Vehicle control device

Abstract

To provide a vehicle control device capable of appropriately determining the timing of interrupting control for changing a lane along which a vehicle travels.SOLUTION: This vehicle control device comprises: a detection unit 32 that detects the position and the speed of an own vehicle 10 relative to the other vehicle traveling along an adjacent lane; a control unit 33 that executes lane changing control of the own vehicle 10 so as to change the lane along which the own vehicle 10 travels from an own lane to the adjacent lane; a determination unit 34 that determines whether at least one of the relative position and the relative speed detected during the execution of the lane changing control satisfies an interruption condition; an interruption instruction unit 35 that interrupts the lane changing control when the interruption condition is satisfied; and a condition change unit 36 that softens the interruption condition in accordance with the operation of interrupting the lane changing control by a driver of the own vehicle 10 performed before the interruption condition is satisfied, and makes stricter the interruption condition in accordance with the operation of continuing the lane changing control by the driver performed when the interruption condition is satisfied.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle control device.

Background Art

[0002] Techniques for changing the lane of a vehicle under automatic driving control have been studied (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] The vehicle control system described in Patent Document 1 determines whether or not the conditions for the host vehicle to change lanes from its own lane to an adjacent lane are satisfied based on the surrounding situation of the host vehicle, and when those conditions are satisfied, controls the acceleration / deceleration and steering of the host vehicle to change the lane of the host vehicle to the adjacent lane. And this vehicle control system suppresses lane change control when the speed of the host vehicle is equal to or lower than a predetermined speed. However, this vehicle control system does not suppress lane change control when an operation of an operation unit for adjusting the traveling direction of the host vehicle by the occupant is detected.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Depending on the positional relationship between the host vehicle and other vehicles traveling around the host vehicle, the driver of the host vehicle may feel uneasy if the lane change control is continued. In such a case, it is preferable to stop the execution of the lane change control even after the start of the lane change control. However, the conditions under which the driver feels uneasy about continuing the lane change control depend on the driver. Therefore, if the conditions for stopping the lane change control are not appropriately set for the driver, there is a risk that the lane change control that has once started will be stopped even though the driver does not feel uneasy. In such a case, the convenience of the driver may be impaired. Conversely, there is a risk that the driver will feel uneasy if the lane change control is continued.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle control device that can appropriately determine the timing to interrupt the control for changing the lane in which the vehicle travels.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] According to one embodiment, a vehicle control device is provided. This vehicle control device includes a detection unit that detects the relative position and relative speed between the host vehicle and other vehicles traveling in an adjacent lane adjacent to the host lane in which the host vehicle travels, and when a predetermined condition is satisfied, the host vehicle is moved from the host lane to the adjacent lane. A control unit that executes the lane change control of the host vehicle so as to change lanes, a determination unit that determines whether or not at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies an interruption condition during the execution of the lane change control, and when the interruption condition is satisfied, an interruption instruction unit that causes the control unit to interrupt the lane change control, and an operation by the driver of the host vehicle to interrupt the lane change control that was performed before the interruption condition was satisfied. A condition change unit that relaxes the interruption condition in response to the operation, and on the other hand, makes the interruption condition stricter in response to an operation by the driver to continue the lane change control that was executed when the interruption condition was satisfied.

[0008] In this vehicle control device, it is preferable that the change unit does not change the interruption condition until the number of executions of the operation to continue or the number of executions of the operation to interrupt exceeds a predetermined number.

[0009] Further, it is preferable that the vehicle control device further includes a storage unit that stores interruption conditions corresponding to the situation for each predetermined situation. In this case, it is preferable that the determination unit determines whether or not at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies an interruption condition corresponding to the situation around the host vehicle.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] The vehicle control device according to the present disclosure has an effect that it can appropriately determine the timing to interrupt the control for changing the lane in which the vehicle travels.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method executed in the vehicle control device, and a vehicle control computer program will be described. In one embodiment, this vehicle control device executes a merging control of the host vehicle so as to cause the host vehicle to enter another lane when the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling merges into another lane. Then, when the merging control is interrupted due to a change in the positional relationship between the host vehicle and other vehicles traveling around it, this vehicle control device executes a stop control for stopping the host vehicle in the original lane, or a continuation control for transferring the driving control to the driver of the host vehicle while continuing to enter the other lane. And this vehicle control device changes the set control to the continuation control in response to a continuation operation by the driver to continue the merging of the host vehicle, which was performed during the execution of the stop control, while changing the set control to the stop control in response to a stop operation by the driver to stop the host vehicle, which was performed during the execution of the continuation control. Further, in another embodiment, this vehicle control device interrupts the lane change control during the execution of the lane change control for changing the lane of the host vehicle from the host lane to an adjacent lane when an interruption condition set based on at least one of a change in the relative position and the relative speed between the host vehicle and another vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane to be changed is satisfied. At that time, this vehicle control device relaxes the interruption condition in response to an operation by the driver of the host vehicle to interrupt the lane change control, which was performed before the interruption condition was satisfied, while making the interruption condition stricter in response to an operation by the driver to continue the lane change control, which was performed when the interruption condition was satisfied.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a vehicle control system in which a vehicle control device is implemented. FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of an electronic control unit which is an embodiment of the vehicle control device. The vehicle control system 1 is mounted on a vehicle 10 which is an example of the host vehicle, and is capable of automatically controlling the vehicle 10. For this purpose, the vehicle control system 1 includes a GPS receiver 2, two cameras 3-1 and 3-2, a user interface 4, a storage device 5, and an electronic control unit (ECU) 6 which is an example of the vehicle control device. The GPS receiver 2, the cameras 3-1 and 3-2, the user interface 4, the storage device 5, and the ECU 6 are communicably connected via an in-vehicle network compliant with a standard such as a controller area network. The vehicle control system 1 may further include any one of a navigation device (not shown) that searches for a planned route to a destination, a wireless communication terminal (not shown) for wireless communication with other devices, and a ranging sensor (not shown) such as a LiDAR sensor or a radar.

[0014] The GPS receiver 2 is an example of a positioning device, receives GPS signals from GPS satellites at a predetermined period, and positions the self-position of the vehicle 10 based on the received GPS signals. Then, the GPS receiver 2 outputs positioning information representing the positioning result of the self-position of the vehicle 10 based on the GPS signals to the ECU 6 via the in-vehicle network at a predetermined period. Note that the vehicle 10 may have a receiver compliant with a satellite positioning system other than the GPS receiver 2. In this case, the receiver may position the self-position of the vehicle 10.

[0015] The two cameras 3-1 and 3-2 are each an example of a sensor capable of detecting objects around the vehicle 10. The cameras 3-1 and 3-2 are composed of a two-dimensional detector formed by an array of photoelectric conversion elements sensitive to visible light, such as a CCD or a C-MOS, and an imaging optical system that forms an image of the area to be photographed on the two-dimensional detector. The camera 3-1 is mounted, for example, in the passenger compartment of the vehicle 10 so as to face the front of the vehicle 10. Then, the camera 3-1 photographs the front area of the vehicle 10 at a predetermined photographing cycle and generates an image in which the front area is captured. Similarly, the camera 3-2 is mounted, for example, in the passenger compartment of the vehicle 10 so as to face the rear of the vehicle 10. Then, the camera 3-2 photographs the rear area of the vehicle 10 at a predetermined photographing cycle and generates an image in which the rear area is captured. The images obtained by the cameras 3-1 and 3-2 are an example of sensor signals and may be color images or gray-scale images. Note that the vehicle 10 may be provided with three or more cameras having different photographing directions or focal lengths.

[0016] Each time the cameras 3-1 and 3-2 generate an image, they output the generated image to the ECU 6 via the in-vehicle network.

[0017] The user interface 4 is an example of a notification unit and has, for example, a display device such as a liquid crystal display or a touch panel display. The user interface 4 is installed facing the driver in the passenger compartment of the vehicle 10, for example, in the vicinity of the instrument panel. Then, the user interface 4 notifies the driver of the information by displaying the predetermined information received from the ECU 6 via the in-vehicle network as an icon or as character information. The user interface 4 may have one or more light sources provided on the instrument panel, a speaker installed in the passenger compartment, or a vibrating device provided on the steering wheel or the driver's seat. In this case, the user interface 4 notifies the driver of the information by outputting the predetermined information received from the ECU 6 via the in-vehicle network as an audio signal. Alternatively, the user interface 4 may notify the driver of the predetermined information by vibrating the vibrating device according to the signal received from the ECU 6 via the in-vehicle network. Alternatively, the user interface 4 may notify the predetermined information by lighting or flashing the light source according to the signal received from the ECU 6 via the in-vehicle network.

[0018] Furthermore, the user interface 4 is also an example of an operation unit that receives a predetermined operation by the driver. For example, when the user interface 4 has a touch panel, a signal indicating the area on the touch panel touched by the driver is output to the ECU 6. Also, the user interface 4 may have one or more switches for receiving a predetermined operation. In this case, when any one of the one or more switches is operated, the user interface 4 outputs a signal representing the operated switch and the state after the operation of the switch to the ECU 6. Furthermore, the user interface 4 may have a microphone. In this case, the user interface 4 outputs an audio signal representing the voice of the driver collected via the microphone to the ECU 6.

