Method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle (V) that is capable of travelling on a road network and communicating via a communications network (N) having a variable network coverage level, the method being characterised in that it comprises, upon approaching a zone (Z) having a network coverage level lower than a given level, a step of pre-emptively transmitting at least one piece of information relating to the driving instructions intended for the connected vehicle (V) in the related zone (Z).

Description

Method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle

[0001] The technical field is that of connected motor vehicles.

[0002] More specifically, the invention relates to a method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle capable of moving on a road network and capable of communicating via a communication network having a variable level of network coverage.

[0003] Connected vehicles are those that have on-board a terminal or means of communication that allows them to be connected to a mobile telecommunications network. Connection to this network allows the connected vehicle to have usual telecommunications services for its passengers. The connection can also be used for the standardized transmission of data emitted by recent connected vehicles to supervisory means. This data emitted by connected vehicles includes, for example, their position, their speed or information relating to emergencies (presence of accidents or dangerous slowdowns). The connection can also be used to improve specific vehicle functions, namely for example the driving, autonomous or not, of vehicles, by providing them with a whole set of information on the environment and possibly driving instructions.Several driving modes are then possible for connected vehicles. In the simplest mode, the vehicle is driven by a driver on board the vehicle and the network connection allows it to receive driving assistance information. In a more complex mode, the vehicle is driven autonomously by an artificial intelligence on board the vehicle, aided by information about the environment from vehicle sensors or transmitted via the communication network. In another mode, the vehicle is driven remotely, by a human or artificial operator. Several variants are possible depending on the different levels of autonomy of the vehicle and therefore depending on the driving tasks handled by the vehicle and those handled by remote control.Driving instructions are then transmitted via the communication network, along with information about the environment, which allows the external operator to drive the vehicle. The communication network can also be used to send messages between connected vehicles to facilitate autonomous or non-autonomous driving, in addition to direct communication capabilities between vehicles over short distances. State of the art

[0004] With the rise of the 5G mobile network and the increase in mobile communication speeds, it is possible to offer original services to connected vehicles. In addition to the usual communication services that can be offered to vehicle passengers, vehicle connectivity makes it possible to facilitate vehicle driver assistance services. These services can simply provide assistance to human driving, or provide assistance to the autonomous driving of the vehicle through an on-board system. The high-speed mobile communication network will allow the connected vehicle to have access to information, for example, on the map and the planned navigation if a route has been set, or on the traffic around the connected vehicle.The communication network also allows a connected vehicle to send messages to other connected vehicles, again in order to facilitate driver assistance or autonomous driving systems by allowing vehicles to warn each other as they approach. The international patent application published under number WO 2019 / 002734 A1, from the same applicant as the present patent application, presents a method for signaling driving suggestions to connected vehicles.

[0005] It should be noted that it is envisaged that vehicle driving assistance services could extend to a remote vehicle piloting service. In this case, the mobile communication network would transmit driving instructions to the vehicle, either defined by an automatic piloting system or by a remote human pilot. The vehicle must then transmit to the automatic or human teleoperator, via the mobile communication network, the data enabling it to carry out this remote piloting, such as information on the situation of the roads around the vehicle and any video, radar or lidar feedback.

[0006] In this case, we can clearly understand the importance of having a high-performance, high-speed mobile communications network. The safety of driver assistance services may now depend on the performance of the mobile communications network used by connected vehicles.

[0007] A first point is to ensure that the latency of the mobile communication network is suitable so that the envisaged driver assistance services can be executed safely. Latency is the minimum incompressible time measured between the start of the transmission of a message and the start of the reception of the same message. This delay is due to the network operations to transmit the message. If the network latency is too high, the information messages useful for the driver assistance services will not arrive in good time to the vehicles concerned.

[0008] Another disadvantage of the current situation, in addition to the latency of mobile communication networks, is the presence on the road network of so-called white zones, namely areas where network coverage is weak or non-existent. Even if the coverage of high-speed mobile networks is steadily improving, it will not be sufficient for applications such as remote control across the entire road network. Rather than white zones, we will find ourselves in the presence of areas with poor network coverage, in which connected vehicles will have few network resources at their disposal.

