Control device and control method

Abstract

To enhance amenity.SOLUTION: There is provided a control device 19 configured to control motion of a vehicle 10. The control device 19 comprises: an acquisition unit configured to acquire boarding information that indicates a boarding mode of occupants other than a driver of the vehicle 10; and a control unit configured to execute travel control that controls travel of the vehicle 10 automatically without being subjected to drive operation of the driver of the vehicle 10, and adjust, on the basis of the boarding information, behavior parameters that impact on behavior of the vehicle 10 in the travel control.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a control device and a control method. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example, a technology relating to driving control has been proposed that automatically controls the driving of a vehicle without relying on driving operations (such as acceleration / deceleration operations or steering operations) by a driver. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2017 / 208781 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the change in vehicle behavior caused by the cruise control may be a cause of discomfort for some vehicle occupants, and therefore there is a demand for proposals to improve comfort.

[0005] In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a control device and a control method that can improve comfort. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the control device is a control device that controls the operation of the vehicle and includes an acquisition unit that acquires ride information, which is information indicating the manner in which passengers in the vehicle are riding, and a control unit that executes driving control that automatically controls the driving of the vehicle regardless of driving operations by the vehicle driver, and adjusts behavior parameters that affect the behavior of the vehicle in the driving control based on the ride information.

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the control method is a control method for controlling the operation of a vehicle, in which an acquisition unit of the control device acquires riding information which is information indicating the manner in which a passenger in the vehicle is riding, and a control unit of the control device executes driving control which automatically controls the driving of the vehicle regardless of driving operations by the driver of the vehicle, and adjusts behavior parameters which affect the behavior of the vehicle in the driving control based on the riding information. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to improve comfort. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of a process for adjusting a behavior parameter of driving control performed by a control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The dimensions, materials, and other specific values ​​shown in the embodiment are merely examples for facilitating understanding of the invention, and do not limit the present invention unless otherwise specified. In this specification and drawings, elements having substantially the same functions and configurations are given the same reference numerals to avoid repeated explanations, and elements not directly related to the present invention are not shown.

[0011] <Vehicle configuration> The configuration of a vehicle 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0012] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a general configuration of a vehicle 10. As shown in Fig. 1, the vehicle 10 includes a plurality of seats 11, a steering mechanism 12, a drive source 13, a braking device 14, a display device 15, an ambient environment sensor 16, a plurality of wheel speed sensors 17, a vehicle interior sensor 18, and a control device 19.

[0013] A plurality of seats 11 are provided in the cabin of the vehicle 10. In the example of Fig. 1, the vehicle 10 is provided with a driver's seat 11a and a passenger seat 11b which are the front row seats 11, and a rear seat 11c which is the rear row seat 11. The driver's seat 11a is the seat 11 in which the driver of the vehicle 10 sits. The passenger seat 11b and the rear seat 11c are the seats 11 in which fellow passengers of the vehicle 10 sit. The fellow passengers refer to passengers of the vehicle 10 other than the driver.

[0014] However, the number and arrangement of the seats 11 in the vehicle 10 are not limited to the example in FIG. 1. For example, the vehicle 10 may be provided with three rows of seats 11. In this case, the seats 11 in the rows other than the first row (i.e., the second and third rows) correspond to the rear seats 11c. Also, for example, in the example in FIG. 1, the driver's seat 11a is located on the right side of the vehicle 10, but the driver's seat 11a may be located on the left side of the vehicle 10.

[0015] The steering mechanism 12 is a mechanism that changes the tire steering angle of the vehicle 10. The steering mechanism 12 includes a steering wheel 12a, and changes the tire steering angle in response to a steering operation by a driver using the steering wheel 12a. The steering wheel 12a is used in the steering operation by the driver. The steering wheel 12a is provided in front of the driver's seat 11a.

[0016] The drive source 13 outputs a drive force that is transmitted to drive wheels of the vehicle 10. Examples of the drive source 13 include an engine and an electric motor.

