vehicle

Abstract

To detect a sign of abnormality in an automated driving kit.SOLUTION: A vehicle (1) includes: an interface unit (102) which can communicate with an automated driving kit (20) capable of being attached to and detached from the vehicle, and which gives a control instruction related to automated driving control to each part of the vehicle on the basis of an instruction from the automated driving kit; and a preventive safety device (103) for implementing a preventive safety function of the vehicle. The preventive safety device includes: performance evaluation means (1032) for performing evaluation of driving performance of the automated driving kit; and suppression means (1033) for suppressing a cancel signal output from the automated driving kit to cancel the preventive safety function, on the basis of the evaluation of the driving performance.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of vehicles. [Background technology]

[0002] As this type of vehicle, for example, a vehicle has been proposed that is automatically driven by outputting control instructions to a functional unit of the vehicle in accordance with instructions from an automatic driving kit that can be attached to and detached from the vehicle (see Patent Document 1).In addition, a vehicle control system has been proposed that includes a first unit that generates a target trajectory based on a driving plan for the vehicle and a second unit that controls vehicle driving so that the vehicle follows the target trajectory, and the second unit intervenes in the driving control amount so as to prevent collision between the vehicle and an obstacle (see Patent Document 2). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-123146 [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2021-062780 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When the distance between a vehicle being automatically driven by an autonomous driving kit and an obstacle is shortened, the vehicle's built-in functions may automatically perform control to avoid a collision between the vehicle and the obstacle. In order to avoid the vehicle approaching one obstacle (e.g., a pedestrian), the autonomous driving kit may intentionally control the vehicle to approach another obstacle (e.g., a fence). In this case, the autonomous driving kit may output a cancellation command to cancel the control by the vehicle's built-in functions so that the vehicle's built-in functions do not interfere with the control by the autonomous driving kit. However, there is a possibility that an abnormality may occur in the function of the autonomous driving kit. For this reason, it is problematic from the perspective of safety if the cancellation command output from the autonomous driving kit always takes priority over the control by the vehicle's built-in functions.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its objective is to provide a vehicle that can suppress a cancellation command when there is a possibility of an abnormality in the function of the autonomous driving kit. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A vehicle according to one aspect of the present invention is configured to be able to communicate with an autonomous driving kit that is detachably attached to the vehicle, and is equipped with an interface unit that gives control instructions related to autonomous driving control to each part of the vehicle based on instructions from the autonomous driving kit, and a preventive safety device that realizes the preventive safety functions of the vehicle, wherein the preventive safety device is equipped with a performance evaluation means that evaluates the driving performance of the autonomous driving kit, and a suppression means that suppresses a cancellation signal output from the autonomous driving kit to cancel the preventive safety function based on the evaluation of the driving performance. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the preventive safety device according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] An embodiment relating to a vehicle will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0009] (Vehicle configuration) 1, a vehicle 1 includes a cruise control system 10, a drive actuator 11, a braking actuator 12, a steering actuator 13, a recognition sensor 14, a driving state sensor 15, an external environment sensor 16, an interior environment sensor 17, and a communication device 18. Note that the vehicle 1 does not necessarily have to include the external environment sensor 16 and the interior environment sensor 17.

[0010] An automatic driving device 20 is connected to the vehicle 1. The automatic driving device 20 is a device that is detachable from the vehicle 1 and is independent of the vehicle 1. The automatic driving device 20 may be wired to the cruise control system 10 via a detachable connector. Here, the cruise control system 10 is a system unique to the vehicle 1. The cruise control system 10 is provided by the automobile manufacturer together with the vehicle 1. In contrast, the automatic driving device 20 is often designed and developed by a separate entity from the cruise control system 10. The automatic driving device 20 may also be referred to as an Autonomous Driving Kit (ADK).

[0011] The cruise control system 10 and the automatic driving device 20 may constitute an automatic driving system for automatically driving the vehicle 1. Note that "automated driving" may mean, for example, automatic driving of level 3 or higher in the level definition of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE).

[0012] Cruise control system 10 may include one or more processors and memory coupled to the processors. Cruise control system 10 may be electrically coupled to on-vehicle actuators (e.g., drive actuator 11, braking actuator 12, and steering actuator 13), on-vehicle sensors (e.g., recognition sensor 14, driving state sensor 15, external environment sensor 16, and interior environment sensor 17), and communication device 18 via an on-vehicle network (e.g., Controller Area Network (CAN)).

