Vehicle driving control device, vehicle control system, and vehicle control method

Abstract

Provided is a vehicle drive control device capable of suitably determining a warning to a host vehicle driver and / or vehicle control of the host vehicle by appropriately determining a signal state of a traffic light and taking into account a signal information determination result if there is a possibility of collision with another object. A vehicle drive control device 100 is provided with: a signal state determining unit 104 which acquires, a plurality of times over a prescribed period, signal recognition information recognized by a signal information recognizing unit 101, and which determines a signal state on the basis of the acquired signal recognition information; and a collision determining unit 107 which determines the possibility of a collision between a host vehicle 10 and another vehicle 20 in the vicinity of the host vehicle, on the basis of information relating to the other vehicle 20, recognized by an other-vehicle recognizing unit 102. If the collision determining unit 107 determines that there is a possibility of collision between the host vehicle 10 and the other vehicle 20, a warning is issued to the driver of the host vehicle 10 and / or vehicle control of the host vehicle 10 is performed, on the basis of a signal state determination result from the signal state determining unit 104.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle cruise control device, and more particularly to a vehicle cruise control device, vehicle control system, and vehicle control method that provide driving assistance at intersections with traffic lights. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, interest in automotive safety technology has increased significantly. In response to this, various preventive safety systems have been put into practical use, mainly by automotive-related companies. Some of these preventive safety systems include functions that utilize traffic light information.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a driving support device including a surrounding object recognition unit that recognizes surrounding objects of the vehicle, a signal recognition unit that recognizes the light color state of a traffic light in front of the vehicle, and a support unit that supports driving of the vehicle based on the recognition results of the surrounding object recognition unit and the signal recognition unit.Then, when the light color state at a traffic light intersection prohibits travel in one or more specific directions, the support unit determines whether or not the vehicle is likely to come into contact with a surrounding object when the vehicle travels in the specific direction, and if it determines that the vehicle is likely to come into contact with the surrounding object, calculates a candidate exit path for the vehicle to leave the intersection without coming into contact with the surrounding object.

[0004] Patent document 2 also discloses a braking assistance device in a vehicle which includes an object detection unit for detecting objects, an intersection entry determination unit for determining whether the host vehicle is entering an intersection, and a braking assistance execution unit for executing braking assistance by the braking device to avoid or reduce a collision with an object, where when it is determined that the host vehicle is entering an intersection, the braking assistance execution unit determines the traffic environment at the intersection using the detection result by the object detection unit and controls the execution of braking assistance in accordance with the determined traffic environment. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-106050 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2018-95097 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, the technologies disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 do not fully take into consideration the switching of traffic light signal information, making it difficult to fully ensure the reliability, safety, and practicality of the system.

[0007] Therefore, the present invention provides a vehicle driving control device, a vehicle control system, and a vehicle control method that can appropriately judge the signal state of a traffic light and, if there is a possibility of a collision with another object, take into account the signal information judgment results and appropriately decide to issue a warning to the driver of the vehicle and / or control the vehicle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, a vehicle driving control device according to the present invention includes a signal state determination unit that acquires signal recognition information recognized by a signal information recognition unit multiple times over a predetermined time period and determines a signal state based on the acquired signal recognition information, and a collision determination unit that determines a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and another vehicle based on information about another vehicle around the host vehicle recognized by an other vehicle recognition unit, and when the collision determination unit determines that there is a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle, the collision determination unit issues a warning to a driver of the host vehicle and / or performs vehicle control of the host vehicle based on a signal state determination result of the signal state determination unit. the signal state determination unit determines the state of the signal based on the signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state when the number of acquisitions of signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state among the signal recognition information acquired a plurality of times over the predetermined time period is equal to or greater than a preset threshold value, and the signal state determination unit further includes a signal cycle determination unit that receives signal cycle information representing a future signal state from a signal cycle communication unit, and determines the state of the signal based on the signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state when the number of receptions of signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state is equal to or greater than a preset threshold value. It is characterized by:

[0009] Furthermore, the vehicle control system according to the present invention includes a signal information recognition unit that recognizes signal information, an other vehicle recognition unit that recognizes other vehicles around the host vehicle, a signal state determination unit that acquires the signal recognition information recognized by the signal information recognition unit a plurality of times over a predetermined time period and determines a state of the signal based on the acquired signal recognition information, and a collision determination unit that determines a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle based on information of the other vehicles around the host vehicle recognized by the other vehicle recognition unit, and when the collision determination unit determines that there is a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle, the collision determination unit issues a warning to a driver of the host vehicle and / or performs vehicle control of the host vehicle based on a signal state determination result of the signal state determination unit. the signal state determination unit determines the state of the signal based on the signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state when the number of acquisitions of signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state among the signal recognition information acquired a plurality of times over the predetermined time period is equal to or greater than a preset threshold value, and the signal state determination unit further includes a signal cycle determination unit that receives signal cycle information representing a future signal state from a signal cycle communication unit, and determines the state of the signal based on the signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state when the number of receptions of signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state is equal to or greater than a preset threshold value. It is characterized by:

