Information processing apparatus and information processing method

Abstract

The invention relates to an information processing apparatus and an information processing method. The information processing device is provided with a control unit that determines a travel lane in which the host vehicle and the target vehicle travel on the basis of position information and map information of the host vehicle and the target vehicle, and that determines the direction of travel of the target vehicle with respect to the host vehicle on the basis of the difference between the azimuth angles of travel of the host vehicle and the target vehicle. Attention prompting information corresponding to the determination result of the traveling lane and the traveling direction of the target vehicle is output.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and an information processing method. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there is a known technique for notifying the positional relationship of surrounding vehicles. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2020-188406 discloses a technique for notifying the driver of the positional relationship of surrounding vehicles through inter-vehicle communication using a server that provides map information.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2020-188406 can detect a vehicle traveling the wrong way while traveling on a one-way road. However, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2020-188406 does not disclose a technique for detecting whether a vehicle approaching from the front is traveling in the same lane as the vehicle on a road with multiple lanes.

[0004] Therefore, there is room for improvement in the technology for notifying the positional relationship of surrounding vehicles. Summary of the invention

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above circumstances and aims to improve the technology for notifying the positional relationship of surrounding vehicles.

[0006] An information processing device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is an information processing device mounted on a vehicle, wherein:

[0007] A control unit is provided for determining the lanes of the host vehicle and the target vehicle based on the position information and map information of the host vehicle and the target vehicle, and for determining the direction of travel of the target vehicle relative to the host vehicle based on the difference between the travel azimuths of the host vehicle and the target vehicle, and for outputting attention reminder information corresponding to the determination results of the lanes and the direction of travel of the target vehicle.

[0008] An information processing method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is an information processing method executed by an information processing device mounted on a vehicle, and includes:

[0009] Determining the driving lanes of the host vehicle and the target vehicle based on the position information of the host vehicle and the target vehicle and the map information;

[0010] determining a traveling direction of the target vehicle relative to the host vehicle based on a difference between traveling azimuths of the host vehicle and the target vehicle; and

[0011] The attention-reminding information corresponding to the determination result of the driving lane and the traveling direction of the target vehicle is output.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, it is possible to improve the technology for notifying the positional relationship of surrounding vehicles. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Hereinafter, features, advantages, technical and industrial significance of exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals represent like components, wherein:

[0014] Figure 1 This is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] Figure 2 This is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration example of an information processing device.

[0016] Figure 3 This is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the information processing device.

[0017] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of the traveling direction angles of the host vehicle and the target vehicle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described.

[0019] Summary of Implementation Methods

[0020] Reference Figure 1 The following is an overview of a system 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The system 1 includes a vehicle 10 and an information processing device 20 provided in the vehicle 10.

[0021] The vehicle 10 is, for example, a car, but is not limited thereto and may be any vehicle. The car is a gasoline car, a battery electric vehicle (BEV), a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), or a fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV), etc., but is not limited thereto. In the present embodiment, the vehicle 10 is a subject vehicle 10A or a target vehicle 10B traveling on a road having one or more driving lanes. The number of target vehicles 10B can be determined arbitrarily. The vehicle 10 and the information processing device 20 are connected by wire via a controller area network (CAN) or the like, but the standard of the wired connection is not limited thereto.

[0022] The information processing device 20 is, for example, a computer. The subject vehicle 10A is provided with the information processing device 20A, and the target vehicle 10B is provided with the information processing device 20B. The information processing device 20A and the information processing device 20B are the same information processing device. The information processing device 20A and the information processing device 20B are wirelessly connected via a network 2. The network 2 is a vehicle-to-vehicle communication network, but the communication network is not limited thereto. The network 2 may also be an Internet communication network or a mobile communication network, etc.

[0023] First, the overview of this embodiment will be described, and the details will be described later. The information processing device 20 determines the driving lanes of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B based on the position information and map information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B, determines the traveling direction of the target vehicle 10B relative to the host vehicle 10A based on the difference in the traveling azimuths of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B, and outputs attention reminder information corresponding to the determination results of the driving lane and the traveling direction of the target vehicle 10B.

