Vehicle control device, vehicle control method, and storage medium

Abstract

Provided is a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a storage medium that can improve the recognition accuracy of a road division line when a surrounding vehicle enters a lane in which the host vehicle is traveling. The vehicle control device includes: a recognition unit that recognizes the surrounding situation of the vehicle including a road division line and a surrounding vehicle; a driving control unit that controls the steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle based on at least the road division line, independent of the operation of the driver of the vehicle; and a determination unit that determines whether an occlusion in which at least a portion of the road division line is occluded has occurred, based on the road division line and the position of the surrounding vehicle present in front of the vehicle.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a storage medium. BACKGROUND

[0002] There is known a technology of generating an imaginary road division line with respect to a lane in which a host vehicle is traveling. For example, in Japanese Patent No. 6614353, there is disclosed a technology of generating an imaginary road division line based on a position of a preceding vehicle when a road division line is missing. SUMMARY

[0003] However, in the technology described in Patent Document 1, a case where a surrounding vehicle enters a lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, and a road division line of the lane is missing, is not taken into consideration. As a result, there is a case where the recognition accuracy of the road division line when the surrounding vehicle enters the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling is low.

[0004] The present application is made in consideration of such a situation, and one of the objects thereof is to provide a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a storage medium capable of improving the recognition accuracy of a road division line when a surrounding vehicle enters a lane in which a host vehicle is traveling.

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

[0006] (1) One aspect of the present application relates to a vehicle control device, wherein the vehicle control device includes: an identification unit that identifies a surrounding situation of a vehicle including a road division line and a surrounding vehicle; a driving control unit that controls steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle based on at least the road division line, independently of an operation of a driver of the vehicle; and a determination unit that determines whether or not an obstruction in which at least a part of the road division line is shielded occurs, based on the road division line and a position of the surrounding vehicle existing in front of the vehicle.

[0007] (2) The driving control unit controls the steering and the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle based on the road division line that the identification unit has identified in the past, in a case where it is determined by the determination unit that the obstruction occurs.

[0008] (3) The determination unit determines whether or not a distance between the surrounding vehicle and the road division line is within a first threshold, and determines whether or not the obstruction occurs based on whether or not the distance is within the first threshold.

[0009] (4) : In the aspect of (3) above, the determination section defines a perpendicular line made from the peripheral vehicle with respect to the road division line in an assumed plane when hypothetically viewed from above, and sets the length of the perpendicular line as the distance.

[0010] (5) : In the aspect of (3) or (4) above, the determination section calculates a degree of deviation that indicates deviation between the road division line currently recognized by the recognition section and the road division line recognized by the recognition section in the past, and determines that the occlusion has occurred when it is determined that the distance is within the first threshold value and the degree of deviation is equal to or greater than a second threshold value.

[0011] (6) : Another aspect of the present application relates to a vehicle control method that causes a computer to perform the following processes: recognizing a surrounding situation of a vehicle including a road division line and a peripheral vehicle; controlling steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle based on at least the road division line, independently of an operation of a driver of the vehicle; and determining whether or not an occlusion in which at least a part of the road division line is occluded has occurred, based on the road division line and a position of the peripheral vehicle existing in front of the vehicle.

[0012] (7) : Still another aspect of the present application relates to a storage medium that stores a program, wherein the program causes a computer to perform the following processes: recognizing a surrounding situation of a vehicle including a road division line and a peripheral vehicle; controlling steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle based on at least the road division line, independently of an operation of a driver of the vehicle; and determining whether or not an occlusion in which at least a part of the road division line is occluded has occurred, based on the road division line and a position of the peripheral vehicle existing in front of the vehicle.

[0013] According to (1) to (7), it is possible to improve the recognition accuracy of the road division line when the peripheral vehicle enters a lane in which the host vehicle travels. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle system that uses the vehicle control device of the present embodiment.

[0015] Figure 2 is a functional configuration diagram of the first control section and the second control section.

[0016] Figure 3 is a diagram that shows an example of a scenario in which the processes of the vehicle control device are executed.

[0017] Figure 4 is a diagram that shows an example of a scenario in which the determination section calculates a degree of deviation of the road division line.

[0018] Figure 5 is a view showing an example of a scenario in which the recognition unit uses a road division line that has been recognized in the past.