[0010] Furthermore, in the vehicle control method according to the present invention, the signal state determination unit acquires signal recognition information recognized by the signal information recognition unit a plurality of times over a predetermined time period and determines a signal state based on the acquired signal recognition information, the collision determination unit determines a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and another vehicle based on information of another vehicle around the host vehicle recognized by the other vehicle recognition unit, and when the collision determination unit determines that there is a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle, the collision determination unit issues a warning to a driver of the host vehicle and / or performs vehicle control of the host vehicle based on a signal state determination result of the signal state determination unit. the signal state determination unit determines the state of the signal based on the signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state when the number of acquisitions of signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state among the signal recognition information acquired a plurality of times over the predetermined time period is equal to or greater than a preset threshold; and the signal cycle determination unit receives signal cycle information representing a future signal state from a signal cycle communication unit, and determines the state of the signal based on the signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state when the number of receptions of signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state is equal to or greater than a preset threshold. It is characterized by: Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle driving control device, a vehicle control system, and a vehicle control method that can appropriately determine the signal state of a traffic light and, if there is a possibility of a collision with another object, can appropriately determine whether to issue a warning to a driver of the vehicle and / or control the vehicle by taking into account the signal information determination result. Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become clear from the description of the embodiments below. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1]FIG. 1 is an overhead view showing an example of a case where a vehicle equipped with a vehicle control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention is at an intersection with traffic lights. [Diagram 2] 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of an overall configuration of a vehicle control system according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 3] 4 is a flowchart showing a processing operation of a vehicle driving control device constituting the vehicle control system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a signal state determination process in a vehicle driving control device constituting the vehicle control system according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 5] 1 is an overhead view showing an example of a case where a vehicle equipped with a known collision damage mitigation system is located at an intersection without traffic lights. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a collision scenario and a system operation range in a known collision mitigation system. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a vehicle control system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a signal state determination process in a vehicle driving control device constituting a vehicle control system according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. EXAMPLES

[0014] Fig. 5 is an overhead view showing an example of a case where a vehicle equipped with a known collision damage reduction system is present at an intersection without traffic lights. Fig. 5 shows a scenario in which another vehicle 20 approaches the vehicle's traveling path from the side while the host vehicle 10 equipped with an on-board periphery recognition sensor 11 and a known cruise control device is traveling. Since the other vehicle 20 is within the recognition range 12 of the on-board periphery recognition sensor, the on-board periphery recognition sensor 11 and the known cruise control device determine the possibility of a collision based on the travel path estimation of the host vehicle 10 and the travel path estimation of the other vehicle 20. When it is determined that there is a possibility of a collision, a collision damage reduction system is known that performs deceleration control of the host vehicle 10 to reduce the collision damage or avoid the collision.

[0015] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a collision scenario and a system operating range in a known collision damage reduction system. In particular, in a system aimed at reducing collision damage occurring at an intersection or the like, in addition to the technical difficulty of estimating the travel path of the vehicle 10, it is necessary to appropriately estimate the travel path of the other vehicle 20. FIG. 6 shows a classification of collision scenarios that may occur based on each travel path estimation. That is, collision scenarios can be classified into a collision scenario in which the front of the vehicle 10 may collide with the vicinity of the front end of the side of the other vehicle 20, a collision scenario in which the front of the vehicle 10 may collide with the vicinity of the side rear end of the vehicle 10, a collision scenario in which the other vehicle 20 may collide with the side of the vehicle 10 from the front, and a collision scenario in which the front of the other vehicle 20 may collide with the rear end of the side of the vehicle 10. Of these, for collision scenarios in which there is a possibility of a collision between the front of the vehicle 10 and the center of the side of the other vehicle 20, it is important to activate the collision damage mitigation brake even taking into consideration that the estimated path results of the vehicle 10 and the other vehicle 20 each contain errors. For other scenarios, there is a concern of excessive activation or erroneous activation, so it is necessary to carefully select the activation scenario, and it is difficult to say that the function of the collision damage mitigation brake is being fully applied.

[0016] Fig. 1 is an overhead view showing an example of a case where a vehicle equipped with a vehicle control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention is at an intersection with traffic lights. The difference from the overhead view shown in Fig. 5 is whether or not there is a traffic light. As described above, among collision scenarios at an intersection, scenarios in which the collision damage mitigation brake can be activated are limited. However, by appropriately recognizing and judging the light color of the traffic light at an intersection with a traffic light 31 as shown in Fig. 1, in addition to judging the possibility of a collision with another vehicle 20, it is possible to accurately judge the possibility of entering an intersection with a red light due to carelessness of the driver of the vehicle 10, thereby making it possible to activate the collision damage mitigation brake in a wider range of collision scenarios.

