Control device

Abstract

To provide a control device capable of achieving more suitable vehicle control by coping with arbitration of target trajectories output from an application for calculating a plurality of target trajectories and further efficiently handling the plurality of target trajectories, and reducing development costs.SOLUTION: A control device includes an arbitration unit that receives control requests from a plurality of driving assistance functions, arbitrates the control requests, and distributes the requests to respective actuators of a vehicle, where the arbitration unit includes a trajectory arbitration unit that receives at least two or more pieces of target trajectory information of the vehicle, which are the control requests, from the plurality of driving assistance functions, and arbitrates the received plurality of pieces of target trajectory information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a control device that mediates control requests from a plurality of applications related to driving support of a vehicle or the like.

Background Art

[0002] Applications related to vehicle driving support tend to increase, and there is a movement to improve development efficiency by organizing the relationships between functions and defining a hierarchical function structure and interface. For example, a configuration is known in which control requests from a plurality of driving support applications are collected in one place, the collected control requests are unified, and then a motion request is output to an actuator system.

[0003] As a conventional technology having the above configuration, there is Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 discloses a receiving unit that receives a data set including any one of a required acceleration representing the longitudinal movement of a vehicle, a steering angle representing the lateral movement of the vehicle, a yaw rate, and a turning radius from each of a plurality of driving support applications, a mediation unit that mediates the longitudinal and lateral movements of the vehicle based on the plurality of data sets received by the receiving unit, and an output unit that outputs instruction information for driving an actuator based on the mediation result by the mediation unit.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] By using the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, it becomes possible to easily perform mediation processing of requests output from a plurality of driving support applications. However, in the configuration described in Patent Document 1, since the driving support application is configured to receive the longitudinal movement request and the lateral movement request of the vehicle respectively, for example, it is not possible to receive requests in the trajectory information which is the time series information of the longitudinal movement request and the lateral movement request of the vehicle. Specifically, the trajectory information is information including information on the future target route of the vehicle and information on the speed on that route, and in applications such as an application for avoiding obstacles and an application for assisting lane change and merging, etc., it is often necessary to calculate a target trajectory including such future time series information. Therefore, in the configuration described in Patent Document 1, since the target trajectory is distributed to the longitudinal and lateral movement requests of the vehicle inside each application that calculates the target trajectory, and the distributed information is received and mediated, there is a problem that the future time series information of the target trajectory is lost during mediation. In addition, since the same function of distributing the target trajectory to the longitudinal and lateral movement requests of the vehicle exists in each of the applications that calculate the target trajectory, it is disadvantageous in terms of development cost (man-hours for verification and conformity, etc.).

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a control device that can handle mediation of target trajectories output from a plurality of applications, further realize more suitable vehicle control by efficiently handling a plurality of target trajectories, and reduce development costs.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] A typical example of the invention disclosed in the present application is as follows. That is, a control device having a mediation unit that receives control requests from a plurality of driving support functions, mediates the control requests, and distributes the requests to each actuator of the vehicle, wherein the mediation unit receives at least two or more pieces of target trajectory information of the vehicle, which is the control request, from the plurality of driving support functions, and is characterized by including a trajectory mediation unit that mediates the received plurality of target trajectory information. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to accommodate arbitration of target trajectories output from multiple applications, and it is possible to provide an arbitration function that takes into account time-series information on the trajectory, thereby enabling more suitable vehicle control for the occupants. In addition, it is possible to consolidate the common functions of the applications that calculate the target trajectory (the function of distributing the target trajectory to control requests in the forward / rearward and left / right directions of the vehicle) in the arbitration unit, thereby enabling a reduction in development costs (e.g., man-hours for verification and adaptation).

