Electronic control device and vehicle control system

Abstract

This electronic control device comprises a first priority information table which is provided for each of a plurality of area electronic devices and to which priorities of the area electronic devices from which information is to be acquired are set, and a control unit which refers to the first priority information table when the control unit has determined, from an outside situation of a vehicle, that a state of the vehicle is to change, determines the area electronic device the priority of which is to be changed according to the state of the vehicle to change, instructs the determined area electronic device to change the priority, and acquires, from the area electronic device to which the change in priority is instructed, information the priority of which has been changed so as to have a higher priority.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic control device and a vehicle control system. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, in order to reduce costs, a method known as Zone architecture has been developed in which a Zone ECU (Electronic Control Unit), an example of an area electronic device, is placed in each divided area of ​​a vehicle and information from the Zone ECUs is aggregated in an integrated ECU. As the level of autonomous driving systems improves, the number of sensors connected to the ZoneECU increases. Various types of information are transmitted from the ZoneECU to the integrated ECU according to priority. For example, control information is set to a "high" priority and transmitted with the highest priority. On the other hand, sensor information is set to a "medium" priority, and entertainment information is set to a "low" priority. In other words, the ZoneECU transmits control information, sensor information, and entertainment information in that order to the integrated ECU. However, depending on the vehicle's condition, it was necessary to change the priority of data transfer.

[0003] Conventionally, a method for setting the priority of various pieces of information is known as disclosed in Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 states that "when performing autonomous driving control, a high priority can be set for data from an external device located in an important surrounding area where it is necessary to check whether an object exists or not." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2018 / 151179 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the method disclosed in the above Patent Document 1 sets the priority of data obtained from an external communication device. With this method, it is not possible to set the priority of a sensor to be acquired depending on the vehicle state (e.g., turning left, etc.).

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to change the priority of area electronics devices in accordance with changes in the vehicle's conditions. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The electronic control device according to the present invention controls a vehicle based on one or more pieces of information acquired from a plurality of area electronic devices provided for each area into which the vehicle is divided. The electronic control device includes a first priority information table provided for each of the plurality of area electronic devices, in which the priority of the area electronic devices from which information is acquired is set; The vehicle status determination unit determines the vehicle status from an external situation based on a second priority information table that defines the relationship between the vehicle status and the priority of the information transmitted by the area electronics device for each type of information transmitted by the area electronics device, and a state machine that defines the vehicle status and the transition of the vehicle status, and the vehicle status determination unit: When it is determined that the vehicle state is changing based on the situation outside the vehicle, the first priority information table is referenced and an area electronic device that changes the priority according to the changing vehicle state is determined. and when the priorities defined in the second priority information table before the change in the vehicle state are different from the priorities defined in the second priority information table after the change in the vehicle state, performing a second process of determining an area electronic device whose priority is to be changed among a plurality of area electronic devices including the area electronic device whose priority is determined to be changed by the first process; The area electronic device includes a control unit that instructs the determined area electronic device to change the priority and obtains information on the changed priority from the area electronic device that instructed the area electronic device to change the priority. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, the priority of the area electronics devices is changed in accordance with changes in the vehicle's condition, so that information can be preferentially obtained from area electronics devices with higher priority. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a vehicle control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the arrangement of sensors, a Zone ECU, and an integrated ECU in a vehicle according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3]FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a situation in which a vehicle according to a first embodiment of the present invention is turning left, as viewed from above. [Figure 4] 1 is a functional configuration diagram of a vehicle control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] 3 is a table configuration diagram of a current priority information table provided for each Zone ECU according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a table configuration diagram of a priority information table in a driving pattern according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] 3 is a table configuration diagram of a priority information table in a Zone ECU according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 8] 5 is a flowchart showing an example of processing on the side of a Zone ECU according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of processing on an integrated ECU side according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a vehicle control system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a recognition range of a sensor mounted on a vehicle according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a table configuration diagram of a priority information table of an ECU in a failure state of a sensor according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a functional configuration diagram of a vehicle control system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of processing on an integrated ECU side according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] FIG. 11 is a table configuration diagram of a priority information table in a driving pattern according to a modification of the first and second embodiments of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 11 is a top view showing a state in which a vehicle according to a modification of the first and second embodiments of the present invention turns left at an intersection. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, the embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same functions or configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted. Note that the embodiments described below do not limit the invention according to the claims, and all of the elements and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the means for solving the invention. In the following description, the processing may be described with a "program" as the operating entity. Meanwhile, the program is executed by a processor (e.g., a CPU (Central Processing Unit)) to perform processing using appropriate storage resources (e.g., memory) and / or communication interface devices (e.g., ports). Therefore, the entire processing described below may be performed by a processor. The process described with a program as the operating subject may be a process performed by an apparatus including a processor. Also, a dedicated hardware circuit may be included that performs part or all of the process performed by the processor. A computer program may be installed in an apparatus from a program source. The program source may be, for example, a program distribution server or a non-transitory recording medium readable by a computer.

