Vehicle driving control device, vehicle, and server device

Abstract

To achieve smooth merging of a vehicle while suppressing a feeling of discomfort of a driver to the minimum.MEANS FOR SOLVING THE PROBLEM: A vehicle travelling control device 10, which can be used for controlling travelling of a vehicle 1 that is travelling on a merging section, selects a vehicle to be controlled from vehicles 2 travelling on a merging original lane L2 on the merging section, by comparing front and back positions at a front end of the vehicle with each other, and controls travelling of the vehicle 1 travelling on the merging destination lane L1 so that the selected vehicle to be controlled can merge to a point just in front of the vehicle 1 on the merging destination lane L1. When selecting the vehicle to be controlled, the vehicle travelling control device 10 controls travelling of the vehicle 1 on the merging destination lane L1 so that the vehicle to be controlled travelling on the merging original lane L2 can merge to a point just in front of an own vehicle, on the merging destination lane L1. Unless selecting the vehicle to be controlled, the vehicle travelling control device 10 does not execute control by which the vehicle on the merging original lane L2 can merge to the point just in front of the own vehicle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle driving control device, a vehicle, and a server device. [Background technology]

[0002] Research and development is underway on autonomous driving for vehicles, such as automobiles. Even when a vehicle is driven autonomously, it is desirable for the vehicle to be able to smoothly merge into a merging section of a road and continue driving. For example, it is desirable for a vehicle traveling in a lane from which a vehicle is about to merge in a merging section to continue traveling from the lane from which the vehicle is about to merge to the lane to which the vehicle is about to merge without stopping, for example, at the end of the merging section. In addition, it is desirable for vehicles traveling in the merging lane at the merging section to continue traveling in the merging lane while accelerating and decelerating appropriately so as not to interfere with the traveling of vehicles in the merging lane that are merging into the merging section. Furthermore, there is also a view that when driving through a merging section, it is most efficient for vehicles in the merging lane and vehicles in the merging lane to merge one by one in sequence just before the end of the merging section. It is believed that such smooth merging is required for autonomous vehicles as well as for driver-operated vehicles. In particular, when autonomous vehicles and driver-operated vehicles are mixed in a merging section, it is believed that a smooth merging that does not cause discomfort to the driver can be achieved by merging one vehicle at a time near the end of the merging section. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-132408 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In Patent Document 1, the deceleration of the vehicle required for a vehicle traveling in the lane from which the vehicle is merging in a merging section to merge in front of the vehicle and the deceleration of the merging vehicle required to merge after the vehicle are calculated, and control is performed for merging that reduces the absolute value of the deceleration. In this case, a vehicle traveling in the lane from which a vehicle is merging in the merging section can merge in front of or behind a vehicle traveling in the lane to which the vehicle is merging. The amount of deceleration of the vehicle traveling in the lane from which the vehicle is merging or the amount of deceleration of the vehicle traveling in the lane to which the vehicle is merging can be reduced. Furthermore, it is believed that a smooth merging that does not cause discomfort to the driver can be basically achieved. Patent Document 1, for example, is believed to be able to achieve a smooth merging that does not cause discomfort to the driver, compared to a case where deceleration is simply performed when merging based on the rear of another vehicle in an adjacent lane being captured in an image captured by an onboard camera.

[0005] However, the merging control described in Patent Document 1 does not take into account the size and characteristics of the merging vehicle. Vehicles traveling on roads include not only small and standard vehicles but also large vehicles. Large vehicles are longer than standard vehicles and may have more difficulty accelerating and decelerating than standard vehicles. In particular, large vehicles carrying the maximum load may need a longer time to decelerate than standard vehicles. In such cases, if a vehicle for which deceleration control is performed based on the absolute value of deceleration, as in Patent Document 1, may not be able to decelerate in time. For example, even if the host vehicle decelerates slightly, it may not be able to secure enough space for the long, large vehicle attempting to merge ahead to merge safely. In addition, for example, the long, large vehicle attempting to merge may merge without decelerating sufficiently to allow it to merge safely later. When these situations occur, the driver of the vehicle may feel uncomfortable even if the vehicles do not come into contact with each other. In particular, if the host vehicle decelerates relatively significantly and the long, large vehicle moves forward from behind the host vehicle to merge, the driver of the host vehicle may perceive it as dangerous.