[0013] The drive actuator 11 is an actuator for accelerating the vehicle 1. The braking actuator 12 is an actuator for decelerating or stopping the vehicle 1. The steering actuator 13 is an actuator for steering the vehicle 1.

[0014] The recognition sensor 14 may include at least one of a camera (i.e., an image sensor) and a radar sensor (e.g., a millimeter-wave radar or a laser radar). The recognition sensor 14 is used to detect objects (e.g., vehicles, pedestrians, bicycles, fallen objects) present around the vehicle 1 and to measure the relative position and relative speed of the detected objects with respect to the vehicle 1. The recognition sensor 14 may include a position detection device that detects the position of the vehicle 1. The position detection device may be a GPS (Global Positioning System) sensor.

[0015] The driving condition sensor 15 may include at least one of a speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, and a yaw rate sensor. The driving condition sensor 15 is used to measure at least one of physical quantities (e.g., speed, acceleration, yaw rate) and parameters that indicate the driving condition of the vehicle 1. The external environment sensor 16 is a sensor that acquires information about the external environment of the vehicle 1. The external environment sensor 16 may include at least one of a raindrop sensor and a temperature sensor. The interior environment sensor 17 is a sensor that acquires information about the interior environment of the vehicle 1. The interior environment sensor 17 may include at least one of a camera, a temperature sensor, and a pressure sensor.

[0016] The communication device 18 is a device that enables the vehicle 1 to perform data communication with the outside. The communication device 18 may be connected to an external communication network via wireless communication. Therefore, the vehicle 1 may be a so-called connected car.

[0017] The cruise control system 10 includes a cruise control device 101, a vehicle control interface 102, and an active safety device 103, which are implemented as logically realized functional blocks or as physically realized processing circuits. The cruise control device 101, the vehicle control interface 102, and the active safety device 103 will be described later.

[0018] The automatic driving device 20 is electrically coupled to the ADK sensor 21. The ADK sensor 21 may be configured integrally with the automatic driving device 20. The ADK sensor 21 may be detachably attached to the automatic driving device 20 or the vehicle 1. The ADK sensor 21 is a sensor for acquiring information required when the automatic driving device 20 drives the vehicle 1. For example, the ADK sensor 21 may include a camera, a radar sensor, and a GPS sensor.

[0019] The automatic driving device 20 may have a function of formulating a driving plan. The automatic driving device 20 may calculate a target trajectory along which the vehicle 1 is to travel, based on the formulated driving plan and information acquired by the ADK sensor 21. For example, the target trajectory may include a sequence of points indicating multiple target positions of the vehicle 1, and at least one of a target speed and a target acceleration at each of the multiple target positions. The automatic driving device 20 transmits the calculated target trajectory to the cruise control system 10. Note that the automatic driving device 20 may repeatedly calculate the target trajectory and transmit the calculated target trajectory to the cruise control system 10 at a predetermined interval.

[0020] The target trajectory transmitted from the automatic driving device 20 is input to the cruise control device 101 via the vehicle control interface 102 of the cruise control system 10. For example, the cruise control device 101 calculates at least one of a drive control amount to be instructed to the drive actuator 11, a braking control amount to be instructed to the braking actuator 12, and a steering control amount to be instructed to the steering actuator 13, based on the target trajectory and the measurement results of the cruise state sensor 15.

[0021] The preventive safety device 103 is a device that intervenes in the driving control device 101 to prevent or avoid a collision between the vehicle 1 and an object. Examples of control for preventing or avoiding a collision between the vehicle 1 and an object include control for preventing the vehicle 1 from deviating from its lane (for example, lane departure prevention control, lane keeping assist control), control for maintaining a constant distance between the vehicle 1 and a preceding vehicle (for example, distance control), and control for automatically applying a braking force to the vehicle 1 when there is a high possibility of a collision between the vehicle 1 and an object (for example, collision damage mitigation brake).

[0022] An example of a method for the preventive safety device 103 to intervene in the cruise control device 101 is a method in which the preventive safety device 103 provides an intervention control amount to the cruise control device 101. In this case, the intervention control amount may include at least one of a drive control amount, a braking control amount, and a steering control amount. When an intervention control amount is provided from the preventive safety device 103 to the cruise control device 101, the cruise control device 101 prioritizes the intervention control amount over a control amount calculated from the target trajectory (specifically, at least one of a drive control amount, a braking control amount, and a steering control amount). The cruise control device 101 controls at least one of the drive actuator 11, the braking actuator 12, and the steering actuator 13 in accordance with the intervention control amount.