[0011] [First embodiment] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a vehicle control system according to a first embodiment. The vehicle control system 1000A is an example of a control system that is mounted on a vehicle 600 (see FIG. 2 described later) such as an automobile, and controls the operation of the vehicle 600. The vehicle control system 1000A includes various sensors 13A (13B, 13C, 13D, 14A), entertainment information devices 16A (16B, 16C, 16D), various actuators 17A (17B, 17C, 17D), and a Zone ECU 10A (10B, 10C, 10D) that controls each area such as the direction of the vehicle 600 (for example, left front, left rear, right front, right rear).

[0012] The vehicle control system 1000A also includes an integrated ECU 20 that aggregates data from the ZoneECU 10A (10B, 10C, 10D), recognizes objects outside the vehicle, recognizes the objects, determines the operation of the vehicle, and controls the running of the vehicle. This electronic control device (integrated ECU 20) can control the vehicle (vehicle 600) based on one or more pieces of information acquired from a plurality of area electronic devices (ZoneECU1-4) provided for each area into which the vehicle (vehicle 600) is divided.

[0013] In the drawing, the entertainment information device 16A (16B, 16C, 16D) is abbreviated as "ENT system." The entertainment information transmitted from the entertainment information device 16A (16B, 16C, 16D) to the ZoneECU 10A (10B, 10C, 10D) includes, for example, information indicating the current position of the vehicle 600 obtained from a car navigation system (not shown) mounted on the vehicle 600.

[0014] In the following description, the sensors 13A, 14A, 13B, 13C, and 13D are referred to as sensors 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, or sensors 1 to 5, respectively. When the sensors 1 to 5 are not distinguished from each other, they may be referred to simply as "sensors." The sensors 1 to 5 are used to acquire information about the environment surrounding the vehicle 600, such as Radar (Radio Detection and Ranging), LiDAR (Light / Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging), and cameras. The sensors 1 to 5 output the information that each sensor can acquire to one of the Zone ECUs 1 to 4 to which the sensor is connected.

[0015] In the following description, the ZoneECU 10A (10B, 10C, 10D) will be referred to as ZoneECU1, 2, 3, 4 or ZoneECU1-4, respectively. However, when ZoneECU1-4 are not distinguished from each other, they may be referred to simply as "ZoneECU." The ZoneECU is used as an example of an area electronic device. The ZoneECU1-4 are arranged in areas (directions) within the vehicle. The sensors arranged in the ZoneECU1-4 are capable of recognizing the respective areas (directions) and are arranged in optimal locations.

[0016] The sensors 1 to 5, the entertainment information device 16A (16B, 16C, 16D), the various actuators 17A (17B, 17C, 17D), the Zone ECUs 1 to 4, and the integrated ECU 20 are configured to be able to communicate with each other via an in-vehicle network 30A (30B, 30C, 30D) and an in-vehicle network 40A (40B, 40C, 40D).

[0017] The in-vehicle network 30A (30B, 30C, 30D) and the in-vehicle network 40A (40B, 40C, 40D) are configured with any communication network such as Ethernet (registered trademark) or CAN-FD (CAN with Flexible Data-Rate).

[0018] Each of the ZoneECUs 1 to 4 includes a CPU 55A (55B, 55C, 55D) and a memory 50A (50B, 50C, 50D). The CPU 55A (55B, 55C, 55D) reads out a program stored in the memory 50A (50B, 50C, 50D) and executes each process according to the program.

[0019] The memory 50A (50B, 50C, 50D) is composed of, for example, a random access memory (RAM) and a read only memory (ROM). The memory 50A (50B, 50C, 50D) stores a processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side executed by the CPU 55A (55B, 55C, 55D) and information required for the processing of the Zone ECU. The information required for the processing of the Zone ECU is, for example, a priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) that the Zone ECUs 1 to 4 refer to when transmitting data to the integrated ECU 20. A detailed configuration example of the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) will be described later with reference to FIG. 5.

[0020] The CPU 55A (55B, 55C, 55D) of the Zone ECU executes the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side read from the memory 50A (50B, 50C, 50D), thereby realizing the function of the priority setting unit 15A (15B, 15C, 15D). The priority setting unit 15A (15B, 15C, 15D) changes the priorities in the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) based on the priority setting information input from the integrated ECU 20.

[0021] The integrated ECU 20 includes a CPU 70 and a memory 60. The CPU 70 executes each process according to a program stored in the memory 60. For example, the CPU 70 is used as an example of a control unit according to the present embodiment. When the control unit determines that the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) is changed based on the situation outside the vehicle (vehicle 600), the control unit refers to the first priority information table (priority information table 22 in the driving pattern), determines the area electronic device (ZoneECU1-4) that changes the priority according to the changing state of the vehicle (vehicle 600), instructs the determined area electronic device (ZoneECU1-4) to change the priority, and obtains information with the changed priority from the area electronic device (ZoneECU1-4) that instructed the change of the priority.