[0019] Figure 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of processing performed by the vehicle control device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Embodiments of a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a storage medium of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0021] [Overall Structure]

[0022] Figure 1 is a structural view of a vehicle system 1 that utilizes the vehicle control device of the present embodiment. The vehicle on which the vehicle system 1 is mounted is, for example, a two-wheeled, three-wheeled, four-wheeled, or the like vehicle, and its drive source is an internal combustion engine such as a diesel engine or a gasoline engine, an electric motor, or a combination thereof. The electric motor operates using power generated by a generator coupled to the internal combustion engine, or power discharged from a secondary battery or a fuel cell.

[0023] The vehicle system 1 is provided with, for example, a camera 10, a radar device 12, a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) 14, an object recognition device 16, a communication device 20, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 30, a vehicle sensor 40, a navigation device 50, an MPU (Map Positioning Unit) 60, a driving operation member 80, an autonomous driving control device 100, a travel drive force output device 200, a brake device 210, and a steering device 220. These devices and apparatuses are connected to each other by a multiplex communication line such as a CAN (Controller Area Network) communication line, a serial communication line, a wireless communication network, or the like. Note that, Figure 1 The structure shown in the figure is merely an example, and a part of the structure can be omitted, or another structure can be further added.

[0024] The camera 10 is, for example, a digital camera that utilizes a solid-state imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). The camera 10 is mounted to an arbitrary portion of a vehicle (hereinafter referred to as the host vehicle M) on which the vehicle system 1 is mounted. In the case of photographing a frontward direction, the camera 10 is mounted to an upper portion of a front windshield, a back surface of a rearview mirror inside the vehicle cabin, or the like. The camera 10 repeatedly photographs the surroundings of the host vehicle M periodically, for example. The camera 10 can also be a stereo camera.

[0025] The radar device 12 radiates electric waves such as millimeter waves to the periphery of the host vehicle M, and detects electric waves (reflected waves) reflected by an object to detect at least the position (distance and direction) of the object. The radar device 12 is installed at an arbitrary position of the host vehicle M. The radar device 12 can also detect the position and speed of an object by an FM-CW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave) method.

[0026] The LIDAR 14 radiates light (or electromagnetic waves of a wavelength close to light) to the periphery of the host vehicle M, and measures scattered light. The LIDAR 14 detects the distance to an object based on the time from light emission to light reception. The radiated light is, for example, pulsed laser light. The LIDAR 14 is installed at an arbitrary position of the host vehicle M.

[0027] The object recognition device 16 performs sensor fusion processing on the detection results detected by some or all of the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14, to recognize the position, type, speed, and the like of an object. The object recognition device 16 outputs the recognition result to the automatic driving control device 100. The object recognition device 16 can output the detection results of the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 directly to the automatic driving control device 100. The object recognition device 16 can also be omitted from the vehicle system 1.

[0028] The communication device 20 communicates with other vehicles existing in the periphery of the host vehicle M, or communicates with various server devices via a wireless base station, using, for example, a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, Bluetooth (registered trademark), DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), and the like.

[0029] The HMI 30 prompts various information to the occupant of the host vehicle M, and accepts input operations by the occupant. The HMI 30 includes various display devices, a speaker, a buzzer, a touch panel, switches, buttons, and the like.

[0030] The vehicle sensor 40 includes a vehicle speed sensor that detects the speed of the host vehicle M, an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration, a yaw rate sensor that detects the angular velocity about the vertical axis, a direction sensor that detects the orientation of the host vehicle M, and the like.

[0031] The navigation device 50 includes, for example, a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver 51, a navigation HMI 52, and a route decision section 53. The navigation device 50 holds first map information 54 in a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a flash memory, or the like. The GNSS receiver 51 determines the position of the host vehicle M based on a signal received from a GNSS satellite. The position of the host vehicle M can also be determined or supplemented by an INS (Inertial Navigation System) that uses the output of the vehicle sensor 40. The navigation HMI 52 includes a display device, a speaker, a touch panel, a button, or the like. The navigation HMI 52 can also be partially or wholly shared with the aforementioned HMI 30. The route decision section 53 determines, for example, a route (hereinafter referred to as an on-map route) from the position of the host vehicle M determined by the GNSS receiver 51 (or an arbitrary position input) to a destination input by a passenger using the navigation HMI 52, with reference to the first map information 54. The first map information 54 is, for example, information that represents the shape of a road by road segments and nodes connected by the road segments. The first map information 54 can also include the curvature of a road, POI (Point Of Interest) information, or the like. The on-map route is output to the MPU 60. The navigation device 50 can also perform route guidance using the navigation HMI 52 based on the on-map route. The navigation device 50 can also be implemented by the functions of a terminal device such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or the like held by a passenger. The navigation device 50 can also transmit the current position and the destination to a navigation server via the communication device 20 and acquire a route equivalent to the on-map route from the navigation server.

