Drive support device

Abstract

To provide a drive support device capable of reducing a risk at which an occupant feels uncomfortable, that has a low degree at which a vehicle body is vibrated even when passing through a peculiar portion.SOLUTION: According to a drive support device that stores information about a travel route 112 of the vehicle 102 driven by a driver in a storage device, and sets a target travel route 116 based on the information about the travel route stored in the storage device when a driver's automatic travel command is performed to make a vehicle travel automatically by controlling a travel controller in such a manner that a vehicle travels along the target travel route; when an upward / downward acceleration Gz having a reference value Gzc or more is detected in size during traveling of the vehicle driven by the driver, a position thereof is stored together with the information about the travel route 112 as a peculiar portion of a road surface displacement in the storage device, and lowers a vehicle speed V when the vehicle passes through a portion Pc2 corresponding to the peculiar portion during traveling automatically.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a driving assistance device for a vehicle such as an automobile. [Background technology]

[0002] As one type of driving assistance device for vehicles such as automobiles, there is known a driving assistance device that records the driving route of the vehicle driven by the driver and assists the vehicle in driving the vehicle along the recorded driving route during subsequent driving. For example, the following Patent Document 1 describes a driving assistance device that has a learning mode that records the driving route and stopping positions of the vehicle driven by the driver, and that automatically drives the vehicle to a stopping position along the recorded driving route during driving assistance. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 06022447 Summary of the Invention

[0004] [Problem to be solved by the invention] During driving assistance, information about the surroundings of the vehicle is acquired by surrounding information acquisition devices such as camera sensors and radar sensors to prevent the vehicle from colliding with obstacles. Although surrounding information acquisition devices can detect obstacles such as stopped vehicles, they may not be able to detect points where the road surface is displaced up and down, such as speed bumps, steps, and grooves (called "peculiar points").

[0005] When a vehicle passes through a singular point during driving assistance, an impact load is input from the road surface to the vehicle body via the wheels, causing the vehicle body to vibrate. Therefore, in a conventional driving assistance device such as the driving assistance device described in Patent Document 1, it is inevitable that passengers will feel uncomfortable due to the vibration of the vehicle body when the vehicle passes through the singular point.

[0006] The present invention provides an improved driving assistance device that reduces the degree of vibration of the vehicle body compared to conventional devices, thereby reducing the risk of occupants feeling uncomfortable, even when the vehicle passes through a singular location while automatically traveling along a recorded driving route. [Means for solving the problems and effects of the invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, there is provided a driving assistance device (100) including a route information acquisition device (navigation device 80, surrounding information acquisition device 15) that acquires information on a driving route of a vehicle (102) driven by a driver from an information acquisition start position to an information acquisition end position based on an information acquisition command from the driver, a storage device (18) that stores information on the driving route acquired by the route information acquisition device, a driving control device (90) that controls driving of the vehicle, and a control unit (driving assistance ECU 10) that controls the route information acquisition device, the storage device, and the driving control device, wherein, upon receiving an automatic driving command from the driver, the control unit sets a target driving route (116) from the current position of the vehicle to the driving end position based on the information on the driving route stored in the storage device (S140), and controls the driving control device so that the vehicle drives along the target driving route, thereby automatically driving the vehicle (S160).

[0008] The driving assistance device (100) includes a detection device (vehicle state sensor 70) that detects the vertical acceleration of the vehicle, and the control unit (driving assistance ECU 10) is configured to, when the detection device detects a magnitude of vertical acceleration (Gz) equal to or greater than a reference value (Gzc) while the vehicle is being driven by the driver (S80), store the position (Pr2) where the magnitude of the vertical acceleration is detected as a singular point of road surface displacement together with information about the driving route in a storage device (S90), and control the driving control device so that the vehicle speed (V) decreases when the vehicle passes through a point (Pc2) corresponding to the singular point during automatic driving (S190).

[0009] According to the above configuration, when there is a singular point, the vehicle speed is reduced when the vehicle passes through a point corresponding to the singular point during automatic driving. Therefore, compared to when the vehicle speed is not reduced, the impact load input from the road surface to the vehicle body via the wheels when the vehicle passes through a point corresponding to the singular point is reduced, and the degree of vibration of the vehicle body is reduced. Therefore, the risk of the occupants feeling uncomfortable due to the vibration of the vehicle body can be reduced compared to the conventional case. [Mode of the invention]

[0010] In one aspect of the present invention, the reference value (Gzc) is variably set according to the vehicle speed (V) when the vehicle is driven by the driver so that the reference value (Gzc) is larger as the vehicle speed (V) increases (S80).

