Trajectory information collection device, trajectory information collection method, and computer program for collecting trajectory information

Abstract

To provide a locus information collecting device capable of collecting information about a vehicle-traveling locus that becomes an abnormal locus.SOLUTION: A locus information collecting device comprises: a determination part 43 for determining whether or not a traveling locus when a vehicle 2 travels in a predetermined section is included in a standard travel range; a locus information producing part 44 for producing locus information by including coordinates of each of positions on the traveling locus when the traveling locus is included in the standard travel range, and for producing the locus information by including operation amount information indicating an operation amount of the vehicle 2 by a driver at the coordinates of each of the positions on the traveling locus and in the predetermined section, in the locus information when the traveling locus falls outside the standard travel range; and a communication processing part 45 for transmitting the produced locus information to a server 4 via a communication device 23 installed in the vehicle 2.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a locus information collection device, a locus information collection method, and a computer program for collecting locus information that collects information representing the locus traveled by a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] A technology has been proposed to generate data indicating the range within which a vehicle can travel on each road section as one of the pieces of information to be included in a high-precision map that an autonomous driving system references to control the autonomous driving of a vehicle (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] The map data generating device disclosed in Patent Document 1 statistically processes cross-lane travel trajectory data from the start section of the first lane to the end section of the second lane. Then, this map data generating device generates drivable range data that indicates the drivable range when the vehicle actually travels using the autonomous driving function or driving assistance function, after excluding cross-lane travel trajectory data that falls outside a predetermined range. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-101745 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The actual travel path of a vehicle is affected by the surrounding conditions. Therefore, in some cases, the travel path of a vehicle may become an abnormal path such as deviating from the lane in which the vehicle is traveling. It is desirable to be able to collect such abnormal travel path separately from normal travel path.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a trajectory information collection device capable of collecting information on the travel trajectory of a vehicle that results in an abnormal trajectory. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] According to one embodiment, there is provided a reference information collection device including: a determination unit that determines whether a driving locus when a vehicle travels a predetermined section is within a predetermined standard driving range; a trajectory information generation unit that generates trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the driving locus in the trajectory information if the driving locus is within the standard driving range; and a communication processing unit that transmits the generated trajectory information to a server via a communication device mounted on the vehicle.

[0008] The trajectory information collection device preferably further includes a storage unit that stores information representing a reference travel trajectory for a predetermined section. The determination unit preferably determines that the travel trajectory deviates from the standard travel range when the amount of deviation between the travel trajectory and the reference travel trajectory at any position on the travel trajectory is greater than a predetermined allowable distance corresponding to the standard travel range.

[0009] Alternatively, the trajectory information collection device preferably further includes a detection unit that detects lane markings that define the lanes on which the vehicle has traveled in a predetermined section from images acquired by a camera mounted on the vehicle.The determination unit preferably sets the standard driving range based on the detected lane markings.

[0010] Alternatively, it is preferable that the trajectory information collection device further includes a vehicle detection unit that detects other vehicles traveling around the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling in a predetermined section from a sensor signal indicating the situation around the vehicle obtained by a sensor mounted on the vehicle, and estimates the relative positional relationship of the detected other vehicles with respect to the vehicle. Furthermore, it is preferable that, when the traveling trajectory deviates from the standard traveling range, the trajectory information generation unit includes, in the trajectory information, relative positional information indicating the relative positional relationship of the detected other vehicles with respect to the vehicle at any position on the traveling trajectory.

[0011] According to another embodiment, there is provided a trajectory information collection method, which includes determining whether a driving trajectory when a vehicle travels a predetermined section is within a predetermined standard driving range, generating trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the driving trajectory in the trajectory information if the driving trajectory is within the standard driving range, generating trajectory information by including, in the trajectory information, coordinates of individual positions on the driving trajectory and operation amount information representing an operation amount of the vehicle by a driver in the predetermined section if the driving trajectory is outside the standard driving range, and transmitting the generated trajectory information to a server via a communication device mounted on the vehicle.

