Driving control device, driving control method and program

Abstract

To early determine that it is not necessary to execute dead angle avoidance control.SOLUTION: A vehicle control device 12 comprises: an acquisition section 231 which acquires peripheral vehicle information and peripheral road environment information of an own vehicle 10; and a control section 232 including a function for executing dead angle avoidance control which causes the own vehicle to avoid travel in a dead angle area BA of an adjacent vehicle V1 traveling on a lane adjacent to the lane where the own vehicle is traveling on the basis of the peripheral vehicle information. In a case where the own vehicle is positioned inside of the dead angle area, a relative speed which is a value obtained by subtracting a speed of the own vehicle from a speed of the adjacent vehicle is greater than a first relative speed threshold, the relative speed is smaller than a second relative speed threshold and the lapse of time from a time when the own vehicle enters the dead angle area is equal to or more than a lapse time threshold, the control section executes the dead angle avoidance control. In a case where the own vehicle is not positioned in the dead angle area, the relative speed is equal to or smaller than the first relative speed threshold, the relative speed is equal to or more than the second relative speed threshold or the lapse of time is shorter than the lapse time threshold, the control section does not execute the dead angle avoidance control.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a driving control device, a driving control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a technology in which, when an object is continuously detected to the side of a vehicle while it is moving, it is assumed that the object is another vehicle traveling parallel to the vehicle and that the vehicle is highly likely to be continuously located within the blind spot of the driver of the other vehicle, and the vehicle speed is controlled so that the absolute value of the relative speed between the other vehicle and the vehicle is increased. In the technology described in Patent Document 1, when an adjacent vehicle (other vehicle) is detected to the front side of the vehicle, the time during which the adjacent vehicle is continuously detected is measured, and if this value exceeds a predetermined threshold, the target vehicle speed of the vehicle is changed to a value smaller than the standard vehicle speed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-237407 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] As described above, in the technology described in Patent Document 1, control to change the vehicle speed of the vehicle (blind spot avoidance control to cause the vehicle to avoid traveling in the blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle) is not performed until the time during which the adjacent vehicle is continuously detected exceeds a predetermined threshold. In other words, in the technology described in Patent Document 1, it is not possible to determine whether or not to perform blind spot avoidance control until the time during which the adjacent vehicle is continuously detected exceeds a predetermined threshold, and it is not possible to determine early on that there is no need to perform blind spot avoidance control. On the other hand, there are cases where it is required to determine early on that it is not necessary to execute blind spot avoidance control.

[0005] In consideration of the above-mentioned points, the present disclosure aims to provide a driving control device, a driving control method, and a program that can determine early on that there is no need to perform blind spot avoidance control to cause a vehicle to avoid driving in the blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] (1) One aspect of the present disclosure is a driving control device that includes an acquisition unit that acquires surrounding vehicle information and surrounding road environment information of a host vehicle, and a control unit that has a function of executing blind spot avoidance control to cause the host vehicle to avoid traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle traveling in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling based on the surrounding vehicle information, wherein the control unit executes the blind spot avoidance control when the host vehicle is located in the blind spot area, and a relative speed, which is a value obtained by subtracting the speed of the host vehicle from the speed of the adjacent vehicle, is greater than a first relative speed threshold and the relative speed is less than a second relative speed threshold, and the elapsed time from the time the host vehicle entered the blind spot area is equal to or greater than an elapsed time threshold, and does not execute the blind spot avoidance control when the host vehicle is not located in the blind spot area, the relative speed is equal to or less than the first relative speed threshold, the relative speed is equal to or greater than the second relative speed threshold, or the elapsed time is shorter than the elapsed time threshold.

[0007] (2) In the driving control device of (1), the control unit may include a judgment unit that judges whether or not to execute the blind spot avoidance control, and a vehicle operation amount calculation unit that has at least the function of calculating the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle for executing the blind spot avoidance control.

[0008] (3) In the driving control device of (1) or (2), the control unit may determine that the vehicle is located within the blind spot area when the front end of the vehicle is located within a determination area between a position that is a predetermined amount behind the rear end of the adjacent vehicle in the lane in which the vehicle is traveling and a position that is a predetermined amount forward of the rear end of the adjacent vehicle.