[0011] Since the impact load input to the vehicle body when the vehicle passes through a singular point is larger as the vehicle speed is higher, the vertical acceleration of the vehicle when the vehicle passes through a singular point is also larger as the vehicle speed is higher. Therefore, it is preferable that the reference value for determining the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle is larger as the vehicle speed is higher.

[0012] According to the above aspect, the reference value is variably set according to the vehicle speed so that the reference value is larger as the vehicle speed during driving by the driver is higher. Therefore, it is possible to preferably determine whether the vertical displacement of the road surface at the singular point is large, compared to a case where the reference value is constant regardless of the vehicle speed.

[0013] In another aspect of the present invention, the amount of decrease in vehicle speed (ΔV) when the vehicle passes through a point (Pc2) corresponding to a singular point during autonomous driving is variably set in accordance with at least one of the vehicle speed during autonomous driving and the magnitude of the vehicle's vertical acceleration (Gz) detected by the detection device so that the decrease in vehicle speed (ΔV) is larger the higher the vehicle speed during autonomous driving and the larger the magnitude of the vehicle's vertical acceleration detected by the detection device (S190).

[0014] Since the impact load input to the vehicle body when the vehicle passes through a singular point during autonomous driving is greater the higher the vehicle speed is, it is preferable that the amount of decrease in vehicle speed when the vehicle passes through a singular point is greater the higher the vehicle speed is during autonomous driving. Also, the impact load input to the vehicle body when the vehicle passes through a point corresponding to a singular point during autonomous driving is greater the greater the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle detected by the detection device. Therefore, it is preferable that the amount of decrease in vehicle speed when the vehicle passes through a position corresponding to a singular point is greater the greater the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle detected by the detection device is.

[0015] According to the above aspect, the amount of reduction in vehicle speed when the vehicle passes through a location corresponding to a singular location during autonomous driving increases as the vehicle speed during autonomous driving increases and / or as the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle detected by the detection device increases. Therefore, compared to a case where the amount of reduction in vehicle speed is constant, it is possible to preferably reduce the impact load input to the vehicle body when passing through a location corresponding to a singular location.

[0016] Furthermore, in another aspect of the present invention, the control unit (driving assistance ECU 10) is configured to, when the travel start position (Pc1) is not on the travel route (112) stored in the storage device, set (S140) the target travel route (116) to include a merging route (118) leading from the travel start position to the travel route stored in the storage device.

[0017] According to the above aspect, when the travel start position is not on the travel route stored in the storage device, the target travel route is set to include a merging route from the travel start position to the travel route stored in the storage device. Therefore, even when the travel start position is not on the travel route stored in the storage device, the vehicle can be moved to the travel end position along the target travel route during automatic travel.

[0018] Furthermore, in another aspect of the present invention, the route information acquisition device includes a GPS device (navigation device 80), and the control unit (driving assistance ECU 10) is configured to identify at least an information acquisition start position (Pc1) based on the vehicle position acquired by the GPS device, and to identify the vehicle's driving route (112) based on at least one of the trajectory of the vehicle's position acquired by the GPS device and the driver's driving history (S40).

[0019] According to the above aspect, the travel route of the vehicle can be identified based on at least one of the trajectory of the vehicle's position acquired by the GPS device and the driving history of the driver.

[0020] Other objects, other features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent from the following description of the embodiments of the present invention which is given with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a driving assistance device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] 4 is a flowchart of a driving route registration control according to the embodiment. [Diagram 3] 4 is a flowchart of driving support control in the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of control for registering a driving route when a vehicle is parked. [Diagram 5] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating an example of driving support control when there is a singular location of road surface displacement. [Figure 6] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating an example of driving support control when there is no singular location of road surface displacement. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0022] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A driving assistance device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0023] As shown in Fig. 1, a driving assistance device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a vehicle 102 and includes a driving assistance ECU 10. The vehicle 102 is an autonomous vehicle and includes a drive ECU 20, a braking ECU 30, an electric power steering ECU 40, and a meter ECU 50. The ECU stands for an electronic control unit having a microcomputer as a main component. In the following description, the electric power steering is referred to as EPS.