[0019] The storage device 5 is an example of a storage unit, and has, for example, a hard disk device, a non-volatile semiconductor memory, or an optical recording medium and its access device. And the storage device 5 stores a high-precision map which is an example of map information. The high-precision map includes information used for automatic driving control for each individual road section within the area represented by the high-precision map. The information used for automatic driving control includes, for example, information representing road markings such as lane demarcation lines or stop lines for each road section, information representing road signs, and information representing features around the road.

[0020] Furthermore, the storage device 5 may have a processor for executing, for example, an update process of the high-precision map and a process related to a read request of the high-precision map from the ECU 6. In this case, the storage device 5, for example, transmits a request for acquiring a high-precision map to a map server together with the current position of the vehicle 10 via a wireless communication terminal (not shown) each time the vehicle 10 moves a predetermined distance. And the storage device 5 receives a high-precision map for a predetermined area around the current position of the vehicle 10 from the map server via the wireless communication terminal. Also, when the storage device 5 receives a read request of the high-precision map from the ECU 6, it cuts out a range relatively narrower than the above-mentioned predetermined area including the current position of the vehicle 10 from the stored high-precision map and outputs it to the ECU 6 via the in-vehicle network.

[0021] The ECU 6 is capable of performing automatic driving control on the vehicle 10. In particular, the ECU 6 executes lane change control for the vehicle 10 to change from the own lane in which the vehicle 10 is traveling to an adjacent lane adjacent to the own lane. The lane change control includes merging control.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 2, the ECU 6 has a communication interface 21, a memory 22, and a processor 23. The communication interface 21, the memory 22, and the processor 23 may each be configured as separate circuits, or may be integrally configured as one integrated circuit.

[0023] The communication interface 21 has an interface circuit for connecting the ECU 6 to the in-vehicle network. And every time the communication interface 21 receives positioning information from the GPS receiver 2, it passes the positioning information to the processor 23. Also, every time the communication interface 21 receives an image from the camera 3-1 or the camera 3-2, it passes the received image to the processor 23. Furthermore, the communication interface 21 passes the highly accurate map read from the storage device 5 to the processor 23. Moreover, the communication interface 21 outputs the information or signal to the user interface 4 received from the processor 23 to the user interface 4 via the in-vehicle network. Moreover, every time the communication interface 21 receives a signal representing a predetermined operation of the driver from the user interface 4, it passes the signal to the processor 23.

[0024] The memory 22 is another example of the storage unit and has, for example, a volatile semiconductor memory and a non-volatile semiconductor memory. And the memory 22 stores various data used in the vehicle control process executed by the processor 23 of the ECU 6. For example, the memory 22 stores an interruption condition for determining whether to interrupt the control for lane change and a control flag indicating the type of control to be performed when the interruption condition is satisfied. The control flag is an example of control information. Also, the memory 22 stores the highly accurate map read from the storage device 5. Furthermore, the memory 22 temporarily stores the image received from the camera 3-1 or the camera 3-2 and the positioning information received from the GPS receiver 2. Moreover, the memory 22 temporarily stores various data generated during the vehicle control process. Such data includes a count value representing the number of operations by the driver performed during a specific control and the number of executions of a specific control.

[0025] The processor 23 includes one or more CPUs (Central Processing Units) and their peripheral circuits. The processor 23 may further include other arithmetic circuits such as a logical arithmetic unit, a numerical arithmetic unit, or a graphic processing unit. And the processor 23 executes vehicle control processing for the vehicle 10.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of the processor 23 related to vehicle control processing. The processor 23 includes a lane change determination unit 31, a detection unit 32, a control unit 33, a determination unit 34, an interruption instruction unit 35, and a change unit 36. Each of these units included in the processor 23 is, for example, a functional module realized by a computer program operating on the processor 23. Alternatively, each of these units included in the processor 23 may be a dedicated arithmetic circuit provided in the processor 23.

[0027] Hereinafter, a case (first embodiment) where merging control, which is executed when the host lane merges into an adjacent lane, is applied, and a case (second embodiment) where lane change control is applied when a predetermined condition is satisfied regardless of whether the host lane merges into an adjacent lane will be described. Note that the merging control is an example of the lane change control.

[0028] <First Embodiment> First, the first embodiment in which the merging control is applied will be described.

[0029] The lane change determination unit 31 determines whether to apply merging control to the vehicle 10. For this purpose, the lane change determination unit 31 sets the position of the vehicle 10 indicated by the latest positioning information as the current position of the vehicle 10. Further, the lane change determination unit 31 specifies the traveling direction of the vehicle 10 based on the change in the position of the vehicle 10 indicated by the positioning information of the plurality of most recent times, or based on a sensor signal indicating the orientation of the vehicle 10 received by the ECU 6 from an orientation sensor (not shown) mounted on the vehicle 10. Then, the lane change determination unit 31 refers to the high-precision map and specifies the road including the current position of the vehicle 10 as the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling. Furthermore, the lane change determination unit 31 refers to the high-precision map and determines whether there is a merging point where the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling merges with another road within a section from the current position of the vehicle 10 to a predetermined distance (for example, several 100 m) ahead in the traveling direction of the vehicle 10. If a merging point exists, the lane change determination unit 31 determines that a predetermined condition for applying merging control is satisfied. Then, the lane change determination unit 31 determines to apply merging control to the vehicle 10. Furthermore, the lane change determination unit 31 refers to the high-precision map and determines whether the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling merges from the left or the right of the merging destination road at the merging point. On the other hand, if there is no merging point within a section from the current position of the vehicle 10 to a predetermined distance (for example, several 100 m) ahead, the lane change determination unit 31 determines not to apply merging control to the vehicle 10 at that time.

[0030] When the lane change determination unit 31 determines to apply merging control to the vehicle 10, it notifies the detection unit 32, the control unit 33, the determination unit 34, the interruption instruction unit 35, and the change unit 36 of the determination result and the orientation (right side or left side) of the merging destination road as seen from the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling.

[0031] The detection unit 32 detects other vehicles traveling around the vehicle 10 (hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, referred to as surrounding vehicles). Further, the detection unit 32 detects the relative position and relative speed between the surrounding vehicle and the vehicle 10. In particular, the detection unit 32 detects the relative position and relative speed between the vehicle 10 and a surrounding vehicle traveling in an adjacent lane (hereinafter, may be simply referred to as an adjacent lane) where the own lane merges. For this purpose, the detection unit 32 detects the surrounding vehicle by inputting the images acquired from the camera 3-1 and the images acquired from the camera 3-2 into an identifier. As such an identifier, the detection unit 32 can use a deep neural network (DNN) having a convolutional neural network (CNN) type architecture such as Single Shot MultiBox Detector (SSD) or Faster R-CNN. Alternatively, the detection unit 32 may use a DNN having a self attension network (SAN) type architecture as such an identifier. Alternatively, the detection unit 32 may use an identifier based on another machine learning method such as an AdaBoost identifier as such an identifier. Such an identifier is pre-trained according to a predetermined learning method such as the error backpropagation method using a large number of teacher images representing vehicles so as to detect surrounding vehicles from the images. The identifier outputs information specifying an object region including the surrounding vehicle detected on the input image and information representing the vehicle type of the detected surrounding vehicle (for example, a passenger car, a large vehicle, a two-wheeled vehicle, etc.).

[0032] When a detected surrounding vehicle exists, the detection unit 32 determines whether the surrounding vehicle is traveling in an adjacent lane. Here, it is assumed that the position of the lower end of the object area including the surrounding vehicle represents the position where the surrounding vehicle is in contact with the road surface. Also, the position on the image corresponds one-to-one with the orientation as seen from the camera that generated the image. Therefore, the detection unit 32 can estimate the distance from the camera to the surrounding vehicle and the orientation from the vehicle 10 to the surrounding vehicle by referring to the position of the lower end of the object area on the image and parameters such as the installation height and shooting direction of the camera that generated the image. Alternatively, the detection unit 32 can estimate the distance from the camera that generated the image to the surrounding vehicle based on the reference number of pixels on the image when the inter-vehicle distance is the reference distance, which corresponds to the reference vehicle width corresponding to the vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle, and the horizontal width of the object area including the surrounding vehicle.

[0033] Also, when the vehicle 10 is equipped with a distance measuring sensor (not shown), the detection unit 32 may detect the surrounding vehicle based on the distance measuring signal. In this case as well, the detection unit 32 may detect the surrounding vehicle by inputting the distance measuring signal to an identifier that has been pre-trained to detect the surrounding vehicle from the distance measuring signal. The detection unit 32 can use a DNN having a CNN-type or SAN-type architecture as an identifier for detecting the surrounding vehicle from the distance measuring signal. Alternatively, the detection unit 32 may detect the surrounding vehicle according to another method for detecting the surrounding vehicle from the distance measuring signal. In this case, the detection unit 32 may regard the orientation at which the surrounding vehicle is detected on the distance measuring signal as the orientation from the vehicle 10 to the surrounding vehicle. Also, the detection unit 32 may regard the distance indicated in the distance measuring signal for that orientation as the estimated distance from the vehicle 10 to the surrounding vehicle.

