Vehicle route planning device, vehicle route planning method, and vehicle route planning system

Abstract

The present invention: assesses whether or not the capability of a component provided to a preceding utilization vehicle, which is an autonomous driving vehicle, has decreased; extracts, for a component assessed to have decreased in capability, a maintenance location where a facility at which it is possible to perform maintenance on the component assessed to have decreased in capability is present; changes a travel route leading from the current location of the preceding utilization vehicle to a destination to a travel route leading from the current location to the maintenance location, in accordance with the extracted maintenance location; and sets, on the changed travel route, a movement means change location where a user riding in the preceding utilization vehicle will alight from the preceding utilization vehicle and change to another movement means.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle route planning device, a vehicle route planning method, and a vehicle route planning system. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 describes a technology that changes the destination if it is determined that the destination should be changed in response to an abnormal event that occurs in an autonomously driven vehicle during autonomous driving, and further, if the destination is changed, arranges for a connecting vehicle to go to the changed destination. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-166756 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The technology described in Patent Document 1 does not take into consideration the efficiency of maintenance performed after an abnormality occurs in an autonomous vehicle, such as a deterioration in the performance of a part. As a result, for example, an autonomous vehicle that has experienced an abnormality and has not undergone maintenance may slow down traffic flow by traveling at a speed slower than other vehicles traveling at the legal speed limit. The present invention aims to efficiently perform maintenance on an autonomous vehicle whose parts have deteriorated in performance. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] According to one aspect of the present invention, a system determines whether the performance of a part of a preceding vehicle, which is an autonomous vehicle, has deteriorated, and detects the nature of the deterioration in performance for the part determined to have deteriorated performance. Furthermore, a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility capable of performing maintenance on the part determined to have deteriorated performance is located, is extracted based on the detected nature of the deterioration. Additionally, based on the extracted maintenance location, the driving route from the current location of the preceding vehicle to the destination is changed to a driving route from the current location to the maintenance location. A transportation change location, which is a location where a user in the preceding vehicle disembarks from the preceding vehicle and changes to another form of transportation, is then set on the changed driving route. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to the present invention, it is possible to efficiently perform maintenance on an autonomous vehicle whose parts have deteriorated in performance. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a vehicle route planning system. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the functional configuration of a vehicle. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the functional configuration of a control device. [Figure 3] 3 is a flowchart illustrating operations performed by the vehicle route planning system. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing a transportation means change process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the description of the drawings, identical or similar parts are designated by identical or similar reference numerals, and redundant explanations will be omitted. Each drawing is a schematic diagram and may differ from the actual product. The embodiments shown below exemplify devices and methods for embodying the technical concept of the present invention, and the technical concept of the present invention is not limited to the devices and methods exemplified in the following embodiments. The technical concept of the present invention can be modified in various ways within the technical scope described in the claims.

[0009] (composition) 1 is a schematic diagram of a vehicle route planning system 1. The vehicle route planning system 1 is a system that sets a route (travel route) along which a vehicle 3 used for user travel will travel. The vehicle route planning system 1 includes at least a control device 2 and a vehicle 3 (service vehicle). When a user uses the vehicle 3, the user accesses the control device 2 using, for example, an electronic device to reserve the vehicle 3.

[0010] The electronic device is a terminal device used by a user who utilizes the vehicle dispatch service provided by the vehicle route planning system 1. The electronic device may be, for example, a portable information terminal that the user can carry, a small, easily portable computer, or a stationary computer installed in a house or the like. For example, dedicated application software for using the vehicle route planning system 1 is pre-installed on the electronic device. In the following description, "application software" may be referred to as "software." The user may also reserve a vehicle 3 over the Internet using the browser function of the electronic device.

[0011] When reserving the vehicle 3, the electronic device generates utilization request data and transmits the utilization request data to the control device 2. The usage request data includes, for example, information on the number of people (including the user) traveling using the vehicle 3, the boarding location (desired boarding location) where the user wishes to board the vehicle 3, and the disembarking location (destination) where the user wishes to disembark from the vehicle 3. In addition, the usage request data includes, for example, information on the date and time when the user wishes to board the vehicle 3 (desired boarding date and time), and the date and time when the user wishes to disembark from the vehicle 3 (desired disembarking date and time).

[0012] <Control device> The control device 2 (server device) performs processing according to the usage request data. The control device 2 includes a processor 20, a storage device 21, a communication device 22, a registrant database (registrant DB) 23, a map database (map DB) 24, a reservation database (reservation DB) 25, and a facility database (facility DB) 26. The processor 20 may be, for example, a CPU or an MPU. The storage device 21 may include a non-transitory tangible storage medium such as a register, a cache memory, or a memory such as a ROM or RAM used as a main storage device. The functions of the control device 2 described below are realized, for example, by the processor 20 executing a computer program stored in the storage device 21.

[0013] The communication device 22 provides a communication function between the control device 2 and an external device. The communication method used by the communication device 22 may be, for example, wired communication or wireless communication via a public mobile communication network, satellite communication, road-to-vehicle communication with the vehicle 3, or the like. The control device 2 transmits and receives data to and from the vehicle 3 and electronic devices via the communication device 22.

[0014] The registrant DB23 is a database for registering users of the vehicle route planning system 1. In the following description, a person registered in the registrant DB23 will be referred to as a "registrant." For example, a user of a vehicle dispatch service is registered in the registrant DB23 as a user of the vehicle route planning system 1. The map DB 24 stores map information of an area where the vehicle route planning system 1 provides a vehicle dispatch service. The map information may be, for example, map data for navigation (hereinafter simply referred to as a "navigation map").