[0009] (4) In any of the driving control devices of (1) to (3), the surrounding vehicle information acquired by the acquisition unit includes data of an image of the front of the host vehicle captured by a forward camera provided on the host vehicle, and the control unit may determine that the host vehicle is not in the blind spot area when the image of the front of the host vehicle includes the adjacent vehicle, and may determine that the host vehicle is in the blind spot area when the image of the front of the host vehicle does not include the adjacent vehicle.

[0010] (5) One aspect of the present disclosure is a driving control method including: an acquisition step in which a driving control device acquires surrounding vehicle information and surrounding road environment information of the host vehicle; and a control step in which the driving control device executes blind spot avoidance control to cause the host vehicle to avoid driving in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle driving in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the host vehicle is driving, based on the surrounding vehicle information, wherein in the control step, the driving control device executes the blind spot avoidance control when the host vehicle is located in the blind spot area, and a relative speed, which is a value obtained by subtracting the speed of the host vehicle from the speed of the adjacent vehicle, is greater than a first relative speed threshold, and the relative speed is less than a second relative speed threshold, and the elapsed time from the time the host vehicle entered the blind spot area is equal to or greater than an elapsed time threshold; and the driving control device does not execute the blind spot avoidance control when the host vehicle is not located in the blind spot area, the relative speed is equal to or less than the first relative speed threshold, the relative speed is equal to or greater than the second relative speed threshold, or the elapsed time is shorter than the elapsed time threshold.

[0011] (6) One aspect of the present disclosure is a program for causing a processor to execute an acquisition step of acquiring surrounding vehicle information and surrounding road environment information of the host vehicle, and a control step including executing blind spot avoidance control to cause the host vehicle to avoid traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle traveling in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling based on the surrounding vehicle information, wherein in the control step, the blind spot avoidance control is executed when the host vehicle is located in the blind spot area, and a relative speed, which is a value obtained by subtracting the speed of the host vehicle from the speed of the adjacent vehicle, is greater than a first relative speed threshold, and the relative speed is less than a second relative speed threshold, and the elapsed time from the time the host vehicle entered the blind spot area is equal to or greater than an elapsed time threshold, and the blind spot avoidance control is not executed when the host vehicle is not located in the blind spot area, the relative speed is equal to or less than the first relative speed threshold, the relative speed is equal to or greater than the second relative speed threshold, or the elapsed time is shorter than the elapsed time threshold. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to determine early on that there is no need to execute blind spot avoidance control to cause the host vehicle to avoid traveling in the blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a host vehicle 10 to which a cruise control device 12 of a first embodiment is applied. [Diagram 2] 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of a determination area AR used for determining whether or not to execute blind spot avoidance control. FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example in which the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is located within a blind spot area BA of an adjacent vehicle V1. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing executed by the processor 23. [Diagram 5]FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example in which the control unit 232 of the cruise control device 12 of the second embodiment determines that the host vehicle 10 is located within a blind spot area BA of an adjacent vehicle V1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, embodiments of a driving control device, a driving control method, and a program according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0015] First Embodiment FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a host vehicle 10 to which a cruise control device 12 according to a first embodiment is applied.

[0016] In the example shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 10 includes a camera 2, a radar 3, a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) 4, and a cruise control device 12. The camera 2 captures images of surrounding vehicles (other vehicles present around the vehicle 10) and the road environment (e.g., road structure, rules, etc.) of the vehicle 10, generates image data showing the surrounding vehicles and the surrounding road environment, and transmits the image data to the cruise control device 12. The radar 3 is, for example, a millimeter wave radar, a 24 GHz narrow band radar, etc., and detects the relative positions and relative speeds of the surrounding vehicles and the surrounding road structure with respect to the vehicle 10, and transmits the detection results to the cruise control device 12. The LiDAR 4 detects the relative positions and relative speeds of the surrounding vehicles and the surrounding road structure with respect to the vehicle 10, and transmits the detection results to the cruise control device 12. In another example, the host vehicle 10 may be equipped with a sonar (not shown). In this example, the sonar detects the relative positions and relative speeds of surrounding vehicles and surrounding road structures with respect to the host vehicle 10, and transmits the detection results to the cruise control device 12.