[0017] The braking device 14 applies a braking force to the wheels of the vehicle 10. For example, the braking device 14 includes a hydraulic control unit, and the hydraulic control unit adjusts the hydraulic pressure of the brake fluid in the wheel cylinder, thereby adjusting the braking force applied to the wheels.

[0018] The display device 15 is a device that visually displays various information. An example of the display device 15 is a liquid crystal display.

[0019] The surrounding environment sensor 16 detects surrounding environment information related to the environment around the vehicle 10. For example, the surrounding environment sensor 16 is provided at the front of the vehicle 10 and detects surrounding environment information ahead of the vehicle 10. The surrounding environment information detected by the surrounding environment sensor 16 may be information related to the distance or direction to an object located around the vehicle 10 (e.g., relative position, relative distance, relative speed, relative acceleration, etc.), or may be characteristics of the object located around the vehicle 10 (e.g., type of object, shape of the object itself, mark attached to the object, etc.). The surrounding environment sensor 16 is, for example, a radar, a Lidar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a camera, etc.

[0020] A wheel speed sensor 17 is provided on each wheel to detect the wheel speed of each wheel.

[0021] The vehicle interior sensor 18 detects the state of the vehicle interior of the vehicle 10. An example of the vehicle interior sensor 18 is a camera that captures images of the interior of the vehicle interior. In the following, an example in which the vehicle interior sensor 18 is a camera will be described. However, as described later, the vehicle interior sensor 18 may be a sensor other than a camera. The vehicle interior sensor 18 is provided in the vehicle interior of the vehicle 10. For example, the vehicle interior sensor 18 is provided near the rearview mirror in the vehicle interior and facing downward toward the rear. In particular, the vehicle interior sensor 18 can detect the state of the passengers in the vehicle 10, including the driver and passengers.

[0022] The control device 19 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) which is an arithmetic processing device, a ROM (Read Only Memory) which is a storage element for storing programs and arithmetic parameters used by the CPU, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) which is a storage element for temporarily storing parameters that change appropriately during execution of the CPU. The control device 19 may be, for example, one unit, or may be divided into multiple units. When the control device 19 is divided into multiple units, various functions described below are shared among the multiple units, so that, for example, some functions of the control unit 19b described below and other functions may be shared by different units.

[0023] Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of the control device 19. As shown in Fig. 2, the control device 19 includes, for example, an acquisition unit 19a and a control unit 19b.

[0024] The acquisition unit 19a acquires information from each device in the vehicle 10. For example, the acquisition unit 19a acquires information from the surrounding environment sensor 16, the wheel speed sensor 17, and the vehicle interior sensor 18. In this specification, the acquisition of information may include the extraction or generation (e.g., calculation) of information. For example, the acquisition unit 19a can acquire the speed of the vehicle 10 based on the detection result of the wheel speed sensor 17.

[0025] The control unit 19b controls the operation of each device in the vehicle 10. For example, the control unit 19b controls the operation of the steering mechanism 12, the drive source 13, the brake device 14, and the display device 15.

[0026] The control unit 19b can execute driving control by, for example, controlling the steering mechanism 12, the drive source 13, and the brake device 14. In the driving control, the control unit 19b automatically controls the driving of the vehicle 10 regardless of the driving operation by the driver of the vehicle 10. The driving control may be control that handles all driving operations by the driver, or may be control that handles only some of the driving operations.

[0027] For example, the control unit 19b may execute adaptive cruise control as the driving control, which adjusts the speed of the vehicle 10 so that the vehicle 10 follows the preceding vehicle by automatically controlling the drive source 13 and the brake device 14. The control unit 19b detects the distance between the vehicle 10 and the preceding vehicle by using the detection result of the surrounding environment sensor 16, for example, and executes the adaptive cruise control based on the detection result of the distance.