[0024] The microcomputer of each ECU includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, a readable / writable non-volatile memory (N / M), and an interface (I / F). The CPU realizes various functions by executing instructions (programs, routines) stored in the ROM. Furthermore, these ECUs are connected to each other via a Controller Area Network (CAN) 104 so that they can exchange data (communicate). Therefore, the detection values ​​of sensors (including switches) connected to a specific ECU are also sent to other ECUs.

[0025] The driving assistance ECU 10 is a central control device that performs driving assistance control such as driving route registration control, driving assistance control, lane keeping control, etc. In the embodiment, the driving assistance ECU 10 executes driving route registration control and driving assistance control for assisting the vehicle 102 in parking, etc., in cooperation with other ECUs, as will be described in detail later.

[0026] The driving assistance ECU 10 is connected to a camera sensor 12, a radar sensor 14, and a setting operation device 16. The camera sensor 12 and the radar sensor 14 each include a plurality of camera devices and a plurality of radar devices. The camera sensor 12 and the radar sensor 14 function as a surrounding information acquisition device 15 that acquires target information around the vehicle 102. The driving assistance ECU 10 has a built-in non-volatile storage device 18.

[0027] Although not shown in the figure, each camera device of the camera sensor 12 includes a camera unit that captures images of the surroundings of the vehicle 102, and a recognition unit that analyzes image data captured by the camera unit to recognize targets such as white lines on the road and other vehicles. The recognition unit supplies information about the recognized targets to the driving assistance ECU 10 at predetermined time intervals.

[0028] Each radar device of the radar sensor 14 includes a radar transmission / reception unit and a signal processing unit (not shown). The radar transmission / reception unit emits millimeter-wave radio waves (hereinafter referred to as "millimeter waves") and receives millimeter waves (i.e., reflected waves) reflected by a three-dimensional object (e.g., another vehicle, a bicycle, etc.) present within the emission range. The signal processing unit supplies information indicating the distance between the vehicle and the three-dimensional object, the relative speed between the vehicle and the three-dimensional object, the relative position (direction) of the three-dimensional object with respect to the vehicle, etc. to the driving assistance ECU 10 at predetermined time intervals based on the phase difference between the transmitted millimeter waves and the received reflected waves, the attenuation level of the reflected waves, and the time from transmitting the millimeter waves to receiving the reflected waves. Note that a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) may be used instead of the radar sensor 14.

[0029] The setting operation device 16 is provided at a position operable by the driver, like a steering wheel (not shown in Fig. 1), and is adapted to be operated by the driver. Although not shown in Fig. 1, the setting operation device 16 includes a route registration switch and a driving assistance switch. As will be described in detail later, the driving assistance ECU 10 executes driving route registration control when the route registration switch is on, and executes driving assistance control when the driving assistance switch is on.

[0030] The drive ECU 20 is connected to a drive device 22 that accelerates the vehicle 102 by applying a drive force to drive wheels 24. The drive ECU 20 normally controls the drive device 22 so that the drive force generated by the drive device 22 changes according to the driving operation by the driver, and when a command signal is received from the driving assistance ECU 10, the drive ECU 20 controls the drive device 22 based on the command signal.

[0031] A braking device 32 that applies a braking force to wheels 34 to decelerate the vehicle 102 is connected to the braking ECU 30. The braking ECU 30 normally controls the braking device so that the braking force generated by the braking device 32 changes according to the braking operation by the driver, and when it receives a command signal from the driving assistance ECU 10, it performs automatic braking by controlling the braking device 32 based on the command signal. When a braking force is applied to the wheels, a brake lamp not shown in FIG. 1 is turned on.

[0032] An EPS device 42 is connected to the EPS-ECU 40. The EPS-ECU 40 controls the EPS device 42 in a manner known in the art based on the steering torque Ts and vehicle speed V detected by a driving operation sensor 60 and a vehicle state sensor 70 described below, thereby controlling the steering assist torque and reducing the steering burden on the driver. The EPS-ECU 40 also controls the EPS device 42 to steer the steered wheels 44 as necessary. Thus, the EPS-ECU 40 and the EPS device 42 function as an automatic steering device that automatically steers the steered wheels as necessary.