[0017] In the example shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 10 includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) unit 5 and a map information unit 6. The GPS unit 5 acquires position information indicating the current position of the vehicle 10 based on a GPS signal, and transmits the position information of the vehicle 10 to the cruise control device 12. The map information unit 6 is formed in a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive) mounted on the vehicle 10. The map information held by the map information unit 6 includes various information such as road structure (road position, road shape, lane structure, etc.) and rules. The camera 2, the radar 3, the LiDAR 4, the GPS unit 5, the map information unit 6, and the cruise control device 12 are connected via an in-vehicle network 13.

[0018] The host vehicle 10 also includes a steering actuator 14, a braking actuator 15, and a drive actuator 16. The steering actuator 14 has a function of steering the host vehicle 10. The steering actuator 14 includes, for example, a power steering system, a steer-by-wire steering system, a rear wheel steering system, etc. The braking actuator 15 has a function of decelerating the host vehicle 10. The braking actuator 15 includes, for example, a hydraulic brake, a regenerative brake, etc. The drive actuator 16 has a function of accelerating the host vehicle 10. The drive actuator 16 includes, for example, an engine, an EV (electric vehicle) system, a hybrid system, a fuel cell system, etc.

[0019] In the example shown in Fig. 1, the driving control device 12 is configured by an automatic driving control ECU (Electronic Control Unit). The driving control device 12 (automatic driving control ECU) can control the host vehicle 10 at a driving control level of Level 3 defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), that is, a driving control level that does not require the driver to operate the steering actuator 14, the braking actuator 15, and the driving actuator 16, and does not require monitoring of the surroundings of the host vehicle 10. Furthermore, the driving control device 12 can control the host vehicle 10 at a driving control level where the driver is involved in driving the host vehicle 10, for example, a driving control level of Levels 0 to 2 defined by the SAE.

[0020] The driving control device 12 is configured by a microcomputer including a communication interface (I / F) 21, a memory 22, and a processor 23. The communication interface 21, the memory 22, and the processor 23 are connected via a signal line 24. The communication interface 21 has an interface circuit for connecting the driving control device 12 to the in-vehicle network 13. The memory 22 is an example of a storage unit, and has, for example, a volatile semiconductor memory and a non-volatile semiconductor memory. The memory 22 stores programs and various data used in the processing executed by the processor 23. The memory 22 also stores the detection results of surrounding vehicles (for example, adjacent vehicles traveling in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the host vehicle 10 is traveling) by the camera 2, the radar 3, the LiDAR 4, etc. The processor 23 has a function of executing blind spot avoidance control to cause the host vehicle 10 to avoid traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle (more specifically, a blind spot area of ​​the driver of the adjacent vehicle). 1, the driving control device 12 includes one processor 23, but in other examples, the driving control device 12 may include multiple processors. Also, in the example shown in Fig. 1, the driving control device 12 (automatic driving control ECU) is configured by one ECU, but in other examples, the driving control device 12 may be configured by multiple ECUs.

[0021] 1, the processor 23 includes an acquisition unit 231 and a control unit 232. The acquisition unit 231 includes a surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231A and a surrounding road environment information acquisition unit 231B.

[0022] The surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231A acquires surrounding vehicle information that is information indicating the position, speed, etc. of the surrounding vehicle of the vehicle 10. Specifically, the surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231A has a function of recognizing the position (specifically, the relative position of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the vehicle 10) and speed (specifically, the relative speed of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the vehicle 10) of the surrounding vehicle based on image data indicating the surrounding vehicle transmitted from the camera 2. In addition, the surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231A has a function of recognizing the position, speed, etc. of the surrounding vehicle based on the detection result of the relative position and relative speed of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the vehicle 10 transmitted from the radar 3. Furthermore, the surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231A has a function of recognizing the position, speed, etc. of the surrounding vehicle based on the detection result of the relative position and relative speed of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the vehicle 10 transmitted from the LiDAR 4. In another example, the surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231A may have a function of recognizing the position, speed, etc. of the surrounding vehicle based on the detection results of the relative position and relative speed of the surrounding vehicle with respect to the host vehicle 10 transmitted from a sonar.