[0028] Furthermore, for example, the control unit 19b may execute lane keep assist as driving control, which adjusts the position of the vehicle 10 in the lane width direction so that the vehicle 10 does not deviate from the driving lane by automatically controlling the steering mechanism 12. For example, the control unit 19b detects the driving lane in which the vehicle 10 is traveling by utilizing the detection result of the surrounding environment sensor 16, and executes lane keep assist based on the detection result of the driving lane.

[0029] For example, the driver of the vehicle 10 can switch between a mode in which driving control is executed and the driving of the vehicle 10 is controlled by the driving control and a mode in which driving control is not executed and the driving of the vehicle 10 is left to manual driving. In this case, for example, the driver performs a specific operation to switch between these modes.

[0030] <Control device operation> The operation of the control device 19 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

[0031] As described above, the control unit 19b of the control device 19 executes driving control that automatically controls the driving of the vehicle 10 regardless of the driving operation by the driver of the vehicle 10. Here, in the driving control, the behavior of the vehicle 10 changes regardless of the driving operation by the driver. The behavior change of the vehicle 10 caused by the driving control may be a factor that makes some passengers of the vehicle 10 feel uncomfortable. For example, unlike the driver, the passengers of the vehicle 10 often do not pay attention to the front, and therefore it is difficult to predict the future behavior of the vehicle 10. Therefore, the passengers are more likely to feel uncomfortable about the behavior change of the vehicle 10 than the driver.

[0032] In the control device 19, by implementing an improvement in the process of adjusting the behavior parameters that affect the behavior of the vehicle 10 in the driving control, it is possible to improve comfort as described later. Note that, as described later, examples of the behavior parameters include parameters related to the acceleration, deceleration, speed, etc. of the vehicle 10.

[0033] Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the adjustment process of the behavior parameters of the driving control performed by the control device 19. Step S101 in Fig. 3 corresponds to the start of the control flow shown in Fig. 3. Step S108 in Fig. 3 corresponds to the end of the control flow shown in Fig. 3. The control flow shown in Fig. 3 is started repeatedly at preset time intervals, for example, while the driving control is being executed.

[0034] 3 is started, in step S102, the acquisition unit 19a acquires boarding information. The boarding information is information indicating the boarding manner of a fellow passenger in the vehicle 10. The boarding manner includes the location of the fellow passenger in the vehicle 10 in addition to whether or not the fellow passenger is on board.

[0035] 3, in step S102, the acquisition unit 19a acquires, as ride information, information indicating the presence or absence of a passenger and information indicating the seat 11 in which the passenger is sitting. The acquisition unit 19a can recognize the face or body of the person sitting in the seat 11 by, for example, performing image processing on an image captured by a camera serving as the vehicle interior sensor 18.

[0036] When it is determined based on the result of image processing that a person is sitting in at least one of the passenger seat 11b and the rear seat 11c, the acquisition unit 19a acquires information indicating the presence of a passenger as the boarding information. When it is determined based on the result of image processing that a person is sitting in at least one of the passenger seat 11b and the rear seat 11c, the acquisition unit 19a acquires information indicating the seat 11 in which the passenger is sitting as the boarding information. On the other hand, when it is determined based on the result of image processing that no person is sitting in either the passenger seat 11b or the rear seat 11c, the acquisition unit 19a acquires information indicating that no passenger is sitting as the boarding information.

[0037] As described later, if the vehicle interior sensor 18 is a sensor other than a camera, the acquisition unit 19a acquires the ride information by a method different from the above method.

[0038] In the following, an example will be described in which information indicating the presence or absence of a fellow passenger and information indicating the seat 11 in which the fellow passenger is sitting are used as the boarding information. However, as will be described later, the information used as the boarding information is not limited to this example.

[0039] After step S102, in step S103, the control unit 19b determines whether or not there is a fellow passenger based on the fellow passenger information.

[0040] If it is determined that there is no passenger (step S103 / NO), the process proceeds to step S104. This corresponds to a case where only the driver is a passenger in the vehicle 10. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is a passenger (step S103 / YES), the process proceeds to step S105.