[0009] Other objects, configurations and advantages than those mentioned above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining an example of arbitration processing (trajectory arbitration). [Diagram 3] 13 is a diagram for explaining an example of arbitration processing (forward / rearward arbitration); FIG. [Figure 4] 13 is a diagram for explaining an example of arbitration processing (left-right direction arbitration). FIG. [Diagram 5] 1A and 1B are schematic plan views for explaining an example of an arbitration process (trajectory arbitration), in which (a) is a target trajectory of app A (target position guidance app), (b) is a target trajectory of app B (normal obstacle avoidance app) up to a new turning position, and (c) is a schematic plan view of the target trajectory of app A (target position guidance app) after reaching the new turning position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0012] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The control device 120 illustrated in Fig. 1 is a computer that controls the vehicle, and executes each function by executing a program stored in a storage medium (not shown). Each function illustrated in Fig. 1 may be implemented in a separate ECU (Electronic Control Unit) or may be implemented in the same ECU, as long as the functions are configured to exchange information with each other.

[0013] Applications A101 to E105 are applications that realize a function to assist driving by controlling any one of driving, braking, and steering of the vehicle, and there is no problem if the number of applications is more or less than that shown in the figure. The control device 120 receives the output of these applications in the arbitration unit 100, and the arbitration unit 100 calculates and outputs instruction values ​​required for control to each of the driving device 111, braking device 112, and steering device 113 that control the vehicle.

[0014] The applications A101 to E105 include, for example, applications having an automatic driving function and applications having an advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) function. More specifically, in this embodiment, an ADAS application is taken as an example for explanation. The application D104 is an application that calculates a target speed and a target acceleration, which are control requests in the forward and backward directions, and includes, for example, ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control) that runs at a speed set by the driver and keeps a constant distance from the preceding vehicle, ISA (Intelligent Speed ​​Assistance) that runs with a speed limit as the upper limit of the vehicle speed, and AEB (Automatic Emergency Braking) that applies emergency braking to avoid collision with an obstacle and reduce damage at the time of collision. The application E105 is an application that calculates a target curvature, which is a control request in the left-right direction, and examples of the application include an LKS (Lane Keeping System) that performs steering control so that the vehicle runs while maintaining the center of the lane, an LDP (Lane Departure Prevention) that avoids departure when the vehicle is about to depart from the lane on which the vehicle is running, an RDP (Road Departure Prevention) that avoids departure when the vehicle is about to depart from the road on which the vehicle is running, and an AES (Automatic Emergency Steering) that performs emergency steering to avoid collision with an obstacle. The applications A101 to C103 are applications that calculate a target trajectory, which is a control request for driving assistance, and examples of the applications include emergency obstacle avoidance, normal obstacle avoidance, lane change / merging assistance, hands-off driving, and target position guidance. Here, the target trajectory includes information on the route on which the vehicle will run in the future and information on the speed on that route, and specifically, there is a set of information on the position and speed at a predetermined time interval (for example, 0.1 seconds). Emergency obstacle avoidance is a function that combines AEB (emergency braking) and AES (emergency steering), and avoids collisions with obstacles by controlling the vehicle along a target trajectory.Normal obstacle avoidance is a function that calculates a target trajectory to avoid obstacles recognized in advance through normal driving operations. For example, it is a function that calculates a target trajectory when driving while avoiding parked vehicles on the road or while keeping a safe distance from pedestrians and bicycles. Lane change / merging assistance is a function that determines the timing of lane changes and merging from the positional relationship of surrounding vehicles and calculates a target trajectory to the lane change destination. Hands-off driving is basically an application that combines ACC and LKS, and is a function that calculates a target trajectory that combines a route to maintain the lane, the driver's set speed, and speed information to maintain the distance from the preceding vehicle. Target position guidance is a function that controls the vehicle to a position set by the driver, and calculates a target trajectory including forward / reverse turning.

[0015] In addition to the target curvature, lateral control requirements also include a target yaw rate, a target lateral acceleration, a target turning radius, etc., and it is desirable to be able to accommodate these as well.

[0016] The arbitration unit 100 functions as a trajectory arbitration unit 1, a post-arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2, a forward / rearward direction arbitration unit 3, a left / right direction arbitration unit 4, and an output distribution unit 5. In addition, the control device 120 outputs the arbitration results and calculation results in the arbitration unit 100 to the history information storage unit 114.