[0015] In response to the usage request data, the control device 2 calculates a travel route from the desired boarding location included in the usage request data to the destination based on map information stored in the map DB 24. The control device 2 also predicts the disembarking date and time when the vehicle 3 will depart at the desired boarding date and time included in the usage request data, travel along the travel route, and arrive at the destination. The control device 2 stores the desired boarding location, desired boarding date and time, and destination included in the usage request data, as well as the travel route and disembarking date and time calculated by the control device 2, in the reservation DB 25 as an operation plan for the vehicle 3.

[0016] In addition, the control device 2 outputs to the vehicle 3 an operation plan including the desired boarding location, desired boarding date and time, destination, disembarking date and time, and travel route. The facility DB26 stores the details of the performance degradation detected when the performance of a part equipped on the vehicle 3 is degraded, in association with a maintenance location where there is a facility where maintenance of the part with degraded performance can be performed.

[0017] <Vehicle> The vehicle 3 is a vehicle that operates in response to a user's request (a so-called demand-based transportation vehicle), and may be, for example, a shared taxi or a robot taxi. Furthermore, the vehicle 3 is an automatically driven vehicle that is driven automatically by the controller 34 in accordance with an operation plan output from the control device 2 without the involvement of a driver (human). When the vehicle 3 receives the operation plan from the control device 2, the vehicle 3 travels to the boarding location so as to arrive by the desired boarding date and time included in the operation plan. Also, when the user boards the vehicle 3 at the boarding location, the vehicle 3 travels to the disembarking location along the travel route included in the operation plan.

[0018] The vehicle 3 includes an on-board sensor 30, a positioning device 31, a map database (map DB) 32, a communication device 33, a controller , and an actuator . The on-board sensors 30 include object sensors that detect objects around the vehicle 3, and vehicle sensors that detect various pieces of information obtained from the vehicle 3 (vehicle state). The object sensor detects the surrounding environment of the vehicle 3, such as the relative position of the vehicle 3 and an object present around the vehicle 3, the distance between the vehicle 3 and the object, and the direction in which the object is present. The object sensor may include, for example, a camera that captures the surrounding environment of the vehicle 3. Furthermore, for example, the object sensor may include a distance measuring device such as a laser range finder (LRF), radar, or a laser radar of a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging). The object sensor outputs surrounding environment information, which is information on the detected surrounding environment of the vehicle 3, to the controller 34.

[0019] The vehicle sensors may include, for example, a vehicle speed sensor that detects the traveling speed (vehicle speed) of the vehicle 3, a wheel speed sensor that detects the rotational speed of each tire equipped on the vehicle 3, and a three-axis acceleration sensor (G sensor) that detects the acceleration (including deceleration) of the vehicle 3 in three axial directions. The vehicle sensors may also include, for example, a steering angle sensor that detects the steering angle (including the turning angle), a gyro sensor that detects the angular velocity generated in the vehicle 3, and a yaw rate sensor that detects the yaw rate. The vehicle sensors may also include, for example, a seat belt sensor that detects whether a seat belt is fastened or unfastened, and a door sensor that detects whether a door is opened or closed. The vehicle sensors output vehicle state information to the controller 34.

[0020] The positioning device 31 measures the current location and attitude of the vehicle 3. The positioning device 31 may include, for example, a Global Navigation System (GNSS) receiver. The GNSS receiver may be, for example, a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver. The positioning device 31 may also include an inertial navigation system. The positioning device 31 outputs current location information of the measured current location to the controller 34. The map DB 32 stores map information. The map information may include map data for navigation (hereinafter simply referred to as a "navigation map") and high-precision map data suitable as a map for automated driving (hereinafter simply referred to as a "high-precision map"). The communication device 33 provides a communication function between the vehicle 3 and an external device. The communication method used by the communication device 33 may be, for example, wireless communication using a public mobile communication network, satellite communication, road-to-vehicle communication, or the like. The vehicle 3 transmits and receives data to and from the control device 2 via the communication device 33 .

[0021] The controller 34 is an electronic control unit that controls the vehicle 3. For example, the controller 34 controls the automatic driving of the vehicle 3. The controller 34 includes a processor 36 and peripheral components such as a storage device 37. The processor 36 may be, for example, a CPU or an MPU. The storage device 37 may include non-transitory tangible storage media such as registers, cache memory, and memories such as ROM and RAM used as main storage devices. The functions of the controller 34 are realized, for example, by the processor 36 executing a computer program stored in the storage device 37.

[0022] The controller 34 executes autonomous driving control to cause the vehicle 3 to travel in accordance with a travel plan based on the surrounding environment information and vehicle status information from the on-board sensors 30, the positioning results of the positioning device 31, and the map information in the map DB 32. For example, the controller 34 calculates a target travel trajectory for the vehicle 3 to travel based on the current location and attitude of the vehicle 3, the travel route included in the travel plan, the map information, and the surrounding environment of the vehicle 3. In addition, the controller 34 generates, for example, a route space map that represents the route around the vehicle 3 and the presence or absence of objects, and a risk map that quantifies the degree of risk during travel. Furthermore, the controller 34 generates the target travel trajectory based on the motion characteristics of the vehicle 3, the vehicle status information, the route space map, and the risk map. The controller 34 then drives the actuator 35 so that the vehicle 3 travels along the generated target travel trajectory.

[0023] The actuator 35 operates the steering device, drive device, and braking device of the vehicle 3 in response to control signals from the controller 34 to generate vehicle behavior of the vehicle 3, thereby automatically driving the vehicle 3. The actuator 35 includes a steering actuator, an accelerator opening actuator, and a brake control actuator. In the embodiment, as an example, the vehicle 3 is described as being configured to include an in-vehicle terminal including an information output unit such as a display screen and a speaker, and an information input unit such as a touch panel and buttons.