[0024] Thus, according to the present embodiment, for example, the information processing device 20 can determine the driving lanes and travel directions of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B on a road having more than one driving lane, and output the attention reminder information corresponding to the determination result to the output unit 14 in the cabin of the host vehicle 10A. Therefore, when the target vehicle 10B approaches the host vehicle 10A from the front in the same driving lane, the driver of the host vehicle 10A can perceive that the target vehicle 10B is approaching in the opposite direction based on the attention reminder information. Therefore, the driver of the host vehicle 10A can improve the technology of notifying the positional relationship of the surrounding vehicles in terms of increasing the possibility of avoiding automobile accidents by taking risk avoidance actions such as lane changes.

[0025] Next, each configuration of the system 1 will be described in detail.

[0026] Vehicle composition

[0027] like Figure 1 As shown, the vehicle 10 includes a communication unit 11, a positioning unit 12, a measurement unit 13, an output unit 14, a storage unit 15, a control unit 16, and an information processing device 20. The information processing device 20 will be described in detail later.

[0028] The communication unit 11 includes one or more communication interfaces connected by wire to the communication unit 21 of the information processing device 20. The communication interface supports a communication standard such as CAN, for example, but is not limited to this.

[0029] The positioning unit 12 includes one or more devices that acquire position information of the vehicle 10. Specifically, the positioning unit 12 includes, for example, a receiver corresponding to GPS, but is not limited thereto and may include a receiver corresponding to any satellite positioning system.

[0030] The measuring unit 13 includes one or more sensors. The measuring unit 13 may include a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, an air pressure sensor, etc. However, the sensors are not limited to these.

[0031] The output unit 14 is configured to include at least one audio output interface capable of outputting audio, and at least one display interface capable of displaying text or images. The audio output interface is, for example, a speaker. The display interface is, for example, a display such as an LCD or an organic EL display. The audio output interface and the display interface are not limited to these. The output unit 14 outputs the attention reminder information received from the information processing device 20 to the vehicle compartment.

[0032] The storage unit 15 includes one or more memories. The memory is, for example, a semiconductor memory, a magnetic memory, or an optical memory, but is not limited thereto. Each memory included in the storage unit 15 can function as, for example, a main storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory. The storage unit 15 stores arbitrary information used in the operation of the vehicle 10. For example, the storage unit 15 can store system programs, application programs, installation software, and map information. The map information includes road information covering all regions of our country or specified regions and location information of driving lanes on each road. The information stored in the storage unit 15 can be updated, for example, using information obtained from the network 2 via the communication unit 11.

[0033] The control unit 16 includes one or more processors, one or more programmable circuits, one or more dedicated circuits, or a combination thereof. The processor is, for example, a general-purpose processor such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a graphics processing unit (GPU), or a dedicated processor customized for specific processing, but is not limited to these. The programmable circuit is, for example, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), but is not limited to this. The dedicated circuit is, for example, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), but is not limited to this. The control unit 16 controls the overall operation of the vehicle 10.

[0034] Configuration of information processing device

[0035] like Figure 1 As shown, the information processing device 20 includes a communication unit 21 , a storage unit 22 , and a control unit 23 .

[0036] The communication unit 21 has both a communication interface connected to the network 2 and a communication interface connected to the CAN. The communication interface connected to the network 2 corresponds to, for example, a vehicle-to-vehicle communication standard (such as vehicle-to-everything (V2X)) or a mobile communication standard, but is not limited to these and can correspond to any communication standard. In the present embodiment, the information processing device 20A of the vehicle 10A is wirelessly connected to the information processing device 20B of the target vehicle 10B via the communication unit 21 and the network 2. On the other hand, the information processing device 20A is connected to the communication unit 11 of the vehicle 10A via the communication unit 21 through a wire such as CAN. In addition, the information processing device 20B is connected to the communication unit 11 of the target vehicle 10B via the communication unit 21 through a wire such as CAN.

[0037] The storage unit 22 includes one or more memories. Each memory included in the storage unit 22 can function as a main storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory, for example. The storage unit 22 stores any information used in the operation of the information processing device 20. For example, the storage unit 22 can store system programs, application programs, databases, and map information. The map information includes road information covering all regions of my country or specified regions and location information of driving lanes on each road. The information stored in the storage unit 22 can be updated using information obtained from the network 2 via the communication unit 21, for example.

[0038] The control unit 23 includes one or more processors, one or more programmable circuits, one or more dedicated circuits, or a combination thereof, and controls the overall operation of the information processing device 20 .

[0039] like Figure 2 As shown, in the present embodiment, the control unit 23 functions as a first determination unit 231 and a second determination unit 232 .