[0017] [Overall configuration of vehicle control system] Fig. 2 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of the vehicle control system according to the embodiment 1. As shown in Fig. 2, the vehicle control system 1 includes a traffic light information recognition unit 101, an object recognition unit 102, a host vehicle information recognition unit 103, a vehicle driving control device 100, a display unit 110, an alarm unit 111, and a braking unit 112.

[0018] The traffic light information recognition unit 101 detects the light color state of a traffic light (traffic light 31) present ahead of the vehicle 10 or the distance and angle to the traffic light 31, and transmits the result as an other object recognition result (including another vehicle recognition result) to the vehicle's cruise control device 100. Specifically, the traffic light information recognition unit 101 includes a stereo camera or a monocular camera. The traffic light information recognition unit 101 also includes an image processing function (not shown).

[0019] The other object recognition unit 102 detects the distance, relative speed, angle, etc. of vehicles, people, objects, etc. present in front of the vehicle 10, and transmits the results to the vehicle driving control device 100. Specifically, the other object recognition unit 102 includes a stereo camera or a monocular camera, etc. The other object recognition unit 102 also includes an image processing function (not shown).

[0020] The vehicle information recognition unit 103 collects information about the behavior of the vehicle 10, such as the vehicle speed, yaw rate, longitudinal acceleration, and lateral acceleration, as well as driver operation information, such as accelerator opening, brake depression amount, and steering angle, and transmits the information to the vehicle's driving control device 100.

[0021] The display unit 110 has a function of providing display information to the driver as a result of calculations performed by the vehicle driving control device 100 described later. For example, the display unit 110 is realized by a meter or a head-up display unit (HUD unit). The warning unit 111 has a function of providing a warning to the driver as a result of calculation performed by the vehicle driving control device 100 described later. For example, the warning unit 111 is realized by a speaker.

[0022] The braking unit 112 has a function of braking the host vehicle 10 in response to a braking command for the host vehicle 10 as a result of calculation by the vehicle driving control device 100 described later. For example, the braking unit 112 is realized by mechanisms such as a pump that discharges high-pressure brake fluid and an electromagnetic valve that adjusts the pressure of the brake fluid and supplies it to the wheel cylinders of each wheel. In addition, in a vehicle equipped with an electric motor system, it is also possible to decelerate the vehicle by regeneration.

[0023] The above-mentioned signal information recognition unit 101, other object recognition unit 102, and host vehicle information recognition unit 103 only need to be able to collect the minimum information required for each vehicle control algorithm described later, and can also be arranged (implemented) in a vehicle driving control device 100 described later, depending on the need. The vehicle driving control device 100 is preferably implemented in an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) that includes a ROM for storing programs for a plurality of vehicle control algorithms described later, a CPU for executing various arithmetic processing, a RAM for storing arithmetic results, etc.

[0024] [Configuration of vehicle driving control device] 2, the vehicle travel control device 100 is composed of a traffic light condition determination unit 104, an object path estimation unit 105, a vehicle path estimation unit 106, and a collision determination unit 107. Here, the traffic light condition determination unit 104, the object path estimation unit 105, the vehicle path estimation unit 106, and the collision determination unit 107 are realized by, for example, a processor such as a CPU (not shown), a ROM for storing various programs, a RAM for temporarily storing data in the calculation process, and a storage device such as an external storage device, and the processor such as a CPU reads and executes the various programs stored in the ROM, and stores the calculation results, which are the execution results, in the RAM or the external storage device.

[0025] The signal state judgment unit 104 calculates a signal state judgment result based on the light color state (sometimes simply referred to as signal information) of the signal (traffic light 31) located in front of the vehicle 10 received from the signal information recognition unit 101, and transmits (outputs) the calculated signal state judgment result to the collision judgment unit 107.

[0026] The object travel path estimation unit 105 calculates an object's estimated travel path (another vehicle's estimated travel path) based on the distance, relative speed, angle, etc. of vehicles, people, objects, etc. present ahead of the vehicle 10 received from the object recognition unit 102. The object travel path estimation unit 105 transmits (outputs) the calculated object's estimated travel path (another vehicle's estimated travel path) to the collision determination unit 107.

[0027] The host vehicle travel path estimation unit 106 calculates an estimated host vehicle travel path based on at least the host vehicle speed, yaw rate, and steering angle received from the host vehicle information recognition unit 103 , and transmits (outputs) the calculated path to the collision determination unit 107 .

