Vehicle positioning system and vehicle remote control system

Abstract

To provide a vehicle positioning system and a vehicle remote operation system having the high practicality.SOLUTION: In a vehicle positioning system for measuring a position of a traveling vehicle, a position of a vehicle is specified (124) on the basis of an image information-dependent vehicle position (120) being a position of the vehicle based on image information of the vehicle obtained by cameras Ca1-Ca5 and a behavior information-dependent vehicle position (122) being a position of the vehicle based on vehicle behavior information received by an information reception device (112). By using camera positioning and dead reckoning positioning in combination, accurate positioning can be performed even without GPS positioning. Moreover, a vehicle remote operation system is configured by including the vehicle positioning system, and transmits an operation command for traveling on a travel route to the vehicle (128, 130, 112) on the basis of the position of the vehicle measured by the vehicle positioning system.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle positioning system that measures the position of a vehicle, and a vehicle remote control system that includes the vehicle positioning system and is used to remotely control a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] For autonomous driving of a vehicle, a vehicle positioning system is used to measure the position of the vehicle. One such vehicle positioning system is a vehicle positioning system that combines GPS (Global Positioning System) positioning and Dead Reckoning positioning, as described in, for example, the following patent document. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2002-213979 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] While GPS positioning can be applied to vehicles that run outdoors, it cannot be applied to vehicles that run indoors. Thus, there is still room for improvement in vehicle positioning systems, and improvements can be made to improve the practicality of the vehicle positioning system. In view of this situation, an object of the present invention is to provide a highly practical vehicle positioning system. In addition, by utilizing the position of a vehicle measured by the highly practical vehicle positioning system, it is possible to improve the practicality of remote control of a vehicle, and an object of the present invention is to provide a highly practical vehicle remote control system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above problems, the vehicle positioning system of the present invention comprises: Indoors A vehicle positioning system for measuring the position of a traveling vehicle, A camera capable of capturing images of a vehicle traveling along a travel route; an information receiving device that is provided in a vehicle and receives vehicle behavior information acquired via a sensor for detecting a behavior of the vehicle; Based on the image information-based vehicle position, which is the position of the vehicle based on the image information of the vehicle obtained by the image pickup of the camera, and the behavior information-based vehicle position, which is the position of the vehicle based on the vehicle behavior information received by the information receiving device, Taking into account the reliability of at least one of the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position, weighting the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position based on the reliability, A vehicle location identification device that identifies the location of the vehicle; Equipped with. Further, the vehicle remote control system of the present invention comprises: Driving indoors A vehicle remote control system for remotely controlling a vehicle, comprising: The vehicle positioning system of the present invention; a command transmitting device that recognizes a travel route of the vehicle and transmits an operation command to the vehicle for traveling the travel route based on the position of the vehicle measured by the vehicle positioning system; Equipped with. Effect of the Invention

[0006] Obtaining "the vehicle's position based on image information of the vehicle obtained by capturing images with a camera" can be called "camera positioning", and obtaining "the vehicle's position based on vehicle behavior information" can be thought of simply as "dead reckoning positioning". The vehicle positioning system of the present invention employs camera positioning even though it does not employ GPS positioning, and therefore, in combination with dead reckoning positioning, enables highly accurate positioning. This is particularly effective for positioning vehicles traveling in places where GPS positioning is not possible, such as indoors or underground. Furthermore, according to the vehicle remote control system of the present invention, the vehicle can be remotely controlled with high accuracy based on the vehicle's position identified by the vehicle positioning system of the present invention. Aspects of the Invention

[0007] The "camera" in the vehicle positioning system of the present invention (hereinafter, may be simply referred to as "positioning system") is a camera capable of capturing images of the vehicle from the outside, and may be a fixedly installed camera, or may be installed so as to be capable of rolling, panning, tilting, etc. Also, the camera may be a fixed-focus camera, or a camera with a variable focal length, a so-called zoom camera. In view of grasping the position of the vehicle based on image information captured by the camera, it is desirable for the camera to be a fixed-focus camera that is installed in a fixed position. The method of acquiring the position of the vehicle based on image information is not particularly limited, and any general method already known in the art may be adopted.

[0008] "Vehicle behavior information" includes, for example, vehicle speed, longitudinal acceleration, lateral acceleration, yaw rate, etc. Acquisition of the vehicle position based on such information is so-called "dead reckoning positioning", which can also be called "autonomous navigation positioning" or "inertial navigation positioning". The method of acquiring the vehicle position based on the vehicle behavior information is not particularly limited, and any general method already known in the art can be adopted.