[0023] 1, the surrounding road environment information acquisition unit 231B acquires surrounding road environment information which is information indicating the road structure, rules, etc., around the vehicle 10. Specifically, the surrounding road environment information acquisition unit 231B has a function of recognizing the road structure, rules, etc., around the vehicle 10 based on image data indicating the road environment (road structure, rules, etc.) around the vehicle 10 transmitted from the camera 2. In addition, the surrounding road environment information acquisition unit 231B has a function of recognizing the road structure, rules, etc., around the vehicle 10 based on map information transmitted from the map information unit 6.

[0024] That is, the acquisition unit 231 has a function of recognizing objects (surrounding vehicles, surrounding road environment) present around the vehicle 10. The object recognition may be performed based on information from any one of the camera 2, the radar, the LiDAR 4, the GPS unit 5, and the map information unit 6, or may be performed by sensor fusion combining some of them. In the object recognition, the type of the object, for example, whether the object is a moving object or a stationary object, is determined, and if it is a moving object, its position and speed are calculated. The position and speed of the moving object are calculated, for example, in a reference coordinate system in which the vehicle 10 is centered and the width direction of the vehicle 10 is the horizontal axis and the traveling direction is the vertical axis.

[0025] In the example shown in Fig. 1, the acquisition unit 231 has a surrounding vehicle detection function that detects a surrounding vehicle to be monitored from among objects recognized by the object recognition function. When an adjacent vehicle is traveling in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the vehicle 10 is traveling and the vehicle 10 is traveling in a blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle, the surrounding vehicle detection function detects the adjacent vehicle as a surrounding vehicle to be monitored. Specifically, when the vehicle 10 is traveling in the blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle for, for example, a predetermined time or more, the surrounding vehicle detection function detects the adjacent vehicle as a surrounding vehicle to be monitored. The control unit 232 executes control of the steering actuator 14, the braking actuator 15, the drive actuator 16, etc. based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit 231.

[0026] The control unit 232 has a function of executing blind spot avoidance control for preventing the host vehicle 10 from traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle, based on the surrounding vehicle information acquired by the surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231A.

[0027] The control unit 232 can execute blind spot avoidance control, such as control to decelerate the vehicle 10 by activating the brake actuator 15 and control to accelerate the vehicle 10 by activating the drive actuator 16, in order to prevent the vehicle 10 from traveling through the blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle that is a monitored surrounding vehicle. The control unit 232 includes a determination unit 232A and a vehicle operation amount calculation unit 232B. The determination unit 232A executes a determination as to whether or not to execute blind spot avoidance control for preventing the host vehicle 10 from traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle. The vehicle operation amount calculation unit 232B has a function of calculating the operation amounts of the steering actuator 14, the braking actuator 15, the drive actuator 16, etc. of the host vehicle 10. Specifically, the vehicle operation amount calculation unit 232B has at least a function of calculating the acceleration / deceleration of the host vehicle 10 for executing blind spot avoidance control. In other words, when the determination unit 232A determines that blind spot avoidance control is to be executed, the vehicle operation amount calculation unit 232B calculates the acceleration / deceleration of the host vehicle 10 for executing blind spot avoidance control.

[0028] Fig. 2 is a diagram for explaining an example of a determination area AR used to determine whether or not to execute blind spot avoidance control. In detail, Fig. 2 shows a determination area AR used to determine whether or not the host vehicle 10 is located within a blind spot area BA (see Fig. 3) of an adjacent vehicle V1. 2, a judgment area AR is set between a judgment area rear end ARR, which is a position behind the rear end V1R of the adjacent vehicle V1 by a predetermined amount DR (e.g., 2 m) (left side in FIG. 2) in the lane in which the host vehicle 10 is traveling, and a judgment area front end ARF, which is a position ahead of the rear end V1R of the adjacent vehicle V1 by a predetermined amount DF (e.g., 2 m) (right side in FIG. 2). When the front end 10F of the host vehicle 10 (more specifically, the front end center 10FC of the host vehicle 10) is located within the judgment area AR, the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is located within the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1.