[0028] The collision determination unit 107 executes a collision possibility determination process based on the signal state determination result received from the signal state determination unit 104, the other object estimated path (other vehicle estimated path) received from the other object path estimation unit 105, and the own vehicle estimated path received from the own vehicle path estimation unit 106. When it is determined that there is a possibility of collision between the own vehicle 10 and the other vehicle 20, the collision determination unit 107 calculates a display command value for notifying the driver of the risk of collision, a warning command value for notifying the driver of the risk of collision, and a braking command value for reducing collision damage or avoiding collision. Then, the collision determination unit 107 transmits the calculated display command value to the display unit 110, the calculated warning command value to the warning unit 111, and the calculated braking command value to the braking unit 112. The collision determination unit 107 may also be referred to as a collision possibility estimation unit, and is not limited to a configuration that executes all of the above-mentioned transmission of the calculated display command value to the display unit 110, the calculated warning command value to the warning unit 111, and the calculated braking command value to the braking unit 112. In other words, the collision determination unit 107 (collision possibility estimation unit) may be configured to execute at least one of the above-mentioned transmission of the calculated display command value to the display unit 110, the transmission of the calculated warning command value to the warning unit 111, and the transmission of the calculated braking command value to the braking unit 112. In other words, the collision determination unit 107 (collision possibility estimation unit) executes a warning to the driver of the host vehicle 10 and / or vehicle control of the host vehicle 10.

[0029] In this embodiment, it is assumed that the traffic light information recognition unit 101, the other object recognition unit 102, the vehicle information recognition unit 103, the vehicle driving control device 100, the display unit 110, the alarm unit 111, and the braking unit 112 use a controller area network (CAN) that is generally used as an in-vehicle network to transmit information, but this is not limited to this. For example, a configuration using Ethernet or the like may be used.

[0030] [Processing flow of vehicle driving control device] Next, a specific processing operation of the vehicle cruise control device 100 according to this embodiment will be described below. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing the processing operation of the vehicle cruise control device 100 constituting the vehicle control system 1 according to this embodiment. The processing flow shown in Fig. 3 is repeatedly executed at a predetermined time interval.

[0031] When the routine is started, first, an object path estimation process is executed in step S210. That is, in step S210, the object path estimation unit 105 constituting the vehicle driving control device 100 calculates an object estimated path (another vehicle estimated path) based on the distance, relative speed, angle, etc. of a vehicle, person, object, etc. present ahead of the host vehicle 10 detected by the object recognition unit 102.

[0032] Next, the host vehicle travel path estimation process is executed in step S211. In step S211, the host vehicle travel path estimation unit 106 constituting the vehicle driving control device 100 calculates the host vehicle estimated travel path based on the host vehicle speed, yaw rate, and steering angle received from the host vehicle information recognition unit 103. In addition, the host vehicle 10's pre-set parameters (steer gear ratio, etc.) are often used to calculate the host vehicle estimated travel path.

[0033] Next, the signal state determination process of S220 is executed. In step S220, the signal state determination unit 104 constituting the vehicle driving control device 100 calculates a signal state determination result based on the light color state of the signal (traffic light 31) present ahead of the vehicle 10 received from the signal information recognition unit 101. Note that the execution order of the above-mentioned steps S210 to S220 can be changed.

[0034] Next, a collision determination process is executed in step S230. This process is made up of a number of steps, which will be explained below. First, in step S231, the signal state determination unit 104 constituting the vehicle driving control device 100 determines whether the signal state determination result is a red signal. If the result of the determination is not a red signal, a first collision possibility determination process is executed in step S240. On the other hand, if the result of the determination is a red signal, a second collision possibility determination process is executed in step S241. The first collision possibility determination process in step S240 determines that there is a collision possibility when it is determined that the front of the host vehicle 10 will collide with the center of the side of the other vehicle 20 based on the other object estimated travel path (other vehicle estimated travel path) and the host vehicle estimated travel path, as in the known collision damage reduction system. The second collision possibility determination process in step S241 also determines the possibility of a collision based on the other object estimated travel path (other vehicle estimated travel path) and the host vehicle estimated travel path, but determines that there is a collision possibility for a wider range of collision scenarios compared to the known collision damage reduction system. That is, in this second collision possibility determination process, it can be determined that the host vehicle 10 is about to enter the intersection ignoring the red signal. Therefore, it can be determined that there is a possibility of collision between the front of the vehicle 10 and the vicinity of the front end of the side of the other vehicle 20, when it is determined that the front of the vehicle 10 will collide with the vicinity of the center of the side of the other vehicle 20, or when there is a possibility of collision between the front of the vehicle 10 and the vicinity of the rear end of the side of the other vehicle 20. Also, when there is a possibility of the other vehicle 20 colliding from the front with the side of the vehicle 10, and when there is a possibility of the front of the other vehicle 20 colliding with the rear end of the side of the vehicle 10, it can be determined that the vehicle 10 is attempting to enter the intersection ignoring a red light, and therefore the possibility of a collision can be determined.