[0012] According to yet another embodiment, there is provided a computer program for collecting trajectory information, the computer program including instructions for causing a computer to execute the following: determine whether a driving trajectory when a vehicle travels a predetermined section is within a predetermined standard driving range; if the driving trajectory is within the standard driving range, generate trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the driving trajectory in the trajectory information; if the driving trajectory is outside the standard driving range, generate trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the driving trajectory and operation amount information representing an operation amount of the vehicle by a driver in the predetermined section in the trajectory information; and transmit the generated trajectory information to a server via a communication device mounted on the vehicle. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] The trajectory information collection device according to the present disclosure has an effect of being able to collect information on the traveling trajectory of a vehicle that becomes an abnormal trajectory. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a trajectory information collection system in which a trajectory information collection device is implemented. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a vehicle. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a hardware configuration diagram of a trajectory information collection device according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a processor of the trajectory information collection device. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing examples of collected travel trajectories. [Figure 6] 10 is an operational flowchart of a trajectory information collection process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] Hereinafter, a trajectory information collection device, a trajectory information collection method executed by the trajectory information collection device, and a trajectory information collection computer program executed by the trajectory information collection device will be described with reference to the drawings. The trajectory information collection device is mounted on a vehicle and generates trajectory information representing the vehicle's travel trajectory when the vehicle travels a predetermined section, and uploads the trajectory information to a server. In particular, the trajectory information collection device determines whether the travel trajectory when the vehicle travels a predetermined section is within a predetermined standard travel range. If the travel trajectory is within the standard travel range, the trajectory information collection device generates the trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the travel trajectory. On the other hand, if the travel trajectory is outside the standard travel range, the trajectory information collection device generates the trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the travel trajectory and operation amount information representing the amount of vehicle operation by the driver within the predetermined section.

[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a trajectory information collection system in which a trajectory information collection device is implemented. In this embodiment, the trajectory information collection system 1 has a trajectory information collection device 3 mounted on at least one vehicle 2, and a server 4. The trajectory information collection device 3 is connected to the server 4 via the wireless base station 6 and the communication network 5 by, for example, accessing a wireless base station 6 connected to a communication network 5 to which the server 4 is connected via a gateway (not shown). Note that while FIG. 1 shows only one vehicle 2, the trajectory information collection system 1 may have a plurality of vehicles 2 mounted with the trajectory information collection device 3. Similarly, a plurality of wireless base stations 6 may be connected to the communication network 5.

[0017] The following describes the vehicle 2 and the trajectory information collection device 3. As described above, the trajectory information collection system 1 may include multiple vehicles 2 equipped with trajectory information collection devices 3, but with regard to the trajectory information collection process, each vehicle 2 and each trajectory information collection device 3 only needs to have the same configuration and execute the same process. Therefore, the following describes one vehicle 2 and one trajectory information collection device 3.

[0018] 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of vehicle 2. Vehicle 2 has a camera 21 for capturing images of the surroundings of vehicle 2, a GPS receiver 22, a wireless communication terminal 23, a vehicle control unit (ECU) 24, and a trajectory information collection device 3. Camera 21, GPS receiver 22, wireless communication terminal 23, ECU 24, and trajectory information collection device 3 are communicably connected via an in-vehicle network conforming to a standard such as a controller area network. Vehicle 2 may further have a ranging sensor (not shown), such as a LiDAR sensor, for measuring distances to objects around vehicle 2.

[0019] The camera 21 is an example of a sensor that detects the situation around the vehicle 2, and includes a two-dimensional detector configured with an array of photoelectric conversion elements, such as a CCD or C-MOS, that are sensitive to visible light, and an imaging optical system that forms an image of the area to be photographed on the two-dimensional detector. The camera 21 is mounted, for example, inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle 2 so as to face forward of the vehicle 2. The camera 21 photographs the area ahead of the vehicle 2 at predetermined photographing intervals (for example, 1 / 30 to 1 / 10 seconds) and generates an image of the area ahead. The image obtained by the camera 21 is an example of a sensor signal that represents the situation around the vehicle 2, and may be a color image or a gray image. Note that the vehicle 2 may be provided with multiple cameras 21 with different photographing directions or focal lengths.

[0020] Every time the camera 21 generates an image, it outputs the generated image together with the time of generation to the trajectory information collection device 3 via the in-vehicle network.

[0021] The GPS receiver 22 receives GPS signals from GPS satellites at predetermined intervals and determines the own position of the vehicle 2 based on the received GPS signals. Then, the GPS receiver 22 outputs positioning information representing the positioning result of the own position of the vehicle 2 based on the GPS signals, together with the time of generation thereof, to the trajectory information collection device 3 via the in-vehicle network at predetermined intervals. Note that the vehicle 2 may have a receiver that complies with a satellite positioning system other than the GPS receiver 22. In this case, it is sufficient that the receiver determines the own position of the vehicle 2.