[0017] The trajectory arbitration unit 1 receives at least two or more target trajectories, which are control requests output from applications (applications A101 to C103) that calculate target trajectories, compares future control requests included in the received target trajectories, arbitrates the multiple target trajectories, and outputs the multiple target trajectories as one target trajectory to the arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2. Here, the trajectory arbitration unit 1 judges whether or not the control requests included in the received target trajectories have an allowable range (target speed, etc.), and arbitrates the multiple target trajectories based on the judgment result (i.e., the allowable range). If there is an allowable range (target speed, etc.) for the control request, the trajectory arbitration unit 1 arbitrates the received target trajectories within a range that does not deviate from the allowable range (i.e., within the allowable range), selects one target trajectory from the multiple target trajectories, or calculates a new target trajectory (trajectory information) from the multiple target trajectories (details will be described later with reference to FIG. 2). The arbitration method here is basically determined based on the priority described later, and the arbitration result includes arbitration selection result information indicating which control request has been selected from among the control requests received from multiple applications. It is also possible to input external world recognition information used by each application to the trajectory arbitration unit 1 to realize a more advanced arbitration method. Here, the external world recognition information is, for example, lane information (lane width, lane type, lane boundary type, etc.), free space information (drivable area, passage width in places without lanes, etc.), and obstacle information (obstacle type, position, moving direction, moving speed, size, etc.).

[0018] The post-arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2 distributes the target trajectory output from the trajectory arbitration unit 1 (arbitrated by the trajectory arbitration unit 1) into control requests in the longitudinal and lateral directions of the vehicle, and outputs the control request in the longitudinal direction to the longitudinal direction arbitration unit 3 and the control request in the lateral direction to the lateral direction arbitration unit 4. As a method for distributing the target trajectory into control requests in the longitudinal and lateral directions of the vehicle, for example, there is a method of calculating a target curvature, which is a control request in the lateral direction, by using a well-known path following control using a forward gaze model, and calculating a target acceleration, which is a control request in the longitudinal direction, by using speed information on the path.

[0019] The longitudinal direction arbitration unit 3 receives the longitudinal control request output from the post-arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2 (distributed by the post-arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2) and the target speed and target acceleration, which are longitudinal control requests output from the application D104, arbitrates the multiple longitudinal control requests, and outputs them to the output distribution unit 5 as one longitudinal control request. The arbitration method here is also basically determined based on the priority described later, and the arbitration result includes arbitration selection result information indicating which control request has been selected among the control requests from the multiple applications received. Note that since the driver's accelerator and brake operation information can also be considered as a longitudinal control request, it is desirable to input it to the longitudinal direction arbitration unit 3 for arbitration.

[0020] The left-right direction arbitration unit 4 receives the left-right direction control request output from the arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2 (distributed by the arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2) and the target curvature, which is the left-right direction control request output from the application E105, arbitrates the multiple left-right direction control requests, and outputs them to the output distribution unit 5 as one left-right direction control request. The arbitration method here is also basically determined based on the priority described later, and the arbitration result includes arbitration selection result information indicating which control request was selected among the control requests from the multiple applications received. Note that since the driver's steering operation information can also be considered as a left-right direction control request, it is desirable to input it to the left-right direction arbitration unit 4 and arbitrate it.

[0021] The output distribution unit 5 receives the longitudinal control request output from the longitudinal direction arbitration unit 3 (arbitrated by the longitudinal direction arbitration unit 3) and the lateral control request output from the lateral direction arbitration unit 4 (arbitrated by the lateral direction arbitration unit 4), converts each control request into a required value (control output to the actuator system) for realizing the vehicle motion, and distributes and outputs the required value (control output to the actuator system) to each actuator system, that is, the driving device 111, the braking device 112, and the steering device 113. For example, to realize a target acceleration in the acceleration direction, the target acceleration is converted into a target driving force or the like and output to the driving device 111; to realize a target acceleration in the deceleration direction, the target acceleration is converted into a target braking force or the like and output to the braking device 112; and to realize a target curvature, the target curvature is converted into a target steering force or a target steering angle or the like and output to the steering device 113.