[0024] <Vehicle functional configuration> The following describes details of the vehicle route planning system 1. Fig. 2A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the vehicle 3. The vehicle 3 includes a performance degradation determination unit 40 and a degradation content detection unit 41. The performance degradation determination unit 40 determines whether or not the performance of the components provided in the vehicle 3, such as the on-board sensor 30, has deteriorated. In the embodiment, as an example, a case will be described in which the component for which the performance degradation determination unit 40 determines whether performance has deteriorated is the in-vehicle sensor 30 that detects the surrounding environment of the vehicle 3.

[0025] In addition, if there is a sign indicating a stop position, intersection, right or left turn road, etc. at a position that can be captured by the camera included in the on-board sensor 30, the performance degradation determination unit 40 determines that the camera's performance has deteriorated if it is impossible to recognize the sign from the image captured by the camera. The degradation content detection unit 41 detects the content of the degradation in performance of a component determined by the performance degradation determination unit 40 to have degraded performance.

[0026] When detecting the performance degradation, for example, if the normal performance of the camera included in the in-vehicle sensor 30 is set to "high," the degradation detection unit 41 detects the performance degradation to about 50% of normal as "medium."Furthermore, the degradation detection unit 41 detects the performance degradation to about 30% of normal as "low." In addition, if the degradation content detection unit 41 is unable to detect the degradation content of a part whose performance has been determined to be degraded, it outputs a signal to the control device 2 containing information indicating that it was unable to detect the degradation content.

[0027] <Controller functional configuration> FIG. 2B is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the control device 2. As shown in FIG. The control device 2 includes a vehicle current location acquisition unit 50, a request data acquisition unit 51, a driving plan creation unit 52, a driving distance calculation unit 53, a maintenance location extraction unit 54, a congestion degree acquisition unit 55, and a driving route change unit 56. In addition, the control device 2 includes a transportation means detection unit 57, a destination arrival predicted time calculation unit 58, a destination arrival predicted time presentation unit 59, a transportation means change location setting unit 60, a vehicle dispatch processing unit 61, a transfer space setting unit 62, and a detection processing switching unit 63.

[0028] The vehicle current position acquisition unit 50 acquires the current position of the vehicle 3 using the current position information output by the positioning device 31. When the request data acquisition unit 51 receives the usage request data from the electronic device, it registers the information included in the usage request data in the reservation DB 25 . The driving plan creation unit 52 creates an operation plan in accordance with the information registered in the reservation DB 25 by the request data acquisition unit 51 .

[0029] When creating an operation plan, a route from the current location to the destination is set based on the information included in the usage request data and the map information stored in the map DB 24. Furthermore, the driving plan creation unit 52 stores the calculated driving route in the reservation DB 25. As a result, the driving route set by the driving plan creation unit 52 is stored in the reservation DB 25 as an operation plan for the vehicle dispatch service provided to the user. Furthermore, the driving plan creation unit 52 outputs operation plan information related to the operation plan to the vehicle 3 provided to the user and to the electronic device.

[0030] The travelable distance calculation unit 53 calculates the distance that the vehicle 3 equipped with the part whose performance has been determined by the performance degradation determination unit 40 to have deteriorated can travel. Specifically, first, the running speed that the vehicle 3 can output is calculated according to the content detected by the degradation content detection unit 41. When calculating the running speed that the vehicle 3 can output, if the performance content is detected to be "medium", the running speed that the vehicle 3 can output is calculated by multiplying the running speed that the vehicle 3 can output when the performance is "high" (normal running speed) by a coefficient of "0.9". Also, if the performance content is detected to be "low", the running speed that the vehicle 3 can output is calculated by multiplying the running speed that the vehicle 3 can output when the performance is "high" by a coefficient of "0.75".

[0031] After calculating the driving speed that vehicle 3 can output, the distance that vehicle 3 can travel is calculated based on the current location of vehicle 3 acquired by vehicle current location acquisition unit 50 and the operation plan (including the driving route and legal speed) created by driving plan creation unit 52. The maintenance location extraction unit 54 extracts a maintenance location according to the details of the performance degradation detected by the degradation details detection unit 41 for the part whose performance has deteriorated. Furthermore, the maintenance location extraction unit 54 extracts the maintenance location by referring to the facility DB 26 that stores the details of the performance degradation detected by the degradation details detection unit 41 in association with the maintenance location.

[0032] The following combinations are examples of the association between the detected performance degradation and the maintenance location. If the part whose performance is deteriorating is a camera and the reason for the deterioration is dirt on the lens, a gas station is linked as a maintenance location where maintenance can be performed by removing the dirt on the lens. In addition, if the part whose performance has deteriorated is a camera and the reason for the deterioration is a malfunction that requires replacement of the part, the dealer that handles vehicle 3 is linked as a maintenance location where maintenance can be performed by replacing the part. Furthermore, the maintenance location extraction unit 54 extracts a maintenance location within the range that the vehicle 3 can travel, according to the distance that the vehicle 3 can travel, calculated by the travelable distance calculation unit 53.

[0033] When the maintenance location extraction unit 54 extracts multiple maintenance locations, the congestion level acquisition unit 55 acquires the congestion levels of facilities where maintenance is possible that are located in each of the extracted multiple maintenance locations. The congestion levels of facilities where maintenance is possible are acquired based on the reservation status of the facilities, for example, using the Internet, etc. The driving route change unit 56 changes the driving route from the current location of the vehicle 3 to the destination to the driving route from the current location of the vehicle 3 to the maintenance location extracted by the maintenance location extraction unit 54, depending on the maintenance location extracted by the maintenance location extraction unit 54. In addition, when the maintenance location extraction unit 54 extracts multiple maintenance locations, the driving route change unit 56 sets the maintenance location where the facility with the lowest congestion level acquired by the congestion level acquisition unit 55 is located as the maintenance location of the driving route to be changed.