[0009] The "vehicle position identification device" may be a device that mainly includes a computer, and may be installed in the vehicle, or may be fixedly installed outside the vehicle or outside the driving route. In consideration of measuring the positions of multiple vehicles, it is preferable to install only one device outside the vehicle as a common device, rather than installing it in each of the multiple vehicles.

[0010] As described above, the positioning system of the present invention does not use GPS positioning, and therefore is very useful for obtaining the position of a vehicle traveling in a place where GPS positioning is not possible. Therefore, the positioning system of the present invention is suitable for a system for measuring the position of a vehicle traveling indoors, more specifically, a vehicle whose traveling route is at least partially indoors.

[0011] When the position of the vehicle is specified based on the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position, it is desirable to take into account the reliability of at least one of the two positions. To explain in detail, in terms of camera positioning, for example, when the vehicle is far away from the camera, the reliability of the image information-based vehicle position is lower than when the vehicle is close. In addition, when the driving route is dark, the reliability of the image information-based vehicle position is lower than when the vehicle is bright. On the other hand, in terms of dead reckoning positioning, for example, when the vehicle is driving on a slippery road surface (a road surface with low road surface μ), the reliability of the behavior information-based vehicle position is lower than when the vehicle is driving on a road surface that is not slippery. In view of this, it is desirable to take into account the reliability of at least one of the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position. In consideration of the above, for example, the driving route may be divided into several areas, and a reliability may be set for each of the areas.

[0012] Specifically, for example, by weighting the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position based on the reliability and adding them together, it is possible to easily specify the vehicle position taking the reliability into consideration. In extreme cases, for example, by weighting one of the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position as 100% and the other as 0%, it is possible to selectively specify only one of the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position as the vehicle position. In addition, when the reliability of the image information-based vehicle position is high, the behavior information-based vehicle position may be reset to match the image information-based vehicle position.

[0013] The vehicle that is the target of the vehicle remote control system of the present invention (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as the "remote control system") is a vehicle that can be remotely controlled. Specifically, it is a vehicle whose drive system, braking system, and wheel steering system can be operated by external operation commands. In other words, it is a vehicle that can run automatically based on external signals. The vehicle remote control system of the present invention can be applied, for example, to the transportation of nearly completed vehicles in a vehicle production factory, and to the operation of vehicles to transport products, parts, goods, etc. in production factories, warehouses, etc.

[0014] The "command transmitting device" may be a device having a computer as its main component, and may be integrated with a vehicle position identifying device of a positioning system. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a vehicle targeted by a vehicle positioning system and a vehicle remote control system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view showing a wheel mounting module for mounting the front wheels of the vehicle shown in FIG. 1 to a vehicle body. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a travel route within a building along which the vehicle shown in FIG. 1 travels. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram for explaining dead reckoning positioning. [Diagram 5] 11 is a chart for explaining the difference between the vehicle position obtained by dead reckoning positioning and the vehicle position obtained by camera positioning. [Figure 6] 1 is a functional block diagram of a vehicle remote control system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart of a vehicle remote control program executed in the vehicle remote control system of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] Hereinafter, as a mode for carrying out the present invention, a vehicle positioning system and a vehicle remote control system that are embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition to the following embodiments, the present invention can be carried out in various forms that are modified and improved in various ways based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, including the forms described in the above section [Modes of the Invention]. EXAMPLES

[0017] [A] Vehicle to be the subject of the vehicle positioning system and vehicle remote control system of the embodiment As shown in Fig. 1, a vehicle that is a target of the vehicle positioning system and vehicle remote control system of the embodiment has left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR and left and right rear wheels 10RL, 10RR, and is equipped with a drive system, a brake system (braking system), and a steering system (wheel steering system). The left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR of the vehicle 10 are driven wheels and steered wheels, and the drive system drives each of the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR, and the wheel steering system steers each of the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR. The brake system applies a braking force to each of the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR and the left and right rear wheels 10RL, 10RR. In addition, when there is no need to distinguish between the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR, they will be collectively referred to as front wheels 10F, and when there is no need to distinguish between the left and right rear wheels 10RL, 10RR, they will be collectively referred to as rear wheels 10R. When there is no need to distinguish between the front wheels 10F and the rear wheels 10R, they will be collectively referred to simply as wheels 10.