[0022] The memory 60 is composed of, for example, a RAM and a ROM, and stores the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side executed by the CPU 70 and information required for processing of the integrated ECU 20. The information required by the integrated ECU 20 is, for example, information stored in a priority information table 22 of the ZoneECUs 1 to 4 in the driving pattern of the vehicle 600 and a priority information table 23 in each of the ZoneECUs 1 to 4. Here, the first priority information table (priority information table 22 in the driving pattern) is provided for each of the multiple area electronic devices (ZoneECUs 1 to 4), and the priority of the area electronic device (ZoneECUs 1 to 4) that acquires information is set. In addition, the second priority information table (priority information table 23 in each ZoneECU) specifies the relationship between the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) and the priority of the information transmitted by the area electronic device (ZoneECUs 1 to 4) for each type of information transmitted by the area electronic device (ZoneECUs 1 to 4).

[0023] The CPU 70 of the integrated ECU 20 executes the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side read from the memory 60, thereby realizing the function of the vehicle state determination unit 71. The vehicle state determination unit (vehicle state determination unit 71) included in the control unit (CPU 70) determines a change in the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) based on an external situation, and when the priority specified in the second priority information table (priority information table 23 in each ZoneECU) before the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) changes is different from the priority specified in the second priority information table (priority information table 23 in each ZoneECU) after the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) changes, it determines the area electronic device (ZoneECU1-4) whose priority is to be changed, and instructs the determined area electronic device (ZoneECU1-4) to change the priority. Therefore, the vehicle state determination unit 71 can determine the state of the vehicle 600 as the vehicle state based on various data acquired from the ZoneECU1-4, and recognize the driving pattern of the vehicle 600.

[0024] The various entertainment information devices 16A (16B, 16C, 16D) are information devices that are not necessary for driving control of the vehicle 600, such as navigation information and music information.

[0025] The various actuators 17A (17B, 17C, 17D) include one or more actuators that control the operation of corresponding devices in response to an accelerator, brake, steering, etc. (not shown) operated by a driver of the vehicle 600. The various actuators 17A (17B, 17C, 17D) control the operation of devices related to driving mounted on the vehicle 600 based on control information input from the integrated ECU 20. Furthermore, the various actuators 17A (17B, 17C, 17D) notify the integrated ECU 20 of vehicle control information indicating the current control state of the vehicle 600. The integrated ECU 20 can instruct the various actuators 17A (17B, 17C, 17D) on control information such as acceleration / deceleration and fine adjustment of steering based on the vehicle control information notified from the various actuators 17A (17B, 17C, 17D).

[0026] In the following description, for convenience, the program will be described as the operating entity, but the actual executing entity is the CPU 55A (55B, 55C, 55D, 70) that executes the program. Furthermore, the integrated ECU 20 may have a computing element capable of various information processing, such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), in addition to the CPU 70. The integrated ECU 20 may also have, as the memory 60, a magnetic storage medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a semiconductor storage medium such as a solid state drive (SSD) in addition to a RAM or a ROM. Various programs, parameters, etc. may be stored in these magnetic storage media and semiconductor storage media.

[0027] Next, the environmental configuration used in the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the arrangement of sensors 1 to 5, Zone ECUs 1 to 4, and an integrated ECU 20 in a vehicle 600 according to the first embodiment.

[0028] The sensors (sensors 1 to 5) are located at any of the front right, front left, rear right, and rear left of the vehicle (vehicle 600). For example, sensor 1 is installed in the center at the front of vehicle 600, sensor 2 is installed at the front left, sensor 3 is installed at the rear left, sensor 4 is installed at the front right, and sensor 5 is installed at the rear right. Vehicle 600 is divided into at least four areas. For example, vehicle 600 is divided into areas including the front left, rear left, front right, and rear right. Zone ECUs 1 to 4 are provided for each area.

[0029] A plurality of area electronic units (ZoneECU1 to 4) are disposed near the positions of sensors (sensors 1 to 5) disposed on a vehicle (vehicle 600). For example, sensors 1 and 2 are connected to a ZoneECU 1 provided on the front left of the vehicle 600. The sensor 3 is connected to a Zone ECU 4 provided on the rear left side of the vehicle 600 . The sensor 4 is connected to a ZoneECU 2 provided on the front right of the vehicle 600 . The sensor 5 is connected to a ZoneECU 3 provided on the rear right of the vehicle 600 . The ZoneECUs 1 to 4 are connected to the integrated ECU 20 that is disposed near the center of the vehicle 600.

[0030] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a situation in which the vehicle 600 is turning left, as viewed from above. Here, an example of a driving pattern when a vehicle 600 makes a left turn at an intersection 700 is shown.

[0031] In this embodiment, the driving pattern of the vehicle 600 is defined in advance. The priority of the ZoneECUs changes according to the driving pattern. For example, in a driving pattern in which the vehicle 600 turns left, the priority of ZoneECUs 1 and 4 (see FIG. 2) arranged in the area on the left side of the vehicle 600 is higher than the priority of the other ZoneECUs 2 and 3. Therefore, the integrated ECU 20 preferentially acquires information from the ZoneECUs 1 and 4, and executes processing based on this information.