[0022] The wireless communication terminal 23 is an example of a communication device, and is a device that executes wireless communication processing in accordance with a predetermined wireless communication standard. For example, by accessing the wireless base station 6, the wireless communication terminal 23 is connected to the server 4 via the wireless base station 6 and the communication network 5. That is, a communication line is established between the wireless communication terminal 23 and the server 4 via the wireless base station 6 and the communication network 5. The wireless communication terminal 23 then receives a downlink wireless signal from the server 4, the downlink wireless signal including information indicating a collection target area including a section from which trajectory information is to be collected, and outputs the received information to the trajectory information collection device 3. The wireless communication terminal 23 also generates an uplink wireless signal including the trajectory information received from the trajectory information collection device 3. The wireless communication terminal 23 then transmits the uplink wireless signal to the wireless base station 6, thereby transmitting the trajectory information to the server 4.

[0023] The ECU 24 controls each part of the vehicle 2 in accordance with operations by the driver. Furthermore, the ECU 24 outputs operation amount information, which indicates the amount of operation of the vehicle 2 by the driver, to the trajectory information collection device 3 at predetermined intervals. The operation amount information includes at least one of the steering angle, accelerator opening, and brake operation amount, and the time at which the driver's operation amount indicated in the operation amount information was detected.

[0024] 3 is a hardware configuration diagram of the trajectory information collection device 3. The trajectory information collection device 3 generates trajectory information representing the travel trajectory of the vehicle 2 when it travels a predetermined section, and transmits the generated trajectory information to the server 4 via the wireless communication terminal 23. To this end, the trajectory information collection device 3 has a communication interface 31, a memory 32, and a processor 33.

[0025] The communication interface 31 is an example of an in-vehicle communication unit and includes an interface circuit for connecting the trajectory information collection device 3 to an in-vehicle network. That is, the communication interface 31 is connected to the camera 21, the GPS receiver 22, the wireless communication terminal 23, and the ECU 24 via the in-vehicle network. The communication interface 31 passes the received image to the processor 33 every time it receives an image from the camera 21. The communication interface 31 also passes the received positioning information to the processor 33 every time it receives positioning information from the GPS receiver 22. The communication interface 31 also passes the information to the processor 33 every time it receives information from the server 4, such as information indicating a collection target area, from the wireless communication terminal 23. The communication interface 31 also passes the operation amount information to the processor 33 every time it receives operation amount information from the ECU 24. The communication interface 31 also outputs the trajectory information and the like received from the processor 33 to the wireless communication terminal 23 via the in-vehicle network.

[0026] The memory 32 is an example of a storage unit and includes, for example, a volatile semiconductor memory and a nonvolatile semiconductor memory. The memory 32 may further include other storage devices such as a hard disk drive. The memory 32 stores various data used in processing related to trajectory information collection executed by the processor 33 of the trajectory information collection device 3. For example, the memory 32 stores identification information of the vehicle 2, camera 21 parameters such as the focal length, shooting direction, and installation position of the camera 21, and various parameters for identifying a classifier for detecting detection targets such as lane markings and other vehicles from images received from the camera 21. The memory 32 also temporarily stores images received from the camera 21, positioning information received from the GPS receiver 22, operation amount information received from the ECU 24, and the times at which these were generated. The memory 32 also stores information representing a collection target area. The information representing the collection target area includes information indicating the position and range of a specified section (e.g., coordinates of each endpoint of the specified section). Furthermore, the memory 32 may store a high-precision map representing features, such as lane markings, used to detect the position of the vehicle 2. Furthermore, the memory 32 may store information representing a reference driving trajectory and information representing a standard driving range. Furthermore, the memory 32 may store computer programs for implementing each process executed by the processor 33.

[0027] The processor 33 has one or more central processing units (CPUs) and their peripheral circuits. The processor 33 may further have other arithmetic circuits such as a logic operation unit, a numerical operation unit, or a graphics processing unit. The processor 33 executes trajectory information collection processing while the vehicle 2 is traveling. Each time the processor 33 receives an image from the camera 21, it stores the image in the memory 32 together with the time of its generation. Each time the processor 33 receives positioning information from the GPS receiver 22, it stores the positioning information in the memory 32 together with the time of its generation. Furthermore, each time the processor 33 receives operation amount information from the ECU 24, it stores the operation amount information in the memory 32.

[0028] 4 is a functional block diagram of the processor 33 of the trajectory information collection device 3. The processor 33 has a detection unit 41, a vehicle detection unit 42, a determination unit 43, a trajectory information generation unit 44, and a communication processing unit 45. Each of these units in the processor 33 is, for example, a functional module realized by a computer program running on the processor 33. Alternatively, each of these units in the processor 33 may be a dedicated arithmetic circuit provided in the processor 33.

[0029] The processor 33 determines whether the vehicle 2 has entered a predetermined section. When the vehicle 2 enters the predetermined section, the processor 33 executes a trajectory information collection process. The predetermined section may be a road section included in the collection target area. The predetermined section may be, for example, a section including a curve section, an intersection, a junction, or a branch point. However, the predetermined section is not limited to these sections and may be a simple straight section.