[0041] If the determination in step S103 is NO, in step S104, the control unit 19b switches the setting of the behavior parameter of the driving control to a first setting, which will be described later, and the control flow shown in FIG. 3 ends.

[0042] In the driving control, behavior parameters that affect the behavior of the vehicle 10 are set. Then, in the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the behavior of the vehicle 10 in accordance with the settings of the behavior parameters. Therefore, in the driving control, the behavior of the vehicle 10 changes in accordance with the settings of the behavior parameters.

[0043] For example, the behavior parameters include parameters related to the acceleration of the vehicle 10. Then, in the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the acceleration of the vehicle 10 according to the setting of the parameters related to the acceleration. For example, the parameters related to the acceleration include an upper limit acceleration. For example, in the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the acceleration of the vehicle 10 to be equal to or lower than the upper limit acceleration.

[0044] Furthermore, for example, the behavior parameters include parameters related to the deceleration of the vehicle 10. Then, in the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the deceleration of the vehicle 10 according to the setting of the parameters related to the deceleration. For example, an upper limit deceleration is given as an example of the parameter related to the deceleration. For example, in the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the deceleration of the vehicle 10 to be equal to or lower than the upper limit deceleration.

[0045] Furthermore, for example, the behavior parameters include parameters related to the speed of the vehicle 10. In the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the speed of the vehicle 10 according to the setting of the parameters related to the speed. An example of the parameters related to the speed is the speed transition before entering a curved road. For example, in the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the speed of the vehicle 10 before entering a curved road so as to follow a set speed transition. In the speed transition before entering a curved road as the behavior parameter, for example, the speed of the vehicle 10 decreases in advance before the vehicle 10 enters the curved road, and transitions to a somewhat low speed when the vehicle 10 enters the curved road.

[0046] In the following, an example will be described in which the behavior parameters of the cruise control include an upper limit acceleration as a parameter related to acceleration, an upper limit deceleration as a parameter related to deceleration, and a speed transition before entering a curved road as a parameter related to speed. However, as will be described later, the behavior parameters of the cruise control are not limited to this example.

[0047] If there is no passenger (i.e., if step S103 is judged as NO), in step S104, as described above, the control unit 19b switches the setting of the behavior parameter of the driving control to the first setting. On the other hand, if there is a passenger (i.e., if step S103 is judged as YES), as described later, the control unit 19b switches the setting of the behavior parameter of the driving control to the second setting or the third setting. Here, the first setting is a setting that is more likely to cause a large change in the behavior of the vehicle 10 than the second setting or the third setting. In other words, the second setting or the third setting is a setting that is more likely to suppress a change in the behavior of the vehicle 10 than the first setting. Details of the comparison between the first setting and the second setting or the third setting will be described later.

[0048] If the determination in step S103 is YES, in step S105, the control unit 19b determines whether or not a passenger is sitting in the rear seat 11c based on the passenger information.

[0049] If it is determined that the passenger is not sitting in the rear seat 11c (step S105 / NO), the process proceeds to step S106. This corresponds to the case where the passenger is sitting only in the passenger seat 11b. On the other hand, if it is determined that the passenger is sitting in the rear seat 11c (step S105 / YES), the process proceeds to step S107.

[0050] If the determination in step S105 is NO, in step S106, the control unit 19b switches the setting of the behavior parameter of the driving control to the second setting, and the control flow shown in Fig. 3 ends. On the other hand, if the determination in step S105 is YES, in step S107, the control unit 19b switches the setting of the behavior parameter of the driving control to the third setting, and the control flow shown in Fig. 3 ends.

[0051] As described above, the second setting or the third setting, which is set when there is a passenger (i.e., when it is determined as YES in step S103), is a setting that suppresses behavior changes of the vehicle 10 compared to the first setting, which is set when there is no passenger (i.e., when it is determined as NO in step S103). In this way, the control unit 19b adjusts the behavior parameters so that behavior changes of the vehicle 10 are suppressed when there is a passenger compared to when there is no passenger.