[0023] The automatic driving device 20 detects objects present around the vehicle 1 based on information acquired by the ADK sensor 21. The automatic driving device 20 then calculates a target trajectory so that the vehicle 1 will not collide with the detected object. Therefore, theoretically, if the cruise control device 101 calculates a control amount (specifically, at least one of a driving control amount, a braking control amount, and a steering control amount) according to the target trajectory calculated by the automatic driving device 20, a collision between the vehicle 1 and the object will not occur. However, if some abnormality occurs in the automatic driving device 20, the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 may be permanently or temporarily degraded. For this reason, the preventive safety device 103 may be activated as a last resort to prevent or avoid a collision between the vehicle 1 and the object.

[0024] On the other hand, the automatic driving device 20 may intentionally calculate a target trajectory so that the vehicle 1 approaches an object. In this case, if the preventive safety device 103 is activated and intervenes in the cruise control device 101, the vehicle 1 will no longer be able to travel along the target trajectory calculated by the automatic driving device 20. In order to cancel the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the cruise control device 101, the automatic driving device 20 can output a cancellation signal including a cancellation command. Note that a signal indicating that the preventive safety device 103 will intervene in the cruise control device 101 may be transmitted to the automatic driving device 20 via the vehicle control interface 101. The automatic driving device 20 may recognize that the preventive safety device 103 will intervene in the cruise control device 101 based on the signal.

[0025] The cancellation signal output from the automatic driving device 20 is input to the preventive safety device 103 via the vehicle control interface 102. When the cancellation signal is input to the preventive safety device 103, the preventive safety device 103 inputs an intervention stop control signal to the driving control device 101 in order to cancel the intervention control amount given to the driving control device 101 from the preventive safety device 103.

[0026] (Performance evaluation method) From the viewpoint of preventive safety, the preventive safety device 103 has a function as a performance evaluation device that evaluates the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20. In other words, there is a possibility that some kind of abnormality will occur in the automatic driving device 20. If some kind of abnormality occurs in the automatic driving device 20, it is not appropriate for the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the driving control device 101 to be canceled due to a cancellation signal output from the automatic driving device 20. Therefore, the preventive safety device 103 has a function as a performance evaluation device.

[0027] The preventive safety device 103 may evaluate the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 based on information obtained from at least one of the recognition sensor 14, the driving condition sensor 15, the external environment sensor 16, and the in-vehicle environment sensor 17.

[0028] An example of a method for evaluating the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 performed by the preventive safety device 103 will be described below. Note that the method for evaluating driving performance is not limited to the method described below. In the following, the evaluation of the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 will be expressed as a numerical value (i.e., an evaluation value).

[0029] For example, the acquisition unit 1031 of the preventive safety device 103 may acquire information indicating the relationship (e.g., relative position, relative speed, etc.) between the vehicle 1 and an object present around the vehicle 1, based on information obtained from the recognition sensor 14, etc. For example, the evaluation unit 1032 of the preventive safety device 103 may reduce the evaluation value related to the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 by a predetermined value when the vehicle 1 is approaching an object and the distance between the vehicle 1 and the object becomes shorter than a predetermined distance, based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit 103.

[0030] For example, the acquisition unit 1031 may acquire the current driving state of the vehicle 1 (e.g., speed, acceleration, jerk, etc.) based on information obtained from the driving state sensor 15, etc. For example, the evaluation unit 1032 may reduce the evaluation value related to the driving performance by a predetermined value when the speed of the vehicle 1 exceeds the speed limit. For example, the evaluation unit 1032 may reduce the evaluation value related to the driving performance by a predetermined value when the acceleration of the vehicle 1 exceeds a predetermined acceleration. For example, the evaluation unit 1032 may reduce the evaluation value related to the driving performance by a predetermined value when the jerk of the vehicle 1 exceeds a predetermined jerk value.

[0031] For example, the acquisition unit 1031 may acquire information about weather based on information obtained from the external environment sensor 16. For example, when the driving performance is evaluated based on the speed of the vehicle 1, the evaluation unit 1032 may change the reference value (for example, the speed limit) to be compared with the speed of the vehicle 1 depending on whether the weather is sunny or rainy.