[0034] Based on the estimated azimuth and distance, the detection unit 32 estimates the distance from the vehicle 10 to the surrounding vehicles along the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the vehicle 10 (hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, referred to as the lateral distance). When the lateral distance is included within a predetermined distance range corresponding to the width of the adjacent lane at the current position of the vehicle 10, and the azimuth from the vehicle 10 to the surrounding vehicle is the same as the azimuth of the adjacent lane where the merging destination is located with respect to the own lane, the detection unit 32 determines that the surrounding vehicle is traveling in the adjacent lane. For example, when merging into an adjacent lane adjacent to the right side of the own lane, the detection unit 32 determines that a surrounding vehicle located on the right side of the vehicle 10 and whose lateral distance is included within the predetermined distance range is traveling in the adjacent lane. The detection unit 32 may specify the predetermined distance range at the current position of the vehicle 10 by referring to the high-precision map.

[0035] Alternatively, the detection unit 32 may detect the lane dividing lines represented in the image together with the surrounding vehicles by inputting the image to the discriminator. In this case, the discriminator is pre-trained so that it can also detect the lane dividing lines. Then, the detection unit 32 specifies, as the area represented by the adjacent lane in the image, the area sandwiched between two lane dividing lines in order from the side closer to the position of the vehicle 10 in the image in the azimuth of the merging destination (right or left). The detection unit 32 may determine that the surrounding vehicle is traveling in the adjacent lane when the lower end of the object area representing the surrounding vehicle is included in the area corresponding to the adjacent lane.

[0036] The detection unit 32 executes the above processing on a series of time-series images generated by the camera 3-1 or the camera 3-2, or a series of time-series ranging signals generated by the ranging sensor, thereby estimating the relative position of the surrounding vehicles with respect to the vehicle 10 at the time of generating each image or each ranging signal. Further, the detection unit 32 obtains the change in the relative position from the relative positions of the surrounding vehicles with respect to the vehicle 10 at the time of generating individual images or ranging signals arranged in time series in a recent fixed period, and estimates the relative speed of the surrounding vehicles with respect to the vehicle 10 based on the change in the relative position.

[0037] In addition, when a plurality of surrounding vehicles are detected, the detection unit 32 may track each individual surrounding vehicle over a series of time-series images or a series of ranging signals in time series by applying a predetermined tracking method such as KLT tracking. Then, the detection unit 32 may estimate the relative position and relative speed of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the vehicle 10 for each surrounding vehicle being tracked.

[0038] For each individual surrounding vehicle determined to be traveling in the adjacent lane of the merging destination, the detection unit 32 notifies the control unit 33 and the determination unit 34 of the relative position and relative speed of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the vehicle 10.

[0039] When the control unit 33 is notified of the determination result that the merging control is to be applied to the vehicle 10 from the lane change determination unit 31, the control unit 33 executes the merging control to cause the vehicle 10 to enter the adjacent lane. Further, during the execution of the merging control, when the control unit 33 is instructed to interrupt the merging control by the interruption instruction unit 35, the control unit 33 interrupts the merging control and executes the control (stop control or continuation control) instructed by the interruption instruction unit 35.

[0040] When the control unit 33 executes the merging control, it refers to the high-precision map to identify a section (hereinafter referred to as the merging section) where the vehicle 10 can change lanes from the own lane to the adjacent lane, which is located in front of the traveling direction of the vehicle 10. Then, the control unit 33 sets a planned travel route for the vehicle 10 to move from the own lane to the adjacent lane in the merging section. After setting the planned travel route, the control unit 33 controls each part of the vehicle 10 so that the vehicle 10 travels along the planned travel route. To this end, the control unit 33 measures the position of the vehicle 10 at a predetermined cycle, and compares the measured position of the vehicle 10 with the planned travel route. Note that the control unit 33 may measure the accurate position of the vehicle 10 by collating the image obtained by the camera 3-1 or the camera 3-2 with the high-precision map. And if the measured position of the vehicle 10 is on the planned travel route, the control unit 33 determines the steering angle of the vehicle 10 so that the vehicle 10 advances along the planned travel route, and controls the steering of the vehicle 10 so that the determined steering angle is achieved. Also, if the measured position of the vehicle 10 is away from the planned travel route, the control unit 33 determines the steering angle of the vehicle 10 so that the vehicle 10 approaches the planned travel route, and controls the steering of the vehicle 10 so that the determined steering angle is achieved.

[0041] Furthermore, when there are surrounding vehicles traveling in front of or on the side of the vehicle 10 in the adjacent lane, the control unit 33 sets the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle 10 so that the distance between the surrounding vehicle and the vehicle 10 becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined distance threshold when the vehicle 10 enters the adjacent lane. At this time, the control unit 33 refers to the relative position and relative speed with the surrounding vehicle detected by the detection unit 32. And if the distance between the vehicle 10 and the surrounding vehicle in the traveling direction of the vehicle 10, which is obtained from the relative position between the vehicle 10 and the surrounding vehicle, is less than the distance threshold, the control unit 33 decelerates based on the relative speed so that the speed of the vehicle 10 becomes lower than the speed of the surrounding vehicle. Also, if the distance between the vehicle 10 and the surrounding vehicle in the traveling direction of the vehicle 10 is equal to or greater than the distance threshold, the control unit 33 may set the acceleration and deceleration based on the relative speed so that the speed of the vehicle 10 becomes the same as or lower than the speed of the surrounding vehicle.

[0042] The control unit 33 sets the accelerator opening or the brake amount according to the set acceleration and deceleration rates. The control unit 33 obtains the fuel injection amount according to the set accelerator opening and outputs a control signal corresponding to the fuel injection amount to the fuel injection device of the engine of the vehicle 10. Alternatively, the control unit 33 obtains the amount of electric power supplied to the motor according to the set accelerator opening and controls the drive circuit of the motor so that the amount of electric power is supplied to the motor. Alternatively, the control unit 33 outputs a control signal corresponding to the set brake amount to the brake of the vehicle 10.

[0043] When the vehicle 10 completely starts running in the adjacent lane, the control unit 33 ends the merging control.

[0044] When measuring the exact position of the vehicle 10, the control unit 33 projects the ground objects on or around the road detected from the image onto the high-precision map by assuming the position and attitude of the vehicle 10, or projects the ground objects on or around the road around the vehicle 10 represented on the high-precision map onto the image. Note that the ground objects on or around the road can be, for example, road markings such as lane dividing lines or stop lines, or curbstones. Then, the control unit 33 estimates the position and attitude of the vehicle 10 when the ground objects detected from the image and the ground objects represented on the high-precision map match the most as the actual self-position of the vehicle 10.

[0045] The control unit 33 may determine the position where the ground object is projected on the high-precision map or the image by using the initial values of the assumed position and attitude of the vehicle 10 and the parameters of the camera that generated the image, such as the focal length, the installation height, and the shooting direction. Note that as the initial values of the position and attitude of the vehicle 10, the latest position of the vehicle 10 measured by the GPS receiver 2, or the position obtained by correcting the position and attitude of the vehicle 10 measured last time using the odometry information is used. Then, the control unit 33 calculates the degree of coincidence (for example, the reciprocal of the sum of the squares of the distances between the corresponding ground objects) between the ground objects on or around the road detected from the image and the corresponding ground objects represented on the map.

[0046] The control unit 33 repeats the above processing while changing the assumed position and attitude of the vehicle 10. Then, the control unit 33 may estimate the assumed position and attitude at the time when the degree of coincidence is maximized as the actual self-position of the vehicle 10.

[0047] Note that the control unit 33 may detect the feature to be detected by inputting the image into a discriminator that has been pre-learned to detect the feature from the image. As such a discriminator, the control unit 33 can use a discriminator similar to the discriminator used for detecting surrounding vehicles described in the detection unit 32. Alternatively, the discriminator used by the detection unit 32 may detect not only surrounding vehicles but also features.

[0048] Also, when an instruction to interrupt the merging control is received from the interruption instruction unit 35, the control unit 33 interrupts the execution of the merging control. Further, when an instruction to execute a stop control for stopping the vehicle 10 in its own lane is received from the interruption instruction unit 35, the control unit 33 executes the stop control. In this case, the control unit 33 refers to the accurate position of the vehicle 10 measured by collating the image and the high-precision map and the high-precision map, and determines whether the vehicle 10 remains within its own lane or whether a part of the vehicle 10 has entered the adjacent lane of the merging destination. When the vehicle 10 remains within its own lane, the control unit 33 decelerates the vehicle 10 at a predetermined deceleration so that the vehicle 10 stops before entering the adjacent lane. At that time, the control unit 33 may set the steering angle so that the vehicle 10 faces in a direction away from the adjacent lane, and control the steering of the vehicle 10 according to the set steering angle. Also, when a part of the vehicle 10 has entered the adjacent lane of the merging destination, the control unit 33 sets the steering angle so that the vehicle 10 faces in a direction to return from the adjacent lane to its own lane, and controls the steering of the vehicle 10 according to the set steering angle. Then, the control unit 33 decelerates the vehicle 10 at a predetermined deceleration so that the vehicle 10 stops after returning to its own lane.

[0049] Also, when instructed by the interruption instruction unit 35 to execute continuous control for transferring driving control to the driver while continuing the entry of the vehicle 10 into the adjacent lane, the control unit 33 executes the continuous control. In this case, even if the vehicle 10 is moving from the own lane toward the adjacent lane along the planned travel route, the control unit 33 keeps the steering as it is. Further, the control unit 33 notifies the driver of the transfer of driving control (driving change request) via the user interface 4. Then, when the control unit 33 detects that the driver has held the steering wheel via a touch sensor (not shown) provided on the steering wheel, or when the control unit 33 detects that the driver has operated the accelerator or the brake, thereafter, the control unit 33 transfers the driving control to the driver. In addition, if none of the driver holding the steering wheel, operating the accelerator, and operating the brake is detected even after a predetermined time has elapsed since the driving change request was notified to the driver, the control unit 33 may execute stop control.