[0006] In this way, vehicle driving control is required to achieve smooth merging while minimizing the discomfort felt by the driver. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A vehicle travel control device according to one aspect of the present invention is a vehicle travel control device that can be used to control travel of vehicles traveling in a merging section, and includes: a selection unit that selects a control target vehicle traveling in a merging destination lane of the merging section from vehicles traveling in a merging source lane of the merging section; and a travel control unit that controls travel of the vehicles traveling in the merging destination lane so that the selected control target vehicle merges immediately before the host vehicle in the merging destination lane. The selection unit compares the front-to-rear positions of a front end of a vehicle in the merging destination lane with the front end of a vehicle in the merging source lane, and a vehicle in the merging lane ahead of the vehicle in the merging lane as the vehicle to be controlled for the vehicle in the merging destination lane, and if the vehicle to be controlled is selected from the vehicles in the merging lane from which the vehicle is merging, the driving control unit executes control for the vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane to cause the vehicle to merge in the merging destination lane just before the vehicle in question; and if the vehicle to be controlled is not selected from the vehicles in the merging lane from which the vehicle is merging, the driving control unit does not execute control for the vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane to cause the vehicle in the merging lane to merge in the merging destination lane just before the vehicle in question.

[0008] A vehicle according to one aspect of the present invention includes a sensor that detects other vehicles around the vehicle, and a driving control unit that controls driving of the vehicle using at least a detection result of the sensor, and the driving control unit, when traveling in a merging lane in a merging section, Merging section Merging lane Traveling The front end of the vehicle and Merging section Merging lane TravelingIf a vehicle to be controlled is selected from the vehicles traveling in the merging lane of the merging section based on a comparison of the front-to-rear positions with the front end of the vehicle, the vehicle to be controlled in the merging lane is controlled to merge immediately before the vehicle in the merging destination lane, and if the vehicle to be controlled is not selected from the vehicles in the merging lane, control is not executed to cause the vehicle in the merging lane to merge immediately before the vehicle in the merging destination lane.

