiently. It should be noted that the calculation and comparison of the above scores Pf and Pr can be performed either by the management center 14 or by the driverless taxi vehicle VTa. In the case where the driverless taxi vehicle VTa calculates the scores Pf and Pr, the driverless taxi vehicle VTa obtains the position information of the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt and the manually driven vehicle Vmanu, as well as information such as the presence or absence of vulnerable persons, from the management center 14.

[0077] Next, Figure 10 the construction of the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt will be described. Figure 10 It is a schematic diagram showing the situation of constructing the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt. As repeatedly described, the taxi vehicle VT is an autonomous vehicle. In this case, one taxi vehicle VT can easily predict the behavior of other taxi vehicles VT, and it is not easy to have an accident with other taxi vehicles VT. On the other hand, it is difficult for the taxi vehicle VT to accurately predict the behavior of other vehicles that do not belong to the taxi system 10. Therefore, regarding the safety of the manned taxi vehicle VTb, the situation of being adjacent to the taxi vehicle VT is more likely to ensure this safety compared to the situation of being adjacent to other vehicles.

[0078] That is to say, the safety can be improved by gathering the manned taxi vehicles VTb as adjacent to each other as possible. In addition, by the active gathering of the manned taxi vehicles VTb, the number of the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt in the entire taxi system 10 can be suppressed to be small, and the number of the driverless taxi vehicles VTa protecting the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt can also be suppressed to be small.

[0079] Therefore, in this example, it is assumed that the manned taxi vehicle VTb tries to converge with the nearby group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt as much as possible. Specifically, when the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt and other manned taxi vehicles VTb* that do not belong to the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt meet the specified convergence conditions, the management center 14 instructs the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt and other manned taxi vehicles VTb* to converge with each other.

[0080] Here, the convergence condition means that the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt and other manned taxi vehicles VTb* can converge within a specified convergence time and a part of the driving route Rt* of other manned taxi vehicles VTb* overlaps with the driving route Rtg of the group of manned taxi vehicles Gvt. In Figure 10In the example, the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* satisfies the confluence condition with respect to the manned taxi group Gvt. In this case, the management center 14 instructs the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* to converge towards the manned taxi group Gvt. Upon receiving this instruction, the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* temporarily accelerates to converge towards the manned taxi group Gvt. In addition, in Figure 10 In the example, the driving route Rt* coincides with the driving route Rtg only within the range of area A3. Therefore, the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* converges with the manned taxi group Gvt only within the range of area A3 and detaches from the manned taxi group Gvt when leaving area A3.

[0081] It should be noted that the manned taxi vehicle VTb travels towards the destination according to the instruction from the user. In this case, in order for the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* to converge with the manned taxi group Gvt, the required time until each manned taxi vehicle VTb, VTb* reaches the destination will be extended, which does not meet the user's expectations in most cases. Therefore, it can be set that the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* and the manned taxi group Gvt converge with each other by either party accelerating. For example, it can be set that: when the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* is traveling in front of the manned taxi group Gvt, instead of the other manned taxi vehicle VTb* decelerating or stopping, the manned taxi group Gvt accelerates to reach the manned taxi vehicle VTb*. In short, the manned taxi vehicles VTb are gathered as much as possible to form the manned taxi group Gvt, thereby enabling more efficient protection of more manned taxi vehicles VTb.

[0082] In addition, all the configurations described so far are just examples. At least when the specified protection conditions are met, the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa can travel adjacent to the manned taxi group Gvt, and other configurations can also be changed. For example, the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa can not only travel adjacent to the front and rear of the manned taxi group Gvt, but also adjacent to the left and right of the manned taxi group Gvt. For example, when the taxi vehicle VT is traveling on a road with multiple lanes where it is possible to drive side by side left and right, the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa can also travel adjacent to the left and right of the manned taxi group Gvt to protect the manned taxi group Gvt.

[0083] In addition, in the above description, as protection conditions, (1) satisfying the transferable condition or (2) the user issuing a protection request 54 or (3) having a vulnerable person on board are listed, but the protection conditions can also be appropriately changed. For example, any one or any two of the above (1) to (3) can be excluded from the protection conditions. In addition, other conditions can also be added as protection conditions.

[0084] In addition, the behaviors of protecting the manned taxi vehicle VTb and the unmanned taxi vehicle VTa during driving (e.g., inter-vehicle distance, etc.) are not limited to the above description and can also be appropriately changed. In addition, in the description so far, the taxi vehicle VT is set as a single-passenger vehicle, but the taxi vehicle VT can also be a multi-passenger vehicle that can accommodate multiple passengers.

[0085] This application claims the priority of Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-064814 filed on April 6, 2021, the entire contents of which including the specification, claims, drawings of the specification, and abstract of the specification are incorporated herein by reference.

Claims

1. A taxi system, characterized in that, Comprising: A plurality of taxi vehicles that transport users to their destinations through autonomous driving in a state without a driver on board; and A management device that manages the plurality of taxi vehicles, The management device manages the plurality of taxi vehicles by classifying them into occupied taxi vehicles with the user on board and unoccupied taxi vehicles without the user on board, When the specified protection conditions are met, the management device instructs one or more of the unoccupied taxi vehicles to execute a protection driving that protects an occupied taxi group composed of one or more occupied taxi vehicles while driving, When receiving the instruction to execute the protection driving, the unoccupied taxi vehicle protects the occupied taxi group by driving adjacent to the occupied taxi group in the front, rear, left, or right, The protection conditions include the existence of an unoccupied taxi vehicle that meets the transferable condition of being able to reach the occupied taxi group within a specified protection reference time and having at least a part of its driving route overlapping with the driving route of the occupied taxi group, When there is an unoccupied taxi vehicle that meets the transferable condition, the management device instructs the unoccupied taxi vehicle to execute the protection driving.

2. The taxi system according to claim 1, wherein The protection conditions include a protection request being issued from the user of the occupied taxi vehicle, When receiving the protection request, the management device instructs an unoccupied taxi vehicle without a set task to perform protection driving.

3. The taxi system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The protection conditions include that a vulnerable person is on board the occupied taxi vehicle, When there is an occupied taxi vehicle with a vulnerable person on board, the management device instructs an unoccupied taxi vehicle without a set task to perform protection driving.

4. The taxi system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The taxi vehicle includes a road surface sensor that senses the road surface state, When the unoccupied taxi vehicle drives immediately in front of the occupied taxi group for the protection driving, it sends the sensing result of the road surface sensor to the occupied taxi group to be protected.

5. The taxi system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The management device determines the driving position of the unoccupied taxi vehicle during the execution of the protection driving based on at least one of the relative position relationship between the unoccupied taxi vehicle and the occupied taxi group before the start of the protection driving, the presence or absence of a manually driven vehicle driving adjacent to the occupied taxi group in the front or rear before the start of the protection driving, and the position of the occupied taxi vehicle with the vulnerable person on board within the occupied taxi group.

6. The taxi system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein When the management device determines that the manned taxi group and other manned taxi vehicles not belonging to the manned taxi group can converge within a specified convergence reference time and at least a part of the driving route of the manned taxi group overlaps with the driving routes of the other manned taxi vehicles, the management device instructs the manned taxi group and the other manned taxi vehicles to converge with each other.

7. The taxi system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the management device manages the driving positions of the manned taxi vehicles, the unmanned taxi vehicles, and the manually driven vehicles for which a driver performs driving operations, when the manually driven vehicle and the manned taxi group are adjacent to each other in the front-rear direction, the management device preferentially selects a position between the manually driven vehicle and the manned taxi group as the driving position of the unmanned taxi vehicle that protects the manned taxi group.

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