[0050] FIG. 4(a) is a diagram for explaining the outline of the stop control, and FIG. 4(b) is a diagram for explaining the outline of the continuous control. In the example shown in FIG. 4(a), when the surrounding vehicle 410 traveling in the adjacent lane 401 that is the merging destination of the own lane 400 approaches the vehicle 10 so as to satisfy the interruption condition, the merging control is interrupted. Then, the vehicle 10 is controlled to stop within the own lane 400.

[0051] On the other hand, in the example shown in FIG. 4(b), even after the merging control is interrupted due to the approach of the surrounding vehicle 410, while transferring the driving of the vehicle 10 to the driver, the entry of the vehicle 10 from the own lane 400 to the adjacent lane 401 is continued.

[0052] Also, when the driver performs a continuous operation to continue entering the adjacent lane of the vehicle 10 during the execution of the stop control, the control unit 33 stops the execution of the stop control and then controls the vehicle 10 according to the driver's operation. For example, if the steering angle of the steering by the driver's steering indicates the direction in which the vehicle 10 is heading toward the adjacent lane of the merging destination, the control unit 33 determines that the driver has performed a continuous operation. Alternatively, when it is detected that the driver has depressed the accelerator, the control unit 33 may determine that the driver has performed a continuous operation. Then, the control unit 33 increments by 1 the number of counts (hereinafter referred to as the continuous operation count) representing the number of times the driver has performed a continuous operation during the execution of the stop control.

[0053] Conversely, when the driver performs a stop operation to stop the vehicle 10 during the execution of the continuous control, the control unit 33 stops the execution of the continuous control and then stops the vehicle 10 according to the driver's operation. For example, when the driver depresses the brake so that the braking amount reaches a predetermined braking amount or more, the control unit 33 determines that the driver has performed a stop operation. Then, the control unit 33 increments by 1 the number of counts (hereinafter referred to as the stop operation count) representing the number of times the driver has performed a stop operation during the execution of the continuous control.

[0054] The determination unit 34 determines whether at least one of the relative position and the relative speed between the surrounding vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane of the merging destination detected by the detection unit 32 and the vehicle 10 satisfies a predetermined interruption condition while the control unit 33 is executing the merging control.

[0055] For example, the determination unit 34 obtains the inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle 10 and a surrounding vehicle traveling behind the host vehicle 10 in an adjacent lane based on the relative position between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10. Then, when the inter-vehicle distance becomes less than a predetermined interruption determination threshold, the determination unit 34 determines that the interruption condition is satisfied. Further, the determination unit 34 may apply prediction processing such as a Kalman Filter to the change in the relative position between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10 in the most recent predetermined period, thereby predicting the inter-vehicle distance between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10 up to a predetermined time in the future. Then, when the inter-vehicle distance between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10 becomes less than the interruption determination threshold at any point in time to be predicted, the determination unit 34 may determine that the interruption condition is satisfied. Note that the interruption condition may be set as a combination of the inter-vehicle distance and the relative speed between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10. For example, the interruption determination threshold may be set to be smaller as the speed of the surrounding vehicle is faster than the speed of the host vehicle 10 and the relative speed between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10 is larger. Furthermore, when the speed of a surrounding vehicle traveling behind the host vehicle 10 in the adjacent lane is faster than the speed of the host vehicle 10 and the relative speed between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10 is larger than a predetermined speed threshold, the determination unit 34 may determine that the interruption condition is satisfied regardless of the inter-vehicle distance between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10. Additionally, the determination unit 34 may obtain the predicted time until the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10 collide based on the prediction result of the inter-vehicle distance between the surrounding vehicle and the host vehicle 10. Then, when the predicted time becomes less than or equal to a predetermined time threshold, the determination unit 34 may determine that the interruption condition is satisfied.

[0056] Note that when there are a plurality of surrounding vehicles traveling behind the host vehicle 10 in the adjacent lane, the determination unit 34 may determine whether the interruption condition is satisfied by executing the above-described processing on the surrounding vehicle closest to the host vehicle 10.

[0057] Also, during the execution of the merging control, the inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle 10 and its surrounding vehicles may suddenly decrease, for example, when a surrounding vehicle traveling ahead of the vehicle 10 suddenly decelerates. Therefore, the determination unit 34 may determine whether the interruption condition is satisfied for the surrounding vehicles traveling ahead of the vehicle 10 in the same manner as described above. However, regarding the condition related to the relative speed, different from the condition for the subsequent surrounding vehicles, the determination unit 34 may determine that the interruption condition is satisfied when the relative speed of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the vehicle 10 is lower than a predetermined speed threshold. Also, the interruption condition for the surrounding vehicle traveling ahead of the vehicle 10 and the interruption condition for the surrounding vehicle traveling behind the vehicle 10 may be set separately.

[0058] When the determination unit 34 determines that the interruption condition is satisfied, it notifies the interruption instruction unit 35 of the determination result.

[0059] When the interruption instruction unit 35 receives the determination result that the interruption condition is satisfied from the determination unit 34, it refers to the control flag stored in the memory 22. The interruption instruction unit 35 identifies the control (stop control or continuous control) indicated by the control flag. Then, the interruption instruction unit 35 notifies the control unit 33 of the identified control and an instruction to interrupt the merging control.

[0060] The change unit 36, at a predetermined timing, refers to the continuous operation count or the stop operation count stored in the memory 22, and determines whether to change the control to be applied when the interruption condition is satisfied from stop control to continuous control, or from continuous control to stop control. Note that the predetermined timing can be the timing when a predetermined time has elapsed since the completion of the merging control or the interruption of the merging control. Alternatively, the predetermined timing may be the timing when a predetermined time has elapsed after the driver's operation during the stop control or continuous control executed after the interruption of the merging control, or the timing when the ignition switch of the vehicle 10 is turned off or on next.

[0061] For example, when the value of the control flag indicates that stop control is to be executed, the change unit 36 refers to the continuous operation count. When the continuous operation count exceeds a predetermined number of times, the change unit 36 rewrites the value of the control flag to a value indicating that continuous control is to be executed. Then, the change unit 36 resets the continuous operation count to 0. Similarly, when the value of the control flag indicates that continuous control is to be executed, the change unit 36 refers to the stop operation count. When the stop operation count exceeds a predetermined number of times, the change unit 36 rewrites the value of the control flag to a value indicating that stop control is to be executed. Then, the change unit 36 resets the stop operation count to 0.

[0062] Note that each time the number of times the stop control after the interruption of the merging control is completed without being stopped by the driver's operation increases, the change unit 36 may decrease the value of the continuous operation count by a predetermined value (for example, 0.5). At this time, the change unit 36 may decrease the value of the continuous operation count only when the stop control is completed without being stopped by the driver's operation a plurality of times in a row. Similarly, each time the number of times the continuous control after the interruption of the merging control is completed without being stopped by the driver's operation increases, the change unit 36 may decrease the value of the stop operation count by a predetermined value.

[0063] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between the number of driver operations, stop control, and switching between continuous control when the merging control is interrupted. In FIG. 5, the horizontal axis represents the number of times the merging control is interrupted, and the vertical axis represents the value of the continuous operation count. The graph 500 represents the change in the value of the continuous operation count.

[0064] As shown in graph 500, each time the driver performs a continuation operation (simply referred to as "operation" in FIG. 5) to continue the entry of vehicle 10 into the adjacent lane of the merging destination when the merging control is interrupted and the stop control is executed, the value of the continuation operation count increases. Conversely, if the driver does not perform any operation when the merging control is interrupted and the stop control is executed, the value of the continuation operation count decreases. Then, at timing T0 when the value of the continuation operation count exceeds a predetermined number N, the control applied at the interruption of the merging control is changed from the stop control to the continuation control.

[0065] In this way, by determining which of the stop control and the continuation control to apply according to the driver's operation during the stop control or the continuation control, the changing unit 36 can make the behavior of vehicle 10 at the interruption of the merging control match the driver's preference.

[0066] According to a modification, when the value of the stop operation count becomes larger than the number obtained by adding a predetermined number to the value of the continuation operation count, the changing unit 36 may rewrite the value of the control flag to a value indicating that the stop control is to be executed. Similarly, when the value of the continuation operation count becomes larger than the number obtained by adding a predetermined number to the value of the stop operation count, the changing unit 36 may rewrite the value of the control flag to a value indicating that the continuation control is to be executed. In this case, the changing unit 36 may not reset the continuation operation count and the stop operation count even if it rewrites the value of the control flag.

[0067] According to another modification example, when the ratio of the continuous operation count to the number of times of execution of the stop control exceeds a predetermined ratio, the change unit 36 may rewrite the value of the control flag to a value indicating that continuous control is to be executed. Then, the change unit 36 may reset the continuous operation count to 0. In order to prevent the stop control and the continuous control from frequently switching, it is preferable that the change unit 36 does not rewrite the value of the control flag until the number of times of execution of the stop control exceeds a predetermined number of times. Similarly, when the ratio of the stop operation count to the number of times of execution of the continuous control exceeds a predetermined ratio, the change unit 36 may rewrite the value of the control flag to a value indicating that the stop control is to be executed. Then, the change unit 36 may reset the stop operation count to 0. Also in this case, it is preferable that the change unit 36 does not rewrite the value of the control flag until the number of times of execution of the continuous control exceeds a predetermined number of times.