[0018] Each of the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR is held on the vehicle body via a wheel arrangement module 20, and each of the left and right wheel arrangement modules 20 incorporates a wheel drive device 22 for rotating and driving the corresponding one of the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR. Each of the wheel drive devices 22 is a device that applies drive torque to only one wheel 10, and has an electric motor (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a "drive motor") as a drive source, as described later. The drive system includes the left and right wheel drive devices 22, left and right wheel drive electronic control units (hereinafter, sometimes abbreviated to "drive ECUs" and shown as "A-ECUs" in the figure) 24 that control the wheel drive devices 22, respectively, and an accelerator pedal 26 that is an accelerator operation member operated by the driver. Incidentally, the drive ECU 24 has a computer as a main component, and is configured to include a driver (drive circuit) of the drive motor, etc. When the vehicle is driven by a driver, the drive ECU 24 detects an accelerator operation amount ε A Based on this, the wheel drive devices 22 control the drive torques applied to the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR, respectively.

[0019] Each of the left and right wheel arrangement modules 20 incorporates a wheel turning device 30 for steering the corresponding one of the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR. The wheel turning device 30 is a device for turning only one wheel 10 independently of the other wheels 10, i.e., a single-wheel independent steering device, and has an electric motor (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a "turning motor") as a drive source, as will be described later. The vehicle is also provided with a steering operation device 38 having a steering wheel 34 as a steering operation member operated by the driver, and a reaction motor 36 which is an electric motor for applying an operation reaction force to the steering wheel 34. Each wheel turning device 30 is controlled by a wheel turning electronic control unit (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as a "turning ECU", and represented as an "S-ECU" in the figure) 40, and each turning ECU 40 has a computer as a main component, and is configured to include a driver (drive circuit) of the steering motor, etc. Control of the reaction motor 36 of the steering operation device 38, i.e., control of the operation reaction force, is performed by a steering operation electronic control unit (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as the "operation ECU" and shown as "O-ECU" in the figure). The operation ECU 42 has a computer as its main component and is configured to include a driver (drive circuit) for the reaction motor 36, etc.

[0020] In this vehicle, a steering system is configured including the above-mentioned left and right wheel turning devices 30, two turning ECUs 40, steering operation device 38, and operation ECU 42, and the steering system is a so-called steer-by-wire type steering system. When the vehicle is driven by a driver, operation ECU 42 detects an operation amount (operation angle) δ of steering wheel 34 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "steering operation amount") via a steering sensor 44 provided in steering operation device 38, and each turning ECU 40 determines a target steering amount (steered angle) of wheels 10 based on the steering operation amount δ, and controls a current supplied to a steering motor so that an actual steering amount of wheels 10 becomes the target steering amount. Also, operation ECU 42 determines a current supplied to reaction force motor 36 so as to apply an operation reaction force to steering wheel 34 according to a steering load of the wheels (for example, a magnitude of a current supplied to the steering motor).

[0021] The brake system includes a brake pedal 46, which is a brake operating member, a master cylinder 48 to which the brake pedal is connected, a brake actuator 50 connected to the master cylinder 48, and wheel brakes 52 that are provided on each wheel 10 and apply wheel braking force to the wheel 10 by hydraulic fluid from the brake actuator 50. In other words, the brake system is a so-called brake-by-wire type hydraulic brake system of a general structure. The brake system is controlled by a brake electronic control unit (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "brake ECU" and shown as "B-ECU" in the figure) 54 of the brake actuator. The brake ECU 54 is mainly composed of a computer and includes drivers (drive circuits) such as an electric pump and an electromagnetic valve of the brake actuator 50. When the vehicle is driven by the driver, the brake ECU 54 detects an operation amount of the brake pedal 46 (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "brake operation amount") ε BBased on this, the braking force required for the entire vehicle (the sum of the wheel braking forces applied to each wheel 10) is determined, and the brake actuator 50 is controlled so that hydraulic fluid of a pressure that realizes that braking force is supplied to each wheel brake 52.

[0022] This vehicle has a wheel speed v W The wheel speed sensor 58 is provided to detect the wheel speed v of the rear wheel 10R. W Based on this, the vehicle speed (vehicle travel speed) V of the vehicle is determined. Also, a yaw rate sensor 60 for detecting a yaw rate γ of the vehicle is provided. Furthermore, the above-mentioned ECUs 24, 40, 42, 54 and the sensors 28, 44, 56, 58, 60 are connected to a CAN (car area network or controllable area network) 62 for communication therebetween in the control.