[0030] The processor 33 determines whether the current position of the vehicle 2 indicated by the latest positioning information is included in a predetermined section indicated by the information representing the collection target area. If the current position of the vehicle 2 is included in the range of the predetermined section included in the information representing the collection target area, the processor 33 determines that the vehicle 2 has entered the predetermined section and executes a trajectory information collection process.

[0031] The detection unit 41 detects lane markings that define the lane on which the vehicle 2 has traveled in a predetermined section (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as the vehicle's own lane). To this end, when the vehicle 2 enters the predetermined section, the detection unit 41 detects the lane markings by inputting the latest image acquired by the camera 21 at predetermined intervals into a classifier that has been trained in advance to detect lane markings. The detection unit 41 then determines the lane markings detected at positions closest to the vehicle 2 within the areas on the image that correspond to the left and right sides of the vehicle 2 as the lane markings that define the vehicle's own lane.

[0032] Furthermore, the detection unit 41 may input the image to the classifier described above to detect predetermined features other than lane markings from the image. The detected predetermined features are used to accurately detect the position of the vehicle 2. The predetermined features include, for example, at least one of road markings other than lane markings, such as curbs, guardrails, road signs, and stop lines.

[0033] The detection unit 41 may use a deep neural network (DNN) with a convolutional neural network (CNN)-type architecture, such as Single Shot MultiBox Detector or Faster R-CNN, as a classifier. Alternatively, the detection unit 41 may use a DNN for semantic segmentation, such as a Fully Convolutional Network or U-Net, as a classifier. Alternatively, the detection unit 41 may use a DNN with a self-attention network (SAN)-type architecture, such as a Vision Transformer, as a classifier. Alternatively, the detection unit 41 may use a classifier based on other machine learning techniques, such as an AdaBoost classifier, as a classifier. Such a classifier is trained in advance according to a predetermined learning method, such as backpropagation, using a large number of training images depicting target features, such as lane markings, to detect the target features from an image. The classifier then outputs information representing an object region containing the target feature in the input image and information representing the type of feature depicted in the object region.

[0034] The detection unit 41 notifies the determination unit 43 of the position and type of the detected feature on the image.

[0035] The vehicle detection unit 42 detects other vehicles (hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, may be referred to as surrounding vehicles) traveling around the vehicle 2. To this end, when the vehicle 2 enters a predetermined section, the vehicle detection unit 42 detects the surrounding vehicles by inputting the latest image obtained by the camera 21 into a classifier that has been trained in advance to detect surrounding vehicles at predetermined intervals.

[0036] As such a classifier, the vehicle detection unit 42 can use a classifier similar to the classifier used by the detection unit 41 to detect lane markings, etc. The classifier used by the detection unit 41 may be trained in advance so as to also detect surrounding vehicles. In this case, the detection unit 41 and the vehicle detection unit 42 are configured as an integrated unit.

[0037] Furthermore, if the vehicle 2 has a distance measurement sensor, the vehicle detection unit 42 may detect surrounding vehicles by inputting a distance measurement signal obtained by the distance measurement sensor to a classifier. The distance measurement sensor is another example of a sensor that detects the situation around the vehicle 2, and the distance measurement signal is another example of a sensor signal that indicates the situation around the vehicle 2. In this case, the vehicle detection unit 42 can also use, as the classifier, a DNN having a CNN-type or SAN-type architecture, or a classifier based on another machine learning method such as a support vector machine.

[0038] When a peripheral vehicle is detected, the vehicle detection unit 42 obtains relative position information that indicates the relative positional relationship between the vehicle 2 and the peripheral vehicle. In this embodiment, the relative position information includes the distance between the vehicle 2 and the peripheral vehicle and the direction from the vehicle 2 to the peripheral vehicle. Here, the position of the bottom edge of the object area in which the peripheral vehicle is depicted on the image is assumed to indicate the direction to the position where the peripheral vehicle is in contact with the road surface as seen from the camera 21. Therefore, the vehicle detection unit 42 can estimate the distance between the vehicle 2 and the peripheral vehicle based on the position of the bottom edge of the object area in which the peripheral vehicle is depicted on the image and parameters such as the shooting direction, focal length, and installation height of the camera 21. Furthermore, the vehicle detection unit 42 may determine, as the direction from the camera 21 that corresponds to the center of gravity of the object area in which the peripheral vehicle is depicted on the image, as the direction from the vehicle 2 to the peripheral vehicle. Furthermore, if vehicle 2 is equipped with a distance measurement sensor, vehicle detection unit 42 may estimate, as the distance between vehicle 2 and the surrounding vehicle, a distance measured in a direction corresponding to the center of gravity of an object region in which the surrounding vehicle is represented on the image, which is indicated in a distance measurement signal obtained by the distance measurement sensor during image generation. Alternatively, if the surrounding vehicle is detected based on the distance measurement signal, vehicle detection unit 42 may estimate, as the distance between vehicle 2 and the surrounding vehicle, a distance measured in a direction in which the surrounding vehicle is represented, which is indicated in the distance measurement signal.