[0032] The MPU 60 includes, for example, a recommended lane decision section 61 and holds second map information 62 in a storage device such as an HDD, a flash memory, or the like. The recommended lane decision section 61 divides the on-map route provided from the navigation device 50 into a plurality of blocks (for example, divided every 100 [m] in the vehicle travel direction) and determines a recommended lane for each block with reference to the second map information 62. The recommended lane decision section 61 performs the determination to travel on the leftmost lane. The recommended lane decision section 61 determines the recommended lane so that the host vehicle M can travel on a reasonable route to a branched destination in the case where there is a branch site in the on-map route.

[0033] The second map information 62 is map information of higher precision than the first map information 54. The second map information 62 includes, for example, information of the center of a lane or information of the boundary of a lane, and the like. In addition, the second map information 62 can include road information, traffic restriction information, dwelling information (dwelling · postal code), facility information, telephone number information, and the like. The second map information 62 can be upgraded at any time by the communication device 20 communicating with other devices.

[0034] The driving operation member 80 includes, for example, an accelerator pedal, a brake pedal, a shift lever, a steering wheel, a special-shaped steering wheel, a joystick, and other operation members. A sensor that detects an operation amount or the presence or absence of an operation is installed in the driving operation member 80, and the detection result is output to one or all of the automatic driving control device 100 or the travel driving force output device 200, the brake device 210, and the steering device 220.

[0035] The automatic driving control device 100 includes, for example, a first control section 120 and a second control section 160. The first control section 120 and the second control section 160 are each realized by, for example, a hardware processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (software). In addition, one or all of these components can be realized by hardware (including circuitry) such as an LSI (Large Scale Integration), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and can be realized by a combination of software and hardware. The program can be stored in advance in a storage device (a storage device including a non-transitory storage medium) such as an HDD or a flash memory of the automatic driving control device 100, can be stored in a removable storage medium such as a DVD or a CD-ROM, and can be installed in the HDD or the flash memory of the automatic driving control device 100 by mounting the storage medium (non-transitory storage medium) in a drive device. The object recognition device 16 and the automatic driving control device 100 together are an example of a "vehicle control device", and the action plan generation section 140 and the second control section 160 together are an example of a "driving control section".

[0036] Figure 2is a functional configuration diagram of the first control section 120 and the second control section 160. The first control section 120, for example, has a recognition section 130 and a behavior plan generation section 140. The first control section 120, for example, implements functions based on AI (Artificial Intelligence) and functions based on a model given in advance in parallel. For example, the function of "recognizing an intersection" can be implemented by "performing recognition of an intersection based on deep learning or the like in parallel with recognition based on a condition given in advance (presence of a signal capable of pattern matching, road marking, or the like), and comprehensively evaluating both by scoring". Thereby, the reliability of automated driving is ensured.

[0037] The recognition section 130 recognizes the position, and the speed, acceleration, and the like of the state of an object in the periphery of the host vehicle M, based on information input from the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 via the object recognition device 16. The position of the object is recognized as a position on an absolute coordinate with a representative point (center of gravity, center of a drive shaft, or the like) of the host vehicle M as an origin, for example, and is used for control. The position of the object can be represented by a representative point such as a center of gravity or a corner of the object, or can be represented by a region. The "state" of the object can also include acceleration, jerk, or an "action state" (for example, whether or not a lane change is being performed or is to be performed) of the object.

[0038] In addition, the recognition section 130, for example, recognizes a lane in which the host vehicle M is traveling (traveling lane). For example, the recognition section 130 recognizes the traveling lane by comparing a pattern of a road division line (for example, arrangement of solid lines and broken lines) obtained from the second map information 62 with a pattern of a road division line in the periphery of the host vehicle M recognized from an image captured by the camera 10. Note that the recognition section 130 is not limited to recognizing a road division line, and can recognize a traveling road boundary (road boundary) including a road shoulder, a curb, a median, a guardrail, and the like, thereby recognizing the traveling lane. In this recognition, the position of the host vehicle M obtained from the navigation device 50 and a processing result of the INS processing can also be added. In addition, the recognition section 130 recognizes a stop line, an obstacle, a red light, a toll gate, and other road phenomena.