[0023] As will be described in detail later, this vehicle can be operated by remote control. Therefore, this vehicle is provided with a communication device 64 for receiving operation commands by remote control, and a mode change switch 66 for changing between a driving mode in which the vehicle is driven by a driver and a remote control mode in which the vehicle is operated by remote control. The communication device 64 and the mode change switch (represented as "SW" in the figure) 66 are also connected to the CAN 62.

[0024] The wheel mounting module (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as "module") 20 for mounting the left and right front wheels 10FL, 10FR to the vehicle body is as shown in Fig. 2. To explain in detail with reference to this figure, the module 20 is a module for mounting a wheel 10b equipped with a tire 10a on the vehicle body. The wheel 10b itself can be considered as the wheel, but in this embodiment, for convenience, the wheel 10b equipped with the tire 10a will be referred to as the wheel 10.

[0025] The wheel drive device 22 disposed in the module 20 includes a housing 22a, the drive motor as a drive source built into the housing 22a, a reducer for reducing the rotation of the drive motor (both not shown), and an axle hub (hidden in the figure) to which the wheel 10b is attached. The wheel drive device 22 is disposed inside the rim of the wheel 10b, and is a so-called in-wheel motor unit. The wheel drive device 22 has a well-known structure, and therefore a description of the structure will be omitted.

[0026] This module 20 is configured to include a McPherson type suspension device (also called a "McPherson strut type"). In this suspension device, a housing 22a of the wheel drive device 22 functions as a carrier that rotatably holds the wheel, and more specifically, the housing 22a functions as a steering knuckle in the wheel turning device 30, and is allowed to move up and down relative to the vehicle body. Therefore, the suspension device is configured to include a lower arm 70 which is a suspension arm, the housing 22a of the wheel drive device 22, a shock absorber 72, and a suspension spring 74.

[0027] Since the suspension device itself has a general structure, to briefly explain, the lower arm 70 has a shape called an L arm, with a base end divided into two parts in the vehicle front-rear direction, and the base end is supported by a side member (not shown) of the vehicle body so as to be rotatable about an arm rotation axis LL via a first bush 76 and a second bush 78. A lower portion of the housing 22a of the wheel drive device 22 is rotatably connected to the tip of the lower arm 70 via an arm connecting ball joint 80 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "first joint 80"), which is a first joint.

[0028] The lower end of the shock absorber 72 is fixedly supported by the housing 22a of the wheel drive unit 22, and the upper end is supported by an upper portion of the tire housing of the vehicle body via an upper support 82. The upper end of the suspension spring 74 is also supported by an upper portion of the tire housing of the vehicle body via the upper support 82, and the lower end of the suspension spring 74 is supported by a lower support 72a provided in a flange shape on the shock absorber 72. In other words, the suspension spring 74 and the shock absorber 72 are disposed in parallel with each other between the lower arm 70 and the vehicle body.

[0029] The module 20 has a wheel brake 52, which is a disc brake device including a disc rotor 84 that is attached to the axle hub together with the wheel 10b and rotates together with the wheel 10, and a brake caliper 86 that is held in the housing 22a of the wheel drive device 22 so as to straddle the disc rotor 84. Although a detailed explanation will be omitted, the brake caliper 86 has brake pads as friction members and a hydraulic cylinder, and the wheel brake 52 is configured to generate a wheel braking force for stopping the rotation of the wheel 10 by pressing the brake pads against the disc rotor 84 depending on the pressure of the hydraulic fluid supplied from the brake actuator 50 to the hydraulic cylinder.

[0030] The wheel turning device 30 is a single-wheel independent steering device for steering only one of a pair of left and right front wheels 10F independently of the other, and generally comprises a housing 22a of the wheel drive device 22 which functions as a steering knuckle as described above (hereinafter, when treated as a component of the wheel turning device 30, this may be referred to as the "steering knuckle 22a"), a steering actuator 88 disposed on the lower arm 70 at a position close to the base end of the lower arm 70, and a tie rod 90 which connects the steering actuator 88 and the steering knuckle 22a.

