Vehicle control device

Abstract

To prevent an unnecessarily long distance from being learned as an inter-vehicle distance.SOLUTION: A vehicle control device which is used to control a vehicle traveling by switching between a manual operation mode allowing a driver to operate the vehicle and an automatic operation mode without requiring driver's operation comprises: a surrounding recognition section which detects a surrounding condition of the vehicle; and a learning execution section which executes inter-vehicle distance learning to learn an inter-vehicle distance or inter-vehicle time relative to a preceding vehicle when the vehicle travels in the manual operation mode and a predetermined condition including that the vehicle follows the preceding vehicle is met. When the surrounding recognition section detects another preceding vehicle after the previous preceding vehicle leaves a lane while the vehicle travels in the manual operation mode, the learning execution section suspends learning the inter-vehicle distance learning for a first period from when the other preceding vehicle is detected to when the vehicle stops or for a second period until the inter-vehicle distance or the inter-vehicle time relative to the other preceding vehicle becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control device. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, as this type of vehicle control device, one that is used to control a vehicle that can switch between following driving operated by the driver and following driving not operated by the driver has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 1). In this device, when the time interval between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle remains within a set range for a set period of time, the device learns the following distance for each vehicle speed. Then, during following driving not operated by the driver, the device controls the following distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle to be the learned following distance. It is said that this allows the vehicle to travel at a following distance that reflects the driver's preference. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2005-178518 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above-mentioned vehicle control device, when the preceding vehicle leaves the lane and the vehicle that was traveling ahead of the preceding vehicle becomes the next preceding vehicle, the distance between the next preceding vehicle and the preceding vehicle is large, so the vehicle control device learns a distance that is longer than necessary as the distance between the vehicles.

[0005] A main object of the vehicle control device disclosed herein is to prevent the learning of an unnecessarily long distance as the inter-vehicle distance. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The vehicle control device of the present disclosure employs the following means to achieve the above-mentioned main object.

[0007] The vehicle control device according to the present disclosure includes: A vehicle control device is used for controlling a vehicle that runs while switching between a manual driving mode operated by a driver and an automatic driving mode not operated by the driver, the vehicle control device comprising: a surrounding recognition unit that detects a surrounding situation of the vehicle; and a learning execution unit that executes vehicle distance learning to learn a vehicle distance or vehicle time with respect to a preceding vehicle when a predetermined condition is satisfied, the vehicle control device comprising: When a next preceding vehicle that is the next preceding vehicle is detected by the surrounding recognition unit after the preceding vehicle leaves the lane during driving in the manual driving mode, the learning execution unit suspends the vehicle distance learning for a first period from when the next preceding vehicle is detected until the vehicle stops or for a second period until the inter-vehicle distance or inter-vehicle time with the next preceding vehicle becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value. The gist of the present invention is as follows. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing an outline of the configuration of a vehicle 20 equipped with a vehicle control device according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 2] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a setting routine. [Diagram 3] 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a stop / restart routine. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] An embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a vehicle 20 equipped with a vehicle control device of the present embodiment. The vehicle 20 includes a drive device 22, a navigation device 24, and an electronic control unit (hereinafter referred to as "ECU") 30. In addition to these, the vehicle 20 also includes a braking device such as a brake that applies a braking force, a steering device that performs steering, and the like, although not shown.

[0010] The drive device 22 includes a power source that outputs power for traveling, a transmission, and the like, and outputs the power to a drive shaft (axle and drive shaft not shown) connected to the axle.

[0011] The navigation device 24 sets a planned driving route from the current location of the vehicle (vehicle 20) to the destination based on stored map information, the current location of the vehicle from a GPS antenna, and the destination set by the user, and displays the set planned driving route on a display (not shown) to provide route guidance.

[0012] Although not shown, the ECU 30 is configured as a microprocessor centered on a CPU, and in addition to the CPU, it includes a ROM for storing processing programs, a RAM for temporarily storing data, a non-volatile memory for storing data, and an input / output port. Signals from various sensors required for controlling the drive unit 22, the braking device, the steering device, and the like are input to the ECU 30 via an input port. Examples of signals input to the ECU 30 include a vehicle speed V from a vehicle speed sensor 32 for detecting the vehicle speed of the vehicle 20, information on the vehicle 20 and its surroundings from a surrounding recognition device 26 (for example, a distance D between the vehicle 20 and a preceding vehicle, a running position of the vehicle 20 on the lane, an image of the surroundings of the vehicle 20, and the like), and an automatic driving instruction signal Sareq from an automatic driving instruction switch 28. Here, the surrounding recognition device 26 is a device for detecting the surrounding conditions of the vehicle, and is configured of a camera, a millimeter wave radar, a quasi-millimeter wave radar, an infrared laser radar, a sonar, and the like. Control signals required for controlling the drive unit 22, the braking device, the steering device, and the like are output from the ECU 30 via an output port.