[0029] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example in which the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. In detail, Fig. 3(A) shows one example in which the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1, and Fig. 3(B) shows another example in which the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. In the example shown in Fig. 3(A), the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 because the front end center 10FC of the host vehicle 10 is located within the judgment area AR (see Fig. 2). In detail, in the example shown in Fig. 3(A), the front end center 10FC of the host vehicle 10 is located on the judgment area rear end ARR (see Fig. 2), so the right rear end 10RR of the host vehicle 10 is located on the blind spot area rear end BAR of the adjacent vehicle V1. In the example shown in Fig. 3(B), the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 because the front end center 10FC of the host vehicle 10 is located within the judgment area AR. In detail, in the example shown in Fig. 3(B), the front end center 10FC of the host vehicle 10 is located on the judgment area front end ARF (see Fig. 2), so the left front end 10FL of the host vehicle 10 is located on the blind spot area front end BAF of the adjacent vehicle V1.

[0030] In the example shown in FIG. 1, the conditions set for the control unit 232 to execute blind spot avoidance control to cause the host vehicle 10 to avoid traveling through the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 are that the host vehicle 10 is located within the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 (first condition), that the relative speed, which is the speed of the adjacent vehicle V1 minus the speed of the host vehicle 10, is greater than a first relative speed threshold (e.g., a negative value such as -2 km / h) (second condition), that the relative speed is less than a second relative speed threshold (e.g., a positive value such as 2 km / h) (third condition), and that the elapsed time from the time the host vehicle 10 entered the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 is greater than or equal to an elapsed time threshold (e.g., 7 seconds) (fourth condition). When the first condition is satisfied, the second condition is satisfied, the third condition is satisfied, and the fourth condition is satisfied, the control unit 232 executes blind spot avoidance control to prevent the host vehicle 10 from traveling through the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1.

[0031] On the other hand, if the first condition is not satisfied (if the host vehicle 10 is not located within the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1), the control unit 232 does not execute the blind spot avoidance control. In addition, the control unit 232 does not execute the blind spot avoidance control when the second condition is not satisfied (when the relative speed, which is the value obtained by subtracting the speed of the host vehicle 10 from the speed of the adjacent vehicle V1, is equal to or less than the first relative speed threshold, i.e., when the host vehicle 10 is overtaking the adjacent vehicle V1). This is because, if, for example, control to decelerate the host vehicle 10 is executed as the blind spot avoidance control while the host vehicle 10 is overtaking the adjacent vehicle V1, the host vehicle 10 may be prevented from overtaking the adjacent vehicle V1, and the driver of the host vehicle 10 may feel uncomfortable. In addition, if, for example, control to decelerate the host vehicle 10 is executed as the blind spot avoidance control while the host vehicle 10 is overtaking the adjacent vehicle V1, the time during which the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 becomes longer than when the blind spot avoidance control is not executed. Furthermore, the control unit 232 also does not execute the blind spot avoidance control when the third condition is not satisfied (when the relative speed, which is the value obtained by subtracting the speed of the host vehicle 10 from the speed of the adjacent vehicle V1, is equal to or greater than the second relative speed threshold, i.e., when the adjacent vehicle V1 is overtaking the host vehicle 10). This is because if a control is executed as the blind spot avoidance control while the adjacent vehicle V1 is overtaking the host vehicle 10, for example, by decelerating the host vehicle 10 and then accelerating the host vehicle 10 to return the vehicle speed of the host vehicle 10 to the original vehicle speed, the driver of the host vehicle 10 may feel uncomfortable (for example, feel that unnecessary control is being executed). Furthermore, the control unit 232 also does not execute the blind spot avoidance control when the fourth condition is not satisfied (when the elapsed time from the time when the host vehicle 10 entered the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 is shorter than the elapsed time threshold). This is because it is considered that the driver of the host vehicle 10 does not feel a sense of oppression when the elapsed time from the time when the host vehicle 10 entered the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 is shorter than the elapsed time threshold. In other words, when the fourth condition is not satisfied, this corresponds to the case where the host vehicle 10 moves out of the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 before the driver of the host vehicle 10 feels a sense of oppression.