[0032] FIG. 4 is a functional configuration diagram of the vehicle control system 1000A according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 4, a configuration example of each function of the vehicle control system 1000A is described in the form of a data flow diagram. This FIG. 4 is described in a form also called a state transition diagram or a state machine diagram, and the flow of information in each part and program of the vehicle control system 1000A is simply shown. The vehicle state determination unit (vehicle state determination unit 71) determines the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) from the external situation based on a state machine that defines the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) and the transition of the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600).

[0033] The priority information table will be described later with reference to Figures 5 to 7. The vehicle control system 1000A includes a priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) on the Zone ECU side and priority information tables 22 and 23 on the integrated ECU side.

[0034] As described above, the processing programs executed by the ZoneECUs 1 to 4 and the integrated ECU 20 are executed by the CPU 55A (55B, 55C, 55D, 70), thereby implementing the functions according to the present embodiment. First, an example of the processing of ZoneECU1 to ZoneECU4 shown in the upper part of FIG. 4 will be described.

[0035] The processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the ZoneECU side is executed by the CPU 55A (55B, 55C, 55D) on the ZoneECU side in the following steps (1) to (8). However, steps (1) to (8) do not necessarily have to be executed in order, and any of the steps may be executed in parallel or in the reverse order.

[0036] (1) The processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side controls each unit upon receiving a control command value or priority setting information from the integrated ECU 20. Here, the information received from the integrated ECU 20 may be at least one of the control command value and the priority setting information of the vehicle 600.

[0037] (2) Then, the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side returns data corresponding to the information received from the integrated ECU 20 to the integrated ECU 20. This data includes any one of the vehicle control information received by the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side from the actuator 17A (17B, 17C, 17D), the priority information determined by referring to a priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) shown in Fig. 5 described later, the information detected by the sensors 1 to 5 (denoted as "sensor input" in the figure), and the entertainment information received from the entertainment information device 16A (16B, 16C, 16D).

[0038] (3) In addition, the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side outputs the control command value input from the integrated ECU 20 to the actuator 17A (17B, 17C, 17D). (4) Then, the actuator 17A (17B, 17C, 17D) outputs the vehicle control information to the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side.

[0039] (5) In addition, when changing the priority of the information to be acquired, the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side refers to the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) and determines the priority to be changed in the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D). (6) Then, the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side acquires the determined priority information.

[0040] (7) Moreover, information detected by the sensors 1 to 5 is input to the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side. (8) Furthermore, entertainment information is input from the entertainment information device 16A (16B, 16C, 16D) to the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the ZoneECU side.

[0041] The type of data that the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the ZoneECU side outputs to the integrated ECU 20 is determined by priority information stored in a priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D). Therefore, when the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the ZoneECU side rewrites the priority information in the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) and determines the priority information, the processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the ZoneECU side outputs sensor information and control information to the integrated ECU 20 according to the determined priority information.

[0042] Here, the priority information table on the ZoneECU side will be described. FIG. 5 is a table configuration diagram of the current priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) provided for each of the Zone ECUs 1 to 4. As shown in FIG.

[0043] The priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) is a table in which the priority of information output by a target Zone ECU is set. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 5, a priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) is prepared for each Zone ECU. When each Zone ECU receives priority change information from the integrated ECU 20, it updates the information in the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D). For example, when the Zone ECU 1 receives priority change information from the integrated ECU 20 to set a sensor to "high", the processing program 11A on the Zone ECU side shown in FIG. 4 changes the sensor in the priority information table 12A to "high".

[0044] Next, an example of the processing of the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side shown in the lower part of Fig. 4 will be described. The processing of the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side shown in the lower part of Fig. 4 is performed in the following steps (11) to (16). However, steps (11) to (16) do not necessarily have to be performed in order, and any of the steps may be performed in parallel or in reverse order.

[0045] (11) The processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side receives information from the ZoneECUs 1 to 4. In the drawing, the reception of information from the ZoneECUs 1 to 4 is described as "data input." Then, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side judges the vehicle state based on the received information.

[0046] (12) At this time, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side refers to the priority information table 22 for the driving pattern based on the result of the state judgment (for example, the driving pattern of the vehicle 600). (13) Then, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side determines a Zone ECU from which information is to be preferentially obtained.

[0047] (14) Next, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side refers to the priority information table 23 in the Zone ECU based on the Zone ECU to be prioritized determined from Zone ECUs 1 to 4. (15) Then, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side determines priority setting information in each ZoneECU according to the driving pattern of the vehicle 600 determined based on the priority information table 23 in the ZoneECU. (16) Then, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side outputs a control command value or priority setting information of the vehicle 600 to the ZoneECUs 1 to 4. Note that the information output by the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side to the ZoneECUs 1 to 4 may be at least one of the control command value and the priority setting information of the vehicle 600.

[0048] Here, the two types of priority information tables on the integrated ECU side will be described. As shown in Figures 1 and 4, two types of tables are provided as priority information tables on the integrated ECU side: a priority information table 22 for a driving pattern and a priority information table 23 for each Zone ECU.