[0013] The vehicle 20 configured in this manner runs by switching between a manual driving mode in which the vehicle 20 is driven by the driver's operation and an automatic driving mode in which the vehicle 20 is driven without the driver's operation.

[0014] In the manual driving mode, the ECU 30 sets a target torque Td* based on the accelerator pedal opening and the vehicle speed V, and controls the drive device 22 to run at the target torque Td*. In the automatic driving mode, the ECU 30 sets a target vehicle speed V* based on the planned driving route from the navigation device 24, the current location of the vehicle, map information (e.g., legal speed limit), and the distance D between the vehicle and a preceding vehicle from the surrounding recognition device 26, sets the target torque Td* so that the vehicle speed V becomes the target vehicle speed V*, and controls the drive device 22 and a steering device (not shown) to run on the planned driving route at the target torque Td*. In the automatic driving mode, when the preceding vehicle is traveling and the target vehicle speed V* is higher than the vehicle speed V detected by the vehicle speed sensor 32, the ECU 30 controls the drive device 22 so that the inter-vehicle time tkd obtained by dividing the inter-vehicle distance D between the preceding vehicle and the preceding vehicle by the vehicle speed V becomes the target inter-vehicle time tkd*. The target inter-vehicle time tkd* is set to a learned value tkdl obtained by executing inter-vehicle learning for learning the inter-vehicle time tkd to the preceding vehicle while traveling in the manual driving mode.

[0015] Next, the operation of the vehicle 20 equipped with the vehicle control device of the embodiment configured as described above, particularly the operation of setting the learning value tkdl and the operation of stopping and restarting learning will be described. First, the setting of the learning value tkdl will be described. Fig. 2 is a flowchart showing an example of a setting routine executed by the ECU 30. The setting routine is repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals tref1 (for example, every few msec) while traveling in the manual driving mode.

[0016] When the setting routine is executed, the CPU of the ECU 30 judges whether or not the learning condition A (predetermined condition) is satisfied (step S100). Here, the learning condition A is a condition for executing the vehicle distance learning, and is satisfied when all three conditions, the prerequisite, the first following condition, and the second following condition, are satisfied. The prerequisite is a condition that the surrounding conditions such as the road and the preceding vehicle are suitable for detecting the vehicle distance tkd, and specifically includes the following conditions: the height of the preceding vehicle is less than a threshold value (condition 01), the preceding vehicle is not a two-wheeled vehicle (condition 02), there is no traffic jam (condition 03), the road surface conditions and visibility conditions are good (condition 04), the road is a public road with a predetermined width or more (condition 05), the road gradient is small (condition 06), and the traveling lane is not a merging section where another lane merges (condition 07). The prerequisite is satisfied when all the conditions 01 to 07 are satisfied. The first following condition is a condition in which the vehicle 20 is in a state suitable for performing vehicle-to-vehicle learning, and specifically includes the following conditions: a predetermined time tref2 has passed since the previous vehicle-to-vehicle learning (condition 11), the vehicle speed V has changed by a predetermined vehicle speed Vd or more compared to the vehicle speed V at the time of the previous vehicle-to-vehicle learning (condition 12), following the same preceding vehicle has continued for a predetermined time tref3 (e.g., 8 sec, 10 sec, 12 sec, etc.) or more (condition 13), and the preceding vehicle has not just left the lane in which the vehicle 20 is traveling (a predetermined time tref4 has passed since the preceding vehicle left the lane in which the vehicle 20 is traveling) (condition 14). The first following condition is met when all of conditions 11 to 14 are met. The second following condition is a condition in which the vehicle 20 is traveling following a preceding vehicle, and specifically includes the following conditions: the vehicle speed V exceeds a low vehicle speed Vlow and is below a vehicle speed Vhigh higher than the vehicle speed Vlow (condition 21), the relative speed Vr with respect to the preceding vehicle is less than a predetermined speed Vrref (condition 22), the change amount ΔV of the vehicle speed V is less than a predetermined change amount ΔVref (the vehicle speed V is constant) (condition 23), the steering angle is less than a sufficiently small predetermined angle (condition 24), the turn signal is not operating (condition 25), and the state in which all of the conditions 21 to 25 are satisfied continues for a predetermined time tref5 or more (condition 26). The second following condition is satisfied when the condition 26 is satisfied.