[0034] The transportation means detection unit 57 detects other transportation means that a user riding in the vehicle 3 as a means of transportation can change to by getting off the vehicle 3, along the travel route changed by the travel route change unit 56, between the current location of the vehicle 3 and the maintenance location. When detecting other means of transportation, the transportation means detection unit 57 detects, for example, public transportation stops, rental bicycle parking lots, and the like that exist between the current location of the vehicle 3 and the maintenance location, based on map information stored in the map DB 24. Public transportation stops include, for example, route bus stops and train stations. Furthermore, when the transportation means detection unit 57 detects other transportation means, it detects, for example, a point between the current location of the vehicle 3 and the maintenance location where it is possible to board a connecting vehicle. The connecting vehicle is a manually operated vehicle (taxi, hire car) or another automatically operated vehicle.

[0035] The destination arrival predicted time calculation unit 58 calculates a continued driving arrival predicted time, which is the time when the vehicle 3, that is, the user riding in the vehicle 3 equipped with the part determined to have deteriorated performance, is predicted to arrive at the destination. The continued driving arrival predicted time is calculated using, for example, the driving speed that the vehicle 3 can output, the current location of the vehicle 3, the user's destination, and map information stored in the map DB 24. In addition, the predicted destination arrival time calculation unit 58 calculates a changed predicted arrival time, which is the time when the user is predicted to arrive at the destination if using the other means of transportation detected by the transportation detection unit 57. The changed predicted arrival time is calculated using, for example, the travel speed that the other means of transportation can output, the location where the user changes their means of transportation from the vehicle 3 to the other means of transportation, the user's destination, and map information stored in the map DB 24. The changed predicted arrival time is also calculated using, for example, a public transportation timetable, the distance from the location where the user changes their means of transportation from the vehicle 3 to the other means of transportation to the public transportation stop, and the distance from the public transportation stop to the user's destination.

[0036] When the transportation means detection unit 57 detects multiple transportation means, the destination arrival predicted time presentation unit 59 presents to the user the predicted time at which the user will arrive at the destination for each of the multiple transportation means detected by the transportation means detection unit 57. Specifically, the information signal is generated for displaying the continued driving predicted arrival time and the changed predicted arrival time calculated by the destination arrival predicted time calculation unit 58, together with the corresponding means of transportation, on a display screen of an in-vehicle terminal provided in the vehicle 3, and the generated information signal is output to the vehicle 3. Also, for example, the information signal is generated for displaying the continued driving predicted arrival time and the changed predicted arrival time calculated by the destination arrival predicted time calculation unit 58, together with the corresponding means of transportation, on a display screen of an electronic device carried by the user, and the generated information signal is output to the electronic device.

[0037] The transportation means change point setting unit 60 sets a transportation means change point, which is a point on the travel route changed by the travel route change unit 56, where the user riding in the vehicle 3 gets off the vehicle 3 and changes to another transportation means. In an embodiment, the transportation mode change point is a point where a user in vehicle 3 transfers from vehicle 3 to a transfer vehicle, which may be a manually driven vehicle or another automatically driven vehicle, public transportation, or a rental bicycle. In addition, if the maintenance location extraction unit 54 is unable to extract a maintenance location within the range of the distance that the vehicle 3 can travel, as calculated by the travelable distance calculation unit 53, the transportation means change location setting unit 60 performs the following processing.

[0038] Specifically, the transportation means change location setting unit 60 sets a shoulder of the road where the vehicle 3 can stop within a range that the vehicle 3 can travel, or a maintenance location that is within a range that the vehicle 3 can travel and is stored in the facility DB 26, as the transportation means change location. Note that shoulders where the vehicle 3 can stop that exist within a range where the vehicle 3 can travel are acquired, for example, using map information stored in the map DB 24. Furthermore, when a shoulder where the vehicle can stop is set as a transportation mode change location, the control device 2 performs a process of stopping the vehicle 3 on the shoulder. The process of stopping the vehicle 3 on the shoulder is, for example, a process of including in the operation plan to the vehicle 3 a driving route from the current location to near the shoulder and an actuator control signal for moving the preceding vehicle from near the shoulder to the shoulder and stopping it there.

[0039] Furthermore, when the transportation detection unit 57 detects multiple transportation means, the transportation change location setting unit 60 sets a transportation change location corresponding to the transportation means among the multiple transportation means that is predicted to arrive at the user's destination the earliest. Note that when the transportation detection unit 57 detects multiple transportation means, this refers to a case where there are multiple transportation means that can be changed at the transportation change location. Furthermore, the transportation change location corresponding to the transportation means that is predicted to arrive at the destination the earliest is set using, for example, the changed predicted arrival time calculated by the destination arrival predicted time calculation unit 58.

[0040] Furthermore, for example, when a user who has referred to the presented predicted arrival time after continuing driving, the changed predicted arrival time, and the transportation means selects a connecting vehicle as a transportation means, the transportation means change location setting unit 60 may set the transportation means change location taking into consideration the maintenance efficiency of the vehicle 3. This is because when a connecting vehicle is selected as a transportation means, there is greater freedom in setting the transportation means change location compared to when public transportation or a rental bicycle is selected as a transportation means.

[0041] Furthermore, the transportation change location setting unit 60 determines whether there are multiple candidates for the transportation change location when, for example, the user selects public transportation or a bicycle as a transportation means after referring to the presented predicted arrival time after continued driving, the changed predicted arrival time, and the transportation means. If there are multiple candidates for the transportation change location, the transportation change location may be set taking into consideration the maintenance efficiency of the vehicle 3. This is because there is less freedom in setting the transportation change location when public transportation or a rental bicycle is selected as a transportation means compared to when a connecting vehicle is selected as a transportation means.