[0049] FIG. 6 is a table configuration diagram of the priority information table 22 for the driving pattern. The integrated ECU 20 can determine the priority of each ZoneECU based on the vehicle state by referring to the driving pattern priority information table 22. For example, if the vehicle state is normal (e.g., driving straight ahead), the priority information for the "normal" driving pattern in the driving pattern priority information table 22 is used. That is, the priority of each of the ZoneECUs 1 to 4 is "medium".

[0050] Here, when the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side recognizes that the vehicle state, that is, the driving pattern has changed to a left turn, the priority of ZoneECU1 and ZoneECU4 is increased.

[0051] FIG. 7 is a table configuration diagram of the priority information table 23 in the ZoneECU. The priority information table 23 in the ZoneECU is a table in which the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side determines the priorities of the sensors, the entertainment system, and the control data based on the vehicle state. An example of the priority information table in the ZoneECUs 1 and 2 is shown in Fig. 7. The priority information tables in the other ZoneECUs 3 and 4 are not shown.

[0052] For example, when the vehicle 600 starts to turn left, the driving pattern changes to "turn left". Then, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side refers to the priority information tables in ZoneECU1 and ZoneECU4, and sets the priorities of the sensors and control data to "high". After that, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side outputs priority information in which the priorities of the sensors and control data have been changed to "high" to ZoneECU1 to 4.

[0053] Next, specific examples of each process of the ZoneECU and the integrated ECU 20 will be described. First, the processing on the ZoneECU side will be described. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of processing on the Zone ECU side. Here, an example of processing by priority setting unit 15A (15B, 15C, 15D) shown in FIG.

[0054] Processing on the ZoneECU side is executed, for example, when various data are received from the integrated ECU side, sensors, entertainment system, or actuators. First, when the priority setting unit 15A (15B, 15C, 15D) receives various data from the integrated ECU 20 (S1), it analyzes the received data. Next, the priority setting unit 15A (15B, 15C, 15D) determines whether or not the received data is priority setting information as a result of the analysis (S2).

[0055] If the analyzed data is priority setting information (YES in S2), the priority setting unit 15A (15B, 15C, 15D) changes the priority in the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) based on the priority setting information obtained from the integrated ECU 20, and terminates this process.

[0056] On the other hand, if the analyzed data is not priority setting information (NO in S2), the data is a control command value, and therefore the priority setting unit 15A (15B, 15C, 15D) transmits the received data (control command value) to the actuator 17A (17B, 17C, 17D) (S4), and ends this process.

[0057] Next, the processing on the integrated ECU side will be described. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of processing on the integrated ECU side according to the first embodiment. Here, an example of processing by the vehicle state determination unit 71 (see FIG. 1) will be mainly described.

[0058] First, the vehicle state determination unit 71 checks the vehicle state based on the data received from each Zone ECU (S11). Then, the vehicle state determination unit 71 determines whether or not there has been a change in the vehicle state based on the received data (S12).

[0059] If the vehicle state has changed (YES in S12), the vehicle state determination unit 71 determines the driving pattern from the confirmed vehicle state. Then, the vehicle state determination unit 71 refers to the priority information table 22 for the driving pattern (S13) and confirms the priority of each Zone ECU in the driving pattern.

[0060] Furthermore, the vehicle state determination unit 71 determines whether or not a change occurs in the priority of each ZoneECU due to a change in the vehicle state based on each ZoneECU in the driving pattern (S14). If a change occurs in the priority of each ZoneECU (YES in S14), the vehicle state determination unit 71 refers to the priority information table 23 in the ZoneECU (referred to as the "target ZoneECU" in the figure) whose priority is to be changed (S15) and acquires priority setting information in this ZoneECU. Then, the vehicle state determination unit 71 transmits the priority setting information to the ZoneECU whose priority is to be changed (S16), and ends this process.

[0061] On the other hand, if there is no change in the vehicle state (NO in S12) or if there is no change in the priority (NO in S14), the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side ends this processing.

[0062] In the vehicle control system 1000A according to the first embodiment described above, the integrated ECU 20 has priority setting information for the ZoneECUs, and dynamically changes the priority setting information for the ZoneECUs with high priority according to a driving pattern of the vehicle 600 that can be recognized based on changes in the vehicle state or the state outside the vehicle. On the other hand, in normal operation, the ZoneECUs transfer data to the integrated ECU 20 according to statically determined priorities. In this way, the integrated ECU 20 can acquire high-priority sensor information early by changing the priorities of the sensors in the priority information table 12A (12B, 12C, 12D) of the ZoneECUs with high priority according to the vehicle state or the state outside the vehicle.

[0063] For example, when the vehicle 600 turns left, the integrated ECU 20 needs to check whether there is a person or an obstacle on the left side of the vehicle 600, so that the integrated ECU 20 can obtain sensor information obtainable from the sensors 2 and 3 arranged on the left side of the vehicle 600 earlier than other sensor information and use it for controlling the vehicle 600. Also, the integrated ECU 20 can allocate resources required for processing to the Zone ECUs with higher priority.