[0009] A server device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a communication unit capable of communicating with a vehicle to control or assist the vehicle's driving, and a control unit that generates driving control information for the vehicle based on at least information acquired by the communication unit, wherein the control unit includes an acquisition unit that acquires information about the driving of a plurality of vehicles driving in a merging section from the plurality of vehicles, and a control unit that generates driving control information for the vehicle based on the acquired information. Merging section Merging lane Traveling The front end of the vehicle and Merging section Merging lane Traveling a selection unit that compares the front-rear positions of a front end of a vehicle in the merging lane with the front end of a vehicle in the merging lane, and selects a vehicle to be controlled that is to be controlled from vehicles that are driving in the merging destination lane of the merging section; and a driving control unit that controls the driving of the vehicles that are driving in the merging destination lane so that the vehicle to be controlled merges into the merging destination lane just before the merging section. The selection unit functions as at least the acquisition unit and the selection unit, and the selection unit compares the front-rear positions of a front end of a vehicle in the merging destination lane with the front end of a vehicle in the merging source lane, and selects a vehicle to be controlled that is to be controlled from vehicles that are driving in the merging destination lane of the merging section. A vehicle in the merging lane is selected as the vehicle to be controlled, and if the vehicle to be controlled is selected from the vehicles in the merging lane, the driving control unit executes control for the vehicle in the merging destination lane to merge the vehicle in the merging source lane just before the vehicle in the merging destination lane, and if the vehicle to be controlled is not selected from the vehicles in the merging source lane, the driving control unit does not execute control for the vehicle in the merging destination lane to merge the vehicle in the merging source lane just before the vehicle in the merging destination lane. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] In the present invention, when two vehicles are traveling side by side in a merging section, the front-rear positions of their front ends are compared. If the front end of the vehicle in the merging lane is ahead of the front end of the vehicle in the merging destination lane, the vehicle in the merging source lane is selected as a vehicle to be controlled for the vehicle in the merging destination lane traveling parallel to it. The vehicle in the merging destination lane can be selected as a vehicle to be controlled, just as if it were ahead of the vehicle in the merging destination lane. The vehicle in the merging destination lane executes control by the cruise control unit to cause the vehicle to merge in the merging source lane and the target vehicle in the merging destination lane just before the vehicle. The vehicle in the merging destination lane traveling parallel to the vehicle in the merging destination lane in the merging section can smoothly merge in front of the vehicle in the merging destination lane traveling parallel to it without having to decelerate excessively to merge behind the vehicle in the merging destination lane. When vehicles are traveling side by side, the vehicle in the lane they are merging from is already ahead and can merge smoothly by having the vehicle in the lane they are merging to give way to the vehicle traveling side by side. In contrast, if the front end of a vehicle in the merging lane traveling parallel to the vehicle in the merging destination lane is behind and not ahead of the vehicle in the merging destination lane, the vehicle in the merging source lane is not selected as a vehicle to be controlled for the vehicle in the merging destination lane traveling parallel to the vehicle in the merging destination lane. In this case, the vehicle in the merging destination lane does not execute control by the driving control unit to cause the vehicle in the merging source lane to merge into the merging destination lane just before the vehicle in question. The vehicle in the merging source lane will merge behind the vehicle traveling parallel to the vehicle in the merging destination lane. Furthermore, these merging situations after parallel driving correspond well to the judgments that drivers make in response to merging, and are unlikely to cause discomfort to the driver. In the present invention, driving control during merging is switched based on a comparison of the front ends of the vehicles in the merging lane and the merging lane, thereby achieving smooth merging while minimizing discomfort to the driver. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a first traveling state in which a vehicle to which the present invention can be applied is traveling in a merging section. [Figure 2]FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a second traveling state in a merging section different from that in FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a third traveling state in the merging section different from that in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the control system of the automobile of FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a basic configuration diagram of a control device that can be used as the various control devices in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the basic driving control of the automobile of FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the merging driving control according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 8 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section under the merging traveling control of the first embodiment, which corresponds to the second traveling state in FIG. [Figure 9] 9 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section under merging traveling control according to the first embodiment, and corresponds to the third traveling state in FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a flowchart of merging driving control that can also accommodate a case where a vehicle is traveling in the merging lane in a merging section. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section that can be handled by the merging traveling control according to the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a flowchart of the control for selecting a vehicle to be controlled in the merging driving control according to the second embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a flowchart of the control for determining whether the vehicle is traveling in a merging section in the merging traveling control according to the third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of the determination threshold for the merging section according to the remaining distance from the end of the merging section and the vehicle speed. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section under merging traveling control according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a flowchart of the control for selecting a control target vehicle in the merging driving control according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram of a server device that controls the running of an automobile. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a flowchart of the vehicle driving control by the server device of FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] [First embodiment] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a first traveling state in which a vehicle 1 to which the present invention can be applied is traveling in a merging section. The automobile 1 in FIG. 1 is an example of a vehicle. Other examples of vehicles include motorcycles and personal mobility. A vehicle is equipped with a drive source such as an engine or a motor, and can run using the driving force generated by the drive source. The vehicle may be one that runs by automatic driving, or one that can run by operation by the driver of the automobile 1. The automobile 1 may also be one that can run with assistance to the driver's operation. Hereinafter, automatic driving driving control is considered to include driving control by driver assistance.

[0014] In FIG. 1, automobile 1 is traveling in a merging lane L1 in a merging section of a road. The length from the start point PS of the merging section to the end point PE is L. Also shown in the merging section is another automobile 2 traveling in an out-of-merging lane L2. The other automobile 2 moves from the out-of-merging lane L2 to the destination lane L1 in the merging section. In the figure, the other automobile 2 ahead is moving from the out-of-merging lane L2 to the destination lane L1 in front of automobile 1. In this case, automobile 1 is generally desired to continue traveling in the destination lane L1 while slowing down to maintain a distance between itself and the other automobile 2, which will become the preceding vehicle after merging, according to its own vehicle speed. After that, automobile 1 is also desired to travel at the same speed as the other automobile 2 while maintaining a safe distance between them.