[0022] The drive device 111 is composed of an engine system capable of controlling engine torque with an electric throttle or the like in response to an external drive command, an electric powertrain system capable of controlling the driving force of a motor or the like in response to an external drive command, or the like.

[0023] The braking device 112 is composed of an electric brake, a hydraulic brake, or the like that can control the braking force by an electric or hydraulic actuator in response to an external braking command.

[0024] The steering device 113 is composed of an electric power steering, a hydraulic power steering, or the like that can control the steering angle by an electric or hydraulic actuator in response to an external drive command.

[0025] The history information storage unit 114 stores the arbitration results and calculation results in the arbitration unit 100 as history information related to the operation of the arbitration unit 100. The history information stored in the history information storage unit 114 includes at least arbitration selection result information in the track arbitration unit 1, the longitudinal direction arbitration unit 3, and the lateral direction arbitration unit 4, control request values ​​received from multiple applications, and request values ​​output to the drive unit 111, the braking unit 112, and the steering unit 113. Storing the history information in this manner is useful because it provides information for analysis when an accident or malfunction occurs in the vehicle.

[0026] Next, the priority of arbitration in the trajectory arbitration unit 1, the forward / rearward direction arbitration unit 3, and the left / right direction arbitration unit 4 will be described. Basically, a priority is defined based on the type of each application, and arbitration is performed based on that priority. In terms of priority, emergency avoidance applications are given top priority, followed by applications that increase the risk of collision with obstacles if the control amount is not observed, and finally applications necessary for steady driving. For example, they are set as follows. -Trajectory arbitration: Emergency obstacle avoidance > Normal obstacle avoidance > Lane change / merging assistance > Hands-off driving = Target position guidance - Forward / reverse arbitration: AEB > lane change / merging assistance and above trajectory arbitration results > ACC, ISA select low Left-right direction arbitration: AES > lane change / merging assistance and above trajectory arbitration results > LKS, LDP, RDP select high

[0027] In the trajectory arbitration in the trajectory arbitration unit 1, the obstacle avoidance application that involves steering and braking has a high priority, and the case of emergency avoidance is given top priority. Next, the lane change / merging assistance application needs to control the vehicle while maintaining the positional relationship with surrounding vehicles, so after the obstacle avoidance application, it is followed by the hands-off driving application for steady driving and the target position guidance application.

[0028] In the longitudinal arbitration in the longitudinal arbitration unit 3, AEB for emergency braking avoidance has the highest priority, followed by the result of trajectory arbitration for lane change / merging assistance or more, and finally ACC and ISA select low (selecting the lowest target speed).

[0029] As for the lateral mediation in the lateral mediation unit 4, the AES for emergency steering avoidance has the highest priority, followed by the trajectory mediation result for lane change / merging support or higher, and finally the select high of LKS, LDP, and RDP (select the target curvature with the largest deviation avoidance amount).

[0030] In addition, in FIG. 1, the arrows from the applications A101 to E105 to the mediation unit 100 are in one direction, and the arrows from the mediation unit 100 to the drive device 111, the brake device 112, and the steering device 113 are in one direction. However, it may be configured to feedback the mediation selection result information, etc. from the mediation unit 100 to the applications A101 to E105, or it may be configured to feedback the control state, etc. of each actuator from the drive device 111, the brake device 112, and the steering device 113 to the mediation unit 100.

[0031] As described above, by using the configuration of this embodiment, it is possible to handle the mediation of the target trajectories output from a plurality of applications. In addition, for applications that output control requirements in the longitudinal direction and lateral direction other than the conventional target trajectories, it is possible to perform separate mediations after mediating the target trajectories. Furthermore, the common function of the application that calculates the target trajectory (the function of distributing the target trajectory to the control requirements in the longitudinal direction and lateral direction of the vehicle) can be aggregated in the mediation unit 100, and the development cost (such as the man-hours for verification and conformity) can be reduced.