[0039] The recognition unit 130, when recognizing the travel lane, recognizes the position and posture of the host vehicle M with respect to the travel lane. The recognition unit 130, for example, can also recognize the deviation of the reference point of the host vehicle M from the center of the lane and the angle of the advancing direction of the host vehicle M with respect to the line connecting the center of the lane, as the relative position and posture of the host vehicle M with respect to the travel lane. Instead of this, the recognition unit 130 can recognize the position of the reference point of the host vehicle M with respect to the arbitrary side end portion (road division line or road boundary) of the travel lane, as the relative position of the host vehicle M with respect to the travel lane. In the present embodiment, the recognition unit 130 also includes the determination unit 132, but the details of the functions thereof will be described later.

[0040] The action plan generation unit 140 generates a target track along which the host vehicle M is to automatically (independently of the operation of the driver) travel in the future, in a manner that the host vehicle M travels on the recommended lane decided by the recommended lane decision unit 61 in principle and can cope with the surrounding situation of the host vehicle M. The target track includes, for example, a speed element. The target track is expressed, for example, as a track in which the points (track points) at which the host vehicle M should arrive are arranged in order. The track points are the points at which the host vehicle M should arrive at every prescribed travel distance (for example, several [m]) along the route, and, instead of this, the target speed and the target acceleration at every prescribed sampling time (for example, several [sec]) are generated as a part of the target track. In addition, the track points can be the positions at which the host vehicle M should arrive at every prescribed sampling time. In this case, the information of the target speed and the target acceleration is expressed by the interval of the track points.

[0041] The action plan generation unit 140, when generating the target track, can set an event of automatic driving. In the event of automatic driving, there are a constant speed traveling event, a low speed following traveling event, a lane changing event, a branching event, a merging event, a takeover event, and the like. The action plan generation unit 140 generates a target track corresponding to the event started.

[0042] The second control unit 160 controls the travel driving force output device 200, the brake device 210, and the steering device 220 so that the host vehicle M passes through the target track generated by the action plan generation unit 140 at a predetermined time.

[0043] Returning to Figure 2The second control unit 160 includes, for example, a retrieval unit 162, a speed control unit 164, and a steering control unit 166. The retrieval unit 162 retrieves information of the target trajectory (trajectory point) generated by the travel plan generation unit 140, and causes a memory (not shown) to store the information. The speed control unit 164 controls the travel drive force output device 200 or the brake device 210 on the basis of a speed element attached to the target trajectory stored in the memory. The steering control unit 166 controls the steering device 220 in accordance with a bending condition of the target trajectory stored in the memory. The processing of the speed control unit 164 and the steering control unit 166 is realized, for example, by a combination of feedforward control and feedback control. As an example, the steering control unit 166 combines feedforward control corresponding to a curvature of a road ahead of the host vehicle M and feedback control based on a deviation from the target trajectory, and executes the control.

[0044] The travel drive force output device 200 outputs a travel drive force (torque) for vehicle travel to a drive wheel. The travel drive force output device 200 includes, for example, a combination of an internal combustion engine, an electric motor, a transmission, and the like, and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) that controls them. The ECU controls the above-described structure in accordance with information input from the second control unit 160 or information input from the driving operation member 80.

[0045] The brake device 210 includes, for example, a brake caliper, a hydraulic cylinder that transmits hydraulic pressure to the brake caliper, an electric motor that generates hydraulic pressure in the hydraulic cylinder, and a brake ECU. The brake ECU controls the electric motor in accordance with information input from the second control unit 160 or information input from the driving operation member 80, so that a brake torque corresponding to a brake operation is output to each wheel. The brake device 210 can include, as a backup, a mechanism that transmits hydraulic pressure generated by operation of a brake pedal included in the driving operation member 80 to the hydraulic cylinder via a master hydraulic cylinder. Note that the brake device 210 is not limited to the structure described above, and can be an electronically controlled hydraulic brake device that controls an actuator in accordance with information input from the second control unit 160, and thereby transmits hydraulic pressure of the master hydraulic cylinder to the hydraulic cylinder.

[0046] The steering device 220 includes, for example, a steering ECU and an electric motor. The electric motor, for example, applies a force to a rack-and-pinion mechanism to change the orientation of a steered wheel. The steering ECU drives the electric motor in accordance with information input from the second control unit 160 or information input from the driving operation member 80, so that the orientation of the steered wheel is changed.

