Manager, control method, control program, and vehicle

Abstract

To provide a manager, etc. that are able to realize a stop-and-hold mode corresponding to a request from an application, without complicating the design of an ECU or an interface equipped with the application.SOLUTION: A manager installed in a vehicle includes: a reception unit configured to receive a plurality of action plans from a plurality of ADAS applications; a mediation unit configured to mediate the plurality of action plans; a calculation unit configured to calculate a motion request, based on a judgement result by the judging unit; a distribution unit configured to distribute the motion request to at least one actuator system; and a storage unit configured to store a plurality of stop-and-hold modes. The judging unit acquires a driver state and switches, based on the driver state, the stop-and-hold mode of the vehicle when the plurality of action plans includes a request related to stop-and-hold of the vehicle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a manager and the like installed in a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, a plurality of applications that realize driving assistance functions (such as automatic driving and automatic parking) have been implemented in vehicles. Patent Document 1 discloses a control device (manager) that receives requests output from these applications, arbitrates the requests received from the applications, and outputs a request to drive an actuator (such as a steering device or a braking device) based on the arbitration result. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-032894 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Among the applications implemented in a vehicle, there are multiple advanced driver assistance applications (ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance System) applications) that require the vehicle to be kept stopped. When the manner (device, mechanism, operation, etc.) for keeping the vehicle stopped is different for these multiple ADAS applications, one possible method is to have each electronic control unit (ECU) implementing an ADAS application output a request for keeping the vehicle stopped and the manner to a manager. However, this method of having each ECU output a request for keeping the vehicle stopped and the manner to keep the vehicle stopped could complicate the design of the ECUs and interfaces (I / Fs) implementing the ADAS applications.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a manager or the like that can realize a stop-hold mode that responds to requests from an application without complicating the design of the ECU or interface that implements the application. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, one aspect of the disclosed technology is a manager mounted on a vehicle, which includes: a reception unit that receives multiple action plans from multiple ADAS applications; an arbitration unit that arbitrates the multiple action plans; a calculation unit that calculates a movement request based on the arbitration result by the arbitration unit; a distribution unit that distributes the movement request to at least one actuator system; and a memory unit that stores multiple stop-hold modes, and when the multiple action plans include a request for keeping the vehicle stopped, the arbitration unit is a manager that obtains the driver state and switches the vehicle's stop-hold mode based on the driver state. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the manager and the like of the present disclosure, it is possible to realize a stop-hold mode that meets the request from the application without complicating the design of the ECU or interface that has the application installed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a manager and its peripheral components according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] An example of stop / hold processing information stored in the storage unit [Figure 3] Flowchart of the arbitration control process executed by the arbitration unit of the manager DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The manager of the present disclosure pre-stores the vehicle stop-holding process mode requested by an application in association with unique identification information assigned to the application. When a request for vehicle stop-holding is included in the vehicle motion requests received from multiple applications, the manager determines the vehicle stop-holding mode in accordance with the application identification information based on the result of arbitrating the multiple vehicle motion requests, and controls the vehicle to be stopped in the determined mode. Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0010] <Embodiment> [composition] Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a manager 10 and its peripherals mounted on a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The manager 10 shown in Fig. 1 is communicatively connected to a driving assistance system 20, a plurality of actuator systems 30 and 40, an accelerator pedal sensor 50, a brake pedal sensor 60, a seatbelt switch 70, and a vehicle door switch 80 via an in-vehicle network 100. Examples of the in-vehicle network 100 include a CAN (Controller Area Network) and Ethernet (registered trademark).

[0011] The driving assistance system 20 is configured to execute implemented applications to realize various functions for assisting vehicle driving, including at least vehicle drive control and braking control. Examples of applications implemented by the driving assistance system 20 include an application for realizing an autonomous driving function, an application for realizing an autonomous parking function, and an ADAS application for realizing an advanced driving assistance function. Examples of ADAS applications include an application for realizing a collision avoidance assistance function (such as PCS), an application for realizing an adaptive cruise control (ACC) function that keeps the vehicle at a constant distance from the vehicle in front, an application for realizing a lane keeping assistance function (such as LKA or LTA) that keeps the vehicle in its lane, an application for realizing a collision mitigation braking function (such as AEB) that automatically applies the brakes to mitigate collision damage, and an application for realizing a lane departure warning function (such as LDW or LDA) that warns the vehicle of departure from its lane.