[0009] In general, connected vehicles require network resources. These resources are primarily the accessibility of communication services, such as the ability to be authenticated, send and receive messages, have a data link, and others. Once accessibility to services is established, network resources will be qualified by measurable quantities, such as the latency already discussed, but also the communication throughput, measured in MB / s (megabytes per second). The presence of several connected vehicles can reduce the network resources available to the vehicles and, for example, reduce the throughput available to each vehicle.

[0010] The situation created by the presence of areas with poor network coverage presents a clear security risk. The lack of network connectivity can prevent a connected vehicle from operating remotely, or degrade autonomous driving or driver assistance services by preventing connected vehicles from transmitting and receiving information.

[0011] The invention improves the situation. The invention

[0012] According to a first functional aspect, the invention relates to a method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle capable of moving on a road network and capable of communicating via a communication network having a variable level of network coverage, said method being characterized in that it comprises, when approaching an area having a level of network coverage lower than a given level, a step of transmitting in anticipation at least one item of information relating to the driving instructions intended for the connected vehicle in said area concerned.

[0013] Thanks to the invention, the connected vehicle will not suddenly find itself in an area with poor network coverage. Determining areas with poor network coverage will make it possible to detect vehicles for which loss of network connectivity may occur and will make it possible to take adaptation measures based on at least one piece of information received regarding the driving instructions of the connected vehicle to ensure smooth traffic flow even in an area with poor network coverage.

[0014] Information relating to driving instructions can take many forms. It may be an instruction as such, which will cause the vehicle to change driving mode. It may be a parameter change of a driving mode that remains unchanged, for example, the change of target speed in a driving mode that remains unchanged. Finally, it may be the provision of one or more parameters relating to the driving mode, for example, the provision of information on one or more upcoming intersections. Finally, it may simply be the information that network communications will be degraded to some extent when entering the area with poor network coverage.

[0015] It should be noted that the order of execution of the steps of the method may vary depending on the conditions of implementation of the method. The determination of the network coverage level of an area may be carried out once and for all, even if this is not the preferred embodiment, and the other steps may be executed without repeating this determination.

[0016] According to a first particular embodiment of the invention, the transmission of at least one item of information relating to the driving instructions intended for said vehicle takes place before said vehicle enters the area with poor network coverage.

[0017] Thanks to this first mode, the process ensures that the necessary instructions are transmitted to the connected vehicle before it enters the area with poor network coverage.

[0018] According to a second particular embodiment of the invention, which may be implemented alternatively or cumulatively with the previous embodiment, the determination of the level of network coverage on approach uses measurement information of the level of coverage carried out in the past. Preferably, the measurement information used is information from measurements carried out recently, for example less than a quarter of an hour or half an hour ago depending on the traffic in the areas subject to these measurements; the duration chosen will depend on the use case. These are generally measurements carried out by vehicles which have just passed through the areas in question and can detect network incidents which have just occurred.

[0019] It should be noted here that coverage level measurements can be carried out by a means of communication which can be a stand-alone mobile terminal present in a vehicle or even carried by a pedestrian, but also any other means of communication with the mobile network on board a vehicle.

[0020] With this second method, network coverage level determination is based on recent network coverage measurements. Communication devices (mobile phones or devices embedded in connected vehicles) can provide information on the network coverage they observe at any time. This data allows network coverage level determination to be based on up-to-date data and provide a more accurate result.

[0021] According to a third particular mode of implementation of the invention, which may be implemented alternatively or cumulatively with the previous modes, said given value is obtained as a function of a network capacity requirement of the connected vehicle.

[0022] In this mode, a network area will be considered to have low coverage for a subset of terminals or means of communication likely to enter the area. In particular, areas with low network coverage are determined based on the network capacity requirements for each vehicle, requirements expressed in a given value. Thus, an area with low network capacity will be defined for a vehicle with a greater need in terms of network capacities (for example, for a remotely piloted vehicle, for which video feeds filmed by one or more cameras of said vehicle are necessary for remote piloting), while this area will not be determined as having low network coverage for other vehicles requiring only low-capacity network resources (for example, periodic feeds of their position, trajectory, speed, or other parameters of the same type which represent a low volume of data).