[0033] As can be seen from the above description, the drive ECU 20, the drive device 22, the brake ECU 30, the brake device 32, the EPS·ECU 40 and the EPS device 42 function as a driving control device 90 that controls the driving of the vehicle 102, such as braking / driving and turning.

[0034] A touch panel type display 52 that displays the status of control by the driving assistance ECU 10 is connected to the meter ECU 50. The display 52 may be, for example, a multi-information display that displays meters and various information, or may be a display of a navigation device 80 described below. As described below, when the display 52 receives a command signal from the driving assistance ECU 10, it displays a touch icon for approving the registration of a driving route, a stored driving route, a touch icon for approving a target driving route, etc.

[0035] The driving operation sensor 60 and the vehicle condition sensor 70 are connected to the CAN 104. Information detected by the driving operation sensor 60 and the vehicle condition sensor 70 (called sensor information) is transmitted to the CAN 104. The sensor information transmitted to the CAN 104 can be used appropriately in each ECU. Note that the sensor information may be information of a sensor connected to a specific ECU and transmitted to the CAN 104 from the specific ECU.

[0036] The driving operation sensor 60 includes a driving operation amount sensor that detects the amount of operation of the accelerator pedal, a braking operation amount sensor that detects the master cylinder pressure or the depression force on the brake pedal, and a brake switch that detects whether the brake pedal is operated. Furthermore, the driving operation sensor 60 includes a steering angle sensor that detects the steering angle θ, a steering torque sensor that detects the steering torque Ts, etc.

[0037] The vehicle condition sensor 70 includes a vehicle speed sensor that detects the vehicle speed V of the vehicle 102, a longitudinal acceleration sensor that detects the acceleration in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, a lateral acceleration sensor that detects the acceleration in the lateral direction of the vehicle, and a vertical acceleration sensor that detects the acceleration Gz in the vertical direction of the vehicle.

[0038] Furthermore, the navigation device 80 is also connected to the CAN 104. The navigation device 80 includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver that detects the position of the vehicle 102, a storage device that stores map information and road information, and a communication device that acquires the latest information on the map information and road information from the outside. The navigation device 80 functions as a GPS device that acquires information on the current location of the vehicle 102, and outputs a signal indicating the current location of the vehicle on the map to the driving assistance ECU 10.

[0039] In the embodiment, the ROM of the driving assistance ECU 10 stores a driving route registration control program corresponding to the flowchart shown in Fig. 2 and a driving assistance control program corresponding to the flowchart shown in Fig. 3. The CPU of the driving assistance ECU 10 performs driving assistance by executing the driving route registration control and the driving assistance control in accordance with these programs. <Route registration control (Fig. 2)>

[0040] Next, the driving route registration control in the embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in Fig. 2. The driving route registration control according to the flowchart shown in Fig. 2 is executed by the CPU of the driving assistance ECU 10 when the route registration switch of the setting operation device 16 shown in Fig. 1 is turned from off to on, that is, when there is an information acquisition command from the driver.

[0041] First, in step S10, the CPU identifies the current position (latitude and longitude) of the vehicle 102 based on information from the navigation device 80.

[0042] In step S20, the CPU sets the current position of the vehicle 102 as the information acquisition start position for the travel route to be recorded.

[0043] In step S30, the CPU determines whether or not the vehicle 102 is running, for example, by determining whether the shift position of a transmission (not shown) is in the D range. If the CPU makes a negative determination, it repeatedly executes step S30, and if the CPU makes a positive determination, it advances this control to step S40.

[0044] In step S40, the CPU records the trajectory of the vehicle 102 in the RAM as information on the travel route based on a signal from the navigation device 80. The CPU also records surrounding information such as the scenery around the vehicle 102 in the RAM as information on the travel route based on a signal supplied from the surrounding information acquisition device 15 at predetermined time intervals. Thus, the navigation device 80 and the surrounding information acquisition device 15 function as a route information acquisition device that acquires information on the travel route of the vehicle 102 driven by the driver from the information acquisition start position to the information acquisition end position. The travel route may be identified and stored based on the driving history of the driver, or may be identified and stored based on both the trajectory of the vehicle 102 and the driving history of the driver.