[0012] Each application in the driving assistance system 20 outputs to the manager 10, as an application request, an action plan request that ensures the functionality (marketability) of the application itself based on vehicle information (such as recognition sensor information) acquired (input) from various sensors (not shown). The action plan includes requests regarding the longitudinal acceleration / deceleration to be applied to the vehicle and requests regarding the vehicle's ability to stop. The requests regarding the vehicle's ability to stop can include, for example, instructions regarding the permission or prohibition of activation of at least one of the following functions: a brake hold function that maintains hydraulic pressure to maintain a braking state; an electric parking brake lock (EPB lock) function that maintains a braking state by pressing pads against a disc rotor with an electric motor; and a parking lock (P lock) function that locks the shift position in park. Each application in the driving assistance system 20 also outputs, along with the action plan, identification information (hereinafter referred to as an "application ID") that can uniquely identify the application to the manager 10. The application ID is uniquely assigned in advance for each application.

[0013] The driving assistance system 20 is realized by a computer such as an electronic control unit (ECU) having a processor such as a CPU, a memory, and an input / output interface. The number of applications implemented by the driving assistance system 20 is not particularly limited. Furthermore, the driving assistance system 20 may be provided with an ECU for each application. For example, the driving assistance system 20 may be configured by an autonomous driving ECU in which an autonomous driving application is implemented, an autonomous parking ECU in which an autonomous parking application is implemented, and an ADAS-ECU in which an advanced driving assistance application is implemented. Furthermore, multiple ADAS applications may be implemented in multiple ECUs, such as an ECU in which an ADAS application that realizes the ACC function is implemented, an ECU in which an ADAS application that realizes the LKA function is implemented, and an ECU in which an ADAS application that realizes the AEB function is implemented.

[0014] The multiple actuator systems 30 and 40 are one of the implementation systems for realizing the requirements of the action plan output by the driving assistance system 20. As an example, the actuator system 30 includes a powertrain actuator (such as an engine or a transmission) that can generate driving force for the vehicle, and realizes the requirements of the action plan by controlling the operation of the powertrain actuator. As another example, the actuator system 40 includes a brake actuator (such as a hydraulic brake or an electric parking brake) that can generate braking force for the vehicle, and realizes the requirements of the action plan by controlling the operation of the brake actuator. Note that the number of actuator systems installed in the vehicle is not particularly limited.

[0015] The accelerator pedal sensor 50 is a sensor for detecting the accelerator operation amount, which is the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal operated by the vehicle driver. The brake pedal sensor 60 is a sensor for detecting the brake operation amount, which is the amount of depression of the brake pedal operated by the vehicle driver. The seat belt switch 70 is a switch for detecting the fastening / unfastening state of the seat belt. The vehicle door switch 80 is a switch for detecting the open / closed state of the vehicle door. The accelerator pedal sensor 50 and the brake pedal sensor 60 are used to determine the driving operation of the driver. In addition, the accelerator pedal sensor 50, the brake pedal sensor 60, the seat belt switch 70, and the vehicle door switch 80 are used to determine whether or not the driver, who will be described later, intends to drive the vehicle (including use without driving) (hereinafter referred to as "the driver's driving intention").

[0016] The manager 10 determines the control content related to the vehicle motion based on the action plan request received from the driving assistance system 20, and outputs necessary requests based on the determined control content to the actuator system 30 and / or 40. The manager 10 also determines the mode of stop maintenance processing based on the application ID acquired together with the action plan request from the driving assistance system 20, and the driver state and vehicle state that can be acquired from the accelerator pedal sensor 50, the brake pedal sensor 60, the seat belt switch 70, the vehicle door switch 80, etc.

[0017] The manager 10 functions as an ADAS-MGR or a Vehicle-MGR related to the vehicle's motion, or as a part of the ADAS-MGR or the Vehicle-MGR, and controls the vehicle's motion. The manager 10 includes a reception unit 11, an arbitration unit 12, a calculation unit 13, a distribution unit 14, and a storage unit 15.

[0018] The reception unit 11 receives a request for an action plan and an application ID output by one or more applications of the driving assistance system 20. In this embodiment, examples of the action plan include a request for acceleration related to the forward / backward (longitudinal) movement of the vehicle and a request for keeping the vehicle stationary. The request for the action plan and the application ID received by the reception unit 11 are output to the arbitration unit 12.

[0019] The arbitration unit 12 arbitrates requests for multiple action plans received by the reception unit 11 from the applications of the driving assistance system 20. An example of this arbitration process is selecting one action plan from the multiple action plans based on predetermined selection criteria. Alternatively, the arbitration process may involve setting a new action plan based on the multiple action plans. Note that the arbitration unit 12 may arbitrate requests for multiple action plans further based on information indicating availability obtained from the actuator systems 30 and 40.