[0032] Next, specific operations will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5.

[0033] FIG. 2 shows a situation where the host vehicle 200 is traveling on a one-lane road on one side, there is a parked vehicle 201 on the road shoulder in the same lane, and there is an oncoming vehicle 202 in the front of the oncoming lane. Here, in the configuration diagram of FIG. 1, a hands-off driving application is arranged in the application A101, and a normal obstacle avoidance application is arranged in the application B102, and the mediation method of the target trajectories output by both will be described.

[0034] 2, the target route of the application A101 is a route along the lane in order to keep in the lane, as shown by the solid line 203, and the target speed is a speed (constant at V0) set by the driver, as shown by the solid line 211. The target route of the application B102 is a route that travels to the right of the own lane in order to avoid a road-parked vehicle 201 ahead, as shown by the dotted line 204, and the target speed is a speed that is temporarily decelerated when avoiding the road-parked vehicle 201 ahead (decelerating from V0 to V1 and then accelerating to V0), as shown by the dotted line 212.

[0035] As for the priority of trajectory arbitration in the trajectory arbitration unit 1, the normal obstacle avoidance application has a higher priority than the hands-off driving application, and therefore the basic arbitration process is terminated by selecting the application B102 for both the target route and the target speed. However, since the target route and the target speed here include future time-series information, it is also possible to adopt an arbitration method that takes them into consideration. For example, regarding the target speeds of the application A101 and the application B102, there is no problem in safety as long as both of them run at or below the target speed (within a range that does not deviate from the allowable range). Therefore, instead of simply selecting the target speed of the application B102, a method is available in which a new target speed shown by the dashed line 213 is calculated and this is set as the target speed after arbitration (solid line 221). Here, as a method of calculating the dashed line 213, for example, the acceleration and jerk applied to the vehicle when running along the dotted line 204, which is the target route of the application B102, are kept within a predetermined limit, thereby enabling vehicle control that is more suitable for the occupants. This can improve the ride comfort and sense of security for the occupants. This is a major feature of the method for arbitrating the target trajectories, which takes into account the future time-series information contained in the target trajectories.

[0036] Fig. 3 shows a situation in which an obstacle 305 such as a person suddenly jumps out onto the road from behind a parked vehicle 301, in contrast to the situation shown in Fig. 2. In this example, in the configuration diagram of Fig. 1, a hands-off driving application is placed in application A101, a normal obstacle avoidance application is placed in application B102, and an AEB application is placed in application D104, and the arbitration method in particular in the forward / rearward direction arbitration unit 3 will be described.

[0037] 3, the target speed after trajectory arbitration between application A101 and application B102 is as shown by a solid line 311 (also see FIG. 2). Application D104 outputs an emergency braking target speed (dashed line 312) for stopping (slowing down to speed 0) at position X31 just before position X32 where obstacle 305 appears on the road.

[0038] As the AEB application has the highest priority in the longitudinal arbitration in the longitudinal arbitration unit 3, the application D104 is selected as the target speed (the target speed after trajectory arbitration is rejected), and the solid line 321 is output as the target speed after longitudinal arbitration. In this way, it can be seen that arbitration is also performed with the output from the application that outputs only the target speed after trajectory arbitration, and an appropriate decision can be made based on the priority.

[0039] Figure 4 shows the same situation as Figure 2. Here, in the configuration diagram of Figure 1, a hands-off driving application is placed in application A101, a normal obstacle avoidance application is placed in application B102, and an LDP application is placed in application E105, and the arbitration method in left / right direction arbitration unit 4 in particular will be described.

[0040] 4, the target curvature after trajectory arbitration between the application A101 and the application B102 is as shown by the solid line 411. Furthermore, the application E105 determines the tendency of the host vehicle to deviate from the lane at the position X42, and outputs a control request to output a target curvature as shown by the dashed line 412 to return the host vehicle to the lane.