[0045] In step S50, the CPU records the vehicle speed V detected by the vehicle speed sensor of the vehicle condition sensor 70 and the vertical acceleration Gz detected by the vertical acceleration sensor of the vehicle condition sensor 70 in the RAM together with information about the parking route, in particular information about the position on the driving route.

[0046] In step S60, the CPU determines whether or not the recording of information has ended. In this case, the recording of information may be determined to have ended when the route registration switch is turned from on to off or when the shift position of the transmission is in the P range. When the CPU makes a negative determination, it returns this control to step S30, and when the CPU makes a positive determination, it advances this control to step S70. The position of the vehicle 102 when it is determined that the recording of information has ended is set as the information acquisition end position.

[0047] In step S70, the CPU stores in the storage device 18 the travel route of the vehicle 102 from the information acquisition start position to the information acquisition end position together with surrounding information, based on the information recorded in the RAM.

[0048] In step S80, the CPU filters the vertical acceleration Gz recorded in the RAM and determines whether or not the magnitude of the vertical acceleration equal to or greater than the judgment reference value Gzc has been detected. The judgment reference value Gzc may be a positive constant, but may also be variably set according to the vehicle speed so that the higher the vehicle speed V, the larger the judgment reference value Gzc becomes. If the CPU determines that the judgment is negative, it ends this control, and if the CPU determines that the judgment is positive, it stores in the storage device 18 in step S90 the location where the magnitude of the vertical acceleration equal to or greater than the reference value has been detected as a singular location of the road surface displacement on the travel route. <Example of route registration control>

[0049] For example, Fig. 4 shows an example of the registration control of the driving route when the vehicle 102 is parked. When the vehicle 102 is at position Pr1, the route registration switch of the setting operation unit 16 is turned from off to on, and the driving route registration control according to the flowchart shown in Fig. 2 is started. When the vehicle 102 is at position Pr2, it passes a speed bump 110 while moving forward, stops once at position Pr3, changes direction to move backward, and moves backward to position Pr4 (parking position) and parks.

[0050] Furthermore, it is assumed that the vehicle speed V and the vertical acceleration Gz change as shown in the figure, and the magnitude of the vertical acceleration Gz becomes equal to or greater than the judgment reference value Gzc when the front wheels of the vehicle 102 pass over a speed bump 110. Note that the travel route 112 of the vehicle 102 from position Pr1 to position Pr4 via positions Pr2 and Pr3 is the travel route to be registered.

[0051] From the time when the vehicle 102 is at position Pr1, the determination in step S30 becomes positive, and when the vehicle 102 reaches position Pr4 and is parked, the determination in step S60 becomes positive, and the travel route 112 of the vehicle 102 is stored in the storage device 18 together with the surrounding information 114. Furthermore, since the determination in step S80 becomes positive, the position Pr2 where the magnitude of the vertical acceleration equal to or greater than the reference value is detected is stored in the storage device 18 as a singular point of the road surface displacement. <Driving support control (Fig. 3)>

[0052] Next, the driving support control in the embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in Fig. 3. The driving support control according to the flowchart shown in Fig. 3 is executed by the CPU of the driving support ECU 10 when the driving support switch of the setting operation device 16 shown in Fig. 1 is turned from off to on, that is, when an automatic driving command is issued by the driver.

[0053] First, in step S110, the CPU identifies the current position (latitude and longitude) of the vehicle 102 based on information from the navigation device 80, similar to step S10.

[0054] In step S120, the CPU outputs a command signal to the meter ECU 50 to display, on the display 52, a driving route that corresponds to the current position of the vehicle 102 among the driving routes stored in the storage device 18. Note that, when there are multiple driving routes that correspond to the current position of the vehicle 102, the multiple driving routes may be displayed.

[0055] In step S130, the CPU determines whether the displayed driving route has been approved by determining whether the driver has touched a "Yes" icon displayed on the display 52 together with the driving route. If the CPU determines that the driving route has been approved, it repeats step S130. If the CPU determines that the driving route has been approved, it advances the control to step S140. If a plurality of driving routes are displayed, the driver selects a driving route and touches the image of the selected driving route, the driving route is determined to have been approved.