[0052] As described above, unlike the driver, the passengers of the vehicle 10 often do not look ahead, making it difficult to predict the future behavior of the vehicle 10. Therefore, the passengers are more likely to feel uncomfortable with changes in the behavior of the vehicle 10 than the driver. Therefore, when there is a passenger, the behavior parameters are adjusted so that changes in the behavior of the vehicle 10 are suppressed compared to when there is no passenger, thereby appropriately improving comfort.

[0053] For example, the upper limit acceleration set in the second or third setting is smaller than the upper limit acceleration set in the first setting. Therefore, the control unit 19b strongly restricts the acceleration of the vehicle 10 when there is a passenger compared to when there is no passenger. This makes it possible to suppress sudden acceleration of the vehicle 10.

[0054] Also, for example, the upper deceleration limit set in the second setting or the third setting is smaller than the upper deceleration limit set in the first setting. Therefore, the control unit 19b strongly limits the deceleration of the vehicle 10 when there is a passenger compared to when there is no passenger. This makes it possible to suppress sudden deceleration of the vehicle 10.

[0055] Also, for example, in the speed transition before entering a curved road set in the second or third setting, the timing of deceleration is earlier than the speed transition before entering a curved road set in the first setting. Therefore, when there is a passenger, the control unit 19b speeds up the timing of deceleration before entering a curved road compared to when there is no passenger. This makes it possible to prevent the vehicle 10 from entering a curved road at a high speed.

[0056] The third setting, which is set when the passenger is at least sitting in the rear seat 11c of the vehicle 10 (i.e., when the determination is YES in step S105), is a setting that further suppresses changes in the behavior of the vehicle 10, compared to the second setting, which is set when the passenger is only sitting in the passenger seat 11b of the vehicle 10 (i.e., when the determination is NO in step S105). In other words, the control unit 19b increases the degree of adjustment of the behavior parameters when the passenger is at least sitting in the rear seat 11c of the vehicle 10, compared to when the passenger is only sitting in the passenger seat 11b of the vehicle 10.

[0057] A passenger sitting in the rear seat 11c has a harder time seeing the front of the vehicle 10 than a passenger sitting in the passenger seat 11b, and therefore has a particularly hard time predicting the future behavior of the vehicle 10. Therefore, a passenger sitting in the rear seat 11c is particularly more likely to feel uncomfortable with a change in the behavior of the vehicle 10 than a passenger sitting in the passenger seat 11b. Therefore, when a passenger is sitting at least in the rear seat 11c of the vehicle 10, it is possible to more appropriately improve comfort by increasing the degree of adjustment of the behavior parameters compared to when the passenger is sitting only in the passenger seat 11b of the vehicle 10.

[0058] For example, the upper limit acceleration set in the third setting is smaller than the upper limit acceleration set in the second setting. Therefore, when the passenger is at least seated in the rear seat 11c of the vehicle 10, the control unit 19b restricts the acceleration of the vehicle 10 more strongly than when the passenger is seated only in the passenger seat 11b of the vehicle 10. This makes it possible to more effectively suppress sudden acceleration of the vehicle 10.

[0059] Also, for example, the upper limit deceleration set in the third setting is even smaller than the upper limit deceleration set in the second setting. Therefore, when the passenger is at least seated in the rear seat 11c of the vehicle 10, the control unit 19b more strongly limits the deceleration of the vehicle 10 compared to when the passenger is seated only in the passenger seat 11b of the vehicle 10. This makes it possible to more effectively suppress sudden deceleration of the vehicle 10.

[0060] Also, for example, in the speed transition before entering a curved road set in the third setting, the timing of deceleration is earlier than the speed transition before entering a curved road set in the second setting. Therefore, when the passenger is at least seated in the rear seat 11c of the vehicle 10, the control unit 19b makes the timing of deceleration before entering a curved road earlier than when the passenger is seated only in the passenger seat 11b of the vehicle 10. This makes it possible to more effectively prevent the vehicle 10 from entering a curved road at a high speed.