[0023] The advantage of this mode is that it refines the determination of areas with low network coverage by limiting it according to the actual needs of connected vehicles. In this way, the process will not judge areas that allow connected vehicles to circulate according to their driving mode as having low network coverage if this requires only a small amount of data transmission.

[0024] According to a fourth particular embodiment of the invention, which may be implemented alternatively or cumulatively with the previous embodiments, the at least one item of information relating to the driving instructions comprises a request to change the travel speed.

[0025] Thanks to this particular implementation of the invention, it will be possible to regulate the arrival of connected vehicles in an area with poor network coverage. In this way, by spreading the passage of connected vehicles, it will be possible to maintain sufficient network capacity for each vehicle, even if it means delaying the entry into the area of ​​a given vehicle. In addition, the change in the speed of movement will allow the vehicle concerned to reduce the potential crossings of the connected vehicle with other vehicles or obstacles. This type of instruction would have been transmitted to the connected vehicle also in the absence of an area with poor network coverage. The method then has the advantage of transmitting the information before the entry of the connected vehicle into the area with poor network coverage.

[0026] According to a fifth particular embodiment of the invention, which may be implemented cumulatively with the previous embodiments, the at least one item of information relating to the driving instructions comprises a provision of a new route.

[0027] Thanks to this particular mode of implementation of the invention, connected vehicles will avoid areas with poor network coverage by following another route along which their network capacity needs to maintain a particular driving mode will be well met.

[0028] According to a sixth particular embodiment of the invention, which may be implemented cumulatively with the previous embodiments, the at least one piece of information relating to the driving instructions comprises an instruction to the connected vehicle relating to the driving mode to reduce its network capacity requirements.

[0029] Thanks to this particular embodiment of the invention, the connected vehicles will follow a driving mode adapted to the network capacity of the area with low network capacity when they cross said area. Indeed, depending on the available communication capacities, the connected vehicle will receive one or more instructions to change driving modes which will reduce their network capacity requirements. Autonomous driving functions can thus be activated or deactivated, or parameters changed. For example, an autonomous driving mode can be deactivated when approaching an intersection located in an area with low network coverage, because this mode requires the transmission of a list of vehicles likely to be crossed at the intersection, and the transmission of this list uses network capacity.

[0030] According to a first material aspect, the invention relates to a management entity managing a method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle capable of moving on a road network and capable of communicating via a communication network having a variable level of network coverage, said management entity being characterized in that it comprises the following modules: a detection module capable of detecting an approach by a connected vehicle to an area having a level of network coverage lower than a given level; a transmission module capable of transmitting in anticipation at least one item of information relating to the driving instructions intended for said connected vehicle in said area concerned.

[0031] According to another material aspect, the invention relates to a computer program capable of being implemented by a management entity, the program comprising code instructions which, when executed by a processor, carry out the steps of the management method defined above.

[0032] According to another material aspect, the invention relates to a data medium on which is recorded a computer program comprising a sequence of instructions for implementing the management method defined above.

[0033] The data carriers may be any entity or device capable of storing the programs. For example, the carriers may comprise a storage means, such as a ROM, for example a CD ROM or a microelectronic circuit ROM, or a magnetic recording means such as a hard disk. On the other hand, the carriers may be transmissible media such as an electrical or optical signal, which may be conveyed via an electrical or optical cable, by radio or by other means. The programs according to the invention may in particular be downloaded from a network such as the Internet. Alternatively, the information carrier may be an integrated circuit in which the program is incorporated, the circuit being adapted to execute or to be used in the execution of the method in question.

[0034] The invention will be better understood on reading the following description, given by way of example, and made with reference to the appended drawings in which:

[0035] represents a management entity according to the invention communicating with a connected vehicle.

[0036] represents a possible method of assisting in driving a connected vehicle.

[0037] Detailed description of one or more exemplary embodiments of the invention

[0038] La represents a management entity 100. This communicates with a connected vehicle V via a communication network N. In the, the vehicle V is approaching a zone Z, in other words about to enter a zone Z with poor network coverage.