[0047] [Operation]

[0048] Next, the processing of the vehicle control device of the present embodiment will be described with reference to Figure 3 Figure 3 ​is a diagram showing an example of a scenario in which processing by the vehicle control device is performed. In Figure 3 In the present embodiment, the host vehicle M is traveling on the lane LI, and the other vehicle Ml and the other vehicle M2 are traveling in front of the host vehicle M. The recognition unit 130 of the host vehicle M recognizes the surrounding situation of the host vehicle M including the road division line (the left road division line LLM and the right road division line RLM) and the surrounding vehicles (the other vehicle Ml and the other vehicle M2), and the action plan generation unit 140 generates a target trajectory of the host vehicle M based on the recognized surrounding situation (at least including the road division line). The second control unit 160 controls the steering and acceleration / deceleration of the host vehicle M so that the host vehicle M travels along the target trajectory generated by the action plan generation unit 140, independently of the operation of the driver of the host vehicle M. Note that in the following description, the left road division line LLM and the right road division line RLM are sometimes collectively referred to as the road division line LLM.

[0049] As described above, when the host vehicle M travels by automatic driving, at least the road division line LLM of the travel lane LI is recognized, but there is a case where occlusion occurs in which at least a part of the road division line LLM is obscured due to the other vehicle Ml or the other vehicle M2 traveling across the road division line LLM. When occlusion occurs, information related to the road division line LLM recognized by the recognition unit 130 is insufficient, which can hinder the travel of the host vehicle M. The present embodiment is an invention for coping with such a phenomenon.

[0050] The determination unit 132 determines whether occlusion has occurred based on the road division line LLM recognized by the recognition unit 130 and the positions of the surrounding vehicles (the other vehicle Ml and the other vehicle M2) existing in front of the host vehicle M. More specifically, the determination unit 132 determines whether the distance (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the reference distance) between the surrounding vehicles (the other vehicle Ml and the other vehicle M2) and the road division line LLM is within a first threshold value thl, and determines whether occlusion has occurred based on whether the reference distance is within the first threshold value thl. The first threshold value thl in this case is a distance as short as to assume the possibility that the surrounding vehicles obscure at least a part of the road division line LLM.

[0051] At this time, the determination unit 132 converts the surrounding situation recognized by the recognition unit 130 into coordinate points in an assumed plane viewed from above, and defines a perpendicular line from the surrounding vehicles (the other vehicle Ml and the other vehicle M2) with respect to the road division line LLM in the assumed plane, and sets the length of the perpendicular line as the reference distance. For example, in Figure 3In this case, the determination section 132 defines a perpendicular line from the representative point Ol (center of gravity, center of the drive shaft, etc.) of the other vehicle Ml with respect to the road division line LLM, and sets an intersection between the perpendicular line and the road division line LLM as Pl. Next, the determination section 132 calculates a reference distance between the representative point Ol and the intersection Pl, and determines whether the calculated reference distance is within the first threshold value thl. Similarly, the determination section 132 defines a perpendicular line from the representative point Ol with respect to the road division line RLM, and sets an intersection between the perpendicular line and the road division line RLM as P2. Next, the determination section 132 calculates a reference distance between the representative point Ol and the intersection P2, and determines whether the calculated reference distance is within the first threshold value thl. The determination section 132 sets the other-vehicle-approaching-division-line flag flagl to active in a case where it is determined that at least one of the two calculated reference distances is within the first threshold value thl. In a case where the other-vehicle-approaching-division-line flag flagl is set to active, the first threshold value thl can also be updated to a smaller value for a certain period. Thereby, hunting can be prevented from occurring in a case where the other vehicle is traveling at a position close to the road division line LM to a distance equivalent to the first threshold value thl.

[0052] The other vehicle Ml, like the host vehicle M, is an other vehicle that is traveling on the lane LI, but the determination section 132 also performs the same processing with respect to an other vehicle M2 that is traveling outside the lane LI. Specifically, the determination section 132 defines a perpendicular line from the representative point O2 of the other vehicle M2 with respect to the road division line LLM, and sets an intersection between the perpendicular line and the road division line LLM as P3. Next, the determination section 132 calculates a reference distance between the representative point O2 and the intersection P3, and determines whether the calculated reference distance is within the first threshold value thl. Similarly, the determination section 132 defines a perpendicular line from the representative point O2 with respect to the road division line RLM, and sets an intersection between the perpendicular line and the road division line RLM as P4. Next, the determination section 132 calculates a reference distance between the representative point O2 and the intersection P4, and determines whether the calculated reference distance is within the first threshold value thl. The determination section 132 sets the other-vehicle-approaching-division-line flag flagl to active in a case where it is determined that at least one of the two calculated reference distances is within the first threshold value thl. Note that in a case where the recognition section 130 determines that an other vehicle is traveling outside the lane LI, the determination section 132 can also perform the above-described processing only with respect to the road division line LLM close to the other vehicle.