[0061] As described above, in the control device 19, the acquisition unit 19a acquires riding information that is information indicating the riding manner of the passenger in the vehicle 10. Then, the control unit 19b adjusts behavior parameters that affect the behavior of the vehicle 10 in the driving control based on the riding information. This makes it possible to appropriately suppress behavior changes of the vehicle 10 accompanying the driving control, taking into account the riding manner of the passenger. Therefore, it is possible to improve comfort.

[0062] An example of the process performed by the control device 19 has been described above with reference to Fig. 3. However, the process performed by the control device 19 is not limited to the above example, and may be, for example, a process obtained by appropriately modifying the above example.

[0063] For example, in the above description, an example has been described in which the information indicating the presence or absence of a fellow passenger and the information indicating the seat 11 in which the fellow passenger is sitting are used as the boarding information. However, the information used as the boarding information is not limited to the above example. For example, the information indicating the presence or absence of a fellow passenger may be used as the boarding information, but the information indicating the seat 11 in which the fellow passenger is sitting may not be used. In this case, for example, the process of step S105 is omitted from the flowchart of FIG. 3, and when there is a fellow passenger (that is, when YES is determined in step S103), the control unit 19b switches the setting of the behavior parameter of the driving control to either the second setting or the third setting. Also, for example, information indicating the likelihood that there is a fellow passenger may be used as the boarding information. In this case, for example, in step S103 of FIG. 3, the control unit 19b determines whether the likelihood that there is a fellow passenger exceeds a criterion, and proceeds to step S104 if NO is determined, and proceeds to step S105 if YES is determined.

[0064] Also, for example, in the above, an example in which the vehicle interior sensor 18 is a camera has been described. However, the vehicle interior sensor 18 may be a sensor other than a camera. For example, the vehicle interior sensor 18 may be a radar. In this case, in step S102, the acquisition unit 19a acquires, as the riding information, information indicating the presence or absence of a passenger and information indicating the seat 11 in which the passenger is sitting, based on, for example, a detection result of the radar as the vehicle interior sensor 18. For example, the radar can detect the distance between an object in the vehicle interior and the radar. Therefore, when a person is present in the vehicle interior, the radar can detect chest contraction of the person accompanying the person's breathing. Therefore, the acquisition unit 19a can detect an object in which such chest contraction occurs as a person based on the detection result of the radar as the vehicle interior sensor 18. Therefore, the acquisition unit 19a can acquire, as the riding information, information indicating the presence or absence of a passenger and information indicating the seat 11 in which the passenger is sitting, based on such a detection result of the radar. Also, for example, if an occupancy sensor is provided in each seat 11 as a vehicle interior sensor 18, in step S102, the acquisition unit 19a may acquire information indicating the presence or absence of a passenger and information indicating the seat 11 in which the passenger is sitting as boarding information based on the detection results of each seat occupancy sensor.

[0065] Also, for example, in the above, an example was described in which the behavior parameters of the driving control include the upper limit acceleration as a parameter related to acceleration, the upper limit deceleration as a parameter related to deceleration, and the speed transition before entering a curved road as a parameter related to speed. However, the behavior parameters of the driving control are not limited to the above example. For example, the parameter related to acceleration may include the upper limit acceleration jerk. In the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the acceleration jerk of the vehicle 10 to be equal to or less than the upper limit acceleration jerk. Also, for example, the parameter related to deceleration may include the upper limit deceleration rate. In the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the deceleration rate of the vehicle 10 to be equal to or less than the upper limit deceleration rate. Also, for example, the parameter related to speed may include the upper limit speed on a curved road. In the driving control, the control unit 19b controls the speed of the vehicle 10 on a curved road to be equal to or less than the upper limit speed. Note that the behavior parameters adjusted based on the riding information may be any part of the multiple types of parameters listed above, or all of the types of parameters. Furthermore, the control unit 19b may adjust parameters other than the parameters listed above based on the ride information.