[0039] A low level of network coverage refers to a level that is not sufficient for the vehicle V to communicate via this network and to be able to transmit or receive the quantity of data necessary to travel according to a given driving mode. This is determined in relation to a given level which expresses the needs of the connected vehicle(s) according to their driving mode.

[0040] In the method according to the invention, zones Z will be determined having a network coverage level lower than a given level. Such zones will also be called zones with low network coverage.

[0041] In the exemplary embodiment described in the figures, the management entity 100 comprises four modules, namely: an optional module 101 for determining a zone Z of the road network with low network coverage; a detection module 102 capable of detecting an approach by a connected vehicle V to a zone Z having a network coverage level lower than a given level; an optional module 103 for evaluating the capacity of the network N to transmit data necessary for the circulation of the connected vehicle V when the latter will circulate in said zone Z with low network coverage; a transmission module 104 capable of transmitting in anticipation at least one item of information relating to the driving instructions intended for said vehicle V in said zone Z concerned.

[0042] The management entity 100 may be included for example in an SRV server, or a set of servers, implementing the method according to the invention. It has the hardware architecture of a conventional computer and comprises in particular a processor, a RAM type random access memory and a read-only memory such as a Flash, ROM type memory (not shown in the figure) as well as input-output devices which will in particular enable it to communicate with connected vehicles V via a mobile communication network N.

[0043] In our example, the first step (a) of the method consists for the management entity 100 in determining a zone Z of the road network with low network coverage. Such a zone is an area where a network resource is not widely accessible to connected vehicles V. It is for example a measurement of a capacity of the network N which makes it possible to decide that a resource is not widely accessible when the measurement is below a certain threshold. An example of measurement is that of the flow rate, which is expressed in MB / s.

[0044] This step will be carried out by the determination module 101. In zone Z, the capacities of the mobile communication network N are reduced, which can lead to malfunctions in the driving mode used by the connected vehicle V.

[0045] The determination step (a) will rely on several pieces of information to determine a zone Z with low network coverage. These may be maps of the locations of the antennas of the mobile communication network, from which a simulation of the network coverage can be carried out. These simulations can make it possible to determine (a) zones Z of the road network which have low coverage by the mobile communication network. These simulations can be supplemented or improved by measurement campaigns in which measurements of the coverage of the mobile network are made at specific points of the road network. In one embodiment, one way of determining (a) a zone Z with low network coverage consists of using coverage measurements made by mobile communication means of users connected to the network.These means of communication can be simple mobile terminals of users, whether they are in a vehicle or not, but also communication systems embedded in connected vehicles traveling on the road network. These means of communication can provide geolocalized information on the quality of network coverage as they move if users have given their consent for this information to be provided. This information feedback then makes it possible to enrich network coverage maps in real time and to detect in advance of the phase possible incidents that degrade network coverage. Information feedback from connected vehicles will be favored because it naturally provides information on the network capacity on the road network and not its neighborhood. Preferably, the measurements used will be recent measurements to be sure that they are still up to date.

[0046] The determination (a) of a zone Z with low network coverage takes into account the communication needs of the connected vehicles V necessary for each driving mode that they are likely to implement on the portion of the road network that they will be required to cross, independently of the network capacity actually available. In our example, the determination (a) also takes into account the number of connected vehicles V required to circulate in the zone Z with low network coverage. Depending on these two constraints, it can be determined that a location on the road network may have coverage by the mobile communication network with a certain level of quality that will be sufficient for connected vehicles V implementing certain communication services, but will not be sufficient for other services. In particular, remotely piloted driving services require large quantities of network resources.This type of remote driving requires the transmission of data requiring significant bandwidth, such as, for example, and at a minimum, a view of the road in front of the vehicle transmitted by at least one panoramic camera device, this transmission having to be done in real time to ensure remote driving of the vehicle V. These transmissions therefore require both very high bandwidth and very low latency. An area in which a certain network coverage is present can therefore be determined (a) as being an area Z with low network coverage if the management entity anticipates that one or more connected vehicles V will cross it, depending on the network capacities necessary for the implementation of the driving modes that these vehicles can potentially use on each of the portions of the area to be crossed, and depending on the quantity of vehicles required to cross the area Z.