[0015] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a second traveling state in a merging section different from that in FIG. In Figure 2, automobile 1 is traveling in the same merging section as in Figure 1. However, automobile 1 is traveling side by side with another automobile 2 in the merging section. In this case, automobile 1 often maintains its own speed (Keep) without slowing down and continues traveling in the merging destination lane L1. Then, the other automobile 2 moves from the merging origin lane L2 to the merging destination lane L1 behind automobile 1. The other automobile 2 needs to decelerate as necessary in the merging origin lane L2 and then move from the merging origin lane L2 to the merging destination lane L1.

[0016] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a third traveling state in the merging section different from that in FIG. In Figure 2, automobile 1 is traveling alongside another automobile 2 in the same merging section as in Figure 2. However, the other automobile 2 is a large vehicle 3. The size and characteristics of large vehicle 3 are significantly different from those of small and standard vehicles. Large vehicles 3 are often longer than standard vehicles and have more difficulty accelerating and decelerating than standard vehicles. A large vehicle 3 carrying a maximum load may need a longer time to decelerate than a standard vehicle. Because it takes time for large vehicle 3 to accelerate and decelerate, even if it attempts to decelerate in the merging lane L2 of the merging section, it may not be able to decelerate sufficiently to drop behind automobile 1 traveling alongside it in the merging section. In this case, automobile 1 generally continues traveling in the merging destination lane L1 by maintaining its own speed without slowing down. However, it may be desirable to significantly decelerate to allow large vehicle 3 in merging source lane L2 to go ahead and merge in front of automobile 1.

[0017] Incidentally, even when the automobile 1 is traveling by automatic driving, it is desirable to achieve smooth merging at road merging sections. However, with existing technology, it is difficult to achieve smooth merging in the various merging driving conditions described above. If smooth merging is not possible, automobiles may interfere with each other or may stop at the end PE of the merging section. For example, as shown in Figures 1 to 3, an autonomously driven automobile 1 is equipped with an exterior camera 26 that captures images in the direction of travel. When determining whether or not there is a preceding vehicle based on the captured image in the direction of travel, the automobile 1 generally recognizes the preceding vehicle based on the fact that the rear of the preceding vehicle is captured in the image. The automobile 1 then performs driving control when merging to allow the recognized preceding vehicle to yield. The automobile 1 needs to accelerate and decelerate appropriately in the merging section so as not to interfere with the driving of another automobile 2 in the merging lane L2 that is merging. On the other hand, on real roads, not only are there vehicles 1 that are driving automatically, but there are also vehicles 1 that are driving manually under the driver's control. It is desirable for the vehicles 1 that are driving automatically to be able to merge smoothly in such a mixed environment. It is desirable to control the merging so that vehicles merge one by one in order near the end of the flow section. In this way, the driving control of the automobile 1 is required to realize smooth merging while minimizing the discomfort felt by drivers other than the driver of the own vehicle.

[0018] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the control system 10 of the automobile 1 of FIG. A control system 10 in FIG. 4 is a vehicle driving control device provided in the automobile 1 in FIG. The control system 10 of the automobile 1 in FIG. 4 has multiple control devices, including a cruise control device 15 that performs autonomous driving. FIG. 4 shows multiple control devices 40, such as a drive control device 11, a steering control device 12, a braking control device 13, an operation detection device 14, a cruise control device 15, a detection control device 16, and an external communication device 17. The control system 10 of the automobile 1 may also include other control devices, such as an air conditioning control device, an occupant monitoring device, a short-range communication device, and an alarm device. The multiple control devices are connected by cables to a central gateway device (CGW) 18 that constitutes a vehicle network. Multiple cables are connected to the central gateway device 18. The multiple control devices may be connected to the central gateway device 18 in a star or bus configuration. The vehicle network may conform to standards such as CAN (Controller Area Network) or LIN (Local Interconnect Network). The vehicle network may also conform to other standards, such as a general-purpose wired communication standard such as a LAN, a wireless communication standard, or a combination of these. Each control device is assigned an ID to distinguish it from other control devices. Each control device may input and output various information using packets with the destination ID and source ID attached. The central gateway device 18 monitors and routes packets on the vehicle network. The central gateway device 18 may check the list and control routing.