[0039] If a plurality of surrounding vehicles are detected, the vehicle detection unit 42 may perform the above process for each surrounding vehicle to obtain relative position information for each surrounding vehicle.

[0040] The vehicle detection unit 42 notifies the trajectory information generation unit 44 of the relative position information obtained for each of the surrounding vehicles.

[0041] The determination unit 43 determines whether the travel path of the vehicle 2 when it travels through a predetermined section is included in a predetermined standard travel range. To this end, when the vehicle 2 exits the predetermined section, the determination unit 43 identifies the travel path of the vehicle 2 while it is traveling through the predetermined section. The determination unit 43 may determine whether the vehicle 2 has exited the predetermined section by comparing the position of the vehicle 2 indicated by the latest positioning information with the predetermined section. Hereinafter, the travel path of the vehicle 2 through the predetermined section may be simply referred to as the travel path.

[0042] The determination unit 43 acquires odometry information of the vehicle 2 from the ECU 24 and determines the amount of movement and directional displacement of the vehicle 2 for each image generation interval. The determination unit 43 then estimates the position of the vehicle 2 at the time each image is generated according to a so-called Structure from Motion (SfM) method based on the features detected from each image and the amount of movement and directional displacement of the vehicle 2 for each image generation interval. The determination unit 43 then determines the traveling trajectory of the vehicle 2 by chronologically arranging the coordinates of the estimated position of the vehicle 2 at the time each image is generated.

[0043] Furthermore, if a high-precision map is stored in the memory 32, the determination unit 43 may detect the position of the vehicle 2 at the time each image was generated by comparing each image with the high-precision map based on features detected from each image. In this case, the determination unit 43 assumes the position and orientation of the vehicle 2 and projects the features detected from the image onto the high-precision map, or projects the features around the vehicle 2 depicted on the high-precision map onto the image. The determination unit 43 then detects the position and orientation of the vehicle 2 when the features detected from the image most closely match the features depicted on the high-precision map as the actual position and orientation of the vehicle 2.

[0044] In this case, the determination unit 43 may determine the position at which the feature is projected on the high-accuracy map or image using the assumed position and orientation of the vehicle 2 and parameters of the camera 21, such as the focal length, installation height, and shooting direction. Note that the initial values ​​of the position and orientation of the vehicle 2 are the position of the vehicle 2 represented by the latest positioning information, or the position and orientation of the vehicle 2 estimated when the position of the vehicle 2 was last detected, corrected using odometry information. The determination unit 43 then calculates the degree of match between the feature detected from the image and the corresponding feature shown on the high-accuracy map (for example, the reciprocal of the sum of the squares of the distances between the corresponding features). The determination unit 43 repeats the above process while changing the assumed position and orientation of the vehicle 2. The determination unit 43 may then detect the assumed position and orientation at which the degree of match is greatest as the actual position and orientation of the vehicle 2.

[0045] If the accuracy of the position of vehicle 2 indicated by the positioning information is sufficient, determination unit 43 may determine the traveling trajectory of vehicle 2 by arranging the coordinates of the position of vehicle 2 indicated by the positioning information in chronological order.

[0046] The determination unit 43 compares the determined travel trajectory with the standard travel range. The standard travel range can be the range that the vehicle 2 is expected to pass through if it travels without violating road regulations and without causing danger to the vehicle 2 itself or surrounding vehicles. For example, the standard travel range is set so as to be included between the two lane markings that define the vehicle's own lane. Furthermore, if the specified section includes an intersection, it is preferable that the standard travel range be set so as not to cross lanes before or after the intersection.

[0047] The determination unit 43 sets a standard driving range based on the two lane markings that define the vehicle's lane, as detected by the detection unit 41. In this case, the determination unit 43 determines the positions of the lane markings in real space based on camera 21 parameters, such as the installation height, focal length, and shooting direction of the camera 21, and the position and orientation of the vehicle 2 when the image in which the lane markings were detected was generated. The determination unit 43 executes the above process for each image generated while the vehicle 2 is traveling through a predetermined section, and connects the lane markings detected from each image and projected onto real space to determine the positions of the lane markings in real space throughout the entire predetermined section. The determination unit 43 then sets the standard driving range so that the boundary of the standard driving range is a position that is included between the two lane markings that define the vehicle's lane and is a predetermined safety distance (e.g., several tens of centimeters to 2 meters) inside the lane markings.