[0064] [Second embodiment] Next, a vehicle control system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 10 to Fig. 14. In the vehicle control system according to the second embodiment, when some of the sensors mounted on the vehicle 600 fail, the integrated ECU 20 increases the priority of the Zone ECU to which another sensor capable of covering the recognition range of the failed sensor is connected, acquires sensor information, and controls the traveling of the vehicle 600. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a vehicle control system 1000B according to the second embodiment.

[0065] In the vehicle control system 1000B according to the second embodiment, compared to the vehicle control system 1000A according to the first embodiment, a priority information table 24 of ECUs in a sensor failure state and a sensor state determination program 25 are stored in the memory 60 of the integrated ECU 20. The control unit (CPU 70) includes a sensor state determination unit (sensor state determination unit 72) that determines the state of sensors (sensors 1 to 5) for recognizing the external situation connected to each of a plurality of area electronic devices (Zone ECUs 1 to 4). Therefore, the CPU 70 of the integrated ECU 20 can realize the function of the sensor state determination unit 72 by executing the sensor state determination program 25 read from the memory 60. The sensor state determination unit 72 can determine the state of the sensors 1 to 5 (presence or absence of failure, etc.) as the sensor state based on various data acquired from the Zone ECUs 1 to 4.

[0066] 11 is a diagram showing the recognition ranges of sensors 1 to 3 mounted on vehicle 600. Here, an example of the recognition ranges of sensors 1 to 3 among sensors 1 to 5 mounted on vehicle 600 as shown in FIG.

[0067] For example, it can be seen that sensor 1 has a recognition range in front of vehicle 600, sensor 2 has a recognition range in the left front of vehicle 600, and sensor 3 has a recognition range in the left rear of vehicle 600. The recognition range of each sensor is represented by a sector with each sensor approximately at its center.

[0068] 11 shows that the recognition range of sensor 2 can be covered by the recognition ranges of sensors 1 and 3. Therefore, even if sensor 2 fails, the integrated ECU 20 obtains information obtained from sensors 1 and 3 via ZoneECUs 1 and 4, so that the vehicle 600 does not run unimpeded. Therefore, the vehicle state determination unit (vehicle state determination unit 71) increases the priority of the area electronic devices (ZoneECUs 1 to 4) to which other sensors (sensors 1 and 3) that can cover the recognition range of the sensor (sensor 2) determined to have failed by the sensor state determination unit (sensor state determination unit 72) are connected. The failure of sensor 2 in this way is merely an example, and in the vehicle 600, sensors are configured redundantly so that the recognition ranges of multiple sensors overlap in various places.

[0069] FIG. 12 is a table configuration diagram of the priority information table 24 for the ECU in a sensor failure state according to the second embodiment. The horizontal axis of the ECU priority information table 24 indicates the failed sensor, and the vertical axis indicates the driving pattern as the vehicle state. When the sensor state determination unit 72 (see FIG. 10) determines that a sensor has failed, it refers to the ECU priority information table 24 to determine which Zone ECU should have its priority increased based on the current vehicle state.

[0070] For example, if the vehicle 600 starts to turn left while sensor 2 remains broken, the integrated ECU 20 increases the priority of ZoneECU1 connected to sensor 1 and ZoneECU4 connected to sensor 3. This allows the integrated ECU 20 to obtain sensor information in which the recognition range of the broken sensor 2 is covered by the recognition ranges of the healthy sensors 1 and 3. Therefore, even if any of sensors 1, 3, 4, and 5 other than sensor 2 breaks down, the priority of the ZoneECU connected to the sensor that can cover the recognition range of the broken sensor is increased.

[0071] Fig. 13 is a functional configuration diagram of a vehicle control system 1000B according to the second embodiment. In Fig. 13, a configuration example of each function of the vehicle control system 1000B is described in the form of a data flow diagram. In Fig. 13, each unit of the vehicle control system 1000B and the flow of information in the program are simply shown.

[0072] The processing program 11A (11B, 11C, 11D) on the Zone ECU side shown in the upper part of FIG. 13 is the same as that in the first embodiment described with reference to FIG. 4, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0073] The processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side shown in the lower part of FIG. 13 will be described. In addition, among the information flows shown in the lower part of FIG. 13, the processes in (11) to (16) are the same as the example of the processes of the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side shown in the lower part of FIG.

[0074] (21) If the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side (vehicle state judgment unit 71 shown in FIG. 1) determines that the vehicle state has not changed based on the information received from Zone ECUs 1 to 4, the sensor state judgment program 25 (sensor state judgment unit 72 shown in FIG. 10) judges the sensor state of each of the sensors 1 to 5. (22) Then, when the sensor state determination program 25 determines that a failure has occurred in any of the sensors 1 to 5, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side refers to the ECU priority information table 24 in the sensor state to determine whether or not there has been a change in the priority of the Zone ECU. Then, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side acquires information on the Zone ECU whose priority has been changed. Then, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side outputs priority setting information to the Zone ECU whose priority has been changed.