[0053] The determination unit 132 also calculates the deviation degree, representing the deviation between the road dividing line LM currently identified by the recognition unit 130 and the road dividing line LM previously identified by the recognition unit 130, and determines whether the deviation degree is greater than or equal to a second threshold th2. Here, "current" refers to the "current control cycle" in the control cycle (e.g., a few milliseconds) in which the recognition unit 130 identifies the surrounding conditions, and "past" refers to the "last control cycle". Moreover, the deviation degree refers to the degree of inconsistency between the road dividing line identified in the current control cycle and the road dividing line identified in the last control cycle. More specifically, for example, it refers to the proportion of the area of ​​inconsistency between the two road dividing lines relative to the overall area of ​​the two road dividing lines (also considering the distance moved by the vehicle M). If the determination unit 132 determines that the deviation degree is greater than or equal to the second threshold th2, it sets the dividing line shape abnormality flag 2 to be active. When the dividing line shape abnormality flag 2 is set to be active, the second threshold th2 may also be updated to a smaller value for a certain period of time. This prevents oscillations caused by the deviation between the currently identified road dividing line LM and the previously identified road dividing line LM being near a threshold.

[0054] Figure 4 This diagram illustrates an example of a scenario where the decision unit 132 calculates the deviation of the road dividing line LM. Figure 4 In China, LLM N-1 This refers to the left-side road dividing line identified by the recognition unit 130 in the (N-1)th control loop (where N is any integer greater than 2), RLM N-1 This indicates the right-side road dividing line identified by the recognition unit 130 in the (N-1)th control loop, LLM N This indicates the left-side road dividing line identified by the identification unit 130 in the Nth control loop, RLM N This indicates the right-side road dividing line identified by the identification unit 130 in the Nth control loop. For example... Figure 4 As shown on the right, in the Nth control loop, other vehicle M1 is at the road dividing line LLM. N Driving on it, therefore the road markings LLM recognized by the recognition unit 130 N Part of it was obscured.

[0055] In the Nth control loop, the decision unit 132 calculates the road dividing line LLM. N-1 LLM with road dividing lines N The degree of deviation between them, and the road markings RLM N-1 Road dividing line RLM N The deviation between these values ​​is used to determine whether the deviation exceeds the second threshold th2. Figure 4In this case, the determination unit 132 determines that the degree of deviation between the road division line LLM N-1 and the road division line RLM N is equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2, and sets the division line shape abnormality flag flag2 to active.

[0056] The determination unit 132 determines that an occlusion has occurred in a case where it is determined that the reference distance is within the first threshold value thl and the degree of deviation is equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2. At the time of determining the occurrence of the occlusion, the reason for using both the reference distance and the degree of deviation is that, in a case where only the reference distance is used, it cannot be determined that an occlusion actually occurs in the recognized road division line LM, and in a case where only the degree of deviation is used, it cannot be determined that the reason why a part of the road division line LM cannot be acquired is an occlusion caused by another vehicle (for example, it can also be that a part of the road division line LM cannot be acquired due to a malfunction of the camera 10). By using both the reference distance and the degree of deviation, it is possible to more reliably determine the occurrence of the occlusion.

[0057] The action plan generation unit 140 generates a target trajectory based on the road division line LM recognized by the recognition unit 130 in the past in a case where it is determined by the determination unit 132 that an occlusion has occurred, and the second control unit 160 controls the steering and acceleration / deceleration of the host vehicle M so that the host vehicle M travels along the target trajectory generated by the action plan generation unit 140. Figure 5 is a diagram indicating an example of a scene in which the road division line LM recognized by the recognition unit 130 in the past is used. As shown in the central part of Figure 5 , as in the case of Figure 4 , in the Nth control cycle, the other vehicle Ml is traveling on the road division line LLM N , and thus a part of the road division line LLM N recognized by the recognition unit 130 is occluded.