[0048] If a high-precision map is stored in the memory 32, the determination unit 43 may set the standard driving range by using lane markings in a predetermined section that are shown on the high-precision map, instead of the lane markings detected by the detection unit 41. In this case, the determination unit 43 may determine, as the current lane, the lane that includes the position of the vehicle 2 when the vehicle 2 enters the predetermined section, among the individual lanes in the predetermined section that are shown on the high-precision map.

[0049] The determination unit 43 compares the set standard driving range with the driving trajectory of the vehicle 2 to determine whether the driving trajectory of the vehicle 2 is included in the standard driving range. If the driving trajectory is included in the standard driving range over the entire predetermined section, the determination unit 43 determines that the driving trajectory is included in the standard driving range. On the other hand, if the driving trajectory deviates from the standard driving range at any position within the predetermined section, the determination unit 43 determines that the driving trajectory deviates from the standard driving range.

[0050] The high-precision map may also include information representing a reference driving trajectory for each lane in a given section. The reference driving trajectory for each lane is a standard trajectory that a vehicle follows when traveling on that lane unless there are special circumstances. For example, the reference driving trajectory is set as an average of multiple driving trajectories of vehicles that have actually traveled on that lane. Alternatively, the reference driving trajectory may be set to pass through the center of the lane.

[0051] In this case, the standard driving range for each lane can be centered on the reference driving trajectory for that lane and can be within a predetermined allowable distance from the reference driving trajectory. The allowable distance for each lane is set to a distance that is a predetermined safe distance shorter than the distance from the reference driving trajectory for that lane to the lane markings that separate that lane. Therefore, at each position on the driving trajectory, the determination unit 43 calculates the distance from that position to the reference driving trajectory as the deviation between the driving trajectory at that position and the reference driving trajectory. If the deviation is less than the allowable distance at any position on the driving trajectory, the determination unit 43 determines that the driving trajectory is within the standard driving range. On the other hand, if the deviation is greater than the allowable distance at any position on the driving trajectory, the determination unit 43 determines that the driving trajectory is outside the standard driving range.

[0052] The determination unit 43 notifies the trajectory information generation unit 44 of the coordinates of each position included in the travel trajectory of the vehicle 2 and the time when the vehicle 2 is at each position (i.e., the image generation time or the positioning information generation time corresponding to when each position is detected). Furthermore, the determination unit 43 notifies the trajectory information generation unit 44 of the determination result as to whether or not the travel trajectory is included in the standard travel range.

[0053] The trajectory information generator 44 generates trajectory information representing the travel trajectory of the vehicle 2 when it travels through a predetermined section. In this embodiment, when the travel trajectory is within a standard travel range, the trajectory information generator 44 generates the trajectory information by including the coordinates of each position on the travel trajectory in the trajectory information. On the other hand, when the travel trajectory deviates from the standard travel range, the trajectory information generator 44 generates the trajectory information by including, in the trajectory information, the coordinates of each position on the travel trajectory as well as the operation amount information at each position. In this case, for each position on the travel trajectory, the trajectory information generator 44 regards the operation amount information at the time closest to the time when the vehicle 2 was present at that position as the operation amount information at that position. This makes it possible to identify the cause of the abnormal travel trajectory of the vehicle 2 deviating from the standard travel range. Note that the trajectory information generator 44 may include, in the trajectory information, operation amount information obtained during the period from when the vehicle 2 entered the predetermined section to when it exited the predetermined section, without associating the operation amount information with each position on the travel trajectory.

[0054] 5(a) and 5(b) are diagrams showing examples of collected travel trajectories. In the example shown in Fig. 5(a), travel trajectory 501 is included within standard travel range 510. Therefore, coordinates of individual positions on travel trajectory 501 are included in the trajectory information.

[0055] 5(b), the travel trajectory 502 includes some locations outside the standard travel range 510. Therefore, the trajectory information includes not only the coordinates of each position on the travel trajectory 502 but also operation amount information at each position.

[0056] Furthermore, when the driving trajectory deviates from the standard driving range, the trajectory information generation unit 44 may include in the trajectory information at least one of a flag indicating that the driving trajectory has deviated from the standard driving range, information representing the standard driving range, and coordinates of the position where the driving trajectory has deviated from the standard driving range.