[0040] The first determination unit 231 determines the lanes in which the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling based on the position information and map information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B. The first determination unit 231 outputs the determination result of the lane, the vehicle speed and the traveling direction angle of the host vehicle 10A, and the vehicle speed and the traveling direction angle of the target vehicle 10B to the second determination unit 232.

[0041] The second determination unit 232 determines the traveling direction of the target vehicle 10B relative to the host vehicle 10A based on the difference between the traveling azimuths of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B received from the first determination unit 231. The second determination unit 232 outputs the attention-calling information corresponding to the determination result of the driving lane and the traveling direction of the target vehicle 10B relative to the host vehicle 10A to the output unit 14 of the vehicle 10.

[0042] Operation flow of information processing device

[0043] Reference Figure 3 Next, the operation of the information processing device 20 according to the present embodiment will be described. This operation involves outputting attention-reminding information according to the driving lanes and traveling directions of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B.

[0044] In S101 , the control unit 23 obtains the position information p1 , the vehicle speed s1 , and the traveling direction angle d1 of the host vehicle 10A.

[0045] The positioning unit 12 of the vehicle 10A obtains the position information p1 of the vehicle 10A through a receiver corresponding to the GPS or the quasi-zenith satellite system, for example. Compared with the conventional GPS with an error of about 5m to 10m, the quasi-zenith satellite system using the quasi-zenith satellite "Michibiki" can achieve an improvement in positioning accuracy to the cm level by strengthening signal transmission, etc.

[0046] The measuring unit 13 can measure the vehicle speed s1 of the host vehicle 10A using a vehicle speed sensor.

[0047] The measuring unit 13 calculates the traveling azimuth d1 of the host vehicle 10A based on the latitudes and longitudes of two points on the earth acquired by the positioning unit 12, but the measuring method is not limited thereto. The measuring unit 13 may measure the traveling azimuth d1 of the host vehicle 10A using a gyro sensor.

[0048] The first determination unit 231 of the control unit 23 acquires the position information p1 , the vehicle speed s1 , and the traveling azimuth d1 from the host vehicle 10A via the communication unit 21 .

[0049] In S102 , the control unit 23 receives the position information p2 , the vehicle speed s2 , and the traveling direction angle d2 of the target vehicle 10B.

[0050] The control unit 23 (first determination unit 231) of the host vehicle 10A obtains the position information p2, the vehicle speed s2, and the traveling direction angle d2 located or measured by the target vehicle 10B from the target vehicle 10B via the network 2 and the communication unit 21. The target vehicle 10B is a vehicle located within the range of the distance that can perform inter-vehicle communication with the host vehicle 10A. In the present disclosure, it is assumed that the distance that can achieve inter-vehicle communication is 300m, but it is not limited to this.

[0051] In S103 , the control unit 23 determines the driving lanes in which the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling based on the position information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B and the map information.

[0052] In S104 , the control unit 23 determines whether the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling in the same lane. If the two vehicles 10 are traveling in the same lane, the process proceeds to S105 , and if not, the process proceeds to S107 .

[0053] As described above, the position information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B can be obtained with a positioning accuracy of cm level according to the quasi-zenith satellite system. In addition, the first determination unit 231 can make use of the map information stored in the storage unit 22. Therefore, the first determination unit 231 can determine the driving lanes of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B based on the acquired position information p1, p2 and the map information.

[0054] In S105 , the control unit 23 determines the traveling direction of the target vehicle 10B relative to the host vehicle 10A based on the difference between the traveling azimuths d1 and d2 of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B.

[0055] The second determination unit 232 determines whether the difference between the heading angle d1 of the host vehicle 10A and the heading angle d2 of the target vehicle 10B is greater than a threshold value by using the following formula (1). When the absolute value of the difference between the heading angles of the two vehicles 10 is greater than the threshold value, the second determination unit 232 determines that the target vehicle 10B is a wrong-way vehicle and proceeds to S106. When the absolute value of the difference between the heading angles of the two vehicles 10 is less than the threshold value, the second determination unit 232 determines that the target vehicle 10B is not a wrong-way vehicle and proceeds to S110.