[0041] As for the priority of left-right arbitration in the left-right arbitration unit 4, the target curvature after trajectory arbitration (target curvature of a normal obstacle avoidance application) takes precedence over the LDP application, so the target curvature after trajectory arbitration is selected in the left-right arbitration (the (target curvature of) application E105 is rejected), and the solid line 421 is output as the target curvature after left-right arbitration. In this way, it can be seen that arbitration is also performed with the output from an application that outputs only the target curvature after trajectory arbitration, and appropriate judgment can be made based on the priority.

[0042] 5(a) to (c) show a situation in which a vehicle 501 is about to stop in an empty space in an area where multiple vehicles are stopped. In this example, a target position guidance application is placed in application A101 and a normal obstacle avoidance application is placed in application B102 in the configuration diagram of FIG. 1, and a method of arbitrating the target trajectory output by both applications will be described.

[0043] 5(a), the target route of the application A101 is a route including a set of forward and reverse routes toward a stopping position 503 via a turning point 502, as indicated by a solid line 504. In addition, the target speed of the application A101 is set with upper limit speeds for the forward route and the reverse route, and target speeds that enable smooth starting and stopping are set (not shown).

[0044] In FIG. 5(b), when the vehicle 501 starts control according to the target trajectory of the application A101, if an oncoming vehicle 510 approaches from the front, the vehicle 501 cannot reach the turning position 502 and decides to stop. At this time, the application B102 calculates a new turning position 505 that avoids the oncoming vehicle 510 and allows control to continue with respect to the stopping position 503, and outputs the target route 506. Here, the application B102 calculates a new turning position 505 with a margin in the passage width (in other words, the passage width is equal to or greater than the allowable range) to avoid the oncoming vehicle 510, for example, and outputs the target route 506. Here, the priority of the trajectory arbitration in the trajectory arbitration unit 1 is higher for the normal obstacle avoidance application than for the target position guidance application, so the target trajectory of the application B102 is selected, but here, it is also possible to select an application from the viewpoint of continuity of control as a concept other than the priority. In this case, the trajectory arbitration unit 1 determines that if the control of the application A101 is continued, the turning point 502 cannot be reached and the control must be terminated, and although the route becomes longer and the time to reach the stopping point becomes longer, it determines that the control can be continued by selecting the application B102, and the application B102 can be selected. This is also an effect that can be achieved by comparing and arbitrating the trajectories of both applications.

[0045] In FIG. 5C, when the vehicle 501 reaches a new turning point 505, the target route 507 of the application A101 is again selected and control is continued up to the stopping position 503.

[0046] As described above, as an arbitration method that takes into account future time-series information of the target trajectory, there is a method of determining whether or not control should be performed as instructed for each target route and target speed for the target trajectory, which is a control request from each application, and implementing new control within a range that does not deviate from the range (within the tolerance range) if each control request has a certain tolerance range, thereby producing new effects. Possible new controls include control that improves ride comfort and security as explained using Figure 2, as well as energy-efficient control and control that minimizes travel time. In addition, the tolerance range of a control request can be determined based on the type of application, and can be considered, for example, as follows. Emergency avoidance apps (AEB, AES, etc.): No tolerance (it is difficult to avoid collisions if instructions are not followed) Lane change / merging assistance app: No tolerance (if instructions are not followed, there is a risk of collision with other vehicles) Normal obstacle avoidance app: No tolerance for moving obstacles (because there is a risk of collision with the obstacle if instructions are not followed), but for stationary obstacles, the vehicle speed can be treated as the upper limit Hands-off driving app: Vehicle speed can be treated as an upper limit, and the route can be controlled within that range if other information (lane width, road curvature, etc.) is available.

[0047] In addition, the allowable range of the control request may be included in the information of the control request output from each application, or may be set by the trajectory arbitration unit 1 based on the external environment recognition information input to the arbitration unit 100.