[0035] In this embodiment, the process is divided into a first collision possibility determination process and a second collision possibility determination process according to the result of the determination of the traffic light state, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a parameter related to the collision possibility determination threshold in the collision possibility determination process may be changed according to the result of the determination of the traffic light state. In this case, the same effect can be obtained. As an example of changing the parameter related to the collision possibility determination threshold in the above-mentioned collision possibility determination process, a calculation range of TTC (Time to Collision) calculated for collision possibility determination may be changed according to the result of the determination of the traffic light state. Specifically, when it is determined that the vehicle 10 is about to enter the intersection ignoring a red light, the TTC calculation range is expanded. That is, the collision possibility determination area (TTC calculation range) is expanded to a certain range in the front, rear, left and right from the four corners and their respective positions of the vehicle 10 to determine the risk of collision. In this case, TTC (Time to Collision) means calculating the time to collision mainly based on the estimated vehicle path (estimated path of the vehicle) at the front center of the vehicle 10 and the estimated path of the other vehicle 20 (estimated path of the other vehicle).

[0036] Next, in step S250, the signal state determination unit 104 constituting the vehicle driving control device 100 determines (confirms) whether the collision possibility determination result indicates a collision possibility. If the determination result indicates that there is no collision possibility (no collision possibility), this routine ends. On the other hand, if the determination result indicates that there is a collision possibility, the process proceeds to step S260.

[0037] In step S260, the signal state judgment unit 104 constituting the vehicle driving control device 100 executes a vehicle control judgment process, and calculates a display command value for notifying the driver of the risk of collision, a warning command value for notifying the driver of the risk of collision, and a braking command value for reducing collision damage or avoiding collision.

[0038] [Details of signal state judgment process] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a signal state determination process in a vehicle driving control device constituting the vehicle control system according to the embodiment 1. Fig. 4 shows an example of detecting current signal information (signal light color state) by a camera such as a stereo camera or a monocular camera constituting the signal information recognition unit 101. Specifically, it is a diagram for explaining the contents of the signal state determination process in the above-mentioned step S220 (see Fig. 3).

[0039] A feature of traffic light information is that the light color of a traffic light changes periodically. This period is not always constant, but changes depending on the traffic conditions and time of day at each intersection. Furthermore, when acquiring traffic light recognition information using an autonomous sensor mounted on a vehicle, such as a stereo camera or a monocular camera, it is not always possible to detect the correct light color, so it is desirable to determine the current traffic light state by taking into account information from the traffic light information recognition unit 101 within a predetermined period of time in the past.

[0040] The light color information of the signal detected by the signal information recognition unit 101 constituting the vehicle control system 1 described above is information that recognizes the light color of the signal at the current time t0. In the signal state determination process of step S220, first, a process is executed to store the light color information of the signal received from the signal information recognition unit 101 in a signal information storage array A(t). The signal information storage array A(t) is stored in a storage unit (not shown) in the vehicle's driving control device 100. The signal information received at the current time t0 is stored in A(t0). Before storing the current time information, the signal information at time t0-1 one startup cycle before the signal information recognition unit 101, i.e., the previous value, is shifted to A(t-1) and stored. Similarly, the signal information at time t0-2 two startup cycles before the signal information recognition unit 101 is stored in A(t-2). The startup cycle of the signal information recognition unit 101 will be described later. In addition, in this embodiment, for the sake of convenience, the handling of past signal information from the storage of the current signal information has been described. However, it should be noted that when generally implemented as an algorithm, a method is used in which past values ​​are shifted in order starting from the signal information on the A(tn) side.

[0041] Next, for the signal information stored in the signal information storage array A(t), a confirmation process is performed for the signal information confirmation count (m) from the signal information A(t0) received at the current time t0. A determination is made as to whether the signal information stored in the signal information storage array A(t) is a predetermined signal status (Tgt_Signal_Status), and if the stored signal information is equal to the predetermined signal status, the number of times this is the case is recorded in the signal information confirmation count (True_count).

[0042] Next, if the number of times the signal information is determined (True_count) is equal to or greater than a preset signal information determination threshold (True_Threshold), the result is determined as the signal state determination result at the current time t0. An example of the programming language is as shown in Table 1 below.

[0043] [Table 1]

[0044] In the example of Figure 4, traffic light information A(t0) received at the current time t0 is an "O" indicating a red light, traffic light information A(t-1) received at time t0-1, one startup cycle before the traffic light information recognition unit 101, is an "X" indicating that the light color state of the traffic light could not be determined for some reason, and traffic light information A(t-2) received at time t0-2, two startup cycles before the traffic light information recognition unit 101, is an "O" indicating a red light, all of which are stored in the traffic light information storage array A(t).