[0042] When the transportation means change location set by the transportation means change location setting unit 60 is a location where the transportation means is changed to a connecting vehicle, the vehicle allocation processing unit 61 allocates a connecting vehicle to the transportation means change location set by the transportation means change location setting unit 60. In addition, the vehicle allocation processing unit 61 selects and allocates, for example, a manually driven vehicle or another automatically driven vehicle that can arrive most quickly at the transportation change location set by the transportation change location setting unit 60 as a connecting vehicle.

[0043] When the transfer space setting unit 62 predicts that the vehicle 3 in which the user is riding will arrive at the transportation change location later than the connecting vehicle, it sets the transportation change location to a space where multiple vehicles can stop. Note that a space where multiple vehicles can stop is, for example, a parking lot with enough space to park multiple vehicles. Furthermore, the transfer space setting unit 62 performs processing when the transportation change location set by the transportation change location setting unit 60 is a point where the transportation means is changed to the connecting vehicle.

[0044] The detection process switching unit 63 performs a process when the degradation content detection unit 41 is unable to detect the content of the performance degradation for a part whose performance has been determined to be degraded by the performance degradation determination unit 40. Specifically, the detection process switching unit 63 causes an external control facility to execute the process of detecting the content of the performance degradation by a computer (vehicle route planning system 1, vehicle route planning device). A control facility is, for example, a maintenance shop located at a dealership, a facility capable of communicating with an operator belonging to the manufacturer of vehicle 3, or a vehicle maintenance shop to which a vehicle 3 equipped with parts determined to have degraded performance can arrive under its own power.

[0045] (operation) FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation performed by the vehicle route planning system 1. In the following description, the vehicle 3 in which the user is riding before changing the transportation means at the transportation means change location may be referred to as the “preceding used vehicle.” The flowchart shown in Fig. 3 starts from a state in which the trip plan creation unit 52 outputs operation plan information to the preceding used vehicle and the electronic device, and the preceding used vehicle in which the user is riding is traveling.

[0046] In step S1, the performance degradation determination unit 40 diagnoses the performance of the components (on-board sensors 30) of the preceding use vehicle. That is, in step S1, the preceding use vehicle self-diagnoses the state of the on-board sensors 30. In step S2, the performance degradation determination unit 40 determines whether the performance of the on-board sensor 30 has deteriorated from normal performance. If it is determined that the performance of the on-board sensor 30 has deteriorated (step S2: Y), the process proceeds to step S3. If it is determined that the performance of the on-board sensor 30 has not deteriorated (step S2: N), the process proceeds to step S4.

[0047] In step S3, the degradation content detection unit 41 detects the content of the degradation in performance for the component determined to have degraded performance in step S2. In step S4, the preceding vehicle continues normal driving and drives toward the user's destination. In step S5, degradation detection unit 41 determines whether it is possible to detect the degradation in performance of the component determined to have degraded performance in step S2. If it is determined that it is possible to detect the degradation in performance (step S5: Y), the process proceeds to step S6. If it is determined that it is impossible to detect the degradation in performance (step S5: N), the process proceeds to step S7.

[0048] In step S6, the travelable distance calculation unit 53 calculates the distance that the preceding use vehicle with deteriorated parts performance can travel. In step S7, the detection process switching unit 63 causes the control facility to execute a process for detecting the nature of the performance degradation for the part determined to have deteriorated performance in step S1. In step S8, the control facility detects the details of the performance degradation for the parts determined to have degraded performance in step S2.

[0049] In step S9, the maintenance location extraction unit 54 extracts a maintenance location according to the nature of the performance degradation detected in step S3 or step S8. In step S10, the travel route change unit 56 performs a process (reroute process) of changing the travel route of the preceding use vehicle to a travel route to the maintenance location, in accordance with the maintenance location extracted in step S9. In step S11, the preceding vehicle travels along the travel route changed in step S10. In step S12, the destination arrival predicted time presentation unit 59 presents to the user the time at which the user is predicted to arrive at the destination for each of the multiple means of transportation detected by the transportation detection unit 57.

[0050] In step S13, the transportation change point setting unit 60 performs a process (transportation change process) of setting a transportation change point on the travel route changed in step S10. The transportation change process will be described later. In step S14, the user travels to the destination by the preceding vehicle or another means of transportation, depending on the transportation mode change location set in step S13. If the user travels to the destination by another means of transportation, the preceding vehicle travels to a maintenance location.

[0051] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the transportation means change process. In step S20, the transportation means change destination setting unit 60 determines whether the preceding vehicle can reach the destination based on the distance that the preceding vehicle can travel, calculated in step S6. If it is determined that the preceding vehicle can reach the destination (step S20: Y), the process proceeds to step S21. If it is determined that the preceding vehicle cannot reach the destination (step S20: N), the process proceeds to step S22. In step S21, the destination arrival predicted time calculation unit 58 calculates the changed arrival predicted time. In step S22, the destination arrival predicted time calculation unit 58 calculates the changed arrival predicted time.

[0052] In step S23, the transportation mode change setting unit 60 compares the predicted arrival time for continued driving calculated by the predicted destination arrival time calculation unit 58 with the changed predicted arrival time calculated in step S21. Then, it determines whether the changed predicted arrival time is earlier than the predicted arrival time for continued driving. That is, in step S23, it determines whether the alternative means to the preceding vehicle will arrive at the destination earlier than the preceding vehicle. If it is determined that the changed predicted arrival time is earlier than the predicted arrival time for continued driving (step S23: Y), the process proceeds to step S25. If it is determined that the changed predicted arrival time is later than the predicted arrival time for continued driving (step S23: N), the process proceeds to step S24. If it is determined that the changed predicted arrival time and the continued driving predicted arrival time are the same, the process may proceed to either step S24 or step S25.