[0019] The drive control device 11 controls the drive source and drive force transmission mechanism of the automobile 1. The drive force transmission mechanism may be, for example, a reduction gear, a center differential, etc. The drive force transmission mechanism may be one that individually controls the magnitude of the drive force transmitted to each of the multiple wheels of the automobile 1. The steering control device 12 controls a steering device that changes the direction of a plurality of wheels on the front side of the automobile 1. The traveling direction of the automobile 1 changes according to the direction of the wheels. The brake control device 13 controls a braking device that individually brakes the plurality of wheels of the automobile 1. The braking device may be one that individually controls the magnitude of the braking force that acts on the plurality of wheels of the automobile 1.

[0020] The operation detection device 14 is connected to a plurality of operating members provided on the automobile 1 for the occupant to operate the driving of the automobile 1. The plurality of operating members include, for example, a steering wheel 21, an accelerator pedal 22, a brake pedal 23, and a shift lever 24. The operation detection device 14 detects whether or not each operating member is operated, the amount of operation, etc., and outputs the operation information to the vehicle network.

[0021] The detection control device 16 is connected to a plurality of detection components for detecting the driving state and driving environment of the automobile 1. The plurality of detection components include, for example, a GNSS receiver 25, an outside camera 26, a lidar 27, and an acceleration sensor 28. The GNSS receiver 25 receives radio waves from multiple GNSS satellites (not shown) and generates information on the current position and current time of the automobile 1 equipped with the GNSS receiver 25. The GNSS receiver 25 may be one that can receive radio waves from terrestrial waves and zenith satellites and generate highly accurate information on the current position and current time. Exterior camera 26 captures images of the outside of automobile 1, which is capable of traveling on roads, etc. Automobile 1 may be equipped with multiple exterior cameras 26. The multiple exterior cameras 26 may capture images of the front, rear, left, and right sides of automobile 1 separately, capturing images of a 360-degree area around automobile 1. Images captured by exterior camera 26 include images of other automobiles 2 and the like around automobile 1. It is preferable that automobile 1 capture images of at least the area ahead in the direction of travel of automobile 1, as shown in FIG. 1, for example. The lidar 27 uses a laser to scan the exterior of the automobile 1, which can travel on roads, and generates spatial information about the exterior of the automobile based on reflected laser waves. The spatial information about the exterior of the automobile includes images of other automobiles 2 and the like around the automobile 1. The exterior camera 26 and the lidar 27 are sensors that detect other automobiles 2 around the automobile 1. The acceleration sensor 28 may be one that detects acceleration in three axial directions, for example, the front-to-rear, left-to-right, and up-to-down directions of the automobile 1. In this case, the acceleration sensor 28 can detect acceleration in the yaw, roll, and pitch directions of the automobile 1. The detection control device 16 outputs the detection information of the various detection components provided in the vehicle to the vehicle network. The detection control device 16 may generate information based on the detection information, for example, detection information of other vehicles 2 around the vehicle, and output the information to the vehicle network.

[0022] The external communication device 17 establishes a wireless communication path with a base station 30 located outside the automobile 1, for example, near a road. The base station 30 may be a carrier-based one or one for advanced traffic information. The external communication device 17 transmits and receives information via the base station 30 to and from a server device 31 connected to the base station 30. The server device 31 may be provided corresponding to the base station 30. By providing the base station 30 for 5G communication with the function of the server device 31, the external communication device 17 of the automobile 1 can perform high-speed, large-capacity communication with the server device 31 of the base station 30.