[0020] The arbitration unit 12 also determines the mode of stop-maintenance processing related to control for maintaining the vehicle in a stopped state, depending on the application that requests the arbitrated action plan. This determination is made based on stop-maintenance processing information stored in the storage unit 15, which will be described later. Furthermore, the arbitration unit 12 appropriately determines whether to temporarily prioritize the mode of stop-maintenance processing according to the driver state and vehicle state over the mode of stop-maintenance processing determined based on the arbitration result (mode arbitration). The determination of the mode of stop-maintenance processing and the priority determination will be described later.

[0021] The calculation unit 13 calculates a motion request based on the result of arbitration of the action plan requests by the arbitration unit 12 and the mode of stop-hold processing determined based on the arbitration result. This motion request is a physical quantity for controlling the actuator system 30 and / or 40, and is different from the physical quantity of the action plan request. For example, if the action plan request (first request) is acceleration, a driving force or driving torque can be calculated as the motion request (second request). This converts the acceleration request into a driving force or driving torque request.

[0022] The distribution unit 14 distributes the movement demand calculated by the calculation unit 13 to at least one actuator system 30 and / or 40 .

[0023] The storage unit 15 stores information (stop-maintenance processing information) indicating a mode of vehicle stop-maintenance processing suitable for each of multiple applications implemented in the driving assistance system 20. FIG. 2 is an example of the stop-maintenance processing information stored in the storage unit 15. As shown in FIG. 2, this stop-maintenance processing information stores, for each application ID, a mode of stop-maintenance processing (one of a first mode, a second mode, or a third mode) that is applied as a default when the action plan of the application to which the application ID is assigned is reconciled, in association with the mode. These modes are set in advance based on the requirements of the application and safety design considerations.

[0024] For example, the first mode can be a mode in which the driver is the sole authority over vehicle control, and stop-hold control is executed in accordance with the driver's driving operations only when it is determined that the driver intends to drive the vehicle. The driver's intention to drive the vehicle can be determined, for example, based on at least one of fastening or unfastening a seatbelt and opening or closing a vehicle door. Examples of the driver's driving operations that result in the vehicle being stopped include depressing the brake pedal and operating the parking brake. In this first mode, the vehicle is kept stopped using the largest braking force of multiple braking forces required based on the results of arbitration by arbitration unit 12 and the driver's brake operation amount. During this stop-hold state, unnecessary actuators are deactivated.

[0025] Furthermore, for example, the second mode can be configured as follows: if it is determined that the driver has the intention to drive the vehicle, the driver is given the sole authority to control the vehicle and stop-maintenance control is executed in response to the driver's operation; and if it is determined that the driver has no intention to drive the vehicle, the advanced safety functions installed in the vehicle are given the sole authority to control the vehicle and stop-maintenance control is executed as determined by the advanced safety functions. In this second mode, when stop-maintenance control is executed with the advanced safety functions given the sole authority to control the vehicle, the EPB lock is activated to maintain the vehicle stopped.

[0026] Furthermore, for example, the third mode can be a mode in which the advanced safety features installed in the vehicle are the sole vehicle control entities, and the advanced safety features execute the stop-maintenance control determined by the features, regardless of the driver's intention to drive the vehicle. In this third mode, the vehicle is maintained in a stopped state by activating the EPB lock or P lock.

[0027] The contents and classifications of the first, second, and third modes described above are examples, and changes and additions can be made depending on the requirements from the applications implemented in the driving assistance system 20, variations in the driver's state and vehicle state, etc.

[0028] The above-described configurations of the devices mounted on the vehicle and the configuration of the manager 10 are merely examples, and additions, substitutions, changes, omissions, etc. are possible as appropriate. Furthermore, the functions of each device can be integrated into one device or distributed among multiple devices as appropriate. For example, among the functions of the arbitration unit 12 of the manager 10, the function of determining the mode of vehicle stop-hold processing may be implemented in a device different from the manager 10, or in the actuator systems 30 and / or 40. Furthermore, the manager 10 can be mounted in a brake ECU.

[0029] [control] The arbitration control executed by the manager 10 according to this embodiment will be described with further reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure of the arbitration control executed by the arbitration unit 12 of the manager 10.

[0030] The arbitration control shown in FIG. 3 starts when the reception unit 11 of the manager 10 receives a request for an action plan (acceleration) from the application of the driving assistance system 20.