[0053] In step S24, the preceding vehicle continues normal driving toward the user's destination. Note that the process of step S24 is performed, for example, with the user's approval. In step S25, the transportation change destination setting unit 60 calculates the Changed estimated arrival time In response to the request, a transportation means change point is set, which is a point where the user gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means. In step S26, the transportation change destination setting unit 60 calculates the Changed estimated arrival time In response to the request, a transportation means change point is set, which is a point where the user gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means.

[0054] As described above, in the present invention, if the performance of the parts has not deteriorated, the preceding vehicle continues normal driving (driving by automatic driving) and drives along the driving route included in the operation plan. On the other hand, if the performance of the parts has deteriorated, the preceding vehicle either continues driving or changes the means of transportation from the preceding vehicle to a connecting vehicle, public transportation, etc.

[0055] (Effects of the embodiment) (1) A computer included in a vehicle route planning device constituting the vehicle route planning system 1 executes a process for determining whether the performance of a part included in a preceding use vehicle, which is an autonomously driven vehicle, has deteriorated. In addition, the computer executes a process for detecting the nature of the deterioration in performance for a part determined to have deteriorated performance, and a process for extracting a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility capable of performing maintenance on the part determined to have deteriorated performance is located, based on the detected nature of the deterioration. Furthermore, the computer executes a process for changing the driving route from the current location of the preceding use vehicle to the destination to a driving route from the current location to the maintenance location, based on the extracted maintenance location. Then, the computer executes a process for setting a transportation mode change location on the changed driving route, which is a location where a user in the preceding use vehicle disembarks from the preceding use vehicle and changes to another transportation mode.

[0056] This makes it possible to set the location of the transportation change when the user needs to change their transportation means from the preceding vehicle to another transportation means, taking into account the efficiency of maintenance of the preceding vehicle. This makes it possible to efficiently perform maintenance on a preceding vehicle whose running speed has decreased due to a deterioration in the performance of its parts, thereby reducing the possibility that a preceding vehicle that has not undergone maintenance will slow down traffic flow by running at a speed slower than other vehicles that are running at the legal speed limit.

[0057] (2) The computer refers to a database (facility DB 26) that stores the details of the detected performance degradation in association with the maintenance location, and extracts the maintenance location. This makes it possible to improve the speed and accuracy of extracting maintenance locations.

[0058] (3) When the computer extracts multiple maintenance locations, it obtains the congestion level of facilities that can be maintained at each of the extracted maintenance locations, and sets the maintenance location with the facility that has the lowest acquired congestion level as the maintenance location for the driving route to be changed. This makes it possible to reduce the time required for maintenance on vehicles in advance use whose parts have deteriorated in performance.

[0059] (4) The computer calculates the distance that a pre-operation vehicle equipped with a part determined to have degraded performance can travel, and extracts a maintenance location within the range that the pre-operation vehicle can travel based on the calculated distance. This makes it possible to perform maintenance on parts with degraded performance in a preceding vehicle before the vehicle becomes unable to move on its own.

[0060] (5) If the computer is unable to extract a maintenance location within the driving range of the preceding vehicle, it sets a shoulder of the road within the driving range of the preceding vehicle where the preceding vehicle can stop as the location for changing the mode of transportation, or it sets a facility within the driving range of the preceding vehicle that is stored in the database and where maintenance can be performed as the location for changing the mode of transportation. As a result, when a road shoulder is set as a transportation mode change location, it becomes possible to have a preceding vehicle with parts that have deteriorated performance parked at a location that has less of an impact on traffic flow before it becomes unable to move and slows down traffic flow. Also, when a facility where maintenance can be performed is set as a transportation mode change location, it becomes possible to have a preceding vehicle with parts that have deteriorated performance maintained on the parts before it becomes unable to move.

[0061] (6) The point of change of transportation means is the point where a user riding in a preceding vehicle transfers from the preceding vehicle to a transfer vehicle, which may be a manually operated vehicle or another automatically operated vehicle, public transportation, or a bicycle used in a rental format. This allows a user in a preceding vehicle to travel from the preceding vehicle, which has parts with reduced performance, to their destination in a shorter time than traveling on foot.

[0062] (7) If there are multiple means of transportation that can be changed at the transportation change location, the computer sets the transportation change location corresponding to the transportation means that is predicted to arrive at the destination the earliest among the multiple means of transportation. This makes it possible to reduce the time it takes for a user riding in a preceding vehicle to arrive at their destination after getting off the preceding vehicle, which has parts with reduced performance.

[0063] (8) If there are multiple means of transportation that can be transferred at the transportation change location, the computer presents the user with the predicted time of arrival at the destination for each of the multiple means of transportation. This makes it possible to present the user in the preceding vehicle with transportation options that take into account the predicted time of arrival at the destination.

[0064] (9) If the computer predicts that the preceding vehicle will arrive at the transportation change location later than the connecting vehicle, the transportation change location is set to a space where multiple vehicles can stop. This makes it possible to reduce the possibility that a connecting vehicle waiting at the transportation mode change location until the preceding vehicle arrives will slow down traffic flow.

[0065] (10) If the computer is unable to detect the performance degradation, an external control facility may execute a process to detect the performance degradation. This makes it possible to detect the performance degradation of parts equipped in the preceding vehicle, even in cases where it is impossible to detect the performance degradation through computer processing.

[0066] (11) The component that determines whether performance has deteriorated is a sensor (on-board sensor 30) that detects the surrounding environment of the preceding vehicle. This makes it possible to efficiently perform maintenance on the on-board sensor 30 depending on the nature of the deterioration in the performance of the on-board sensor 30 to detect the surrounding environment, which is an important element in the operation of an autonomous vehicle.