[0017] When the learning condition A is satisfied, the inter-vehicle time tkd obtained by dividing the inter-vehicle distance D to the preceding vehicle by the vehicle speed V is stored in a non-volatile memory (step S110), and the number Ntkd of inter-vehicle times tkd stored in the non-volatile memory is updated by incrementing it by 1 (step S120). Then, it is determined whether the number Ntkd is equal to or greater than a predetermined number Ntref (e.g., 25, 30, 35, etc.) (step S130). The predetermined number Ntref is a threshold value for determining whether the number Ntkd is sufficient to calculate the average inter-vehicle time tkd. When the number Ntkd is less than the predetermined number Ntref, the setting routine is terminated.

[0018] If the number Ntkd is equal to or greater than the predetermined number Ntref in step S130, the average value of the inter-vehicle time tkd stored in the non-volatile memory is set to the learning value tkdl (step S140), all inter-vehicle time tkd stored in the non-volatile memory are erased, and the number Ntkd is reset to 0 (step S150), and the setting routine is terminated. Through these processes, the inter-vehicle time, i.e., the inter-vehicle distance, preferred by the driver is reflected in the learning value tkdl. When the preceding vehicle is traveling and the target vehicle speed V* is higher than the vehicle speed V detected by the vehicle speed sensor 32, the learning value tkdl thus set is set to the target inter-vehicle time tkd*, and the drive unit 22 is controlled so that the inter-vehicle time tkd becomes the target inter-vehicle time tkd*, so that the vehicle can travel at an inter-vehicle time, i.e., an inter-vehicle distance, that reflects the driver's preference.

[0019] Next, a description will be given of an operation for stopping the distance learning with respect to the preceding vehicle, which is executed while the vehicle is traveling in the manual driving mode. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of a stop restart routine executed by the ECU 30. The stop restart routine is executed in the manual driving mode.

[0020] When the stop restart routine is executed, the ECU 30 judges whether or not the next preceding vehicle (next preceding vehicle) is detected within a predetermined time tref6 after the surroundings recognition device 26 detects that the preceding vehicle has left the driving lane of the vehicle 20 (step S200). The predetermined time tref6 is a threshold value for judging whether or not the preceding vehicle has just left the driving lane of the vehicle 20. If the next preceding vehicle is not detected within the predetermined time after it is detected that the preceding vehicle has left the driving lane of the vehicle 20, the process returns to step S200.

[0021] When the surrounding recognition device 26 detects the next preceding vehicle within a predetermined time tref6 after detecting that the preceding vehicle has left the lane of the vehicle 20, the vehicle distance learning is stopped (step S210). When the preceding vehicle leaves the lane, the vehicle traveling ahead of the preceding vehicle becomes the next preceding vehicle. The inter-vehicle time (inter-vehicle distance) between the next preceding vehicle and the vehicle 20 becomes long immediately after the preceding vehicle leaves the lane. If inter-vehicle learning is performed at this time, an inter-vehicle time that is longer than necessary, i.e., an inter-vehicle distance that is longer than necessary, may be learned. In this embodiment, when the next preceding vehicle is detected within a predetermined time after it is detected that the preceding vehicle has left the lane, the inter-vehicle learning is stopped, so that it is possible to prevent learning of an inter-vehicle time that is longer than necessary, i.e., an inter-vehicle distance.

[0022] When vehicle distance learning is stopped in this way, it is determined whether the vehicle 20 is stopped (step S220) and whether the inter-vehicle time tkdn obtained by dividing the inter-vehicle distance Dn to the next preceding vehicle by the vehicle speed V is equal to or less than a predetermined time (predetermined value) tkdref (step S230). The predetermined time tkdref is a time that is set in advance by experiment, analysis, machine learning, etc. as the maximum inter-vehicle time that allows inter-vehicle learning. Therefore, step S230 is a process of determining whether the next preceding vehicle is at a distance that allows inter-vehicle learning.

[0023] If the vehicle 20 is not stopped in step S220 and the inter-vehicle time tkdn exceeds the predetermined time tkdref in step S230, the process returns to step S210 and the inter-vehicle learning is continued to be stopped until the vehicle 20 stops or the inter-vehicle time tkdn becomes equal to or less than the predetermined time tkdref.