[0045] If the signal information confirmation count (m) is 3, the predetermined signal status (Tgt_Signal_Status) is a red signal "O", and the signal information confirmation judgment threshold (True_Threshold) is 2, the signal status (Signal_Status) is judged to be a red signal "O".

[0046] Furthermore, if the signal information confirmation count (m) is 3, the predetermined signal status (Tgt_Signal_Status) is red "O", and the signal information confirmation judgment threshold (True_Threshold) is 3, the signal status (Signal_Status) is judged to be indefinite "X". Note that in this embodiment, for the sake of simplicity, the signal status (Signal_Status) has been explained using symbols (O△□X), but it is more desirable to judge based on the relationship between predetermined signal status information and numbers. The signal information storage array A(t) may be set to a preset fixed array length, or the array length may be changed according to the vehicle speed.

[0047] In addition, the number of times of signal information confirmation (m) and the signal information determination threshold (True_Threshold) can be preset fixed values ​​or can be changed according to the vehicle speed. In particular, when the vehicle enters an intersection with a traffic light while the vehicle speed is high, if the number of times of signal information confirmation (m) and the signal information determination threshold (True_Threshold) are set high, it may be impossible to determine (judge) whether the signal is in a desired state due to the relationship between the maximum distance at which the camera can recognize the signal information and the signal information recognition processing period (the start-up period of the signal information recognition unit 101). In setting the parameters, the signal information recognition distance by the camera and the signal information recognition processing cycle (the activation cycle of the signal information recognition unit 101) are important. Assuming that the signal information recognition distance is about 100 m and the signal information recognition processing cycle (the activation cycle of the signal information recognition unit 101) is 100 ms, respectively, and assuming that the signal information judgment result is updated every time the vehicle 10 advances 10 m, it is desirable to set the signal information confirmation count (m) to 6 times and the signal information confirmation judgment threshold (True_Threshold) to about 3 times when the vehicle speed is 60 km / h or less. In this embodiment, the case where the signal information recognition processing cycle (the activation cycle of the signal information recognition unit 101) is set to 100 ms has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the signal information recognition processing cycle (the activation cycle of the signal information recognition unit 101) may be set to 50 ms, or any other desired cycle may be set as appropriate. If the traffic light information recognition processing cycle (activation cycle of the traffic light information recognition unit 101) is set to 50 ms, the number of traffic light information confirmations (m) can be set to 12 times when the vehicle speed is 60 km / h or less.

[0048] Furthermore, when the vehicle speed is 100 k / h or faster, it is desirable to set the signal information confirmation count (m) to three times and the signal information determination threshold (True_Threshold) to about two times. Here, the time is calculated by multiplying the signal information recognition processing cycle (the activation cycle of the signal information recognition unit 101) by the number of times the signal information is confirmed, and within this time, the signal state judgment processing can be executed the number of times the signal information is confirmed. In other words, the recognized signal information (signal recognition information) is acquired multiple times over a predetermined time period.

[0049] In this embodiment, the number of times that the information stored in the signal information storage array A(t) is equal to a predetermined signal state among the number of times that the signal information is confirmed (m), is recorded as the number of times that the signal information is confirmed (True_count) to judge whether or not the signal state is the predetermined state. However, in order to increase the reliability of the signal state judgment (determination), the judgment (determination) may be made based on whether or not the predetermined signal state is maintained consecutively.

[0050] In this embodiment, the array length of the signal information storage array A(t) is changed according to the vehicle speed. In other words, an example has been described in which the above-mentioned predetermined time and / or the number of times the recognized signal information (signal recognition information) is acquired is changed according to the vehicle speed, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a camera constituting the signal information recognition unit 101 captures images of road signs, stop lines, intersection shapes, etc., and recognizes these road signs, stop lines, and intersection shapes based on the captured images using known image processing. A configuration may be adopted in which the number of times the signal recognition information is acquired by the signal information recognition unit 101 and / or the predetermined time for acquisition by the signal information recognition unit 101 is changed according to the distance to the recognized road sign, stop line, and intersection (calculated based on the intersection shape).

[0051] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a vehicle driving control device, a vehicle control system, and a vehicle control method that can appropriately judge the signal state of a traffic light and, if there is a possibility of a collision with another object, take into account the signal information judgment results and appropriately decide to warn the driver of the vehicle and / or control the vehicle. EXAMPLES

[0052] 7 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a vehicle control system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The vehicle control system 1a according to this embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a signal cycle communication unit 701 and a signal cycle determination unit 720 are provided in a vehicle driving control device 700. The same components as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and the following description will be omitted if they overlap with the first embodiment.