[0048] As described above, by using the configuration of this embodiment, it becomes possible to accommodate arbitration of target trajectories output from a plurality of applications. In addition, for applications that output control requests in the forward / rearward direction and left / right direction other than the conventional target trajectory, it is also possible to arbitrate the target trajectories separately after arbitration of the target trajectories. Furthermore, it becomes possible to provide an arbitration function that takes into account time-series information of the target trajectory, which enables vehicle control that is more suitable for the occupants.

[0049] As described above, the control device 120 of this embodiment has an arbitration unit 100 that receives control requests from a plurality of driving assistance functions (applications A101 to E105), arbitrates the control requests, and distributes the requests to each actuator of the vehicle. The arbitration unit 100 has a trajectory arbitration unit 1 that receives at least two or more pieces of target trajectory information of the vehicle, which are the control requests, from the plurality of driving assistance functions (applications A101 to C103), and arbitrates the received plurality of pieces of target trajectory information.

[0050] The trajectory arbitration unit 1 compares future control requests contained in the received plurality of pieces of target trajectory information, and arbitrates the plurality of pieces of target trajectory information.

[0051] The trajectory arbitration unit 1 judges whether or not there is an allowable range for the control requests included in the received plurality of pieces of target trajectory information, and arbitrates the plurality of pieces of target trajectory information based on the judgment result (allowable range).

[0052] The control device 120 (the arbitration unit 100) further includes a post-arbitration track information distribution unit 2 that distributes the track information arbitrated by the track arbitration unit 1 into longitudinal and lateral control requests of the vehicle, a longitudinal arbitration unit 3 that arbitrates the longitudinal control requests distributed by the post-arbitration track information distribution unit 2 and the longitudinal control requests from the multiple driving assistance functions (one or more), a left-right arbitration unit 4 that arbitrates the left-right control requests distributed by the post-arbitration track information distribution unit 2 and the left-right control requests from the multiple driving assistance functions (one or more), and an output distribution unit 5 that calculates a control output to each actuator of the vehicle based on the control requests arbitrated by the post-arbitration track information distribution unit 3 and the left-right arbitration unit 4, and distributes and outputs the control output to each actuator of the vehicle.

[0053] The track information reconciled by the track arbitration unit 1 includes information on the route of the vehicle and information on the speed on the route.

[0054] The allowable range is at least information included in the control requests from the plurality of driving support functions, or information that is set based on external environment recognition information input to the arbitration unit 100 .

[0055] When there is an allowable range, the trajectory arbitration unit 1 arbitrates the received plurality of target orbit information within a range that does not deviate from the allowable range (within the allowable range), and selects one target orbit information from the plurality of target orbit information or calculates new orbit information from the plurality of target orbit information.

[0056] The output of the trajectory arbitration unit 1, the output of the longitudinal direction arbitration unit 3, and the output of the lateral direction arbitration unit 4 each include arbitration selection result information indicating which control request has been selected among the control requests from the multiple driving assistance functions.

[0057] The control device 120 further includes a history information storage unit 114 that stores history information related to the operation of the arbitration unit 100, and the history information storage unit 114 stores the arbitration selection result information.

[0058] That is, the arbitration unit 100 of the control device 120 of this embodiment inputs target trajectories from multiple applications that calculate target trajectories, arbitrates them (trajectory arbitration unit 1), and distributes them into requests for the forward / backward direction and the left / right direction after arbitration (post-arbitration trajectory information distribution unit 2).In addition, the distributed requests for the forward / backward direction and the left / right direction are again arbitrated with requests from other applications that output things other than the target trajectory (forward / backward direction arbitration unit 3, left / right direction arbitration unit 4).

[0059] According to this embodiment, it is possible to accommodate arbitration of target trajectories output from multiple applications, and it is possible to provide an arbitration function that takes into account time-series information on the trajectory, enabling more suitable vehicle control for the occupants. In addition, it is possible to consolidate the common functions of the applications that calculate the target trajectory (the function of distributing the target trajectory to control requests in the forward / rearward and left / right directions of the vehicle) in the arbitration unit, making it possible to reduce development costs (such as the man-hours required for verification and adaptation).