[0031] The steering actuator 88 includes a steering motor 88a which is an electric motor serving as a drive source, a reduction gear 88b which reduces the speed of rotation of the steering motor 88a, and an actuator arm 88c which is rotated by the rotation of the steering motor 88a via the reduction gear 88b and functions as a pitman arm. The base end of a tie rod 90 is connected to the actuator arm 88c via a rod base end connecting ball joint 92 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "second joint 92") which is a second joint, and the tip end of the tie rod 90 is connected to a knuckle arm 22b of the steering knuckle 22a via a rod tip end ball joint 94 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "third joint 94") which is a third joint.

[0032] In this wheel steering device 30, a line connecting the center of the upper support 82 and the center of the first joint 80 is the kingpin axis KP. By operating the steering motor 88a, the actuator arm 88c of the steering actuator 88 rotates about the actuator axis AL, as shown by the thick arrow in the figure. This rotation is transmitted by the tie rod 90, and the steering knuckle 22a is rotated about the kingpin axis KP. In other words, the wheels 10 are steered, as shown by the thick arrow in the figure. Due to this structure, the wheel steering device 30 is provided with a motion conversion mechanism 96 that converts the rotational motion of the steering motor 88a into the steering motion of the wheels 10, including the actuator arm 88c, the tie rod 90, the knuckle arm 22b, etc.

[0033] The rear wheels 10RL, 10RR are supported on the vehicle body, i.e., the rear wheels 10RL, 10RR are suspended from the vehicle body by a trailing arm suspension device (not shown). Although a detailed explanation is omitted, the wheel brakes 52 provided for each of the rear wheels 10RL, 10RR are configured to include a disc rotor 84 and a brake caliper 86, similar to the wheel brakes 52 provided in the module 20.

[0034] [B] The business establishment where the vehicle runs The vehicle is remotely controlled to travel within the business premises, more specifically, within the building of the factory where the vehicle is manufactured. As shown in Fig. 3, several pieces of equipment and facilities are arranged within the factory building. For example, in order to move a nearly completed vehicle C in the equipment at the bottom right of the figure to the final inspection equipment at the top right, the vehicle C is remotely controlled to travel along a travel route R from a travel start position PS to a travel end position RF.

[0035] In the building, there are four passages Px1 to Px4 extending in the left-right direction in the figure, and three passages Py1 to Py3 extending in the up-down direction. The travel route R is a route that travels through the passages Px1, Py1, Px3, Py2, and Px4 in that order.

[0036] Five cameras, cameras Ca1 to Ca5, are installed on the walls of the building to detect the position of vehicle C traveling along travel route R. All of the cameras Ca1 to Ca5 are fixed focus cameras that are fixed so that they cannot pan, tilt, or roll. The cameras Ca1 to Ca5 are arranged so as to capture images of vehicle C traveling along passages Px1, Py1, Px3, Py2, and Px4, which are part of the travel route R, from approximately the front. Incidentally, the cameras Ca1 to Ca5 will be collectively referred to as camera Ca when there is no need to distinguish between them.

[0037] In the following description, as shown in the figure, the position of the vehicle C in the building (specifically, the position of the center of gravity) is expressed by plane coordinates (x, y) defined by an axis extending in the left-right direction (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "x-axis") and an axis extending in the up-down direction (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "y-axis") with respect to a reference point (corner of the building) RP at the lower left of the figure, and the orientation of the vehicle C is expressed as a yaw angle θ, which is the angle θ between the front-rear axis Lx of the vehicle C and the x-axis. Note that the "position of the vehicle C" may be treated as a concept including both the above-mentioned coordinates (x, y) and the yaw angle θ, and in such a case, the position of the vehicle C may be expressed as C(x, y, θ).

[0038] As described above, vehicle C is remotely controlled. A vehicle remote control device 100, which is a central component of a vehicle remote control system of an embodiment for performing the remote control, is installed outside a building. In order to remotely control vehicle C, it is necessary to identify the position of vehicle C within the building, and a vehicle positioning system of an embodiment for measuring the position is included in the vehicle remote control system. The vehicle positioning system and the vehicle remote control system will be described in detail later.

[0039] [C] Vehicle positioning In order to measure the position of the vehicle C, for example, GPS positioning is generally used. However, inside a building, GPS positioning cannot be used. Therefore, in the vehicle positioning system of the embodiment, the position of the vehicle C is acquired based on image information of the vehicle C acquired by imaging with the camera Ca. This is so-called camera positioning. A specific method of this camera positioning can be adopted that is already known and therefore will not be described in detail here. In short, the position of the imaging camera Ca and shape data of the imaged vehicle C are stored, and the position of the vehicle C (x, y, θ) (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "vehicle position") is acquired based on the position, size, and shape of the vehicle C in the imaging area based on the image data of the vehicle C imaged by the camera C. Incidentally, the vehicle position acquired by camera positioning may be referred to as the "image information-based vehicle position" hereinafter.