[0068] FIG. 6 is an operation flowchart of vehicle control processing according to the first embodiment. When the lane change determination unit 31 of the processor 23 determines that the merging control is to be applied, the processor 23 executes vehicle control processing related to the merging control according to the following operation flowchart.

[0069] The determination unit 34 of the processor 23 determines whether an interruption condition is satisfied while the control unit 33 of the processor 23 is executing the merging control for the vehicle 10 (step S101). If the interruption condition is not satisfied (step S101 - No), the control unit 33 determines whether the movement of the vehicle 10 to the adjacent lane of the merging destination is completed (step S102). If the movement of the vehicle 10 to the adjacent lane is completed (step S102 - Yes), the processor 23 ends the vehicle control processing. On the other hand, if the movement of the vehicle 10 to the adjacent lane is not completed (step S102 - No), the processor 23 repeats the processing after step S101.

[0070] Also, when the interruption condition is satisfied in step S101 (step S101 - Yes), the interruption instruction unit 35 of the processor 23 refers to the control flag and determines whether the control set in the interruption of the merging control is the stop control (step S103). When the set control is the stop control (step S103 - Yes), the control unit 33 interrupts the merging control and executes the stop control so as to stop the vehicle 10 within its own lane (step S104). Further, the control unit 33 determines whether a continuous operation of the driver to continue merging is performed during the execution of the stop control (step S105). When the continuous operation is performed (step S105 - Yes), the control unit 33 stops the stop control and then controls the vehicle 10 according to the driver's operation. Further, the control unit 33 increments the value of the continuous operation count CC by 1 (step S106).

[0071] After step S106, the change unit 36 of the processor 23 determines whether the value of the continuous operation count CC exceeds a predetermined number ThN (step S107). When the value of the continuous operation count CC exceeds the predetermined number ThN (step S107 - Yes), the change unit 36 rewrites the value of the control flag so as to change the control applied at the next interruption of the merging control to the continuous control (step S108). After step S108, or when the value of the continuous operation count CC does not exceed the predetermined number ThN (step S107 - No), the processor 23 ends the vehicle control process. Also, in step S105, when the continuous operation is not performed (step S105 - No), the processor 23 also ends the vehicle control process.

[0072] Also, in step S103, when the set control is continuous control (step S103 - No), the control unit 33 interrupts the merging control, transfers the driving control of the vehicle 10 to the driver, and executes continuous control so as to continue the entry of the vehicle 10 into the adjacent lane (step S109). Further, the control unit 33 determines whether a stop operation of the driver to stop the vehicle 10 has been performed during the execution of the continuous control (step S110). When a stop operation has been performed (step S110 - Yes), the control unit 33 stops the continuous control, and thereafter controls the vehicle 10 according to the driver's operation. Further, the control unit 33 increments the value of the stop operation count SC by 1 (step S111).

[0073] After step S111, the change unit 36 of the processor 23 determines whether the value of the stop operation count SC has exceeded a predetermined number ThN (step S112). When the value of the stop operation count SC exceeds the predetermined number ThN (step S112 - Yes), the change unit 36 rewrites the value of the control flag so as to change the control applied at the interruption of the next merging control to stop control (step S113). After step S113, or when the value of the stop operation count SC does not exceed the predetermined number ThN (step S112 - No), the processor 23 ends the vehicle control process. Also, in step S110, when no stop operation has been performed (step S110 - No), the processor 23 also ends the vehicle control process.

[0074] As described above, the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment sets the control to be applied among continuous control or stop control according to the driver's operation during the execution of continuous control or stop control after the interruption of the merging control. Therefore, this vehicle control device can match the behavior of the vehicle at the interruption of the merging control to the driver's preference. Therefore, this vehicle control device can appropriately determine whether to continue the control for changing the lane in which the vehicle travels.

[0075] According to a modification example, for each possible predetermined situation around the vehicle 10, the control applied at the time of interruption of the merging control may be set. In this case, in the memory 22, for each possible predetermined situation around the vehicle 10, the control flag, the stop operation count, and the continuous operation count are stored. For example, different controls applied separately may be set when the surrounding vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane of the merging destination is a large vehicle and when it is other vehicles. In this case, the control flag provided for each vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle is stored in the memory 22. Then, the interruption instruction unit 35 may refer to the control flag corresponding to the vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane of the merging destination detected by the detection unit 32 and determine whether the control to be applied is a stop control or a continuous control. When a plurality of surrounding vehicles traveling in the adjacent lane of the merging destination are detected, the interruption instruction unit 35 may refer to the control flag corresponding to the vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle closest to the vehicle 10.

[0076] Also, the change unit 36 may count the stop operation count and the continuous operation count for each vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle. Then, for each vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle, it may be determined whether to change the control applied at the time of interruption of the merging control by comparing the value of the stop operation count or the value of the continuous operation count with a predetermined number of times.

[0077] Similarly, depending on the speed of vehicle 10 during the execution of the merging control, the speed of surrounding vehicles, the speed of following vehicles following vehicle 10, the lane width of the own lane or the adjacent lane, the time zone or weather conditions including the time of execution of the merging control, etc., the control applied at the time of interruption of the merging control may be set individually. For example, the control applied at the time of interruption of the merging control may be set individually when the speed of vehicle 10 during the execution of the merging control is 30 km / h or less and when it is higher than 30 km / h. In this case, the interruption instruction unit 35 may refer to a control flag corresponding to the speed of vehicle 10 measured by a vehicle speed sensor (not shown) mounted on vehicle 10. Similarly, the control unit 33 and the change unit 36 may refer to a stop operation count or a continuous operation count corresponding to the speed of vehicle 10 measured by the vehicle speed sensor. Further, when the control applied individually according to the speed of surrounding vehicles or following vehicles is set, the control unit 33, the interruption instruction unit 35, and the change unit 36 may obtain the speed of surrounding vehicles or following vehicles based on the speed of vehicle 10 measured by the vehicle speed sensor and the relative speed between the surrounding vehicles or following vehicles and vehicle 10. Note that the interruption instruction unit 35 may identify the surrounding vehicle represented in the region on the image corresponding to directly behind vehicle 10 among the surrounding vehicles detected from the image generated by the camera 3-2 as the following vehicle. Furthermore, the control unit 33, the interruption instruction unit 35, and the change unit 36 may specify the lane width of the own lane or the adjacent lane of the merging destination by referring to the latest position of vehicle 10 positioned by the GPS receiver 2 and the high-precision map. Furthermore, the control unit 33, the interruption instruction unit 35, and the change unit 36 may determine the weather around vehicle 10 at the time of execution of the merging control based on the weather information about the current position of vehicle 10 received via a wireless communication terminal (not shown) or the detection result of a rain sensor (not shown) mounted on vehicle 10.

[0078] According to this modification, the interruption instruction unit 35 and the change unit 36 can appropriately set the control applied at the time of interruption of the merging control according to not only the driver's preference but also the situation around vehicle 10.

[0079] According to another modification example, the control unit 33 may change the increase amount of the continuous operation count for the driver's continuous operation or the stop operation count for the stop operation according to the situation around the vehicle 10 at the time of performing the operation. For example, when the surrounding vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane of the merging destination is a large vehicle or a two-wheeled vehicle, the changing unit 36 sets the increase amount of the continuous operation count or the stop operation count to a value smaller than normal (for example, 0.5), or sets it to 0. Further, when the applied control is set to the stop control, and there is a following vehicle behind the vehicle 10 at the time of interruption of the merging control, the changing unit 36 may set the increase amount of the continuous operation count to a value smaller than normal, or set it to 0. Furthermore, even when the road including the adjacent lane of the merging destination has two or more lanes, the changing unit 36 may set the increase amount of the continuous operation count or the stop operation count to a value smaller than normal, or set it to 0. In this case, the changing unit 36 may determine whether the road including the adjacent lane of the merging destination has two or more lanes by referring to the current position of the vehicle 10 and the high-precision map.

[0080] According to this modification example, the influence when the driver performs an operation different from the original preference due to the situation around the vehicle 10 is reduced. Therefore, the changing unit 36 can suppress the control applied at the time of interruption of the merging control from being changed so as not to match the driver's preference.

[0081] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment or each modification example, as the initial setting of the control applied at the time of interruption of the merging control, stop control and continuous control may be set for each region. This is because the shape of the road in the merging section differs according to the region, or the general driving habits of drivers differ according to the region. Therefore, the interruption instruction unit 35 can appropriately set the applied control between the stop control and the continuous control according to the region by applying the control initially set to match the shape of the road in the merging section or the driving habits.

[0082] FIGS. 7(a) and 7(b) are diagrams showing an example of the initial setting of the stop control and the continuous control according to this modification example. In the example shown in FIG. 7(a), the road shoulder 701a beyond the merging section where the own lane 700 merges into the adjacent lane 701 is narrow. Therefore, as an initial setting of the control executed when the merging control is interrupted due to the approach of the surrounding vehicle 710, stop control is set so that the vehicle 10 stops within the own lane 700. On the other hand, in the example shown in FIG. 7(b), the road shoulder 701b beyond the merging section where the own lane 700 merges into the adjacent lane 701 has a space where the vehicle 10 can travel. Therefore, even if the surrounding vehicle 710 approaches the vehicle 10, it is possible to maintain a certain distance between the surrounding vehicle 710 and the vehicle 10. Thus, as an initial setting of the control executed when the merging control is interrupted due to the approach of the surrounding vehicle 710, continuous control is set to continue the entry of the vehicle 10 into the adjacent lane 701 while changing the driving to the driver.