[0053] [Overall configuration of vehicle control system] As shown in FIG. 7, the vehicle control system 1a according to this embodiment is composed of a signal cycle communication unit 701, a signal information recognition unit 101, an other object recognition unit 102, a host vehicle information recognition unit 103, a vehicle driving control device 700, a display unit 110, an alarm unit 111, and a braking unit 112.

[0054] The signal cycle communication unit 701 receives, within the vehicle, via communication, light color signal cycle information of the traffic light 31 transmitted from the traffic light 31 equipped with a communication function (not shown), and transmits the information to the vehicle's cruise control device 700. Specifically, a communication device such as V2X (Vehicle to Something) or C2X (Vehicle to Something) is suitable.

[0055] The signal cycle determination unit 720 constituting the vehicle driving control device 700 determines the contents of the light color signal cycle information of the traffic light 31 received from the signal cycle communication unit 701, and generates it as information (signal cycle information) in a format used by the signal state determination unit 730. The signal cycle determination unit 720 transmits the generated signal cycle information to the signal state determination unit 730. The signal state judgment unit 730 judges the contents of the signal cycle information (light color signal cycle information of the traffic light 31) received from the signal cycle judgment unit 720, and generates the information (signal state judgment result) in a format used by the signal state judgment unit 730. The signal state judgment unit 730 transmits the generated signal state judgment result to the collision judgment unit 107. Here, the signal cycle judgment unit 720, the signal state judgment unit 730, the object travel path estimating unit 105, the host vehicle travel path estimating unit 106, and the collision judgment unit 107 are realized by, for example, a processor such as a CPU (not shown), a ROM for storing various programs, a RAM for temporarily storing data in the calculation process, a storage device such as an external storage device, and the processor such as a CPU reads and executes the various programs stored in the ROM, and stores the calculation results, which are the execution results, in the RAM or the external storage device.

[0056] [Details of signal state judgment process] 8 is a diagram showing an example of a signal state determination process in a vehicle cruise control device constituting a vehicle control system according to Example 2. The feature of this example is that not only current signal information but also future signal information can be acquired from the signal cycle communication unit 701. The signal state determination unit 730 first executes a process of storing the signal cycle information received from the signal cycle communication unit 701 in a signal information storage array A(t). The signal information storage array A(t) is stored in a storage unit (not shown) in the vehicle's cruise control device 700. The signal information received at the current time t0 is stored in A(t0), and information of the time one activation cycle ahead of the signal information recognition unit 101 is stored in A(t+1). Similarly, the time two activation cycles ahead of the signal information recognition unit 101 is stored in A(t+2). Next, for the signal information stored in the signal information storage array A(t), a confirmation process is performed for the number of signal information confirmations (m') from A(t0), and whether the stored information is a predetermined signal state (Tgt_Signal_Status) is confirmed. If the stored information is equal to the predetermined signal state, the number of times (True_count') is recorded.

[0057] Next, if the number of times the signal information has been determined (True_count') is equal to or greater than a preset signal information determination threshold (True_Threshold'), this is determined to be the signal state judgment result at the current time t0. The signal information storage array A(t) may be set to a preset fixed array length, or the array length may be changed according to the vehicle speed. In this embodiment, the array length of the signal information storage array A(t) is changed according to the vehicle speed. In other words, an example in which the above-mentioned predetermined time and / or the number of times recognized signal information (signal recognition information) is acquired is changed according to the vehicle speed has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a camera constituting the signal information recognition unit 101 captures images of road signs, stop lines, intersection shapes, etc., and recognizes these road signs, stop lines, and intersection shapes by known image processing based on the captured images. After recognition, the number of times the signal recognition information is acquired by the signal information recognition unit 101 and / or the predetermined time for acquisition by the signal information recognition unit 101 may be changed according to the distance to the road sign, stop line, and intersection (calculated based on the intersection shape).

[0058] As described above, according to this embodiment, in addition to the effects of embodiment 1, future signal information can be obtained by receiving the light color signal cycle information of traffic light 31 transmitted from traffic light 31 within the vehicle via communication, which makes it possible to more appropriately determine the signal state of the traffic light compared to embodiment 1.