[0040] It is predicted that the accurate vehicle position may not be obtained depending on the camera positioning. For example, when the distance between the camera Ca and the vehicle C is large, when strong light such as direct sunlight hits the vehicle C, when smoke, water vapor, etc. are between the vehicle C and the camera Ca, the accuracy of the vehicle position based on image information may be reduced.

[0041] Therefore, in this vehicle positioning system, the position of the vehicle C is acquired based on the vehicle behavior information transmitted from the vehicle C. This is so-called dead reckoning positioning is performed. The vehicle behavior information is information acquired by a sensor provided in the vehicle for detecting the behavior of the vehicle. Specifically, the vehicle behavior information is information acquired by a wheel speed v detected via the wheel speed sensor 58. W and the yaw rate γ acquired by the yaw rate sensor 60.

[0042] In the dead reckoning positioning, the vehicle position is calculated every time a certain time t elapses. To briefly explain the dead reckoning positioning with reference to FIG. 4, the vehicle position in the xy coordinate system with the above-mentioned reference point RP as the origin can be defined as C(x, y, θ), the vehicle position in the previous positioning calculation can be defined as C(x0, y0, θ0), the wheelbase of the vehicle C can be defined as the wheelbase L, the distance between the center of gravity of the vehicle C and the axle line of the rear wheel 10R can be defined as the center-of-gravity rear axle distance Lr, the steering angle of the front wheel 10F can be defined as the front wheel steering angle δt, and the slip angle of the vehicle C can be defined as the slip angle β. Under these definitions, the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) can be calculated as shown in equations (1) to (3). Incidentally, the slip angle β can be calculated as shown in equation (4). In this way, since the dead reckoning positioning is performed based on vehicle behavior information, the vehicle position acquired by this dead reckoning positioning may be referred to as a "behavior information-based vehicle position" hereinafter.

[0043] As with camera positioning, it is predicted that accurate vehicle positioning may not be possible with dead reckoning positioning. For example, if the building floor is slippery (low road surface μ), or if there is an obstacle to the transmission of vehicle behavior information from vehicle C, the accuracy of vehicle position based on behavior information may decrease.

[0044] For example, when vehicle C is traveling along a certain travel route, the image-information-based vehicle position (solid line) and behavior-information-based vehicle position (dashed line) change in the XY coordinates as shown in Fig. 5. From point P1 to point P2, the image-information-based vehicle position (solid line) and behavior-information-based vehicle position (dashed line) are approximately the same, but at point P2, due to some influence, a deviation (difference, divergence) occurs between the image-information-based vehicle position and the behavior-information-based vehicle position, and the deviation remains beyond point P2.

[0045] Considering the above-mentioned discrepancy between the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position, the present vehicle positioning system is configured to determine the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) based on both the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position. In more detail, the vehicle position is determined by weighting and adding up the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position. Specifically, the image information-based vehicle position is determined as C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) and the vehicle position based on the behavior information is C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) and a weighting coefficient K, the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) is determined according to the following equation. C(x,y,θ)=K C(x G ,y G ,θ G )+(1-K)·C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) If we individually indicate the X coordinate position x, the Y coordinate position y, and the yaw angle θ, we get the following equation. x=K x G +(1-K)·x M y=K y G +(1-K)·y M θ=K θ G +(1-K)·θ M

[0046] The weighting coefficient may be appropriately determined by taking into consideration the accuracy, in other words, the reliability, of at least one of the image information-based vehicle position and the behavior information-based vehicle position. In the vehicle positioning system of this embodiment, the weighting coefficient K is determined by taking into consideration the reliability of the image information-based vehicle position. In more detail, the weighting coefficient K is determined based on the distance D between the vehicle C and any one of the cameras Ca1 to Ca5 capturing the image of the vehicle C. Specifically, when the distance D determined based on the image information-based vehicle position is less than the first threshold distance D1, the weighting coefficient K is determined to be 0.8. When the distance D is equal to or greater than the first threshold distance D1 and less than the second threshold distance D2 (>D1), the weighting coefficient K is determined to be 0.5. When the distance D is equal to or greater than the second threshold distance D2, the weighting coefficient K is determined to be 0.2. Taking into consideration the characteristic that the reliability of the image information-based vehicle position decreases as the distance D increases, the vehicle position C is identified with high accuracy.