[0056] |d2-d1|≥threshold(1)

[0057] For example, Figure 4 As shown in FIG. 1 , it is assumed that a travel azimuth of 0° points to the north, a travel azimuth of 90° points to the east, a travel azimuth of 180° points to the south, and a travel azimuth of 270° points to the west. In addition, it is assumed that the target vehicle 10B is located in front of the host vehicle 10A, and the two vehicles are traveling in the same driving lane. Figure 4 As shown, in reality, the road (driving lane) on which the two vehicles are traveling often has twists and turns. Therefore, the second determination unit 232 can calculate a threshold value corresponding to the section in which the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling based on the position information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B and the map information. If the difference between the traveling azimuth d1 of the host vehicle 10A and the traveling azimuth d2 of the target vehicle 10B is greater than the threshold value, the target vehicle 10B is determined to be a wrong-way vehicle, and if it is less than the threshold value, the target vehicle 10B is determined not to be a wrong-way vehicle.

[0058] For example, in an arbitrary section, the threshold is calculated to be 135°. If it is assumed that in this section, the traveling direction angle d1 of the host vehicle 10A is 25° (traveling northward) and the traveling direction angle d2 of the target vehicle 10B is 180° (traveling southward), the difference between the traveling direction angle d1 of the host vehicle 10A and the traveling direction angle d2 of the target vehicle 10B is 155°. In this case, the second determination unit 232 determines that the target vehicle 10B is a wrong-way vehicle.

[0059] In S106 , the control unit 23 determines that the target vehicle 10B is a wrong-way vehicle traveling in the wrong direction in the same driving lane as the host vehicle 10A.

[0060] In S107, the control unit 23 determines whether the target vehicle 10B is traveling in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the host vehicle 10A is traveling. If the target vehicle 10B is traveling in the adjacent lane, the process proceeds to S108, and if not, the information processing ends.

[0061] The first determination unit 231 determines whether the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling in adjacent driving lanes based on the position information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B and the map information. If the driving lane of the host vehicle 10A is adjacent to the oncoming lane, the adjacent oncoming lane is excluded from the determination of the adjacent driving lane.

[0062] In S108, the control unit 23 determines whether the difference between the heading angles of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B is greater than a threshold. If the difference between the heading angles of the two vehicles 10 is greater than the threshold, the process proceeds to S109, and if it is less than the threshold, the information processing ends.

[0063] In S109 , the control unit 23 determines that the target vehicle 10B is a wrong-way vehicle traveling in an adjacent driving lane.

[0064] Similar to S105, the second determination unit 232 calculates a threshold value corresponding to the section in which the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling based on the position information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B and the map information. For the second determination unit 232, if the difference between the traveling azimuth d1 of the host vehicle 10A and the traveling azimuth d2 of the target vehicle 10B is greater than the threshold value, it is determined that the target vehicle 10B is a wrong-way vehicle, and if it is less than the threshold value, it is determined that the target vehicle 10B is not a wrong-way vehicle. In addition, since the driving lane in which the host vehicle 10A is traveling is parallel to the adjacent driving lane, the second determination unit 232 may consider that the degree of winding is the same and use the same threshold value as S105, but it is not limited to this. The second determination unit 232 may also calculate a separate threshold value between the driving lane in which the host vehicle 10A is traveling and the adjacent driving lane.

[0065] In S110 , the control unit 23 determines that the target vehicle 10B is not a vehicle traveling in the wrong direction in the same driving lane as the host vehicle 10A.

[0066] In S111 , the control unit 23 outputs attention-calling information according to the determined driving lanes and traveling directions of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B.

[0067] The second determination unit 232 outputs the attention reminder information to the output unit 14 of the vehicle 10. The output unit 14 outputs the attention reminder information through sound from a speaker, or displays it on a display through text or images. The attention reminder information is, for example, "A wrong-way vehicle is approaching from the front. Please change lanes to the left (or right) lane", "A wrong-way vehicle is approaching from the front in the adjacent lane. Please do not change lanes", or "A wrong-way vehicle is approaching from the front in the adjacent right lane. Please change lanes to the left lane", etc., but is not limited to these.

[0068] As described above, the information processing device 20 according to the present embodiment determines the lanes in which the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling based on the position information and map information of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B. The information processing device 20 determines the traveling direction of the target vehicle 10B relative to the host vehicle 10A based on the difference between the traveling azimuths of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B, and outputs the attention reminder information according to the determination result of the traveling lane and the traveling direction of the target vehicle 10B.