[0032] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process executed by the processor 23. In the example shown in FIG. 4, in step S11, the acquisition unit 231 acquires surrounding vehicle information and surrounding road environment information of the host vehicle 10. In step S12, the control unit 232 determines whether the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. If the result is YES, the process proceeds to step S13, and if the result is NO, the control unit 232 determines that it is not necessary to execute blind spot avoidance control for preventing the host vehicle 10 from traveling in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1, and ends the process shown in FIG. In step S13, the control unit 232 determines whether the relative speed, which is the value obtained by subtracting the speed of the host vehicle 10 from the speed of the adjacent vehicle V1, is greater than a first relative speed threshold value. If YES, the process proceeds to step S14, and if NO, the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is overtaking the adjacent vehicle V1 and that there is no need to execute blind spot avoidance control, and ends the process shown in FIG. In step S14, the control unit 232 determines whether the relative speed is smaller than the second relative speed threshold value. If the result is YES, the process proceeds to step S15. If the result is NO, the control unit 232 determines that the adjacent vehicle V1 is overtaking the host vehicle 10 and that it is not necessary to execute blind spot avoidance control, and ends the process shown in FIG. In step S15, the control unit 232 determines whether the time elapsed since the vehicle 10 entered the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 is equal to or greater than the elapsed time threshold. If YES, the process proceeds to step S16, and if NO, the control unit 232 determines that it is not necessary to execute blind spot avoidance control, and ends the process shown in FIG. In step S16, the control unit 232 executes blind spot avoidance control to prevent the host vehicle 10 from traveling through the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1.

[0033] As described above, in the host vehicle 10 to which the driving control device 12 of the first embodiment is applied, the control unit 232 executes blind spot avoidance control, thereby preventing the host vehicle 10 from continuing to travel through the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1, thereby reducing the risk of the driver of the host vehicle 10 feeling a sense of pressure. In detail, in the host vehicle 10 to which the cruise control device 12 of the first embodiment is applied, while the host vehicle 10 is overtaking the adjacent vehicle V1, the control unit 232 determines that it is not necessary to execute the blind spot avoidance control before the elapsed time from the time when the host vehicle 10 entered the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 becomes equal to or greater than the elapsed time threshold. Also, while the adjacent vehicle V1 is overtaking the host vehicle 10, the control unit 232 determines that it is not necessary to execute the blind spot avoidance control before the elapsed time from the time when the host vehicle 10 entered the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 becomes equal to or greater than the elapsed time threshold. In other words, in the host vehicle 10 to which the cruise control device 12 of the first embodiment is applied, it can be determined early on that it is not necessary to execute the blind spot avoidance control.

[0034] <Second embodiment> The host vehicle 10 to which the cruise control device 12 of the second embodiment is applied is configured similarly to the host vehicle 10 to which the cruise control device 12 of the first embodiment described above is applied, except for the points described below.

[0035] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing an example in which the control unit 232 of the driving control device 12 of the second embodiment determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. In detail, FIG. 5A shows an example in which the right rear end 10RR of the host vehicle 10 is located on the rear end BAR of the blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle V1, and the control unit 232 of the driving control device 12 of the second embodiment determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. FIG. 5B shows an example in which the left front end 10FL of the host vehicle 10 is located on the front end BAF of the blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle V1, and the control unit 232 of the driving control device 12 of the second embodiment determines that the host vehicle 10 is located in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1.