[0047] In addition, the image-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) and the behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) and, in detail, the difference between the X coordinate position x G ,x M , Y coordinate position y G ,y M ,yaw angle θ G ,θ M If the difference in any of the above exceeds a threshold, it may be determined that the position of the vehicle C cannot be identified.

[0048] [D] Remote control of vehicles The vehicle remote control system of the embodiment remotely controls the vehicle C based on the vehicle position measured by the vehicle positioning system as described above. In detail, the vehicle remote control device 100 constituting the vehicle remote control system stores data on the specifications of the vehicle C and the travel route R along which the vehicle C travels, and the vehicle remote control device 100 calculates a target vehicle position C(x* ,y * ,θ * ) is determined.

[0049] Based on the actual vehicle position C(x, y, θ) identified as described above, the vehicle remote control device 100 determines whether the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) is equal to the target vehicle position C(x * ,y * ,θ * The driving force or braking force to be applied to the vehicle C and the steering angle of the front wheels 10F to be realized are determined so that the driving force, braking force, and steering angle are satisfied. Information on the driving force, braking force, and steering angle is transmitted to the vehicle C as an operation command for traveling along the travel route R.

[0050] In vehicle C which receives the information on the driving force, braking force and steering angle, provided that the mode change switch 66 of said vehicle C is set to the remote operation mode, the driving ECU 24, the brake ECU 54 or the steering ECU 40 applies driving force or braking force to vehicle C based on that information and executes control to steer the front wheels 10F of said vehicle C.

[0051] As explained above, the image-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) and behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) exceeds the threshold value, the remote control of the vehicle C may be stopped.

[0052] [E] Functional configuration of vehicle remote control system and vehicle positioning system The vehicle remote control system of the embodiment includes the vehicle remote control device 100 described above and the above-mentioned cameras Ca1 to Ca5, as shown in the functional configuration of Fig. 6. The remote control device 100 has a computer 110 including a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc., and a transceiver 112 that transmits and receives information between the computer 110 and the communication device 64 of the vehicle C. Incidentally, the transceiver 112 functions as an information receiving device that receives vehicle behavior information, specifically, information related to the vehicle speed V and yaw rate γ of the vehicle C, from the communication device 64 of the vehicle C.

[0053] For convenience, the computer 110 has, as functional units that function by executing a program, an image information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 120, a behavior information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 122, a vehicle position identification unit 124, a vehicle specification driving route data storage unit 126, a target vehicle position determination unit 128, and an operation command determination unit 130.

[0054] To explain each functional unit, the image information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 120 acquires the position of the vehicle C based on the image information of the vehicle C acquired by the cameras Ca1 to Ca5, that is, the image information-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G The behavior-information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 122 is a functional unit that acquires the position of the vehicle C based on the vehicle behavior information received by the transceiver 112, that is, the behavior-information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) is a functional unit that acquires the

[0055] As described above, the vehicle position identification unit 124 determines the image information-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) and behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M) and the weighting coefficient K, and then sums them. As described above, the vehicle position determination unit 124 determines the position of the vehicle C by calculating the image information-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ), the distance D between the cameras Ca1 to Ca5 and the vehicle C is calculated, and the weighting coefficient K is determined based on the distance D. As described above, the vehicle position identification unit 124 calculates the image information-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) and behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) exceeds the threshold value, a message to that effect is displayed on the display of the computer 110, and any further remote control of the vehicle C is stopped.

[0056] The vehicle specification travel route data storage unit 126 is mainly composed of a memory, and stores the specifications of the vehicle C, such as the shape, and data related to the travel route R. As described above, the target vehicle position determination unit 128 determines a travel route based on the data stored in the vehicle specification travel route data storage unit 126, and determines a target vehicle position C(x * ,y * ,θ * ) to determine

[0057] As described above, the operation command determination unit 130 determines the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) determined by the vehicle position determination unit 124 and the target vehicle position C(x * ,y * ,θ * ) the driving force or braking force to be applied to the vehicle C and the steering angle of the front wheels 10F to be realized are determined, and based on these, an operation command for the vehicle C is determined. This operation command is transmitted to the vehicle C via the transceiver 112.