[0056] In step S140, the CPU sets a target driving route based on the approved driving route, and outputs a command signal to the meter ECU 50 to display the target driving route on the display 52. ​​As will be described in detail later, when the current position of the vehicle 102 is not on the approved driving route, the target driving route is set so as to include a merging route from the current position to the approved driving route.

[0057] In addition, when the driver wants to park the vehicle at a position other than the travel end position of the target travel route, such as when another vehicle is parked at the travel end position of the target travel route displayed on the display 52, the travel end position may be changed by the driver touching the display 52. ​​In that case, the target travel route is corrected so that the travel end position becomes the changed travel end position.

[0058] In step S150, the CPU determines whether or not the driver has touched a "Yes" icon displayed together with the target driving route on the display 52, thereby determining whether or not the displayed target driving route has been approved. If the CPU makes a negative determination, it repeatedly executes step S150, and if the CPU makes a positive determination, it advances this control to step S160.

[0059] In step S160, the CPU outputs a command signal to the drive ECU 20 or the like to control the driving control device 90 so that the vehicle 102 travels along the target driving route, thereby automatically driving the vehicle 102. In this case, the vehicle speed V may be controlled to a preset vehicle speed, or may be controlled to a vehicle speed stored for a position on the approved driving route or a vehicle speed close to that.

[0060] In step S170, the CPU determines whether or not there is a peculiar point of road surface variation, that is, whether or not a peculiar point of road surface variation for the approved travel route is stored in the storage device 18. If the CPU makes a negative determination, it advances this control to step S200, and if the CPU makes a positive determination, it advances this control to step S180.

[0061] In step S180, the CPU determines whether the vehicle 102 has reached a singular point of road surface displacement, thereby determining whether the vehicle is traveling in the area of ​​the singular point (a point corresponding to the singular point). If the CPU makes a negative determination, it advances this control to step S200, and if the CPU makes a positive determination, it advances this control to step S190.

[0062] In step S190, the CPU outputs a command signal to the drive ECU 20, etc., to control the driving control device 90 so that the vehicle speed V decreases by a preset decrease amount ΔV when the front wheels of the vehicle 102 pass through the area of ​​the singular point of the road surface displacement.

[0063] The vehicle speed reduction amount ΔV is variably set according to the vehicle speed during automatic driving and the magnitude of the detected vertical acceleration of the vehicle so that the reduction amount ΔV is larger as the vehicle speed during automatic driving is higher and the magnitude of the detected vertical acceleration Gz of the vehicle is larger. In particular, the reduction amount ΔV may be variably set so that the magnitude of the vertical acceleration Gz of the vehicle 102 when the front wheels of the vehicle 102 pass through a singular point of road surface displacement is equal to or smaller than a reduction reference value Gzr (positive constant) which is smaller than the judgment reference value Gzc.

[0064] The vehicle speed V is reduced from before the front wheels of the vehicle 102 reach the peculiar point of road surface displacement until after the front wheels have passed the peculiar point of road surface displacement. In addition, in the case where the peculiar point of road surface displacement for the rear wheels of the vehicle 102 is also stored in the storage device 18, the cruise control device 90 may be controlled so that the vehicle speed V is reduced by a preset reduction amount ΔV when the rear wheels pass the peculiar point of road surface displacement.

[0065] In addition, when the peculiar location of the road surface displacement for the rear wheels of the vehicle 102 is also stored in the storage device 18, the vehicle speed V may be decreased from before the front wheels reach the peculiar location of the road surface displacement to after the rear wheels pass the peculiar location of the road surface displacement. Furthermore, the decrease in the vehicle speed V may be notified by being displayed on the display 52 or by an audio announcement.

[0066] In step S200, the CPU determines whether the vehicle 102 has reached the travel end position by determining whether the current position of the vehicle 102 specified based on information from the navigation device 80 is the travel end position. If the CPU makes a negative determination, it returns this control to step S160, and if the CPU makes a positive determination, it advances this control to step S210.