[0036] 5, the cameras 2 equipped on the host vehicle 10 include a front camera 2F. The front camera 2F captures an image of the area ahead of the host vehicle 10 and transmits the image data to the driving control device 12. The acquisition unit 231 of the driving control device 12 acquires, as surrounding vehicle information, data of the image of the area ahead of the host vehicle 10 captured by the front camera 2F. In the example shown in Figure 5, when an adjacent vehicle V1 is included in the image in front of the vehicle 10 captured by the forward camera 2F, that is, when at least a portion of the adjacent vehicle V1 is included within the angle of view AOV of the forward camera 2F, the angle of view AOV of the forward camera 2F is set so that the vehicle 10 is located outside the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. Therefore, in the example shown in Figure 5, when an adjacent vehicle V1 is included in the image in front of the vehicle 10 captured by the forward camera 2F, the control unit 232 determines that the vehicle 10 is not within the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 5(A), when the host vehicle 10 approaches the adjacent vehicle V1 (i.e., the distance between the front end 10F of the host vehicle 10 and the rear end V1R of the adjacent vehicle V1 decreases), the adjacent vehicle V1 is no longer included in the image in front of the host vehicle 10 captured by the forward camera 2F (i.e., the adjacent vehicle V1 is no longer included within the angle of view AOV of the forward camera 2F). Using this property, the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 when the adjacent vehicle V1 is not included in the image in front of the host vehicle 10 captured by the front camera 2F. In detail, the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 when the image in front of the host vehicle 10 captured by the front camera 2F transitions from a state in which the adjacent vehicle V1 is included in the image in front of the host vehicle 10 to a state in which the adjacent vehicle V1 is not included in the image in front of the host vehicle 10.

[0038] When the host vehicle 10 approaches the adjacent vehicle V1 from the state shown in Fig. 5(A), the state shown in Fig. 5(B) is reached. Even in the state shown in Fig. 5(B), the adjacent vehicle V1 is not included in the image in front of the host vehicle 10 captured by the front camera 2F (i.e., the adjacent vehicle V1 is not included in the angle of view AOV of the front camera 2F). Therefore, the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is in the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. After the host vehicle 10 has overtaken the adjacent vehicle V1, the host vehicle 10 is again positioned outside the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1. In the host vehicle 10 to which the cruise control device 12 of the second embodiment is applied, the control unit 232 determines that the host vehicle 10 is not positioned within the blind spot area BA of the adjacent vehicle V1 after the host vehicle 10 has overtaken the adjacent vehicle V1, based on the surrounding vehicle information obtained from the cameras 2, the radar 3, and the LiDAR 4 other than the front camera 2F.

[0039] As described above, the embodiments of the cruise control device, the cruise control method, and the program of the present disclosure have been described with reference to the drawings, but the cruise control device, the cruise control method, and the program of the present disclosure are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and may be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. The configurations of the examples of the above-described embodiments may be combined as appropriate. In each of the above-described embodiments, the processing performed in the driving control device 12 (autonomous driving control ECU) has been described as software processing performed by executing a program, but the processing performed in the driving control device 12 may be processing performed by hardware. Alternatively, the processing performed in the driving control device 12 may be processing that combines both software and hardware. In addition, the program stored in the memory 22 of the driving control device 12 (a program that realizes the functions of the processor 23 of the driving control device 12) may be recorded in a computer-readable storage medium such as a semiconductor memory, a magnetic recording medium, an optical recording medium, or the like, and provided, distributed, or the like. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 2 Camera 2F Front Camera 3. Radar 4. LiDAR 5 GPS unit 6 Map Information Unit 10 Vehicle 12 Driving control device 14 Steering actuator 15 Braking Actuator 16 Drive Actuator 21 Communication Interface 22 Memory 23 Processors 231 Acquisition Department 231A Surrounding vehicle information acquisition unit 231B Surrounding Road Environment Information Acquisition Department 232 Control section 232A Judgment section 232B Vehicle operation amount calculation unit

Claims

1. An acquisition unit that acquires surrounding vehicle information and surrounding road environment information of the host vehicle; a control unit having a function of executing blind spot avoidance control for causing the host vehicle to avoid traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle traveling in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, based on the surrounding vehicle information; The control unit is executes the blind spot avoidance control when the host vehicle is located within the blind spot area, and a relative speed, which is a value obtained by subtracting a speed of the host vehicle from a speed of the adjacent vehicle, is greater than a first relative speed threshold, and the relative speed is smaller than a second relative speed threshold, and an elapsed time from a time when the host vehicle entered the blind spot area is equal to or greater than an elapsed time threshold; When the host vehicle is not located in the blind spot area, when the relative speed is equal to or less than the first relative speed threshold, when the relative speed is equal to or more than the second relative speed threshold, or when the elapsed time is shorter than the elapsed time threshold, the blind spot avoidance control is not executed, The surrounding vehicle information acquired by the acquisition unit includes data of an image of a front area of ​​the host vehicle captured by a front camera provided on the host vehicle, the angle of view of the front camera is set so that the host vehicle is positioned outside the blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle when at least a part of the adjacent vehicle is included in the angle of view of the front camera, The control unit is When the adjacent vehicle is included in an image in front of the host vehicle, it is determined that the host vehicle is not in the blind spot area; A driving control device determines that the host vehicle has entered the blind spot area when a state transition occurs from one in which the adjacent vehicle is included in an image in front of the host vehicle to one in which the adjacent vehicle is not included in the image in front of the host vehicle.