[0057] Furthermore, the processor 33 may receive information representing the speed and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle 2 from the ECU 24 during the period from when the vehicle 2 enters a predetermined section to when it exits the predetermined section. If the traveling trajectory deviates from a standard traveling range, the trajectory information generator 44 may include at least one of the speed and acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle 2 during that period in the trajectory information. This makes it possible to analyze the behavior of the vehicle 2 when the traveling trajectory of the vehicle 2 becomes an abnormal trajectory that deviates from the standard traveling range.

[0058] Furthermore, when the travel trajectory deviates from the standard travel range, the trajectory information generation unit 44 may include relative position information between the vehicle 2 and the surrounding vehicles detected by the vehicle detection unit 42 during the period when the vehicle 2 is traveling in the predetermined section in the trajectory information. This makes it possible to determine whether the cause of the abnormal travel trajectory of the vehicle 2 is due to the relative positional relationship between the surrounding vehicles and the vehicle 2.

[0059] The trajectory information generating unit 44 passes the generated trajectory information to the communication processing unit 45 .

[0060] When the communication processing unit 45 receives the trajectory information, it transmits the trajectory information to the server 4 via the wireless communication terminal 23. The communication processing unit 45 may transmit the trajectory information immediately after the vehicle 2 exits a predetermined section, but the timing is not limited to this and the trajectory information may be transmitted at other timings. For example, the communication processing unit 45 may transmit the trajectory information when the ignition switch of the vehicle 2 is turned off.

[0061] Furthermore, the communication processing unit 45 may transmit a series of images generated while the vehicle 2 is traveling through a predetermined section, or a partial image cut out from each of the series of images, to the server 4 via the wireless communication terminal 23. Furthermore, the communication processing unit 45 may transmit data representing a predetermined feature, such as a lane marking, detected from each of the series of images generated while the vehicle 2 is traveling through a predetermined section to the server 4 via the wireless communication terminal 23.

[0062] 6 is an operational flowchart of the trajectory information collection process. When the vehicle 2 enters a predetermined section, the processor 33 executes the trajectory information collection process in accordance with the following operational flowchart.

[0063] The detection unit 41 of the processor 33 detects lane markings that demarcate the current lane (step S101), and the vehicle detection unit 42 of the processor 33 detects surrounding vehicles (step S102).

[0064] The determination unit 43 of the processor 33 determines whether the vehicle 2 has exited the predetermined section (step S103). If the vehicle 2 has not exited the predetermined section (step S103-No), the processor 33 repeats the processes from step S101 onwards.

[0065] On the other hand, when the vehicle 2 exits the predetermined section (step S103-Yes), the determination unit 43 identifies the travel path of the vehicle 2 while traveling in the predetermined section (step S104). Furthermore, the determination unit 43 sets a standard travel range based on the lane markings that demarcate the vehicle's own lane (step S105). Note that, if the determination unit 43 can use a high-precision map, the determination unit 43 may set the standard travel range based on the high-precision map. Then, the determination unit 43 determines whether the travel path of the vehicle 2 is included in the standard travel range (step S106).

[0066] If the travel trajectory of vehicle 2 is within the standard travel range (step S106-Yes), the trajectory information generation unit 44 of processor 33 generates trajectory information by including the coordinates of each position on the travel trajectory in the trajectory information (step S107). On the other hand, if the travel trajectory of vehicle 2 is outside the standard travel range (step S106-No), the trajectory information generation unit 44 generates trajectory information by including, in the trajectory information, the coordinates of each position on the travel trajectory and operation amount information at each position (step S108). Note that in step S108, as described above, the trajectory information generation unit 44 may include, in the trajectory information, information representing the behavior of vehicle 2, such as the speed or acceleration / deceleration of vehicle 2, or relative position information between vehicle 2 and surrounding vehicles.

[0067] After step S107 or step S108, the communication processing unit 45 of the processor 33 transmits the trajectory information to the server 4 via the wireless communication terminal 23 (step S109). Then, the processor 33 ends the trajectory information collection process.

[0068] The server 4 generates or updates a high-precision map based on the trajectory information received from the trajectory information collection device 3 of each vehicle 2. For example, the processor of the server 4 averages multiple driving trajectories included in the standard driving range for each lane in a specified section to determine a reference driving trajectory for that lane in that specified section. The processor of the server 4 then includes information representing the reference driving trajectory determined for each lane in the high-precision map. Furthermore, the processor of the server 4 may include information representing driving trajectories outside the standard driving range for each lane in the specified section in the high-precision map. Furthermore, the processor of the server 4 may analyze operation amount information included in the trajectory information for driving trajectories outside the standard driving range.