[0058] In consideration of the functions of the above functional units, in this vehicle remote control system, the image information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 120, the behavior information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 122, and the vehicle position identification unit 124 can be considered to constitute a vehicle position identification device, and the vehicle position identification device, the cameras Ca1 to Ca5, and the transceiver 112 can be considered to constitute a vehicle positioning system of the embodiment. Also, the target vehicle position determination unit 128, the operation command determination unit 130, and the transceiver 112 can be considered to constitute a command transmission device that recognizes a travel route R and transmits an operation command to the vehicle C based on the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) measured by the vehicle positioning system.

[0059] [F] Processing flow for vehicle positioning and remote vehicle control The processing related to vehicle positioning by the vehicle positioning system of the embodiment and remote control of the vehicle by the vehicle remote control system of the embodiment is performed by the computer 110 of the vehicle remote control device 100 repeatedly executing a vehicle remote control program whose flow chart is shown in Fig. 7. Below, the flow of processing related to vehicle positioning and remote control of the vehicle will be briefly described in accordance with the program.

[0060] In the process according to the vehicle remote control program, first, in step 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as "S1", the same applies to the other steps), image data of the vehicle C captured by any one of the cameras Ca1 to Ca5 (sometimes referred to as "camera captured data") is acquired. In the following step S2, based on the camera image data, the image-information-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) is determined.

[0061] In the next step S3, the vehicle speed V and yaw rate γ of the vehicle C are acquired as vehicle behavior information via the transceiver 112. In the next step S4, the vehicle behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M) is determined. Then, in S5, the determined image-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) and the behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) exceeds a threshold value.

[0062] If the position difference does not exceed the threshold, then in S6, the weighting factor K is determined as described above. Then, in S7, the weighting factor K and the previously determined image-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ), behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M ) the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) is identified as described above.

[0063] In the next step S8, the previously described target vehicle position C(x * ,y * ,θ * ) is determined, and in S9, the target vehicle position C(x * ,y * ,θ * ) and the vehicle position C(x, y, θ) identified, an operational command regarding the driving force or braking force to be applied to vehicle C and the front wheel steering angle δt to be realized is determined, and the determined operational command is transmitted to vehicle C.

[0064] In addition, in S5, the image information-based vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ) and behavior information-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M If it is determined that the position difference between the vehicle C and the vehicle B exceeds the threshold value, a notification to that effect is given in S10, and the remote operation of the vehicle C is stopped in S11. [Explanation of symbols]

[0065] 10: Wheel 20: Wheel arrangement module 22: Wheel drive device 30: Wheel steering device 52: Wheel brake 58: Wheel speed sensor 60: Yaw rate sensor 64: Communication device 66: Mode changeover switch 100: Vehicle remote control device 110: Computer 112: Transmitter / receiver 120: Image information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 122: Behavior information-based vehicle position acquisition unit 124: Vehicle position identification unit 126: Vehicle specification travel route data storage unit 128: Target vehicle position determination unit 130: Operation command determination unit C: Vehicle R: Travel route Ca1 to Ca5: Camera (x, y): Plane coordinates θ: Yaw angle C(x, y, θ): Vehicle position C(x G ,y G ,θ G ): Image-based vehicle position C(x M ,y M ,θ M ): Vehicle position based on behavior information V: Vehicle speed (vehicle running speed) γ: Yaw rate K: Weighting coefficient

Claims

1. A vehicle positioning system for measuring the position of a vehicle traveling indoors, comprising: A camera capable of capturing images of a vehicle traveling along a travel route; an information receiving device that is provided in a vehicle and receives vehicle behavior information acquired via a sensor for detecting a behavior of the vehicle; a vehicle position specifying device that specifies the position of the vehicle based on an image information-dependent vehicle position, which is the position of the vehicle based on image information of the vehicle obtained by imaging the camera, and a behavior information-dependent vehicle position, which is the position of the vehicle based on vehicle behavior information received by an information receiving device, by weighting the image information-dependent vehicle position and the behavior information-dependent vehicle position based on the reliability, taking into account the reliability of at least one of the image information-dependent vehicle position and the behavior information-dependent vehicle position; A vehicle positioning system comprising:

2. A vehicle remote control system for remotely controlling a vehicle traveling indoors, comprising: A vehicle positioning system according to claim 1 ; a command transmitting device that recognizes a travel route of the vehicle and transmits an operation command to the vehicle for traveling the travel route based on the position of the vehicle measured by the vehicle positioning system; A vehicle remote control system comprising:

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