[0059] The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, but includes various modified examples. For example, the above-mentioned embodiment has been described in detail to easily explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those including all of the configurations described. In addition, it is possible to replace a part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, and it is also possible to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0060] 1,1a...vehicle control system, 10...own vehicle, 11...vehicle-mounted surroundings recognition sensor, 12...recognition range of vehicle-mounted surroundings recognition sensor, 20...other vehicles, 31...traffic lights, 100,700...vehicle driving control device, 101...signal information recognition unit, 102...other object recognition unit, 103...own vehicle information recognition unit, 104,730...signal state judgment unit, 105...other object path estimation unit, 106...own vehicle path estimation unit, 107...collision judgment unit, 110...display unit, 111...alarm unit, 112...braking unit, 701...signal cycle communication unit, 720...signal cycle judgment unit

Claims

1. a signal state determination unit that obtains the signal recognition information recognized by the signal information recognition unit a plurality of times over a predetermined period of time and determines the state of a signal based on the obtained signal recognition information; a collision determination unit that determines a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle based on information about the other vehicle around the host vehicle recognized by the other vehicle recognition unit, when it is determined that there is a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle, the collision determination unit issues a warning to a driver of the host vehicle and / or performs vehicle control of the host vehicle based on a signal state determination result of the signal state determination unit; the signal state determination unit determines the state of the signal based on the signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state when the number of acquisitions of signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state among the signal recognition information acquired multiple times over the predetermined time period is equal to or greater than a preset threshold value; the signal state determination unit further includes a signal cycle determination unit that receives signal cycle information representing a future signal state from a signal cycle communication unit, A vehicle driving control device characterized in that, when the number of times that signal cycle information representing a predetermined signal state is received is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, the state of the signal is determined based on the signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state.

2. The vehicle driving control device according to claim 1, The vehicle driving control device according to claim 1, wherein the signal state determination unit changes the number of times to obtain the signal recognition information and / or the predetermined time period depending on a vehicle speed of the host vehicle.

3. The vehicle driving control device according to claim 1, A vehicle driving control device characterized in that the signal state judgment unit changes the number of times the signal recognition information is acquired and / or the specified time depending on at least one of a road sign, a stop line, and a distance to an intersection, which are imaged by a camera possessed by the signal information recognition unit.

4. A signal information recognition unit that recognizes signal information; An other vehicle recognition unit that recognizes other vehicles around the host vehicle; a signal state determination unit that obtains the signal recognition information recognized by the signal information recognition unit a plurality of times over a predetermined time period and determines the state of the signal based on the obtained signal recognition information; a collision determination unit that determines a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle based on information about the other vehicle around the host vehicle recognized by the other vehicle recognition unit, when it is determined that there is a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle, the collision determination unit issues a warning to a driver of the host vehicle and / or performs vehicle control of the host vehicle based on a signal state determination result of the signal state determination unit; the signal state determination unit, when a number of acquisitions of signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state among the signal recognition information acquired a plurality of times over the predetermined time period is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, determines a state of the signal based on the signal recognition information representing the predetermined signal state; the signal state determination unit further includes a signal cycle determination unit that receives signal cycle information representing a future signal state from a signal cycle communication unit, A vehicle control system characterized in that, when the number of times that signal cycle information representing a predetermined signal state is received is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, the state of the signal is determined based on the signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state.

5. 5. The vehicle control system according to claim 4, A vehicle control system, wherein the signal state determination unit changes the number of times the signal recognition information is acquired and / or the predetermined time period depending on a vehicle speed of the host vehicle.

6. In the vehicle control system according to claim 4, A vehicle control system characterized in that the signal state judgment unit changes the number of times the signal recognition information is acquired and / or the specified time depending on at least one of a road sign, a stop line, and a distance to an intersection, which are imaged by a camera possessed by the signal information recognition unit.

7. The signal state determination unit obtains the signal recognition information recognized by the signal information recognition unit multiple times over a predetermined period of time, and determines the state of the signal based on the obtained signal recognition information, The collision determination unit determines a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and another vehicle based on information about the other vehicle around the host vehicle recognized by the other vehicle recognition unit; when it is determined that there is a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the other vehicle, the collision determination unit issues a warning to a driver of the host vehicle and / or performs vehicle control of the host vehicle based on a signal state determination result of the signal state determination unit; the signal state determination unit, when a number of acquisitions of signal recognition information representing a predetermined signal state among the signal recognition information acquired a plurality of times over the predetermined time period is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, determines a state of the signal based on the signal recognition information representing the predetermined signal state; The signal cycle determination unit receives signal cycle information indicating a future signal state from the signal cycle communication unit, A vehicle control method characterized in that, when the number of times that signal cycle information representing a predetermined signal state is received is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, the state of the signal is determined based on the signal cycle information representing the predetermined signal state.

8. The vehicle control method according to claim 7, The vehicle control method, wherein the signal state determination unit changes the number of times the signal recognition information is acquired and / or the predetermined time period depending on a vehicle speed of the host vehicle.

9. 8. The vehicle control method according to claim 7, A vehicle control method characterized in that the signal state judgment unit changes the number of times the signal recognition information is acquired and / or the specified time depending on at least one of a road sign, a stop line, and a distance to an intersection, which are imaged by a camera possessed by the signal information recognition unit.

Images