2. The control unit is a determination unit that determines whether or not to execute the blind spot avoidance control; The driving control device according to claim 1 , further comprising: a vehicle operation amount calculation unit having at least a function of calculating an acceleration / deceleration of the host vehicle for executing the blind spot avoidance control.

3. An acquisition step in which the driving control device acquires surrounding vehicle information and surrounding road environment information of the host vehicle; a control step including: the driving control device executing blind spot avoidance control for causing the host vehicle to avoid traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle traveling in a lane adjacent to a lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, based on the surrounding vehicle information, In the control step, When the host vehicle is located within the blind spot area, and a relative speed obtained by subtracting the speed of the host vehicle from the speed of the adjacent vehicle is greater than a first relative speed threshold, and the relative speed is smaller than a second relative speed threshold, and an elapsed time from a time when the host vehicle entered the blind spot area is equal to or greater than an elapsed time threshold, the driving control device executes the blind spot avoidance control, When the host vehicle is not located in the blind spot area, when the relative speed is equal to or less than the first relative speed threshold, when the relative speed is equal to or more than the second relative speed threshold, or when the elapsed time is shorter than the elapsed time threshold, the driving control device does not execute the blind spot avoidance control, The surrounding vehicle information acquired in the acquisition step includes data of an image of a front area of ​​the host vehicle captured by a front camera provided in the host vehicle, the angle of view of the front camera is set so that the host vehicle is positioned outside the blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle when at least a part of the adjacent vehicle is included in the angle of view of the front camera, In the control step, When the adjacent vehicle is included in the image ahead of the host vehicle, it is determined that the host vehicle is not within the blind spot area; A driving control method in which the host vehicle is determined to have entered the blind spot area when a state transition occurs from one in which the adjacent vehicle is included in an image in front of the host vehicle to one in which the adjacent vehicle is not included in the image in front of the host vehicle.

4. A processor comprising: An acquisition step of acquiring surrounding vehicle information and surrounding road environment information of the host vehicle; a control step including executing a blind spot avoidance control for causing the host vehicle to avoid traveling in a blind spot area of ​​an adjacent vehicle traveling in a lane adjacent to the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, based on the surrounding vehicle information, In the control step, the blind spot avoidance control is executed when the host vehicle is located within the blind spot area, and a relative speed, which is a value obtained by subtracting a speed of the host vehicle from a speed of the adjacent vehicle, is greater than a first relative speed threshold, and the relative speed is smaller than a second relative speed threshold, and an elapsed time from a time when the host vehicle entered the blind spot area is equal to or greater than an elapsed time threshold, When the host vehicle is not located in the blind spot area, when the relative speed is equal to or less than the first relative speed threshold, when the relative speed is equal to or more than the second relative speed threshold, or when the elapsed time is shorter than the elapsed time threshold, the blind spot avoidance control is not executed, The surrounding vehicle information acquired in the acquisition step includes data of an image of a front area of ​​the host vehicle captured by a front camera provided in the host vehicle, the angle of view of the front camera is set so that the host vehicle is positioned outside the blind spot area of ​​the adjacent vehicle when at least a part of the adjacent vehicle is included in the angle of view of the front camera, In the control step, When the adjacent vehicle is included in the image ahead of the host vehicle, it is determined that the host vehicle is not within the blind spot area; A program that determines that the host vehicle has entered the blind spot area when a state transition occurs from one in which the adjacent vehicle is included in an image ahead of the host vehicle to one in which the adjacent vehicle is not included in the image ahead of the host vehicle.

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