[0069] According to the above configuration, for example, the information processing device 20A can respectively determine the driving lanes and travel directions of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B on a road having more than one driving lane, and output the attention reminder information corresponding to the determination result to the output unit 14 in the cabin of the host vehicle 10A. Therefore, when the target vehicle 10B approaches the host vehicle 10A from the front in the same driving lane, the driver of the host vehicle 10A can perceive that the target vehicle 10B driving in the opposite direction is approaching based on the attention reminder information. Therefore, the technology of notifying the positional relationship of surrounding vehicles is improved in that the driver of the host vehicle 10A is more likely to avoid a car accident by taking risk avoidance actions such as lane change.

[0070] The present disclosure is described based on the drawings and embodiments, but it should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and changes based on the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be noted that these modifications and changes are included in the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the functions included in each component or each step can be reconfigured in a logically non-contradictory manner, and multiple components or steps can be combined into one or divided.

[0071] For example, in the above-mentioned embodiment, it is also possible to implement an embodiment in which the configuration and operation of the information processing device 20 are distributed among a plurality of computers that can communicate with each other. For another example, it is also possible to implement an embodiment in which a part or all of the components of the information processing device 20 are provided in the vehicle 10. For example, a navigation device mounted in the vehicle 10 may include a part or all of the components of the information processing device 20.

[0072] In the above-mentioned embodiment, the information processing device 20 outputs the attention reminder information based on the position information and the traveling azimuth of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B. However, the information processing device 20 can also obtain the speed of the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B, and then calculate the inter-vehicle distance based on the difference in the position information of the two vehicles. In view of this, the information processing device 20 can output the attention reminder information based on other parameters such as the inter-vehicle distance or the difference in speed between the two vehicles. For example, even if the host vehicle 10A and the target vehicle 10B are traveling in the same lane and in the same direction, when the inter-vehicle distance between the target vehicle 10B traveling in front and the host vehicle 10A is less than the prescribed inter-vehicle distance, attention reminder information such as "There is a risk of collision. Please keep a distance between the vehicle traveling in front" can also be output. In addition, when the speed of the host vehicle 10A is faster than that of the target vehicle 10B traveling in front, and when the speed difference obtained by subtracting the speed of the target vehicle 10B from the speed of the host vehicle 10A is greater than a specified value, a warning message such as "There is a risk of collision. Please reduce speed" can be output.

[0073] In the above-mentioned embodiment, the information processing device 20 outputs the attention reminder information to the speaker or display of the host vehicle 10A. However, the attention reminder information can also be sent from the information processing device 20A of the host vehicle 10A to the information processing device 20B of the target vehicle 10B through vehicle-to-vehicle communication. The driver of the target vehicle 10B driving in the reverse lane hears the attention reminder information such as "Danger. Your vehicle is driving in the reverse lane. Please stop on the shoulder of the road immediately" and takes risk avoidance actions to avoid automobile accidents. The possibility increases.

[0074] In addition, for example, it is also possible to implement an embodiment in which a general-purpose computer functions as the information processing device 20 involved in the above-mentioned embodiment. Specifically, a program describing the processing contents of each function of the information processing device 20 involved in the above-mentioned embodiment is stored in a memory of a general-purpose computer, and the program is read out and executed by a processor. Therefore, the present disclosure can also be implemented as a program executable by a processor, or a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing the program.

Claims

1. An information processing device, mounted on a vehicle, wherein: A control unit is provided for determining the lanes of the host vehicle and the target vehicle based on the position information and map information of the host vehicle and the target vehicle, and for determining the direction of travel of the target vehicle relative to the host vehicle based on the difference between the travel azimuths of the host vehicle and the target vehicle, and for outputting attention reminder information corresponding to the determination results of the travel lane and the travel direction of the target vehicle.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein: The target vehicle is a vehicle located within a range where inter-vehicle communication with the host vehicle is possible.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein: The control unit determines that the target vehicle is a wrong-way vehicle if a difference between the traveling azimuths of the host vehicle and the target vehicle is equal to or larger than a threshold value.

4. The information processing device according to claim 3, wherein: The control unit calculates a threshold value corresponding to a section in which the host vehicle and the target vehicle travel based on position information of the host vehicle and the target vehicle and map information.

5. An information processing method, executed by an information processing device mounted on a vehicle, wherein: include: Determining the driving lanes of the host vehicle and the target vehicle based on the position information of the host vehicle and the target vehicle and the map information; determining a traveling direction of the target vehicle relative to the host vehicle based on a difference between traveling azimuths of the host vehicle and the target vehicle; and Attention-reminding information corresponding to the determination result of the driving lane and the traveling direction of the target vehicle is output.

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