[0066] Also, for example, in the above, an example in which the control unit 19b adjusts the behavior parameters based on the riding information has been described. However, the control unit 19b may adjust the behavior parameters based on the mental and physical information in addition to the riding information. The mental and physical information is information indicating the mental and physical state of the passengers of the vehicle 10 including the fellow passenger. Examples of the mental and physical information include information indicating whether the passenger is sleeping or not, information indicating whether the passenger is feeling unwell or not, or information indicating the emotions of the passenger. For example, the control unit 19b adjusts the behavior parameters so that the behavior change of the vehicle 10 is suppressed when there is a sleeping passenger compared to when there is no sleeping passenger. Also, for example, the control unit 19b adjusts the behavior parameters so that the behavior change of the vehicle 10 is suppressed when there is a passenger who feels unwell compared to when there is no unwell passenger. Also, for example, the control unit 19b may appropriately adjust the behavior parameters according to the emotions of the passengers.

[0067] The mental and physical information is acquired by the acquisition unit 19a. The acquisition unit 19a can acquire the mental and physical information based on, for example, the detection result of the vehicle interior sensor 18. For example, when a camera is used as the vehicle interior sensor 18, the acquisition unit 19a can acquire the mental and physical information by performing image processing on an image captured by the camera serving as the vehicle interior sensor 18 and showing the face of the passenger.

[0068] Also, for example, the control unit 19b may notify the driver of various information in association with the adjustment process of the behavior parameters. For example, the control unit 19b may notify the driver of information indicating the degree of adjustment of the behavior parameters. Also, for example, the control unit 19b may notify the driver of mental and physical information. The control unit 19b notifies the driver of such information by, for example, displaying such information on the display device 15.

[0069] However, the above notification is not limited to the example realized by using the display device 15. For example, the above notification may be realized by using a display device (for example, a smartphone or a tablet terminal) carried by the driver, not mounted on the vehicle 10. Also, for example, the above notification may be realized by both a display and a sound, or may be realized by a sound instead of a display.

[0070] Furthermore, for example, when a specific operation is performed by the driver, the control unit 19b may prohibit the adjustment process of the behavior parameter (for example, the process in FIG. 3).

[0071] <Effects of the control device> The effects of the control device 19 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0072] The control device 19 includes an acquisition unit 19a that acquires riding information, which is information indicating the riding manner of the passengers of the vehicle 10, and a control unit 19b that executes driving control that automatically controls the driving of the vehicle 10 without the driving operation by the driver of the vehicle 10, and adjusts behavior parameters that affect the behavior of the vehicle 10 in the driving control based on the riding information. Thereby, the behavior change of the vehicle 10 accompanying the driving control can be appropriately suppressed by taking into account the riding manner of the passengers. Therefore, comfort can be improved.

[0073] Preferably, in the control device 19, the ride information includes information indicating the presence or absence of a passenger, and the control unit 19b adjusts the behavior parameters so that the behavior change of the vehicle 10 is suppressed when there is a passenger compared to when there is no passenger. This makes it possible to suppress the passenger from feeling uncomfortable due to the behavior change of the vehicle 10. Therefore, improvement of comfort is appropriately achieved.

[0074] Preferably, in the control device 19, the ride information includes information indicating the seat 11 in which the passenger is sitting, and the control unit 19b increases the degree of adjustment of the behavior parameters when the passenger is sitting at least in the rear seat 11c of the vehicle 10, compared to when the passenger is sitting only in the passenger seat 11b of the vehicle 10. This makes it possible to suppress the passenger sitting in the rear seat 11c in particular from feeling uncomfortable due to the change in behavior of the vehicle 10. Therefore, improvement of comfort is more appropriately achieved.

[0075] Preferably, in the control device 19, the acquisition unit 19a acquires mental and physical information indicating the mental and physical states of the occupants of the vehicle 10, including the passengers, and the control unit 19b adjusts the behavior parameters based on the mental and physical information in addition to the riding information. This makes it possible to appropriately suppress behavior changes of the vehicle 10 associated with driving control by taking into account the mental and physical information in addition to the riding information. Therefore, comfort can be improved more effectively.