[0075] Fig. 14 is a flowchart showing an example of processing on the integrated ECU side according to the second embodiment. In Fig. 14, the same steps (S11 to S16) as those on the integrated ECU side according to the first embodiment shown in Fig. 9 are denoted by the same step numbers, and description of the steps will be omitted.

[0076] When the vehicle state determination unit 71 determines that the vehicle state has not changed in the process of step S12 (NO in S12), the sensor state determination unit 72 checks the sensor state of the sensors connected to each Zone ECU (S21). Then, the sensor state determination unit 72 determines whether a failure has occurred in the sensor (S22).

[0077] When the sensor state determination unit 72 determines that a failure has occurred in the sensor (YES in S22), the sensor state determination unit 72 refers to the priority information table 24 of the ECU in the sensor failure state (S23) and acquires information of the Zone ECU to which another sensor that can cover the recognition range of the failed sensor is connected (for example, information of Zone ECUs 1 and 4 when sensor 2 has failed). After that, the vehicle state determination unit 71 determines whether or not there has been a change in the priority in the priority information table in each Zone ECU based on the information of the Zone ECU (S14). The process from step S14 onwards is the same as the process described above.

[0078] If the sensor state determination unit 72 determines in step S22 that no malfunction has occurred in the sensor (NO in S22), or if the vehicle state determination unit 71 determines in step S14 that no change in priority has occurred (NO in S14), this process is terminated.

[0079] Here, differences between the vehicle control system 1000B according to the second embodiment and the vehicle control system 1000A according to the first embodiment will be described. If the vehicle state does not change, the sensor state of the sensor connected to each ZoneECU is confirmed by the sensor state determination unit 72 of the integrated ECU 20. If a failure occurs in a sensor, the sensor state determination unit 72 refers to the priority information table 24 of the ECU in the sensor failure state, and acquires information of the ZoneECU to which the redundant sensor is connected. Then, based on the information of the ZoneECU acquired by the sensor state determination unit 72, the vehicle state determination unit 71 changes the priority of this ZoneECU to a higher priority. In this way, the processing program 21 on the integrated ECU side according to the second embodiment can appropriately switch priority information when a sensor failure occurs by switching the priority of the ZoneECU depending on the sensor state.

[0080] The number of faulty sensors is not limited to one, and the vehicle control system 1000B according to the second embodiment can handle the case where multiple sensors fail. If the recognition range of the failed sensor can be covered by the recognition range of the non-failed sensors, the integrated ECU 20 still changes the priority of the Zone ECU connected to the non-failed sensor to a higher priority.

[0081] [Variations] The vehicle state includes a left turn, a right turn, etc. However, if the priority level is changed according to the stage of a left turn, such as an initial stage, an intermediate stage, and an end stage, the vehicle 600 can travel more safely and reliably. Therefore, a vehicle control system according to a modification of the first and second embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 15 and 16. In the vehicle control system according to the modification, the operation of the vehicle 600 is divided, and a process of changing the priority level of the ZoneECU for each divided operation is performed.

[0082] The vehicle state determination unit (vehicle state determination unit 71) refers to the first priority information table (priority information table 22 in the driving pattern) and the second priority information table (priority information table 23 in each ZoneECU) from the time when the change in the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600) starts to the time when it ends, and instructs the area electronic devices (ZoneECUs 1 to 4) to change the priority for each time-dependent change in the operation of the vehicle (vehicle 600) included in the change in the state of the vehicle (vehicle 600). A specific example will be described below.

[0083] FIG. 15 is a table configuration diagram showing an example of the priority information table 22 in the driving pattern according to the third embodiment. FIG. 16 is a top view of a vehicle 600 turning left at an intersection. Here, it is assumed that three types of motion examples of time-dependent changes in the left turn travel of the vehicle 600 (vehicle motion), that is, start of left turn, while left turn, and end of left turn, are defined as the driving patterns.

[0084] (T=T0) When starting to turn left, the priority of ZoneECU1 to 4 is all "medium". (T=T1) During a left turn, the priority of the ZoneECU1 to which the sensor 2 on the left front of the vehicle 600 is connected and the priority of the ZoneECU4 to which the sensor 3 on the left rear of the vehicle 600 is connected are changed to "high." (T=Tn) When the left turn is completed, the vehicle returns to the normal state and moves straight to the left. Therefore, the priority of each of ZoneECU1 to 4 returns to "medium."

[0085] When the integrated ECU 20 determines that the vehicle 600 will pass through a place with a high risk level based on past data, the integrated ECU 20 may control so as to increase the priority of a Zone ECU connected to a sensor capable of acquiring information about the vicinity of the place with a high risk level when the vehicle 600 passes through. Also, there are places (e.g., a school route in the morning) where traveling at a certain speed or higher at a certain time increases the risk. In this case, the integrated ECU 20 may control so as to increase the priority of a Zone ECU connected to a sensor capable of acquiring information about the vicinity of the place when the vehicle 600 passes through the place.