[0058] In the case of the central part of Figure 5 , the determination unit 132 determines that the reference distance is within the first threshold value thl and the degree of deviation is equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2, and thus determines that an occlusion has occurred. Next, as shown in the right part of Figure 5 , the action plan generation unit 140 generates a target trajectory using the road division line LLM N and the road division line RLM N of the previous control cycle in which it is not determined that an occlusion has occurred instead of the road division line LLM N-1 and the road division line RLM N-1 in which it is determined that an occlusion has occurred. In using the road division line LLM N-1In the case where it is determined that the occlusion of the road division line LLM has occurred, the distance of the road division line that can be recognized becomes shorter in accordance with the amount of distance traveled by the host vehicle M during the period from the previous control cycle to the present control cycle, but the road division line that can be recognized as a longer distance is used for automatic driving compared to the case where it is determined that the occlusion of the road division line LLM has occurred. N In the above-described explanation, in the case where it is determined that the occlusion of the unilateral road division line has occurred, the information of the previous control cycle is used with respect to the bilateral road division line, but instead, the information of the previous control cycle can be used only with respect to the road division line determined to have the occlusion.

[0059] [Flow of Action]

[0060] Next, the flow of the process performed by the vehicle control device will be described with reference to Figure 6 Figure 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the process performed by the vehicle control device. First, the recognition unit 130 acquires the road division line information of the lane in which the host vehicle M is traveling (step S100). Next, the recognition unit 130 acquires the surrounding vehicle information related to the surrounding vehicles existing in the periphery of the host vehicle M (step S101).

[0061] Next, the determination unit 132 determines whether the reference distance between the surrounding vehicle indicated by the surrounding vehicle information and the road division line indicated by the road division line information is equal to or less than the first threshold value thl (step S102). More specifically, the determination unit 132 calculates the reference distance with respect to the left road division line and the right road division line, respectively, and determines whether at least one of the two reference distances is equal to or less than the first threshold value thl. In the case where it is determined that the reference distance is not equal to or less than the first threshold value thl, the driving control unit controls the travel of the host vehicle M based on the current road division line information acquired in step S100 (step S103). In the case where it is determined that the reference distance is equal to or less than the first threshold value thl, the determination unit 132 sets the other-vehicle-approaching-division-line flag flagl to active (step S104).

[0062] ​Next, the determination section 132 determines whether the degree of deviation between the road division line indicated by the current road division line information and the road division line indicated by the past road division line information is equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2 (step S105). More specifically, the determination section 132 calculates the degree of deviation with respect to the left road division line and the right road division line, respectively, and determines whether at least one of the two degrees of deviation is equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2. In a case where it is determined that the degree of deviation is not equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2, the drive control section controls the travel of the host vehicle M on the basis of the current road division line information acquired in step S100. On the other hand, in a case where it is determined that the degree of deviation is equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2, the determination section 132 sets the division line shape abnormality flag flag2 to active (step S106). Next, the drive control section controls the travel of the host vehicle M on the basis of the past road division line information (step S107). Thereby, the processing of the present flowchart ends.

[0063] Note that, in the flowchart described above, the determination section 132 can also determine whether the side determined to be the reference distance equal to or less than the first threshold value thl coincides with the side determined to be the degree of deviation equal to or greater than the second threshold value th2, and control the travel of the host vehicle M on the basis of the past road division line information only in a case where both sides coincide.

[0064] According to the present embodiment described above, on the basis of the reference distance between the surrounding vehicle and the road division line and the degree of deviation between the current road division line and the past road division line, it is determined whether an occlusion has occurred, and in a case where it is determined that an occlusion has occurred, control of the host vehicle is performed on the basis of information related to the past road division line. Thereby, it is possible to improve the recognition accuracy of the road division line when the surrounding vehicle enters the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling.

[0065] The present embodiment described above can be expressed as follows.

[0066] A vehicle control device in which

[0067] The vehicle control device is configured to have:

[0068] a storage device in which a program is stored; and

[0069] a hardware processor,

[0070] the program stored in the storage device is executed by the hardware processor to perform the following processing:

[0071] recognize a surrounding situation of a vehicle including a road division line and a surrounding vehicle;

[0072] control steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle on the basis of at least the road division line without depending on an operation of a driver of the vehicle.

[0073] determining whether or not the occlusion in which at least a part of the road division line is shielded has occurred, based on the road division line and the position of the surrounding vehicle existing in front of the vehicle.