[0083] In this case, a reference table showing the relationship between the region and the value of the control flag is stored in advance in the memory 22. This reference table is an example of region information. Then, the interruption instruction unit 35 refers to this reference table to identify the region including the current position of the vehicle 10 measured by the GPS receiver 2, and according to the value of the control flag set for the identified region, sets the control to be applied among the stop control and the continuous control. Also, a stop operation flag and a continuous operation flag may be prepared for each region. Then, the change unit 36 may change the control set for each region according to the driver's operation by referring to the stop operation flag and the continuous operation flag corresponding to the region including the current position of the vehicle 10. Note that each region shown in the reference table is defined, for example, by country, region, type of road (expressway, general road, etc.) or for each road section. According to this modification, since the control applied for each region is set in advance, it is not necessary to change the applied control according to the driver's operation. Therefore, in this modification, the process of the change unit 36 may be omitted.

[0084] <Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment will be described. In the second embodiment, during the execution of lane change control for changing the lane in which the vehicle 10 travels, other than the merging control, when the interruption condition is satisfied, the ECU 6 interrupts the lane change control. Then, the ECU 6 adjusts the interruption condition according to the driver's operations before and after the interruption condition is satisfied.

[0085] Note that hereinafter, only the differences between the processes performed in the second embodiment and the processes performed in the first embodiment will be described. For the details of other processes, refer to the description of the corresponding processes in the first embodiment.

[0086] The lane change determination unit 31 determines whether a predetermined condition for applying lane change control other than the merging control to the vehicle 10 is satisfied. For example, when the driver operates the turn signal, the lane change determination unit 31 determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied. Then, the lane change determination unit 31 determines to apply lane change control to the adjacent lane adjacent to the direction indicated by the turn signal with respect to the own lane. Alternatively, when the own lane is different from the lane leading to the destination of the vehicle 10, when overtaking a preceding vehicle, or when returning from the overtaking lane to the traveling lane, the lane change determination unit 31 may determine that the predetermined condition is satisfied and determine to apply lane change control.

[0087] The lane change determination unit 31 refers to the driving route to the destination of the vehicle 10, the current position of the vehicle 10, and the high-precision map received by the ECU 6 from a navigation device (not shown) in order to determine whether the own lane is different from the lane toward the destination of the vehicle 10. Then, the lane change determination unit 31 determines whether there is a branch point where the lane toward the destination branches from the road on which the vehicle 10 is currently traveling in a section from the current position of the vehicle 10 to a predetermined distance ahead. When there is a branch point, the lane change determination unit 31 determines whether the own lane is different from the lane toward the destination. Then, when the own lane is different from the lane toward the destination, the lane change determination unit 31 determines to apply lane change control one or more times with the lane toward the destination as the target lane. Note that, as described for the control unit 33 in the first embodiment, the lane change determination unit 31 measures the accurate position of the vehicle 10 by collating the image generated by the camera 3-1 or the camera 3-2 with the high-precision map, and specifies the lane including the measured position of the vehicle 10 among the lanes represented in the high-precision map as the own lane.

[0088] In addition, when the speed of the vehicle 10 becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined speed threshold value, and a period during which the inter-vehicle distance between the preceding vehicle traveling ahead of the vehicle 10 and the vehicle 10 becomes equal to or shorter than a predetermined distance continues for a predetermined time, the lane change determination unit 31 determines that lane change control is to be applied to overtake the preceding vehicle. Note that the predetermined time can be, for example, several seconds to several tens of seconds. In this case, it is preferable that the lane change determination unit 31 sets an overtaking lane among the lanes adjacent to the own lane as a target lane to be the lane to be changed. The lane change determination unit 31 may specify a surrounding vehicle represented by an object area located within a range corresponding to the front of the vehicle 10 on the image generated by the camera 3-1 among the surrounding vehicles detected by the detection unit 32 as the preceding vehicle. Also, the predetermined speed threshold value is set, for example, to a speed obtained by subtracting a predetermined offset value (for example, 10 km / h to 20 km / h) from the legal speed or the speed limit of the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling. Therefore, the lane change determination unit 31 may set the speed threshold value by specifying the legal speed or the speed limit of the road on which the vehicle 10 is currently traveling with reference to the current position of the vehicle 10 and the high-precision map. Further, the lane change determination unit 31 may obtain the inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle 10 and the preceding vehicle based on the relative positional relationship between the vehicle 10 and the preceding vehicle detected by the detection unit 32.

[0089] Furthermore, when the own lane is an overtaking lane and the vehicle 10 has been traveling in the overtaking lane over a recent predetermined period, the lane change determination unit 31 determines that lane change control is to be applied to return the vehicle 10 to the traveling lane. Note that the lane change determination unit 31 may determine whether the own lane is an overtaking lane or not with reference to the high-precision map. In this case, the lane change determination unit 31 sets any one of the traveling lanes on the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling as a target lane to be the lane to be changed.

[0090] When the lane change determination unit 31 determines to apply lane change control to the vehicle 10, it notifies the detection unit 32, the control unit 33, the determination unit 34, the interruption instruction unit 35, and the change unit 36 of the determination result and the direction (right side or left side) of the adjacent lane that is the target for change as seen from the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling.

[0091] The detection unit 32 detects surrounding vehicles traveling around the vehicle 10 and detects the relative position and relative speed between the detected surrounding vehicles and the vehicle 10, in the same manner as the detection unit 32 in the first embodiment. In particular, the detection unit 32 detects the relative position and relative speed between the vehicle 10 and a surrounding vehicle traveling in an adjacent lane that is the target of the lane change destination.

[0092] When lane change control is applied, the control unit 33 generates a planned travel route for moving from the own lane to the adjacent lane of the change destination, in the same manner as the merging control in the first embodiment, and controls each part of the vehicle 10 so that the vehicle 10 travels along the planned travel route. In this embodiment, the control unit 33 may generate a planned travel route so that the vehicle 10 enters the adjacent lane within a section from the current position of the vehicle 10 to a predetermined distance ahead. Then, when the vehicle 10 starts to completely travel in the adjacent lane, the control unit 33 ends the lane change control.

[0093] Also, if an instruction to interrupt the lane change control is received from the interruption instruction unit 35 before the lane change control is completed, the control unit 33 interrupts the execution of the lane change control. Then, the control unit 33 controls each part of the vehicle 10 so that the vehicle 10 continues to travel in the own lane. At this time, the control unit 33 may control the steering in the same manner as when the stop control in the first embodiment is executed.

[0094] Also, after the interruption of the lane change control, if the driver performs an operation to continue the lane change control, the control unit 33 controls the vehicle 10 according to the driver's operation thereafter. For example, if the steering angle of the steering by the driver indicates the direction in which the vehicle 10 is heading toward the adjacent lane of the change destination, the control unit 33 determines that the driver has performed a continuous operation to continue the lane change control. Alternatively, if it is detected that the driver has depressed the accelerator, the control unit 33 may determine that the driver has performed a continuous operation. Then, the control unit 33 updates the continuous operation count, which represents the number of times the driver has performed a continuous operation (hereinafter referred to as the continuous operation count), by incrementing the number by 1, and stores the value of the updated continuous operation count in the memory 22.

[0095] Conversely, when the driver performs an interruption operation to interrupt the lane change control during the execution of the lane change control, the control unit 33 controls each part of the vehicle 10 to continue traveling in the own lane in the same manner as when instructed to interrupt the lane change control from the interruption instruction unit 35. Alternatively, the control unit 33 may control the vehicle 10 according to the driver's operation. For example, when the steering angle of the steering by the driver indicates a direction in which the vehicle 10 stays within the own lane, the control unit 33 determines that the driver has performed an interruption operation. Alternatively, when the driver steps on the brake so that the braking amount reaches a predetermined braking amount or more, the control unit 33 determines that the driver has performed an interruption operation. Alternatively, when the driver performs an operation for interrupting the lane change operation via the user interface 4, the control unit 33 also determines that the driver has performed an interruption operation. Then, the control unit 33 updates the interruption operation count to increment the number of the count (hereinafter referred to as the interruption operation count) representing the number of times the driver has performed the interruption operation during the execution of the lane change control, and stores the value of the updated interruption operation count in the memory 22.

[0096] The determination unit 34 determines, in the same manner as in the first embodiment, whether or not at least one of the relative position and the relative speed between the vehicle 10 and the surrounding vehicles satisfies an interruption condition during the execution of the lane change control. When it is determined that the interruption condition is satisfied, the determination result is notified to the interruption instruction unit 35. When notified of the determination result that the interruption condition is satisfied, the interruption instruction unit 35 instructs the control unit 33 to interrupt the lane change control.

[0097] The change unit 36 determines whether or not to change the interruption condition by referring to the continuous operation count or the interruption operation count stored in the memory 22 at a predetermined timing. Note that the predetermined timing can be a timing at which a predetermined time has elapsed since the completion of the lane change control or the interruption of the lane change control.