[0069] As described above, this trajectory information collection device determines whether the driving trajectory of a vehicle traveling through a predetermined section is within a predetermined standard driving range. If the driving trajectory is within the standard driving range, the trajectory information collection device generates trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the driving trajectory in the trajectory information. On the other hand, if the driving trajectory is outside the standard driving range, the trajectory information collection device generates trajectory information by including not only the coordinates of individual positions on the driving trajectory but also operation amount information representing the amount of vehicle operation by the driver in the trajectory information. Therefore, this trajectory information collection device can collect information about the driving trajectory of a vehicle that has an abnormal trajectory. Furthermore, this trajectory information collection device prevents unnecessary increases in the amount of data transmitted to the server by not including unnecessary information about normal driving trajectories that are within the standard driving range in the trajectory information.

[0070] According to a modified example, if the trajectory information generation unit 44 does not include relative position information between the vehicle 2 and surrounding vehicles in the trajectory information even when the driving trajectory of the vehicle 2 deviates from the standard driving range, the processing of the vehicle detection unit 42 may be omitted. Furthermore, if the standard driving range is set based on a high-precision map and lane markings are not used to detect the position of the vehicle 2, the processing of the detection unit 41 may also be omitted.

[0071] A computer program that causes a computer to realize the functions of each unit of the processor of the trajectory information collection device according to each of the above embodiments or modifications may be provided in a form stored on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium may be, for example, a magnetic recording medium, an optical recording medium, or a semiconductor memory.

[0072] As described above, those skilled in the art can make various modifications to the embodiments within the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0073] 1. Trajectory information collection system 2 vehicles 21 Camera 22 GPS receiver 23 Wireless communication terminal 24 ECU 3. Trajectory information collection device 31 Communication Interface 32 memory 33 processors 41 Detector 42 Vehicle detection unit 43 Judgment section 44 Trajectory information generation section 45 Communication processing unit 4 Server 5. Communication Network 6. Radio base stations

Claims

1. a determination unit that determines whether a travel path of the vehicle when the vehicle travels through a predetermined section is included in a predetermined standard travel range; a trajectory information generation unit that generates the trajectory information by including coordinates of individual positions on the traveling trajectory in trajectory information when the traveling trajectory is included in the standard traveling range, and generates the trajectory information by including, in the trajectory information, coordinates of individual positions on the traveling trajectory and operation amount information representing an operation amount of the vehicle by the driver of the vehicle in the predetermined section when the traveling trajectory is outside the standard traveling range; a communication processing unit that transmits the trajectory information to a server via a communication device mounted on the vehicle; A trajectory information collection device having the same.

2. a storage unit for storing information representing a reference travel locus in the predetermined section; 2. The trajectory information collection device according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines that the travel trajectory deviates from the standard travel range when a deviation between the travel trajectory and the reference travel trajectory at any position on the travel trajectory is greater than a predetermined allowable distance corresponding to the standard travel range.

3. a detection unit that detects lane markings that define the lane on which the vehicle travels in the predetermined section from an image obtained by a camera mounted on the vehicle; The trajectory information collection device according to claim 1 , wherein the determination unit sets the standard driving range based on the lane markings.

4. a vehicle detection unit that detects other vehicles traveling around the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling in the predetermined section from a sensor signal that indicates a situation around the vehicle and is obtained by a sensor mounted on the vehicle, and estimates a relative positional relationship of the detected other vehicles with respect to the vehicle; The trajectory information collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the trajectory information generation unit includes, in the trajectory information, relative position information representing a relative positional relationship of the detected other vehicle with respect to the vehicle at any position on the trajectory when the driving trajectory deviates from the standard driving range.

5. determining whether a travel path of the vehicle when the vehicle travels a predetermined section is included in a predetermined standard travel range; If the travel locus is included in the standard travel range, the locus information is generated by including coordinates of individual positions on the travel locus in the locus information; If the travel locus deviates from the standard travel range, the travel locus information is generated by including in the travel locus information coordinates of individual positions on the travel locus and operation amount information representing an operation amount of the vehicle by the driver of the vehicle in the predetermined section; transmitting the trajectory information to a server via a communication device mounted on the vehicle; A trajectory information collection method including:

6. determining whether a travel path of the vehicle when the vehicle travels a predetermined section is included in a predetermined standard travel range; If the travel locus is included in the standard travel range, the locus information is generated by including coordinates of individual positions on the travel locus in the locus information; If the travel locus deviates from the standard travel range, the travel locus information is generated by including in the travel locus information coordinates of individual positions on the travel locus and operation amount information representing an operation amount of the vehicle by the driver of the vehicle in the predetermined section; transmitting the trajectory information to a server via a communication device mounted on the vehicle; A computer program for collecting trajectory information to make a computer do this.

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