[0076] Preferably, in the control device 19, the behavior parameters include parameters related to the acceleration of the vehicle 10. This makes it possible to appropriately suppress changes in the behavior of the vehicle 10 that accompany the control of acceleration by the cruise control. For example, it is possible to appropriately suppress sudden acceleration of the vehicle 10. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately improve comfort.

[0077] Preferably, in the control device 19, the behavior parameters include a parameter related to the deceleration of the vehicle 10. This makes it possible to appropriately suppress behavior changes of the vehicle 10 that accompany the control of the deceleration by the driving control. For example, it is possible to appropriately suppress sudden deceleration of the vehicle 10. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately improve comfort.

[0078] Preferably, in the control device 19, the behavior parameters include a parameter related to the speed of the vehicle 10. This makes it possible to appropriately suppress changes in the behavior of the vehicle 10 that accompany speed control by cruise control. For example, it is possible to appropriately suppress the vehicle 10 from entering a curved road at a high speed. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately improve comfort.

[0079] The above describes a preferred embodiment of the present invention with reference to the attached drawings. However, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modified or altered examples within the scope of the claims also fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0080] For example, the processes described herein using flowcharts do not necessarily have to be performed in the order shown in the flowcharts, some process steps may be performed in parallel, additional process steps may be employed, and some process steps may be omitted.

[0081] Also, for example, the series of processes by the control device 19 described above may be realized using any of software, hardware, and a combination of software and hardware. The programs constituting the software are stored in advance in, for example, a storage medium provided inside or outside the information processing device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0082] 10 Vehicles 11 seats 11a Driver's seat 11b Passenger seat 11c Back seat 12 Steering mechanism 12a Steering wheel 13 Power source 14 Brake device 15 Display device 16 Ambient environment sensor 17 Wheel speed sensor 18 Vehicle Interior Sensor 19 Control device 19a Acquisition Department 19b Control section

Claims

1. A control device (19) for controlling an operation of a vehicle (10), An acquisition unit (19a) that acquires riding information which is information indicating a riding manner of a passenger of the vehicle (10); a control unit (19b) that executes driving control for automatically controlling the driving of the vehicle (10) without a driving operation by a driver of the vehicle (10), and adjusts behavior parameters that affect the behavior of the vehicle (10) in the driving control based on the riding information; Equipped with Control device.

2. The boarding information includes information indicating the presence or absence of a passenger, the control unit (19b) adjusts the behavior parameter so that a change in behavior of the vehicle (10) is suppressed when the passenger is present, compared to when the passenger is not present. The control device according to claim 1 .

3. The boarding information includes information indicating the seat (11) in which the passenger is sitting, the control unit (19b) increases a degree of adjustment of the behavior parameter when the passenger is seated at least in a rear seat (11c) of the vehicle (10) compared with a case in which the passenger is seated only in a passenger seat (11b) of the vehicle (10). The control device according to claim 2.

4. The acquisition unit (19a) acquires mental and physical information indicating the mental and physical states of the occupants of the vehicle (10) including the passenger, The control unit (19b) adjusts the behavior parameters based on the mental and physical information in addition to the riding information. The control device according to claim 1 .

5. The behavior parameters include a parameter related to the acceleration of the vehicle (10). The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. The behavior parameters include a parameter related to the deceleration of the vehicle (10). The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

7. The behavior parameters include a parameter related to the speed of the vehicle (10). The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

8. A method for controlling an operation of a vehicle (10), comprising: An acquisition unit (19a) of a control device (19) acquires riding information which is information indicating a riding manner of a passenger in the vehicle (10), A control unit (19b) of the control device (19) executes driving control for automatically controlling the driving of the vehicle (10) without a driving operation by a driver of the vehicle (10), and adjusts behavior parameters that affect the behavior of the vehicle (10) in the driving control based on the riding information. Control methods.

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