[0098] For example, when the continuous operation count exceeds a predetermined number of times, the change unit 36 changes the interruption condition so as to make the interruption condition stricter. In this case, for example, the change unit 36 decreases a time threshold value for a predicted time until a peripheral vehicle and the vehicle 10 collide by a predetermined amount. Alternatively, the change unit 36 decreases an interruption determination threshold value for a distance between the peripheral vehicle and the vehicle 10 by a predetermined amount. Or, the change unit 36 increases a speed threshold value for a relative speed between the peripheral vehicle and the vehicle 10 by a predetermined amount. By changing the interruption determination condition in this way, as the number of operations for continuing the lane change control by the driver increases, it becomes difficult for the lane change control to be interrupted. Therefore, the timing at which the lane change control is interrupted becomes later. As a result, the timing of interruption of the lane change control approaches the timing according to the driver's preference.

[0099] Note that after the continuous operation count exceeds a predetermined number of times, each time the value of the continuous operation count increases by a predetermined additional change number of times (for example, 1 to several times), the change unit 36 may make the interruption condition even stricter. That is, each time the value of the continuous operation count increases by a predetermined additional change number of times, the change unit 36 decreases the time threshold value or the interruption determination threshold value by a predetermined amount, or increases the speed threshold value by a predetermined amount. However, it is preferable that the change unit 36 does not change the interruption condition so as to be stricter than the interruption condition required to ensure the safety of the vehicle 10. Therefore, the change unit 36 does not change the time threshold value and the interruption determination threshold value to a value smaller than their lower limit values regardless of the value of the continuous operation count. Similarly, the change unit 36 does not change the speed threshold value to a value larger than its upper limit value.

[0100] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the relationship between the continuous operation count and a time threshold value which is an example of the interruption condition. In FIG. 8, the horizontal axis represents the value of the continuous operation count, and the vertical axis represents the time threshold value. And the graph 800 represents the relationship between the value of the continuous operation count and the time threshold value.

[0101] As shown in graph 800, the time threshold is kept constant until the value of the continuous operation count exceeds a predetermined number of times N. After that, each time the value of the continuous operation count increases, the time threshold decreases. However, when the time threshold reaches its lower limit ThL, thereafter, even if the value of the continuous operation count increases, the time threshold is kept constant.

[0102] Also, when the interruption operation count exceeds a predetermined number of times, the change unit 36 changes the interruption condition so as to relax the interruption condition. In this case, for example, the change unit 36 increases the time threshold for the predicted time until the surrounding vehicle and the vehicle 10 collide by a predetermined amount. Alternatively, the change unit 36 increases the interruption determination threshold for the inter-vehicle distance between the surrounding vehicle and the vehicle 10 by a predetermined amount. Or, the change unit 36 decreases the speed threshold for the relative speed between the surrounding vehicle and the vehicle 10 by a predetermined amount. By changing the interruption determination condition in this way, as the number of operations to interrupt the lane change control by the driver increases, the lane change control becomes more likely to be interrupted. Therefore, the timing at which the lane change control is interrupted becomes earlier. As a result, the timing at which the lane change control is interrupted approaches the timing according to the driver's preference.

[0103] Note that after the interruption operation count exceeds a predetermined number of times, each time the value of the interruption operation count increases by a predetermined additional change count (for example, 1 to several times), the change unit 36 may further relax the interruption condition. That is, each time the value of the interruption operation count increases by a predetermined additional change count, the change unit 36 increases the time threshold or the interruption determination threshold by a predetermined amount, or decreases the speed threshold by a predetermined amount. However, in order to avoid the lane change control being too easily interrupted, it is preferable that the change unit 36 does not change the time threshold and the interruption determination threshold to a value greater than their upper limit values. Similarly, it is preferable that the change unit 36 does not change the speed threshold to a value less than its lower limit value.

[0104] According to a modification example, when the value of the continuous operation count becomes larger than the number obtained by adding a predetermined number of times to the value of the interruption operation count, the change unit 36 may change to make the interruption condition stricter. Conversely, when the value of the interruption operation count becomes larger than the number obtained by adding a predetermined number of times to the value of the continuous operation count, the change unit 36 may change to relax the interruption condition.

[0105] According to another modification example, when the ratio of the continuous operation count to the number of times the lane change control has been interrupted exceeds a predetermined ratio, the change unit 36 may change to make the interruption condition stricter. Further, the change unit 36 may change to make the interruption condition stricter as the ratio of the continuous operation count to the number of times the lane change control has been interrupted becomes higher. Also, when the ratio of the interruption operation count to the number of times the lane change control has been executed exceeds a predetermined ratio, the change unit 36 may change to relax the interruption condition. Further, the change unit 36 may change to relax the interruption condition more as the ratio of the interruption operation count to the number of times the lane change control has been executed becomes higher.

[0106] FIG. 9 is an operation flowchart of vehicle control processing according to the second embodiment. When the lane change determination unit 31 determines to apply lane change control, the processor 23 executes vehicle control processing related to lane change control according to the following operation flowchart.

[0107] While the determination unit 34 of the processor 23 determines whether or not an interruption condition is satisfied while the control unit 33 of the processor 23 is executing lane change control for the vehicle 10 (step S201). If the interruption condition is not satisfied (step S201 - No), the control unit 33 determines whether or not the driver has performed an interruption operation to interrupt the lane change control (step S202). If the interruption operation has not been performed (step S202 - No), the control unit 33 determines whether or not the movement of the vehicle 10 to the adjacent lane of the change destination has been completed (step S203). If the movement of the vehicle 10 to the adjacent lane has been completed (step S203 - Yes), the processor 23 ends the vehicle control process related to the lane change control. On the other hand, if the movement of the vehicle 10 to the adjacent lane has not been completed (step S203 - No), the processor 23 repeats the processes after step S201.

[0108] In step S202, when the interruption operation has been performed (step S202 - Yes), the control unit 33 interrupts the lane change control and controls the vehicle 10 to continue traveling in its own lane (step S204). Further, the control unit 33 increments the value of the interruption operation count IC by 1 (step S205). Then, the change unit 36 changes so as to relax the interruption condition to be applied from the next time onward according to the value of the interruption operation count IC (step S206). Thereafter, the processor 23 ends the vehicle control process related to the lane change control.

[0109] Also, in step S201, if the interruption condition is satisfied (step S201 - Yes), the control unit 33 interrupts the lane change control and controls the vehicle 10 to continue traveling in its own lane (step S207). Then, the control unit 33 determines whether or not the driver has performed a continuation operation to continue the lane change control (step S208). If the driver has not performed the continuation operation (step S208 - No), the processor 23 ends the vehicle control process related to the lane change control.

[0110] On the other hand, when the driver performs a continuous operation (step S208 - Yes), the control unit 33 controls the vehicle 10 according to the driver's operation thereafter, and increments the value of the continuous operation count CC by 1 (step S209). Then, the change unit 36 changes the interruption condition to be stricter for the next and subsequent applications according to the value of the continuous operation count CC (step S210). After that, the processor 23 ends the vehicle control process related to the lane change control.

[0111] As described above, the vehicle control device according to the second embodiment changes the interruption condition according to the driver's operation before or after the interruption of the lane change control. Therefore, this vehicle control device can adjust the interruption condition used for determining whether to interrupt the lane change control to the driver's preference. Therefore, this vehicle control device can bring the timing of interrupting the lane change control closer to the timing according to the driver's preference.

[0112] According to the modification, similar to the modification of the first embodiment, the interruption condition is set for each situation around the vehicle 10, and the change unit 36 may change the interruption condition for each situation around the vehicle 10. For example, separate interruption conditions may be set depending on whether the surrounding vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane of the change destination is a large vehicle or other vehicles. Then, the determination unit 34 may determine whether to interrupt the lane change control based on the interruption condition corresponding to the vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane of the change destination detected by the detection unit 32. When a plurality of surrounding vehicles traveling in the adjacent lane of the change destination are detected, the determination unit 34 may use the interruption condition corresponding to the vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle closest to the vehicle 10.

[0113] Further, the change unit 36 may count the interruption operation count and the continuous operation count for each vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle. Then, the interruption condition may be changed based on the value of the interruption operation count or the value of the continuous operation count for each vehicle type of the surrounding vehicle.

[0114] Similarly, depending on the speed of the vehicle 10 when executing the lane change control, the speed of surrounding vehicles, the speed of following vehicles following the vehicle 10, the lane width of the own lane or the adjacent lane, the type of the adjacent lane (passing lane, driving lane, etc.), the time zone or weather condition including the time when the lane change control is executed, the interruption conditions may be set individually. In this case, similar to the modification example of the first embodiment, by referring to the speed of the vehicle 10 measured by the vehicle speed sensor, the high-precision map, the weather information, etc., the control unit 33, the determination unit 34, and the change unit 36 may specify the interruption conditions to be used, and the interruption operation count and the continuous operation count corresponding to the interruption conditions. Further, depending on the event that triggered the lane change (lane change for overtaking a preceding vehicle, lane change for moving to the lane leading to the destination, etc.), the interruption conditions may be set individually. In this case, the determination unit 34 may receive the trigger information representing the event that triggered the lane change from the lane change determination unit 31 and select the interruption conditions according to the trigger information. Further, the control unit 33 and the change unit 36 may also receive the trigger information from the lane change determination unit 31 and specify the corresponding interruption operation count and continuous operation count according to the trigger information.

[0115] According to this modification example, the change unit 36 can appropriately set the interruption conditions according to not only the driver's preference but also the surrounding situation of the vehicle 10.