[0047] This forecast by the management entity 100 of the crossing of a zone Z by connected vehicles V will be based on several data. This may be direct feedback from the connected vehicles V to the management entity 100 of the routes that they plan to follow, as well as the network communication needs that the connected vehicles V anticipate for the different portions of their journey. The management entity 100 can therefore have the information that a vehicle V, which has communicated its route to it, should be in the zone Z at such and such a time and that it anticipates such and such a need for network capacity on each portion of said zone.

[0048] In addition, the management entity 100 may have access to other traffic information. This may be, for example, traffic histories and network resource consumption that make it possible to detect areas Z with low network coverage on a recurring basis. The connected vehicles V may send back to the management entity 100 information regarding the traffic that they observe in real time to refine the forecasts using the traffic histories. Other real-time traffic information, for example from cameras arranged on the road network, may also be used. These traffic forecasts may be used to predict the consumption of network resources by assuming that a certain proportion of the vehicles in circulation are connected vehicles, even if they are not in communication with the management entity 100.

[0049] In our example, the second step (b) of the method consists of the management entity 100 detecting that a connected vehicle V is going to be called upon to circulate in the zone Z with low network coverage determined (a) in the previous step. This step is implemented by the detection module 102.

[0050] Once the areas Z with low network coverage have been determined (a), in our example, the management entity 100 will use the routes provided to it by the connected vehicles V to detect whether the vehicle V must cross an area Z with low network coverage.

[0051] We have seen that the determination step (a) is done using route forecasts provided by the connected vehicles V to the management entity 100. These same forecasts are used to carry out the detection step (b). The sequencing of the determination steps (a) and detection (b) is therefore not obligatory; the detection step (b) will often take place during the determination step (a).

[0052] In the event that the connected vehicles V do not return to their planned route, the management entity 100 can rely on the regular uploading of the geolocation of the connected vehicle V as well as its current speed to anticipate its most likely nearby movements and therefore the potential crossing of a zone Z with poor network coverage.

[0053] In our example, the third step (c) of the method will consist for the management entity 100 in evaluating the capacity of the network N to transmit data necessary for the circulation of the connected vehicle V when the latter circulates in said zone Z with low network coverage. This step is implemented by the evaluation module 103.

[0054] A zone Z with low network coverage does not generally have a zero level of coverage by the communication network N. It is not a white zone without any communication capacity. On the other hand, zone Z has low network coverage which will not allow the connected vehicle V to use the driving modes that consume the most network resources. We have seen that a very consuming driving mode is remote control which requires the real-time transmission of data collected by sensors of the connected vehicle V such as at least one on-board camera. The evaluation step (c) will therefore consist of evaluating whether the driving mode of the connected vehicle V is compatible with the network resources that should be available when the vehicle V enters the zone Z with low network coverage.

[0055] Evaluation step (c) will also take into account the result of the determination (a) of the area Z with low network coverage and the position and trajectory parameters, such as the speed and direction of the connected vehicle V.

[0056] In our example, the fourth step (d) of the method will consist for the management entity 100 in transmitting at least one item of information relating to the driving instructions intended for said vehicle V, the transmission time being a function of the result of the evaluation of the capacity of the network N. The step (d) of transmitting at least one instruction is implemented by the transmission module 104 of the management entity 100. The at least one item of information transmitted during step (d) can make it possible to ensure that the network resource requirements requested by the driving mode of the connected vehicle V do not exceed the capacities of the network N in the area Z with poor network coverage.

[0057] Alternatively, at least one piece of transmitted information (d) will allow the vehicle V to adapt its driving at the appropriate time with respect to other vehicles whose signaling is provided in said information, relative to a near future instant and a portion of track in zone Z, said instant and said portion of track being dependent on the driving parameters of the vehicle V, and the assumptions of speed of movement and trajectory of the other vehicles evaluated in said zone Z.

[0058] In one embodiment, the transmission time (d) of at least one instruction relating to the driving mode of the vehicle takes place before the vehicle V enters the zone Z with low network coverage. In this way, it is certain that the instructions are indeed transmitted before the reduction in availability of the network resources following the entry of the vehicle V into the zone Z.