[0067] In step S210, the CPU outputs a command signal to the meter ECU 50 to display on the display 52 that the vehicle 102 has reached the travel end position. This allows the driver to switch the travel assistance switch of the setting operation device 16 from on to off. <Example of driving support control>

[0068] For example, Fig. 5 shows an example of driving support control when parking the vehicle 102. When the vehicle 102 is at position Pc1, the driving support switch of the setting operation device 16 is turned from off to on, and driving support control according to the flowchart shown in Fig. 3 is started.

[0069] First, the current position Pc1 of the vehicle 102 is identified based on information from the navigation device 80 (S110), and a travel route 112 corresponding to the current position of the vehicle among the travel routes stored in the storage device 18 is displayed on the display 52 (S120).

[0070] When the displayed driving route is approved (S130), a target driving route 116 is set based on the approved driving route, and the target driving route is displayed on the display 52 (S140). If the driving start position, i.e., the current position Pc1 of the vehicle 102 at the time when driving assistance starts, is not on the approved driving route 112, the target driving route 116 is set so as to include a merging route 118 leading from the driving start position to the driving route 112 (S140).

[0071] When the target driving route 116 is approved (S150), the driving control device 90 is controlled so that the vehicle 102 drives along the target driving route, and the vehicle 102 moves by automatic driving to a driving end position Pc4 corresponding to the position Pr4 via positions Pc2 and Pc3 corresponding to the positions Pr2 and Pr3, respectively (S160). When the vehicle 102 reaches the driving end position Pc4 (S200), the display 52 displays a message indicating that the vehicle has reached the driving end position (S210).

[0072] If there is a peculiar point of road surface deformation such as a speed bump 110, a positive determination is made in step S170. The vehicle 102 travels through the area of ​​the peculiar point of road surface deformation (position Pc2 corresponding to position Pr2) (S180), and the cruise control device 90 is controlled so that the vehicle speed V decreases by a preset decrease amount ΔV when at least the front wheels pass through the peculiar point of road surface deformation (S190).

[0073] If there is no peculiar location of road surface deformation such as the speed bump 110, a negative determination is made in step S170, and therefore the vehicle speed is not reduced (S190). Fig. 6 shows an example of driving support control when there is no peculiar location of road surface deformation.

[0074] As can be seen from the above description, according to the embodiment, when the vertical acceleration sensor as a detection device detects the magnitude of the vertical acceleration Gz equal to or greater than a reference value while the vehicle 102 is traveling driven by the driver, the position where the magnitude of the vertical acceleration is detected is stored in the storage device 18 as a singular point Pr2 of the road surface displacement together with information on the travel route 112. Furthermore, the travel control device 90 is controlled so that the vehicle speed V decreases by the decrease amount ΔV when the vehicle 102 passes through a point Pc2 corresponding to the singular point during automatic travel.

[0075] Therefore, when there is a singular point, the vehicle speed V is reduced when the vehicle passes through the point Pc2 corresponding to the singular point Pr2 during automatic driving, so that the impact load input from the road surface to the vehicle body via the wheels when the vehicle passes through the point corresponding to the singular point is reduced and the degree of vibration of the vehicle body is reduced, compared to when the vehicle speed is not reduced. Therefore, the risk that the passengers will feel uncomfortable due to the vibration of the vehicle body can be reduced compared to the conventional case.

[0076] According to the embodiment, the reference value Gzc is variably set according to the vehicle speed so that the reference value Gzc is larger as the vehicle speed V during driving of the vehicle by the driver increases. Therefore, it is possible to preferably determine whether the vertical displacement of the road surface at the singular point is large, compared to the case where the reference value is constant regardless of the vehicle speed.

[0077] Furthermore, according to the embodiment, the amount of reduction in vehicle speed ΔV when the vehicle passes through the point Pc2 corresponding to the singular point Pr2 during automatic driving becomes larger as the vehicle speed V during automatic driving becomes higher and / or as the magnitude of the vertical acceleration Gz of the vehicle detected by the vertical acceleration sensor becomes larger. Therefore, compared to the case where the amount of reduction in vehicle speed is constant, it is possible to preferably reduce the impact load input to the vehicle body when passing through the point corresponding to the singular point.

[0078] Furthermore, according to the embodiment, when the travel start position Pc1 is not on the travel route 112 stored in the storage device 18, the target travel route 116 is set so as to include a merging route 118 leading from the travel start position to the travel route stored in the storage device. Therefore, even when the travel start position is not on the travel route stored in the storage device, the vehicle can be moved to the travel end position along the target travel route during automatic travel.