[0032] For example, the acquisition unit 1031 may acquire information about the occupants riding in the vehicle 1 based on information obtained from the in-vehicle environment sensor 17. For example, if the occupant has a stern or tense expression, the evaluation unit 1032 may reduce the evaluation value related to the driving performance by a predetermined value. Note that the occupant's facial expression may be recognized by performing image processing on an image of the occupant.

[0033] For example, the evaluation unit 1032 may evaluate the driving performance based on the frequency with which the preventive safety device 103 intervenes in the driving control device 101. For example, if the frequency with which the preventive safety device 103 executes lane departure prevention control as an intervention in the driving control device 101 by the preventive safety device 103 exceeds a predetermined frequency, the evaluation unit 1032 may reduce the evaluation value related to the driving performance by a predetermined value.

[0034] The preventive safety device 103 performs the operation shown in the flowchart of Fig. 2 in parallel with the evaluation of the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 described above. In Fig. 2, threshold A is smaller than threshold B, and threshold B is smaller than threshold C (i.e., threshold A<threshold B<threshold C). In Fig. 2, "Suppression 1," "Suppression 2," and "Suppression 3" each indicate the response of the preventive safety device 103 when a cancellation signal is output from the automatic driving device 20.

[0035] Specifically, "Suppression 1" may be to lengthen the time required from when the preventive safety device 103 receives a cancellation signal until the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the driving control device 101 is canceled. Here, the automatic driving device 20 continues to output the cancellation signal until the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the driving control device 101 is canceled. For example, under normal circumstances, it is assumed that the time required from when the preventive safety device 103 receives a cancellation signal until the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the driving control device 101 is canceled is 2 seconds (i.e., the automatic driving device 20 continues to output the cancellation signal for at least 2 seconds). In this case, in "Suppression 1", the time required until the intervention is canceled may be set to 5 seconds (i.e., the automatic driving device 20 continues to output the cancellation signal for at least 5 seconds).

[0036] "Suppression 2" may be suppressing the intervention control amount (specifically, at least one of the driving control amount, braking control amount, and steering control amount) related to the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the cruise control device 101. In other words, in "Suppression 2," the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the cruise control device 101 is not canceled, but the degree of that intervention is suppressed. "Suppression 3" may be discarding (in other words, ignoring) the cancellation signal from the automatic driving device 20 and executing or continuing the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the cruise control device 101.

[0037] "Suppression 1," "Suppression 2," and "Suppression 3" are compared. In "Suppression 1," the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the cruise control device 101 is canceled by the cancel signal, so the degree of suppression of the cancel signal can be said to be the weakest. In "Suppression 3," the cancel signal is discarded, so the degree of suppression of the cancel signal can be said to be the strongest. In "Suppression 2," the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the cruise control device 101 is not canceled, but the degree of that intervention is suppressed, so the degree of suppression of the cancel signal can be said to be medium.

[0038] 2, the suppression unit 1033 of the preventive safety device 103 determines whether the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is smaller than the threshold value A (step S101). If it is determined in the processing of step S101 that the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is smaller than the threshold value A (step S101: Yes), the suppression unit 1033 sets the suppression mode of the cancellation signal output from the automatic driving device 20 to "Suppression 3" (step S104).

[0039] In the processing of step S101, if it is determined that the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is equal to or greater than threshold value A (step S101: No), the suppression unit 1033 determines whether the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is smaller than threshold value B (step S102). In the processing of step S102, if it is determined that the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is smaller than threshold value B (step S102: Yes), the suppression unit 1033 sets the suppression mode of the cancellation signal output from the automatic driving device 20 to "suppression 2" (step S105).

[0040] In the processing of step S102, if it is determined that the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is equal to or greater than threshold B (step S102: No), the suppression unit 1033 determines whether the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is smaller than threshold C (step S103). In the processing of step S103, if it is determined that the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is smaller than threshold C (step S103: Yes), the suppression unit 1033 sets the suppression mode of the cancellation signal output from the automatic driving device 20 to "Suppression 1" (step S106).

[0041] In the process of step S103, if it is determined that the evaluation value related to the automatic driving device 20 is equal to or greater than the threshold C (step S103: No), the operation shown in the flowchart of Fig. 2 is terminated. After that, the process of step S101 may be performed. In this case, if a cancellation signal is output from the automatic driving device 20, the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the driving control device 101 is canceled.