[0059] In one embodiment, the at least one piece of information transmitted to the connected vehicle V intended to travel in a zone Z with low network coverage consists of a request to change the travel speed of the connected vehicle V. In this way, the management entity 100 will seek to regulate the arrival of connected vehicles, which are high consumers of network resources, in the zone Z with low network coverage. This speed change instruction may, in extreme cases, go as far as an instruction to stop the connected vehicle V. In this way, the management entity 100 can guarantee that the connected vehicle V will not enter a zone Z with low network coverage. The speed change instruction may also be combined with an implementation delay. In this case, the instruction is not implemented as soon as it is transmitted, but upon expiry of a provided delay.This embodiment allows the gear change instruction to be applied at the most appropriate time, even if this occurs when the connected vehicle V is located in an area Z with poor network coverage.

[0060] In another embodiment, the at least one piece of information relating to the driving instructions transmitted (d) to the connected vehicle V called upon to travel in an area Z with poor network coverage consists of the provision of a new route making it possible to avoid the area Z with poor network coverage. In this way, again, the method implemented by the management entity 100 will guarantee that the connected vehicle V will not enter an area Z with poor network coverage.

[0061] In another embodiment, the at least one piece of information relating to the driving instructions transmitted (d) to the connected vehicle V called upon to travel in an area Z with low network coverage consists of an instruction to the connected vehicle V to change driving mode to reduce its network capacity requirements.

[0062] A driving mode that consumes a lot of network resources, as already seen, is the remote control mode. This mode requires the real-time transmission of data collected by at least one front camera of the connected vehicle V and by other sensors. The method implemented by the management entity 100 will therefore, for example, instruct the connected vehicle V to abandon this driving mode and switch, for example, to an autonomous driving mode that will consume less network resources. The method can also instruct the connected vehicle V to switch to a driving mode by its driver to avoid any driving failure following passage through the zone Z with poor network coverage.

[0063] The information relating to the instructions may also consist of an instruction not to change driving mode when the connected vehicle V is in the area Z with poor network coverage. In this way, if the current driving mode of the connected vehicle V is sufficiently economical in network resources, it will not be degraded when the vehicle V passes through the area Z with poor network coverage; on the other hand, the driving mode cannot be changed to a more resource-consuming mode.

[0064] The information relating to the transmitted instructions (d) may also be relative to the driving mode without changing it. It may consist of an instruction to reduce the quality of the transmitted data, or the sampling of the transmitted data. In this way, the network resources consumed by the driving mode will decrease without changing the driving mode itself. The quality of the driving mode will, however, be degraded to preserve the ability to circulate in the area (Z) with poor network coverage.

[0065] In general, we recall that the information relating to the driving instructions transmitted during step (d) can take many forms. It can be an instruction as such, which will make the vehicle change driving mode. It can be a change of parameter of a driving mode which remains unchanged, for example the change of target speed in a driving mode which remains unchanged. Finally, it can be the provision of one or more parameters relating to the driving mode, for example the provision of information on one or more upcoming intersections.Finally, it may simply be the information that network communications will be degraded to some extent when entering the area with poor network coverage, information which will possibly be transmitted to the driver of the connected vehicle V, or will be used by the connected vehicle V to adapt its autonomous driving mode to the upcoming crossing of an area Z with poor network coverage.

[0066] La represents an example of a possible use of the management entity 100 to improve the driving of connected vehicles V. The management entity 100 will determine a list of obstacles that the vehicle V is likely to encounter during its crossing of the zone Z having a network coverage level lower than a given level, in other words having low network coverage. These obstacles may be a fixed obstacle O present in the zone Z, or another vehicle V', whose route the management entity 100 can determine and that the vehicle V should cross the vehicle V' during its crossing of the zone Z. Note that the vehicles V' may be connected vehicles, or non-connected vehicles whose position and trajectory parameters would have been determined according to the state of the art, for example by other connected vehicles V.The management entity 100 can obtain information regarding the presence of an obstacle O in the zone Z thanks to feedback from road maintenance services, or from cameras filming the road network, or from connected vehicles V which transmit information about the obstacles they encounter, either within the zone Z if they have the network capacity necessary to transmit said information, or as soon as they have the capacity. In which case, the information transmitted relating to these obstacles encountered previously is transmitted with reference to both the time of their detection and the geolocation at the time of said detection. Additional information such as the trajectory and the evaluated speed of the obstacle encountered can also be transmitted at this time.With regard to the vehicle V', we have seen that the management entity 100 uses, during the determination phase (a), traffic forecasts for the vehicles, whether connected or not. This information can be used to predict that the connected vehicle V should cross a vehicle V', whether the latter is connected or not, when crossing the area Z with low network coverage.