[0031] (Step S301) The arbitration unit 12 arbitrates the action plans requested by the applications. In this embodiment, an example is shown in which arbitration is performed to select one action plan from multiple action plans requested by multiple applications. Once the action plans are arbitrated, the process proceeds to step S302.

[0032] (Step S302) The arbitration unit 12 determines whether the action plan requested by the application includes a request for keeping the vehicle stopped. If the action plan includes a request for keeping the vehicle stopped (step S302, YES), the process proceeds to step S303. If the action plan does not include a request for keeping the vehicle stopped (step S302, NO), the process proceeds to step S305.

[0033] (Step S303) The arbitration unit 12 identifies the application ID assigned to the application that outputs the request for the reconciled action plan. Once the application ID of the application is identified, the process proceeds to step S304.

[0034] (Step S304) The arbitration unit 12 determines the mode of stop-maintenance processing to be applied to vehicle control according to the identified application ID. This determination is made based on the stop-maintenance processing information stored in the storage unit 15. For example, when the stop-maintenance processing information is the information shown in FIG. 2, if the identified application ID is "1", it is determined that the "first mode" is applied as the stop-maintenance processing. After this determination, the manager 10 (or a configuration other than the manager 10) performs control related to maintaining the stopped state of the vehicle in accordance with the content defined in the determined mode. Once the mode of stop-maintenance processing is determined, the process proceeds to step S305.

[0035] (Step S305) The arbitration unit 12 determines whether arbitration of action plans requested by applications is necessary. The arbitration of action plans is necessary, for example, when a new action plan is requested from one or more applications and it becomes necessary to arbitrate the action plans again, or when a predetermined timing for reviewing the arbitration of action plans arrives. If it is determined that arbitration of action plans is necessary (step S305, Yes), the process proceeds to step S301. If it is determined that arbitration of action plans is not necessary (step S305, No), the process proceeds to step S306.

[0036] (Step S306) The arbitration unit 12 acquires the driver state and the vehicle state from devices (devices shown and devices not shown) installed in the vehicle. An example of the driver state is the driver's state of consciousness. An example of the vehicle state is the vehicle stopping time. Once the driver state and the vehicle state are acquired, the process proceeds to step S307.

[0037] (Step S307) The arbitration unit 12 determines whether there is a stop-maintenance processing mode to prioritize, regardless of the stop-maintenance processing mode currently applied to vehicle control based on the arbitration result. This determination is made based on the driver's state and the vehicle's state. As an example, consider a situation in which the driver loses consciousness (e.g., falls asleep) and unintentionally depresses the accelerator pedal while the vehicle is being stopped in a first mode, which is driver-controlled, such as when the ACC is activated. In this case, a specific in-vehicle device detects the driver's loss of consciousness and requests the arbitration unit 12 to switch to a third mode, which is vehicle control mode. Based on the request from the specific in-vehicle device, the arbitration unit 12 determines that the third mode should be temporarily prioritized and switches the stop-maintenance processing mode from the first mode to the third mode (mode arbitration). This mode switch disables accelerator pedal operation by the driver, allowing the vehicle to continue to be safely maintained in a stopped state. Note that this mode switching does not rewrite the stop-maintenance processing information stored in memory unit 15, but rather temporarily changes the stop-maintenance processing mode determined based on the arbitration result. Therefore, for example, if the driver state and vehicle state return to their original states, control will continue by returning to the stop-maintenance processing mode determined based on the arbitration result. If it is determined that there is a stop-maintenance processing mode to be prioritized (step S307, Yes), the process proceeds to step S308, and if it is determined that there is no stop-maintenance processing mode to be prioritized (step S308, No), the process proceeds to step S305.

[0038] (Step S308) The arbitration unit 12 sets the mode of stop-maintenance processing to be applied to vehicle control to the mode of stop-maintenance processing to be prioritized, which was determined to be necessary in the above step S307. When the mode of stop-maintenance processing is set to the mode to be prioritized, the process proceeds to step S305.

[0039] (Step S309) The arbitration unit 12 sets the mode of stop-maintenance processing to be applied to vehicle control to the mode of stop-maintenance processing based on the arbitration result determined in step S304 (default mode of stop-maintenance processing). When the mode of stop-maintenance processing is set to the default, the process proceeds to step S305.

[0040] <Actions and Effects> As described above, according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, stop-maintenance processing information, in which the mode of vehicle stop-maintenance processing requested by an ADAS application is linked to a unique application ID assigned to the ADAS application, is stored in advance in the manager. Then, when a request for vehicle stop-maintenance is included in the action plan requests received from multiple ADAS applications, the manager determines the mode of vehicle stop-maintenance in accordance with the application ID based on the arbitration result of the multiple action plans, and controls vehicle stop-maintenance in this determined mode.