[0024] When the vehicle 20 is stopped in step S220, or when the vehicle 20 is not stopped in step S220 but the inter-vehicle time tkdn is equal to or less than the predetermined time tkdref in step S230, inter-vehicle learning is resumed (step S240) and this routine is terminated. By this processing, when the surrounding recognition device 26 detects a next preceding vehicle after the preceding vehicle leaves the lane while traveling in the manual driving mode, inter-vehicle learning is stopped for a first period from when the next preceding vehicle is detected until the vehicle 20 stops, or for a second period until the inter-vehicle time tkdn with the next preceding vehicle becomes equal to or less than the predetermined time tkdref, thereby making it possible to prevent learning of an inter-vehicle distance that is longer than necessary.

[0025] According to the vehicle control device of the embodiment described above, when the surrounding recognition device 26 detects the next preceding vehicle after the preceding vehicle leaves the lane while driving in manual driving mode, inter-vehicle learning is stopped for a first period from when the next preceding vehicle is detected until the vehicle 20 stops, or for a second period until the inter-vehicle time tkdn with the next preceding vehicle becomes equal to or less than a predetermined time tkdref, thereby preventing the learning of an inter-vehicle distance that is longer than necessary.

[0026] In the above embodiment, when the next preceding vehicle appears after the preceding vehicle leaves the lane while driving in the manual driving mode, learning of an unnecessarily long inter-vehicle distance is suppressed. However, when another vehicle cuts into the lane in which the vehicle 20 is driving and the surrounding recognition device 26 recognizes the other vehicle as a new preceding vehicle, the inter-vehicle time with the new preceding vehicle may be erroneously learned even if the driver of the vehicle 20 has no intention of following the other vehicle. In order to suppress such erroneous learning, the condition 14 of the first following condition of the learning condition A is set to that the preceding vehicle does not appear due to a lane change, and the inter-vehicle learning is stopped during a third period from when the preceding vehicle appears due to a lane change until the vehicle 20 stops, or during a fourth period from when the preceding vehicle appears due to a lane change until the inter-vehicle time tkd with the preceding vehicle becomes equal to or less than the predetermined time tkdref. In this way, when another vehicle cuts into the lane in which the vehicle 20 is driving, erroneous learning of the inter-vehicle time with the new preceding vehicle, i.e., the inter-vehicle distance, can be suppressed.

[0027] In the above-described embodiment, in the autonomous driving mode, when the preceding vehicle is traveling and the target vehicle speed V* is higher than the vehicle speed V detected by the vehicle speed sensor 32, the ECU 30 controls the drive device 22 so that the inter-vehicle time tkd becomes the target inter-vehicle time tkd*. However, the inter-vehicle distance may be used instead of the inter-vehicle time, and the drive device 22 may be controlled so that the inter-vehicle distance becomes the target inter-vehicle distance. In this case, the learned value may be a learned value obtained by learning the inter-vehicle distance.

[0028] The correspondence between the main elements of the embodiment and the main elements of the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem will be described. In the embodiment, the periphery recognition device 26 corresponds to the "periphery recognition unit", and the ECU 30 corresponds to the "learning execution unit".

[0029] Note that the correspondence between the main elements of the embodiment and the main elements of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column does not limit the elements of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column, since the embodiment is an example for specifically explaining the form for implementing the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column. In other words, the interpretation of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column should be made based on the description in that column, and the embodiment is merely a specific example of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column.

[0030] The above describes embodiments for implementing the present disclosure, but the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments, and it goes without saying that the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist of the present disclosure. [Industrial Applicability]

[0031] The present disclosure is applicable to the vehicle control device manufacturing industry and the like. [Explanation of symbols]

[0032] 22 Drive unit, 26 Surrounding recognition device, 28 Automatic driving instruction switch, 30 ECU.

Claims

[Claim 1] A vehicle control device is used for controlling a vehicle that runs while switching between a manual driving mode operated by a driver and an automatic driving mode not operated by the driver, the vehicle control device comprising: a surrounding recognition unit that detects a surrounding situation of the vehicle; and a learning execution unit that executes vehicle distance learning to learn a vehicle distance or vehicle time with respect to a preceding vehicle when a predetermined condition is satisfied, the vehicle control device comprising: When a next preceding vehicle that is the next preceding vehicle is detected by the surrounding recognition unit after the preceding vehicle leaves the lane during driving in the manual driving mode, the learning execution unit suspends the vehicle distance learning for a first period from when the next preceding vehicle is detected until the vehicle stops or for a second period until the inter-vehicle distance or inter-vehicle time with the next preceding vehicle becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value. Vehicle control device.

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