[0067] (12) In the vehicle route planning method, it is determined whether the performance of a part equipped in a preceding use vehicle, which is an autonomous vehicle, has deteriorated, and for parts determined to have deteriorated performance, the details of the deterioration in performance are detected and the detected details are transmitted to the control device 2. Then, the control device 2 extracts a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility is located where maintenance can be performed for the part determined to have deteriorated performance, based on the detected details. Furthermore, based on the extracted maintenance location, the driving route from the current location of the preceding use vehicle to the destination is changed to a driving route from the current location to the maintenance location. In addition, a transportation mode change location, which is a location where a user riding in the preceding use vehicle gets off the preceding use vehicle and changes to another transportation mode, is set on the changed driving route.

[0068] This makes it possible to set the location of the transportation change when the user needs to change their transportation means from the preceding vehicle to another transportation means, taking into account the efficiency of maintenance of the preceding vehicle. This makes it possible to efficiently perform maintenance on a preceding vehicle whose running speed has decreased due to a deterioration in the performance of its parts, thereby reducing the possibility that a preceding vehicle that has not undergone maintenance will slow down traffic flow by running at a speed slower than other vehicles that are running at the legal speed limit.

[0069] (13) The vehicle route planning system 1 is equipped with a control device 2 that determines whether the performance of parts equipped in a preceding vehicle, which is an autonomous vehicle, has deteriorated, detects the details of the deterioration in performance for parts that have been determined to have deteriorated performance, and receives the detected details. Furthermore, the control device 2 extracts a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility is located where maintenance can be performed on the part determined to have deteriorated performance, according to the received content. Then, according to the extracted maintenance location, the driving route from the current location of the preceding use vehicle to the destination is changed to a driving route from the current location to the maintenance location. In addition, a transportation mode change location, which is a location where the user in the preceding use vehicle gets off the preceding use vehicle and changes to another transportation mode, is set on the changed driving route.

[0070] This makes it possible to set the location of the transportation change when the user needs to change their transportation means from the preceding vehicle to another transportation means, taking into account the efficiency of maintenance of the preceding vehicle. This makes it possible to efficiently perform maintenance on a preceding vehicle whose running speed has decreased due to a deterioration in the performance of its parts, thereby reducing the possibility that a preceding vehicle that has not undergone maintenance will slow down traffic flow by running at a speed slower than other vehicles that are running at the legal speed limit.

[0071] (Modification of the embodiment) (1) In the embodiment, the transportation mode change point is a point where a user in a preceding vehicle transfers from the preceding vehicle to another autonomously driven vehicle, a connecting vehicle, public transportation, or a rental bicycle, but this is not limited to this. That is, the transportation mode change point may also be a point where a user in a preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and walks to the destination. This processing is performed, for example, when there is traffic congestion on the road from the transportation mode change point to the destination or when there is a delay in public transportation. [Explanation of symbols]

[0072] 1...vehicle route planning system, 2...controller, 3...vehicle, 20, 36...processor, 21, 37...storage device, 22, 33...communication device, 23...registrant database, 24, 32...map database, 25...reservation database, 26...facility database, 30...on-board sensor, 31...positioning device, 34...controller, 35...actuator, 40...performance degradation determination unit, 41...degradation content detection unit, 50...vehicle current location acquisition unit, 51...request data acquisition unit, 52...travel plan creation unit, 53...travelable distance calculation unit, 54...maintenance location extraction unit, 55...congestion level acquisition unit, 56...travel route change unit, 57...transportation means detection unit, 58...destination arrival predicted time calculation unit, 59...destination arrival predicted time presentation unit, 60...transportation means change location setting unit, 61...vehicle dispatch processing unit, 62...transfer space setting unit, 63...detection processing switching unit

Claims

1. A process of determining whether or not the performance of a part provided in the preceding use vehicle, which is an autonomous driving vehicle, has deteriorated; A process of detecting the details of the performance degradation for the component determined to have degraded performance; A process of extracting a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility capable of performing maintenance on the part determined to have deteriorated performance exists, according to the detected content; a process of changing a travel route from a current location of the preceding use vehicle to a destination location according to the extracted maintenance location, to a travel route from the current location to the maintenance location; A process of setting a transportation means change point on the changed driving route, which is a point where the user in the preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means; a computer that executes The computer A process of calculating a distance that the preceding use vehicle equipped with the part determined to have deteriorated performance can travel; a process of referring to a database that stores the details of the detected performance degradation and the maintenance location in association with each other, and executing a process of extracting the maintenance location within a range that the preceding use vehicle can travel in accordance with the calculated distance; A vehicle path planning device that executes the above.

2. The computer When a plurality of the maintenance locations are extracted, a process of acquiring a congestion degree of the facilities that are capable of maintenance and that are located in each of the extracted plurality of maintenance locations; 2. The vehicle route planning device according to claim 1, further comprising a process of setting the maintenance location where the facility with the acquired lowest congestion level is located as the maintenance location of the travel route to be changed.

3. The computer A vehicle route planning device as described in claim 1, which executes a process to set, if it is not possible to extract the maintenance location within the range that the preceding vehicle can travel, a shoulder of the road that can be stopped within the range that the preceding vehicle can travel, or a facility where maintenance can be performed that is within the range that the preceding vehicle can travel and is stored in the database, as the transportation means change location.