[0041] This allows the manager to appropriately determine the vehicle's stop-hold mode simply by referencing the stop-hold processing information stored in its own memory, without having to worry about the ADAS applications installed in the vehicle (driver assistance system).This makes it possible to realize a stop-hold mode that meets the requests from the applications without complicating the design of the ECU and interface that houses the application.In addition, the communication load between each ADAS application and the manager can be reduced, and functional interference between multiple ADAS applications can be avoided.

[0042] In addition, because the manager centrally manages the vehicle's stop-holding modes, when a new ADAS application is installed in a vehicle, all that is required is to add data linking the application ID and mode of that ADAS application to the stop-holding processing information.Even if a new ADAS application that cannot be handled by the existing modes is installed in a vehicle, the new mode can be handled by defining a new mode and reflecting it in the stop-holding processing information.

[0043] The above describes one embodiment of the disclosed technology, but the present disclosure can be understood as not only a manager installed in a vehicle, but also a control system including a manager, a control method executed by a manager equipped with a processor and memory, a control program, a computer-readable non-transitory storage medium storing a control program, or a vehicle equipped with a manager. [Industrial Applicability]

[0044] The present disclosure is useful for a manager mounted on a vehicle or the like. [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 10. Manager 11 Reception 12 Mediation Department 13 Calculation section 14 Distribution section 15 Storage section 20 Driving assistance systems 30 Actuator System 40 Actuator System 50 Accelerator pedal sensor 60 Brake pedal sensor 70 Seatbelt SW 80 Vehicle door switch 100 In-Vehicle Network

Claims

1. A manager mounted on a vehicle, a reception unit that receives a plurality of action plans from a plurality of ADAS applications; a mediation unit that mediates the plurality of action plans; a calculation unit that calculates an exercise requirement based on the arbitration result by the arbitration unit; a distributor that distributes the motion request to at least one actuator system; a storage unit that stores a plurality of stop-hold modes, the arbitration unit acquires a driver state when the plurality of action plans includes a request for keeping the vehicle stopped, and switches a mode of keeping the vehicle stopped based on the driver state. Manager.

2. The manner in which the vehicle is stopped and maintained includes: a first mode in which the vehicle is stopped and maintained in a stopped state in response to a driving operation of the driver only when the driver intends to drive the vehicle; A second mode in which, when the driver has the intention to drive, the vehicle is stopped and maintained in accordance with the driver's driving operation, and, when the driver has no intention to drive, the vehicle is stopped and maintained in accordance with the movement request; and and at least one of a third mode in which control of stopping and maintaining the vehicle is executed based on the motion request regardless of the driver's driving intention and the driver's driving operation. The manager of claim 1 .

3. the arbitration unit switches the vehicle stop-maintenance mode to the third mode based on the driver state. The manager of claim 2 .

4. When the plurality of action plans includes a request for maintaining the vehicle at a stop, the arbitration unit selects a mode of maintaining the vehicle at a stop from the plurality of modes of maintaining the vehicle at a stop stored in the storage unit, and determines whether there is a mode of maintaining the vehicle at a stop that has priority over the selected mode of maintaining the vehicle at a stop based on the driver state, thereby switching the mode of maintaining the vehicle at a stop. The manager of claim 1 .

5. the request for maintaining the vehicle stopped includes an instruction for permitting or prohibiting operation of at least one of a brake hold function, an electric parking brake lock function, and a parking lock function; A manager according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. A control method executed by a manager computer mounted on a vehicle, comprising: receiving a plurality of action plans from a plurality of ADAS applications; reconciling the plurality of action plans; calculating an exercise requirement based on the arbitration result of the arbitration step; and distributing the motion demand to at least one actuator system; and when the plurality of action plans include a request for maintaining the vehicle at a stop, the arbitration step acquires a driver state and switches a mode of maintaining the vehicle at a stop based on the driver state. Control method.

7. A control program to be executed by a manager computer mounted on a vehicle, receiving a plurality of action plans from a plurality of ADAS applications; reconciling the plurality of action plans; calculating an exercise requirement based on the arbitration result of the arbitration step; and distributing the motion demand to at least one actuator system; and when the plurality of action plans include a request for maintaining the vehicle at a stop, the arbitration step acquires a driver state and switches a mode of maintaining the vehicle at a stop based on the driver state. Control program.

8. A vehicle equipped with the manager according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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