[0116] According to another modification example, the control unit 33 may change the increase amount of the continuous operation count or the interruption operation count for the driver's operation according to the surrounding situation of the vehicle 10. For example, when the surrounding vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane to be changed is a large vehicle or a two-wheeled vehicle, the change unit 36 may set the increase amount of the continuous operation count or the interruption operation count to a value smaller than normal (for example, 0.5), or to 0. Also, when the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling has three or more lanes, the change unit 36 may set the increase amount of the continuous operation count or the interruption operation count to a value smaller than normal, or to 0. In this case, the change unit 36 may determine whether the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling has three or more lanes by referring to the current position of the vehicle 10 and the high-precision map.

[0117] According to this modification example, the influence when the driver performs an operation different from the original preference due to the situation around the vehicle 10 is reduced. Therefore, the modification unit 36 can suppress the change in the timing at which the lane change control is interrupted from deviating from the timing preferred by the driver.

[0118] According to still another modification example, the processor 23 can switch the vehicle control process to be executed between the vehicle control process related to the merging control according to the first embodiment or its modification example and the vehicle control process related to the lane change control according to the second embodiment or its modification example based on the determination result by the lane change determination unit 31. That is, when the lane change determination unit 31 determines to execute the merging control, the processor 23 may execute the vehicle control process related to the merging control according to the first embodiment or its modification example. On the other hand, when the lane change determination unit 31 determines to execute a lane change process other than the merging control, the processor 23 may execute the vehicle control process related to the lane change control according to the second embodiment or its modification example.

[0119] A computer program for realizing the function of the processor 23 of the ECU 6 according to any of the above embodiments or any of the modification examples may be provided in a form recorded on a computer-readable portable recording medium such as a semiconductor memory, a magnetic recording medium, or an optical recording medium.

[0120] As described above, those skilled in the art can make various changes according to the implemented forms within the scope of the present invention.

[0121] Regarding the embodiments and their modification examples described above, the following additional remarks are further disclosed. (Additional Remark 1) When the own lane in which the own vehicle is traveling merges into another lane, a detection unit that detects the relative position and relative speed between the own vehicle and another vehicle traveling in the other lane; A control unit that executes merging control of the host vehicle to cause the host vehicle to enter the other lane, and when the merging control is interrupted, executes a stop control to stop the host vehicle in the host lane or a continuation control to transfer driving control to the driver of the host vehicle while continuing to enter the other lane of the host vehicle. A determination unit that determines whether at least one of the detected relative position and the relative speed satisfies an interruption condition during execution of the merging control. When the interruption condition is satisfied, an interruption instruction unit that interrupts the merging control and causes the control unit to execute the set control among the stop control and the continuation control. A change unit that changes the set control to the continuation control in response to a continuation operation by the driver to continue entering the other lane of the host vehicle during execution of the stop control, and changes the set control to the stop control in response to a stop operation by the driver to stop the host vehicle during execution of the continuation control. A vehicle control device having the above. (Appendix 2) The change unit does not change the set control until the number of executions of the continuation operation or the number of executions of the stop operation exceeds a predetermined number. When the number of executions of the continuation operation during execution of the stop control exceeds the predetermined number, the set control is changed to the continuation control, and when the number of executions of the stop operation during execution of the continuation control exceeds the predetermined number, the set control is changed to the stop control. The vehicle control device according to Appendix 1. (Appendix 3) The change unit changes the set control to the continuation control when the ratio of the number of executions of the continuation operation during execution of the stop control to the number of executions of the stop control exceeds a predetermined ratio. The vehicle control device according to Appendix 1. (Appendix 4) The control unit changes the increase amount of the number of executions when the driver executes the continuation operation during execution of the stop control according to the situation around the host vehicle at the time of execution of the continuation operation. The vehicle control device according to Appendix 2 or 3. (Appendix 5) It further has a storage unit that stores control information representing the set control among the stop control and the continuous control for each predetermined situation. The interruption instruction unit refers to the control information to specify the set control corresponding to the situation around the host vehicle. The vehicle control device according to any one of Appendices 1 to 4. (Appendix 6) When the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling merges into another lane, a detection unit that detects the relative position and relative speed between the host vehicle and another vehicle traveling in the other lane, A control unit that executes the merging control of the host vehicle so that the host vehicle enters the other lane, and when the merging control is interrupted, executes a stop control for stopping the host vehicle in the lane or a continuous control for transferring the driving control to the driver of the host vehicle while continuing to enter the other lane of the host vehicle, A storage unit that stores area information representing the area where the stop control is implemented and the area where the continuous control is implemented, During the execution of the merging control, a determination unit that determines whether at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies an interruption condition, When the interruption condition is satisfied, referring to the position of the host vehicle and the area information, specifying the applicable control among the stop control and the continuous control, and causing the control unit to interrupt the merging control and execute the specified control. An interruption instruction unit, A vehicle control device having the above. (Appendix 7) A detection unit that detects the relative position and relative speed between the host vehicle and another vehicle traveling in an adjacent lane adjacent to the host lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, A control unit that executes the lane change control of the host vehicle so that the host vehicle changes lanes from the host lane to the adjacent lane when a predetermined condition is satisfied, During the execution of the lane change control, a determination unit that determines whether at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies an interruption condition, When the interruption condition is satisfied, an interruption instruction unit that interrupts the lane change control to the control unit In response to an operation for interrupting the lane change control of the host vehicle by the driver of the host vehicle, which is performed before the interruption condition is satisfied, the interruption condition is relaxed. On the other hand, in response to an operation for continuing the lane change control by the driver, which is performed when the interruption condition is satisfied, a changing unit for making the interruption condition stricter; A vehicle control device having the same. (Appendix 8) The vehicle control device according to Appendix 7, wherein the changing unit does not change the interruption condition until the number of executions of the continuing operation or the number of executions of the interrupting operation exceeds a predetermined number. (Appendix 9) Further having a storage unit for storing the interruption condition corresponding to the situation for each predetermined situation, The vehicle control device according to Appendix 7 or 8, wherein the determination unit determines whether at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies the interruption condition corresponding to the situation around the host vehicle. (Appendix 10) When the host lane in which the host vehicle is traveling merges into another lane, the relative position and relative speed between the host vehicle and another vehicle traveling in the other lane are detected, While executing the merging control of the host vehicle so as to enter the host vehicle into the other lane, when the merging control is interrupted, a stop control for stopping the host vehicle in the host lane or a continuation control for transferring the driving control to the driver of the host vehicle while continuing the entry of the host vehicle into the other lane is executed, During the execution of the merging control, it is determined whether at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies an interruption condition, When the interruption condition is satisfied, the merging control is interrupted and the set control among the stop control and the continuation control is executed, In response to a continuation operation by the driver for continuing the entry of the host vehicle into the other lane, which is performed during the execution of the stop control, the set control is changed to the continuation control, During the execution of the continuous control, in response to a stop operation by the driver to stop the host vehicle, changing the set control to the stop control. A vehicle control method including this. (Appendix 11) When the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling merges into another lane, detecting the relative position and relative speed between the host vehicle and another vehicle traveling in the other lane. Performing merging control of the host vehicle so as to enter the other lane, and when the merging control is interrupted, performing stop control to stop the host vehicle in the host lane or continuous control to transfer driving control to the driver of the host vehicle while continuing to enter the other lane. During the execution of the merging control, determining whether at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies an interruption condition. When the interruption condition is satisfied, interrupting the merging control and executing the set control among the stop control and the continuous control. During the execution of the stop control, in response to a continuous operation by the driver to continue entering the other lane of the host vehicle, changing the set control to the continuous control. During the execution of the continuous control, in response to a stop operation by the driver to stop the host vehicle, changing the set control to the stop control. A vehicle control computer program for causing a processor mounted on the vehicle to execute this.

Explanation of Signs

[0122] 1 Vehicle control system 10 Vehicle 2 GPS receiver 3-1, 3-2 Camera 4 User interface 5 Storage device 6 Electronic control unit (ECU) 21 Communication interface 22 Memory 23 Processor 31 Lane change determination unit 32 Detection unit 33 Control unit 34 Determination unit 35 Interruption instruction unit 36 Change unit

Claims

1. A detection unit that detects the relative position and relative speed between the host vehicle traveling in its own lane and another vehicle traveling in an adjacent lane adjacent to the own lane in which the host vehicle is traveling; A control unit that executes lane change control of the host vehicle so as to change the lane of the host vehicle from the own lane to the adjacent lane when a predetermined condition is satisfied; A determination unit that determines whether or not at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies an interruption condition during the execution of the lane change control; An interruption instruction unit that interrupts the lane change control to the control unit when the interruption condition is satisfied; A change unit that relaxes the interruption condition in response to an operation by the driver of the host vehicle to interrupt the lane change control performed before the interruption condition is satisfied, while making the interruption condition stricter in response to an operation by the driver to continue the lane change control performed when the interruption condition is satisfied; A vehicle control device having the above.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the change unit does not change the interruption condition until the number of executions of the continuing operation or the number of executions of the interrupting operation exceeds a predetermined number.

3. Further comprising a storage unit that stores the interruption condition corresponding to the situation for each predetermined situation, The vehicle control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not at least one of the detected relative position and relative speed satisfies the interruption condition corresponding to the situation around the host vehicle.

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