[0042] When the suppression mode of the cancellation signal is "Suppression 1," "Suppression 2," or "Suppression 3," the suppression unit 1033 takes the action determined by the suppression mode when a cancellation signal is output from the automatic driving device 20. The degree of suppression of the cancellation signal is as follows: "Suppression 1" is the weakest, "Suppression 2" is medium, and "Suppression 3" is the strongest. Since "threshold A<threshold B<threshold C" in FIG. 2, it can be said that the lower the evaluation of the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 represented by the evaluation value, the stronger the degree of suppression of the cancellation signal.

[0043] (Technical Effects) If the evaluation of the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20 is on a downward trend, it is considered that there are signs that an abnormality may occur in the automatic driving device 20, or that there is a possibility that an abnormality has occurred in the automatic driving device 20. In such a case, it is not appropriate for the intervention of the preventive safety device 103 in the cruise control device 101 to be canceled by a cancel signal output from the automatic driving device 20. In this embodiment, the cancel signal output from the automatic driving device 20 is suppressed according to the evaluation of the driving performance of the automatic driving device 20. Therefore, when there are signs that an abnormality may occur in the automatic driving device 20, or when there is a possibility that an abnormality has occurred in the automatic driving device 20, the preventive safety device 103 intervenes in the cruise control device 101, thereby ensuring the safety of the vehicle 1. In other words, according to this embodiment, when there are signs that an abnormality may occur in the automatic driving device 20, or when there is a possibility that an abnormality has occurred in the automatic driving device 20, the cancel signal can be suppressed.

[0044] Aspects of the invention derived from the above-described embodiments will be described below.

[0045] A vehicle according to one aspect of the invention is configured to be able to communicate with an autonomous driving kit that is detachably attached to the vehicle, and is equipped with an interface unit that gives control instructions related to autonomous driving control to each part of the vehicle based on instructions from the autonomous driving kit, and a preventive safety device that realizes the preventive safety functions of the vehicle, wherein the preventive safety device is equipped with a performance evaluation means that evaluates the driving performance of the autonomous driving kit, and a suppression means that suppresses a cancellation signal output from the autonomous driving kit to cancel the preventive safety function based on the evaluation of the driving performance.

[0046] In the above-described embodiment, the "autonomous driving device 20" corresponds to an example of an "autonomous driving kit," the "vehicle control interface 102" corresponds to an example of an "interface unit," the "evaluation unit 1032" corresponds to an example of a "performance evaluation means," and the "suppression unit 1033" corresponds to an example of a "suppression means."

[0047] The suppression of the cancellation signal by the suppression means may include discarding the cancellation signal and executing the preventive safety function. The suppression of the cancellation signal by the suppression means may include lengthening the time required from when the preventive safety device receives the cancellation signal until the preventive safety function is canceled. The suppression of the cancellation signal by the suppression means may include suppressing the preventive safety function instead of canceling it. The suppression means may increase the degree of suppression of the cancellation signal as the driving performance evaluation is lower.

[0048] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the claims and the gist or concept of the invention as can be read from the entire specification, and vehicles with such modifications are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0049] 1...vehicle, 10...cruising control system, 20...automatic driving device, 101...cruising control device, 102...vehicle control interface, 103...preventive safety device, 1031...acquisition unit, 1032...evaluation unit, 1033...suppression unit

Claims

1. A vehicle that is configured to be able to communicate with an autonomous driving kit that is detachably attached to the vehicle, and that is equipped with an interface unit that issues control instructions related to autonomous driving control to each part of the vehicle based on instructions from the autonomous driving kit, and a preventive safety device that realizes a preventive safety function of the vehicle, The preventive safety device includes: A performance evaluation means for evaluating the driving performance of the automatic driving kit; a suppression means for suppressing a cancellation signal output from the autonomous driving kit to cancel the preventive safety function based on the evaluation of the driving performance; Equipped with A vehicle characterized by:

2. 2. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the suppression of the cancellation signal by the suppression means includes discarding the cancellation signal and allowing the preventive safety function to be executed.

3. 2. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the suppression of the cancellation signal by the suppression means includes lengthening the time required from when the preventive safety device receives the cancellation signal until the preventive safety function is canceled.

4. 2. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the suppression of the cancellation signal by the suppression means includes suppressing the preventive safety function instead of canceling the preventive safety function.

5. 2. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the suppression means increases the degree of suppression of the cancellation signal as the driving performance evaluation is lower.

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