[0067] The management entity 100 can therefore transmit a list of expected obstacles to the connected vehicle V, each expected obstacle being able to be coupled with a series of complementary information such as the expected trajectory of the obstacle (if it is moving), its position and its expected speed at such an instant, or any other relevant information, said complementary information being able to be associated with a probability of occurrence. The transmission of information about an expected obstacle O or a vehicle V' likely to be crossed by the connected vehicle V can be done in the form of a series of successive GPS geolocation points, said geolocation points being associated with information giving the probability of presence of the obstacle O or of the vehicle V' at the geolocation point as a function of the instants to come in the near future.This information can be limited by transmitting only the GPS geolocation point and the moment in the future for which the crossing of the connected vehicle V with a vehicle V' or an obstacle O is most likely.

[0068] The transmission of this list of expected obstacles can be done before the arrival of the vehicle V in the area Z with low network coverage, in order to ensure that the transmission will not be prevented by the reduction of network resources offered by the network N in the area Z with low coverage.

[0069] The vehicle V will then be able, upon leaving the area Z with poor network coverage, to send information to the management entity 100, if the network capacities allow it. This information will make it possible to confirm or deny the presence of the fixed obstacles O in the area Z with poor network coverage, and also whether the connected vehicle V has indeed crossed the vehicle V' or not. This vehicle V' may indeed have changed direction or stopped after being detected as heading towards the area Z. The connected vehicle V will therefore have to confirm or deny its crossing with the vehicle V' to improve the forecasts of the management entity 100. This sending of confirmation or denial information may be done upon leaving the area Z with poor network coverage to take advantage of the return of good network resource capacity from the network N.

[0070] Finally, it should be noted here that, in this text, the term "module" can correspond to a software component as well as to a hardware component or a set of hardware and software components, a software component itself corresponding to one or more computer programs or sub-programs or, more generally, to any element of a program capable of implementing a function or a set of functions as described for the modules concerned. In the same way, a hardware component corresponds to any element of a hardware assembly capable of implementing a function or a set of functions for the module concerned (integrated circuit, smart card, memory card, etc.).

Claims

Method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle (V) capable of moving on a road network and capable of communicating via a communication network (N) having a variable level of network coverage, said method being characterized in that it includes, when approaching an area (Z) having a level of network coverage lower than a given level, a step of transmitting in anticipation at least one piece of information relating to driving instructions intended for the connected vehicle (V) in said area (Z) concerned. Management method according to claim 1, characterized in that the determination of the network coverage level at the approach uses coverage level measurement information obtained in the past. Management method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, characterized in that said given value is obtained as a function of a network capacity requirement of the connected vehicle (V). Management method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that at least one piece of information relating to driving instructions includes a request for a change of travel speed. Management method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that at least one piece of information relating to driving instructions includes the provision of a new route. Management method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that at least one piece of information relating to driving instructions includes an instruction to the connected vehicle (V) relating to the driving mode to reduce its network capacity requirements. Management entity (100) managing a method for assisting the movement of a connected vehicle (V) capable of moving on a road network and capable of communicating via a communication network (N) having a variable network coverage level, said management entity (100) being characterized in that it comprises the following modules: a detection module (102) capable of detecting an approach by a connected vehicle (V) to an area (Z) having a network coverage level lower than a given level; a transmission module (104) capable of transmitting in advance at least one piece of information relating to driving instructions intended for said connected vehicle (V) in said area (Z) concerned. Computer program capable of being implemented by a management entity (100), the program comprising code instructions which, when executed by a processor, carries out the steps of the management process defined in claim 1. Data carrier, on which is stored a computer program comprising a sequence of instructions for implementing the management method according to claim 1 when loaded into and executed by a processor.

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