4. A process for determining whether the performance of a part equipped in a preceding vehicle, which is an autonomous driving vehicle, has deteriorated; A process of detecting the details of the performance degradation for the component determined to have degraded performance; A process of extracting a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility capable of performing maintenance on the part determined to have deteriorated performance exists, according to the detected content; a process of changing a travel route from a current location of the preceding use vehicle to a destination location according to the extracted maintenance location, to a travel route from the current location to the maintenance location; A process of setting a transportation means change point on the changed driving route, which is a point where the user in the preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means; a computer that executes The transportation means change location is a point where a user riding in the preceding vehicle transfers from the preceding vehicle to a connecting vehicle that is a manually operated vehicle or another automatically operated vehicle, public transportation, or a rental bicycle; The computer is a vehicle route planning device that executes a process of setting a transportation means change point corresponding to a transportation means that is predicted to arrive at the destination earliest among the plurality of transportation means when there are multiple transportation means that can be changed at the transportation means change point.

5. The computer 5. The vehicle route planning device according to claim 4, wherein, when there are a plurality of means of transportation to which the user can transfer at the transportation means change location, a process is executed to present to the user a predicted time of arrival at the destination for each of the plurality of means of transportation.

6. A process for determining whether the performance of a part equipped in a preceding vehicle, which is an autonomous driving vehicle, has deteriorated; A process of detecting the details of the performance degradation for the component determined to have degraded performance; A process of extracting a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility capable of performing maintenance on the part determined to have deteriorated performance exists, according to the detected content; a process of changing a travel route from a current location of the preceding use vehicle to a destination location according to the extracted maintenance location, to a travel route from the current location to the maintenance location; A process of setting a transportation means change point on the changed driving route, which is a point where the user in the preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means; a computer that executes The transportation means change location is a point where a user riding in the preceding vehicle transfers from the preceding vehicle to a connecting vehicle that is a manually operated vehicle or another automatically operated vehicle, public transportation, or a rental bicycle; The computer is a vehicle route planning device that executes a process to set the transportation change location as a space where multiple vehicles can stop when it predicts that the preceding vehicle will arrive at the transportation change location later than the connecting vehicle.

7. The computer A vehicle route planning device as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein, if it is impossible to detect the details of the performance degradation, a process for detecting the details of the performance degradation is executed by an external control facility.

8. 7. The vehicle route planning device according to claim 1, wherein the component that determines whether performance has deteriorated is a sensor that detects the surrounding environment of the preceding vehicle.

9. Determine whether the performance of parts equipped in the leading vehicle, which is an autonomous driving vehicle, has deteriorated; Detecting the details of the performance degradation for the component determined to have degraded performance; Transmitting the detected content to a control device; The control device Calculating a distance that the preceding use vehicle equipped with the part determined to have deteriorated performance can travel; a database is referenced that associates and stores the details of the detected performance degradation with maintenance locations, which are locations where facilities exist that can perform maintenance on the parts determined to have deteriorated performance, and extracts the maintenance locations within a range that the preceding use vehicle can travel, based on the detected details and the calculated distance; According to the extracted maintenance location, a travel route from a current location of the preceding use vehicle to a destination is changed to a travel route from the current location to the maintenance location; A vehicle route planning method that sets a transportation means change point on the changed driving route, which is a point where a user riding in the preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means.

10. A method for determining whether the performance of a part of a leading vehicle, which is an autonomous driving vehicle, has deteriorated; Detecting the details of the performance degradation for the component determined to have degraded performance; Transmitting the detected content to a control device; The control device extracting a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility capable of performing maintenance on the part determined to have deteriorated performance exists, according to the detected content; According to the extracted maintenance location, a travel route from a current location of the preceding use vehicle to a destination is changed to a travel route from the current location to the maintenance location; On the changed travel route, a transportation means change point is set, which is a point where the user in the preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means; The transportation means change location is a point where a user riding in the preceding vehicle transfers from the preceding vehicle to a connecting vehicle that is a manually operated vehicle or another automatically operated vehicle, public transportation, or a rental bicycle; A vehicle route planning method in which, when there are multiple means of transportation that can be changed at the means of transportation change point, the control device sets a means of transportation change point corresponding to the means of transportation that is predicted to arrive at the destination earliest among the multiple means of transportation.

11. Determining whether the performance of a part equipped in a leading vehicle that is an autonomous driving vehicle has deteriorated; Detecting the details of the performance degradation for the component determined to have degraded performance; Transmitting the detected content to a control device; The control device extracting a maintenance location, which is a location where a facility capable of performing maintenance on the part determined to have deteriorated performance exists, according to the detected content; According to the extracted maintenance location, a travel route from a current location of the preceding use vehicle to a destination is changed to a travel route from the current location to the maintenance location; On the changed travel route, a transportation means change point is set, which is a point where the user in the preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means; The transportation means change location is a point where a user riding in the preceding vehicle transfers from the preceding vehicle to a connecting vehicle that is a manually operated vehicle or another automatically operated vehicle, public transportation, or a rental bicycle; A vehicle route planning method in which, when the control device predicts that the preceding vehicle will arrive at the transportation means change location later than the connecting vehicle, it sets the transportation means change location as a space where multiple vehicles can stop.

12. Determine whether or not the performance of a part provided in the preceding use vehicle, which is an autonomous driving vehicle, has deteriorated, and detect the details of the deterioration in performance for the part determined to have deteriorated performance; a control device that receives the detected content; The control device Calculating a distance that the preceding use vehicle equipped with the part determined to have deteriorated performance can travel; a database that stores the detected performance degradation details and maintenance locations where facilities exist that can perform maintenance on the parts determined to have degraded performance, and extracts the maintenance locations within a range that the preceding vehicle can travel based on the received details and the calculated distance; According to the extracted maintenance location, a travel route from a current location of the preceding use vehicle to a destination is changed to a travel route from the current location to the maintenance location; A vehicle route planning system that sets a transportation means change point on the changed driving route, which is a point where a user riding in the preceding vehicle gets off the preceding vehicle and changes to another transportation means.

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