[0086] In the vehicle control systems 1000A and 1000B according to the modified examples described above, a plurality of types of operations corresponding to the passage of time are defined as driving patterns of the vehicle 600. The priority information table 22 for the driving patterns specifies the high and low priority of the ZoneECU for each operation. Therefore, the integrated ECU 20 can change the priority of the ZoneECU according to the operation of the vehicle 600 traveling in a certain driving pattern, and can obtain more detailed information.

[0087] Incidentally, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that various other applications and modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention as set forth in the claims. For example, the above-mentioned embodiments have described the configuration of the device and system in detail and specifically in order to explain the present invention in an easily understandable manner, and are not necessarily limited to those including all of the configurations described. In addition, it is possible to replace part of the configuration of the embodiments described here with the configuration of another embodiment, and it is also possible to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. In addition, it is also possible to add, delete, or replace part of the configuration of each embodiment with other configurations. In addition, the control lines and information lines shown are those that are considered necessary for the explanation, and not all control lines and information lines in the product are necessarily shown. In reality, it can be considered that almost all components are connected to each other. [Explanation of symbols]

[0088] 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D...Zone ECU, 11A, 11B, 11C, 11D...processing program, 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D...priority information table, 13A, 13B, 13C, 13D, 14A...sensor, 15A, 15B, 15C, 15D...priority setting unit, 20...integrated ECU, 21...processing program on integrated ECU side, 22...priority information table in driving pattern, 23...priority information table in each Zone ECU, 50A, 50B, 50C, 50D...memory, 60...memory, 70...CPU, 600...vehicle, 1000A...vehicle control system

Claims

1. An electronic control device that controls a vehicle based on one or more pieces of information acquired from a plurality of area electronic devices provided for each area into which the vehicle is divided, a first priority information table provided for each of the plurality of area electronic devices, in which a priority of the area electronic device that acquires the information is set; a second priority information table defining, for each type of information transmitted by the area electronics unit, a relationship between a state of the vehicle and the priority of the information transmitted by the area electronics unit; a vehicle state determination unit that determines a state of the vehicle from an external situation based on a state machine that defines a state of the vehicle and a transition of the state of the vehicle, and when the vehicle state determination unit determines that the state of the vehicle will change from the situation outside the vehicle, performs a first process of referring to the first priority information table and determining an area electronic device for which the priority will be changed in accordance with the changing state of the vehicle, and when the priority defined in the second priority information table before the change in the state of the vehicle differs from the priority defined in the second priority information table after the change in the state of the vehicle, performs a second process of determining an area electronic device for which the priority will be changed among a plurality of area electronic devices including the area electronic device determined to change the priority by the first process, instructing the determined area electronic device to change the priority, and obtaining the information on the changed priority from the area electronic device that instructed the change in priority. Electronic control unit.

2. the control unit includes a sensor state determination unit that determines a state of a sensor for recognizing an external situation that is connected to each of the plurality of area electronic devices; The vehicle state determination unit increases the priority of the area electronics device to which another sensor capable of covering the recognition range of the sensor determined to be broken by the sensor state determination unit is connected. The electronic control device according to claim 1 .

3. The vehicle state determination unit refers to the first priority information table and the second priority information table from a time when the change in the state of the vehicle starts to a time when the change in the state of the vehicle ends, and instructs the area electronic device to change the priority for each time when the operation of the vehicle changes over time, which is included in the change in the state of the vehicle. The electronic control device according to claim 1 .

4. The area electronic devices are each disposed near the location of the sensor disposed on the vehicle. The electronic control device according to claim 2 .

5. The location of the sensor includes any one of the front right, front left, rear right, and rear left of the vehicle. The electronic control device according to claim 4.

6. a plurality of area electronic devices provided for each area into which a vehicle is divided; and an electronic control device that controls the vehicle based on one or more pieces of information acquired from the plurality of area electronic devices, The electronic control device includes: a first priority information table provided for each of the plurality of area electronic devices, in which a priority of the area electronic device that acquires the information is set; a second priority information table defining, for each type of information transmitted by the area electronics unit, a relationship between a state of the vehicle and the priority of the information transmitted by the area electronics unit; a vehicle state determination unit that determines a state of the vehicle from an external situation based on a state machine that defines a state of the vehicle and a transition of the state of the vehicle, and when the vehicle state determination unit determines that the state of the vehicle will change from the situation outside the vehicle, performs a first process of referring to the first priority information table and determining an area electronic device for which the priority will be changed in accordance with the changing state of the vehicle, and when the priority defined in the second priority information table before the change in the state of the vehicle differs from the priority defined in the second priority information table after the change in the state of the vehicle, performs a second process of determining an area electronic device for which the priority will be changed among a plurality of area electronic devices including the area electronic device determined to change the priority by the first process, instructing the determined area electronic device to change the priority, and obtaining the information on the changed priority from the area electronic device that instructed the change in priority. Vehicle control system.

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