[0060] Although the present embodiment has been described using several patterns as examples, the present invention is also applicable to other patterns. Furthermore, the present invention can be embodied in various forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0061] In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes various modifications and equivalent configurations within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. For example, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those including all of the described configurations.

[0062] In addition, each of the above-mentioned configurations, functions, processing units, processing means, etc. may be realized in hardware, for example by designing some or all of them as an integrated circuit, or may be realized in software by a processor interpreting and executing a program that realizes each function.

[0063] Information such as programs, tables, and files that realize each function can be stored in a storage device such as a memory, a hard disk, or an SSD (Solid State Drive), or in a recording medium such as an IC card, an SD card, or a DVD.

[0064] In addition, the control lines and information lines shown are those considered necessary for the explanation, and do not necessarily show all the control lines and information lines necessary for implementation. In reality, it can be considered that almost all components are connected to each other. [Explanation of symbols]

[0065] 1 Orbit Mediation Department 2 Post-arbitration orbit information distribution unit 3 Front-rear adjustment section 4 Left-right adjustment section 5 Output distribution section 100 Mediation Department 111 Drive unit 112 Braking device 113 Steering Gear 114 History information storage unit 120 Control device

Claims

1. A control device having an arbitration unit that receives control requests from a plurality of driving assistance functions, arbitrates the control requests, and distributes the requests to each actuator of a vehicle, The control device is characterized in that the arbitration unit receives at least two or more pieces of target trajectory information for the vehicle, which are the control requests, from the multiple driving assistance functions, and includes a trajectory arbitration unit that arbitrates the received multiple pieces of target trajectory information.

2. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the trajectory arbitration unit arbitrates the plurality of pieces of target trajectory information by comparing future control requests contained in the plurality of pieces of received target trajectory information.

3. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the trajectory arbitration unit judges whether or not the control requests included in the received plurality of pieces of target trajectory information have an allowable range, and arbitrates the plurality of pieces of target trajectory information based on the judgment result.

4. an arbitration track information distribution unit that distributes the track information arbitrated by the track arbitration unit into control requests in the forward / rearward direction and the left / right direction of the vehicle; a longitudinal direction arbitration unit that arbitrates the longitudinal direction control request distributed by the arbitration trajectory information distribution unit and the longitudinal direction control requests from the plurality of driving assistance functions; a left-right direction arbitration unit that arbitrates the left-right direction control request distributed by the arbitration trajectory information distribution unit and the left-right direction control requests from the plurality of driving assistance functions; 2. The control device according to claim 1, further comprising: an output distribution unit that calculates a control output for each actuator of the vehicle based on the control requests arbitrated by the longitudinal direction arbitration unit and the lateral direction arbitration unit, and distributes and outputs the control output to each actuator of the vehicle.

5. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the track information arbitrated by the track arbitration unit includes information on a route of the vehicle and information on a speed on the route.

6. 4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein the tolerance range is information included in at least a control request from the plurality of driving assistance functions, or information that is set based on external environment recognition information input to the arbitration unit.

7. 4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein, when there is an allowable range, the trajectory arbitration unit arbitrates the received plurality of pieces of target trajectory information within a range that does not deviate from the allowable range, and selects one piece of target trajectory information from the plurality of pieces of target trajectory information or calculates new trajectory information from the plurality of target trajectory information.

8. 5. The control device according to claim 4, wherein the output of the trajectory arbitration unit, the output of the forward / rearward direction arbitration unit, and the output of the left / right direction arbitration unit each include arbitration selection result information indicating which control request has been selected among the control requests from the plurality of driving assistance functions.

9. a history information storage unit that stores history information related to the operation of the arbitration unit, The control device according to claim 8 , wherein the history information storage unit stores the arbitration selection result information.

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