[0079] Furthermore, according to the embodiment, at least the information acquisition start position Pr1 can be identified based on the position of the vehicle 102 acquired by the GPS device of the navigation device 80, and the vehicle's driving route 112 can be identified based on at least one of the trajectory of the vehicle's position acquired by the GPS device and the driver's driving history.

[0080] Furthermore, according to the embodiment, when the singular point Pr2 is stored in the storage device 18 together with the information on the travel route 112 used to set the target travel route 116, the target travel route, the singular point, and the current position of the vehicle are displayed on the display 52. ​​Therefore, the driver is aware in advance that the vehicle speed will decrease when the vehicle passes through a point corresponding to the singular point during automatic travel, and the risk of the driver feeling uncomfortable due to the automatic decrease in vehicle speed can be reduced.

[0081] Although the present invention has been described in detail with respect to specific embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various other embodiments are possible within the scope of the present invention.

[0082] For example, in the above embodiment, in step S190, the vehicle speed reduction amount ΔV increases as the vehicle speed during automatic driving increases and as the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle detected by the vertical acceleration sensor as the detection device increases. However, the vehicle speed reduction amount ΔV may be variably set according to only one of the vehicle speed during automatic driving and the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle detected by the detection device.

[0083] In the above embodiment, the information acquisition start position and the information acquisition end position are the parking start position and the parking end position, respectively, and the driving support is parking support. However, the driving support may be starting driving support from a parking position, or may be support other than parking support and starting driving support, or may be constant.

[0084] Furthermore, if the vehicle is equipped with shock absorbers with variable damping coefficients provided for each wheel, the damping coefficients may be reduced in addition to or instead of reducing the vehicle speed. [Explanation of symbols]

[0085] 10...driving assistance ECU, 12...camera sensor, 14...radar sensor, 15...surrounding information acquisition device, 18...storage device, 22...driving device, 32...braking device, 42...EPS device, 52...display, 100...driving assistance device, 102...vehicle, 110...speed bump, 112...driving route, 116...target driving route, 118...merging route

Claims

1. A driving assistance device including: a route information acquisition device that acquires information on a driving route of a vehicle driven by a driver from an information acquisition start position to an information acquisition end position based on an information acquisition command from the driver; a storage device that stores information on the driving route acquired by the route information acquisition device; a driving control device that controls driving of the vehicle; and a control unit that controls the route information acquisition device, the storage device, and the driving control device, wherein the control unit is configured to set a target driving route from a current position of the vehicle to a driving end position based on the driving route information stored in the storage device when an automatic driving command is received from the driver, and to control the driving control device so that the vehicle drives along the target driving route, thereby automatically driving the vehicle, The driving assistance device includes a detection device that detects the vertical acceleration of a vehicle, and the control unit is configured to, when the detection device detects a magnitude of vertical acceleration equal to or greater than a reference value while the vehicle is being driven by a driver, store the position where the magnitude of the vertical acceleration is detected as a peculiar point of road surface displacement together with information about the driving route in the storage device, and to control the driving control device so that the vehicle speed decreases when the vehicle passes through a point corresponding to the peculiar point during the automatic driving.

2. 2. The driving assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the reference value is variably set according to a vehicle speed so that the reference value is larger as the vehicle speed while the vehicle is being driven by the driver increases.

3. 2. The driving assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the amount of reduction in vehicle speed when the vehicle passes through a location corresponding to the peculiar location during the autonomous driving is variably set according to at least one of the vehicle speed during the autonomous driving and the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle detected by the detection device, so that the amount of reduction in vehicle speed is greater the higher the vehicle speed during the autonomous driving and the greater the magnitude of the vertical acceleration of the vehicle detected by the detection device.

4. 2. The driving assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to set the target driving route to include a merging route from the driving start position to the driving route stored in the storage device when the driving start position is not on the driving route stored in the storage device.

5. 2. The driving assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the route information acquisition device includes a GPS device, and the control unit is configured to identify at least the information acquisition start position based on the vehicle position acquired by the GPS device, and to identify the vehicle's driving route based on at least one of a trajectory of the vehicle's position acquired by the GPS device and a driving history of the driver.

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