[0074] The above describes the specific embodiments of the present application using the embodiments, but the present application is not limited at all by such embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be applied within the scope of the gist of the present application.

Claims

1. A vehicle control device, wherein, The vehicle control device includes: The identification unit identifies the surrounding conditions of vehicles, including road markings and other vehicles. A driving control unit that controls the steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle, based at least on the road markings, without relying on the driver's operation; as well as The determination unit determines, based on the road markings and the positions of surrounding vehicles in front of the vehicle, whether at least a portion of the road markings has been obscured. The determination unit calculates the distance between the surrounding vehicles and the road markings. The determination unit calculates the deviation, which represents the deviation between the road dividing line currently identified by the identification unit and the road dividing line previously identified by the identification unit. If the determination unit determines that the distance is within the first threshold and the deviation is above the second threshold, it determines that the occlusion has occurred.

2. A vehicle control device, wherein, The vehicle control device includes: The identification unit identifies the surrounding conditions of vehicles, including road markings and other vehicles. A driving control unit that controls the steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle, based at least on the road markings, without relying on the driver's operation; as well as The determination unit determines, based on the road markings and the positions of surrounding vehicles in front of the vehicle, whether at least a portion of the road markings has been obscured. The determination unit calculates the distance between the surrounding vehicles and the road markings. The determination unit calculates the deviation, which represents the deviation between the road dividing line currently identified by the identification unit and the road dividing line previously identified by the identification unit. The determination unit determines whether the occlusion has occurred based on the distance and the deviation.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, When the determination unit determines that the obstruction has occurred, the driving control unit controls the steering and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle based on the road markings previously identified by the recognition unit.

4. The vehicle control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The determination unit defines a perpendicular line drawn from the surrounding vehicles relative to the road dividing line in a hypothetical plane when viewed from above, and sets the length of the perpendicular line as the distance.

5. A vehicle control method, wherein, The vehicle control method causes the computer to perform the following processing: Identify the surrounding conditions of vehicles, including road markings and other vehicles. The vehicle's steering and acceleration / deceleration are controlled based at least on the road markings and without relying on the driver's operation. Based on the road dividing line and the positions of the surrounding vehicles in front of the vehicle, it is determined whether at least a portion of the road dividing line has been obscured. Calculate the distance between the surrounding vehicles and the road markings; Calculate the deviation, which represents the deviation between the currently identified road dividing line and the previously identified road dividing line; as well as If the distance is determined to be within the first threshold and the deviation is greater than the second threshold, then the occlusion is determined to have occurred.

6. A storage medium having a stored program, wherein, The program causes the computer to perform the following processing: Identify the surrounding conditions of vehicles, including road markings and other vehicles. The vehicle's steering and acceleration / deceleration are controlled based at least on the road markings and without relying on the driver's operation. Based on the road dividing line and the positions of the surrounding vehicles in front of the vehicle, it is determined whether at least a portion of the road dividing line has been obscured. Calculate the distance between the surrounding vehicles and the road markings; Calculate the deviation, which represents the deviation between the currently identified road dividing line and the previously identified road dividing line; as well as If the distance is determined to be within the first threshold and the deviation is greater than the second threshold, then the occlusion is determined to have occurred.

7. A vehicle control method, wherein, The vehicle control method causes the computer to perform the following processing: Identify the surrounding conditions of vehicles, including road markings and other vehicles. The vehicle's steering and acceleration / deceleration are controlled based at least on the road markings and without relying on the driver's operation. Based on the road dividing line and the positions of the surrounding vehicles in front of the vehicle, it is determined whether at least a portion of the road dividing line has been obscured. Calculate the distance between the surrounding vehicles and the road markings; Calculate the deviation, which represents the deviation between the currently identified road markings and the previously identified road markings; and The occlusion is determined based on the distance and the deviation.

8. A storage medium having a stored program, wherein, The program causes the computer to perform the following processing: Identify the surrounding conditions of vehicles, including road markings and other vehicles. The vehicle's steering and acceleration / deceleration are controlled based at least on the road markings and without relying on the driver's operation. Based on the road dividing line and the positions of the surrounding vehicles in front of the vehicle, it is determined whether at least a portion of the road dividing line has been obscured. Calculate the distance between the surrounding vehicles and the road markings; Calculate the deviation, which represents the deviation between the currently identified road markings and the previously identified road markings; and The occlusion is determined based on the distance and the deviation.

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