[0023] The driving control device 15 controls the driving of the automobile 1 . The driving control device 15 may perform driving control of the automobile 1 based on the driver's operation, driving control of the automobile 1 that supports the driver's operation, and driving control in an automatic driving mode that does not depend on the driver's operation. For example, the driving control device 15 may generate a control value that assists the driver's operation based on information from the operation detection device 14 and output it to the drive control device 11, the steering control device 12, and the braking control device 13. The driving control device 15 may perform lane keeping control to maintain the driving lane and preceding vehicle following control based on information from the detection control device 16 and high-precision map data, and generate and output control values ​​for automatic driving. In this way, the driving control device 15 functions as a driving control unit that controls the driving of the automobile 1 using at least the detection results of the sensors.

[0024] FIG. 5 is a basic configuration diagram of a control device 40 that can be used as the various control devices in FIG. For example, the driving control device 15 has the basic configuration shown in FIG. The control device 40 in FIG. 5 includes an input / output device 41, a timer 42, a memory 43, an ECU 44, and an internal bus 45 to which these are connected.

[0025] The input / output device 41 is connected to the vehicle network. The input / output device 41 controls the input / output of information through the vehicle network. For example, the input / output device 41 acquires a packet with an ID corresponding to itself attached thereto from the vehicle network, and outputs the packet to the ECU 44 via the internal bus 45. For example, the input / output device 41 adds a source ID and a destination ID corresponding to itself to the information acquired from the ECU 44 via the internal bus 45, and outputs the information to the vehicle network. The timer 42 measures time and the time of day. The time of the timer 42 may be calibrated by the current time from the GNSS receiver 25. The memory 43 may be configured, for example, with a non-volatile semiconductor memory, a HDD, a RAM, etc. The memory 43 stores, for example, programs and data executed by the ECU 44. For example, the memory 43 of the cruise control device 15 may store, in addition to a program for cruise control, cruise control setting values, detection information of the detection control device 16, operation information of the detection control device 16, high-precision map data, etc. The high-precision map data stored in the memory 43 may be updated with update data obtained by the external communication device 17 from the server device 31. The ECU 44 reads and executes the programs stored in the memory 43. This realizes a control unit. For example, the ECU 44 of the cruise control device 15 functions as a control unit for cruise control, and executes the control of the cruise control device 15 described above.

[0026] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of basic driving control of the automobile 1 of FIG. The basic driving control of FIG. 6 may be executed by the ECU 44 provided in the control system 10 of FIG. 4. The ECUs 44 of multiple control devices 40 may cooperate to execute the basic driving control of FIG. 6. Here, the description will be given assuming that the ECU 44 of the driving control device 15 executes the basic driving control of FIG. 6. The ECU 44 of the driving control device 15 may repeatedly execute the basic driving control of FIG. 6 when the automobile 1 is traveling. In this case, the ECU 44 of the driving control device 15 repeatedly executes the basic driving control of FIG. 6 in order to switch between automatic driving, manual driving, and driving assistance while the automobile 1 is traveling. The ECU 44 may start the basic driving control of FIG. 6, for example, when an ignition switch (not shown) of the automobile 1 is turned on or when a driver gets into the automobile 1. In addition, the ECU 44 may terminate the execution of the basic driving control of Figure 6, for example, when the automobile 1 reaches its destination by automatic driving, when the ignition switch (not shown) of the automobile 1 is turned OFF, or when the driver gets out of the automobile 1.

[0027] In step ST51, the ECU 44 acquires the latest information on the settings of the cruise control of the automobile 1. The ECU 44 may acquire the cruise control setting values, the detection information of the detection control device 16, the operation information of the detection control device 16, high-precision map data, and the like from the memory 43. The cruise control setting values ​​are, for example, five-stage setting values ​​for the autonomous driving level. The ECU 44 may also acquire the latest detection information, operation information, and the like from other control devices connected to the vehicle network.

[0028] In step ST52, the ECU 44 determines whether the driving control currently being executed is autonomous driving based on the latest acquired information. For example, if the setting value of the driving control indicates autonomous driving, if the detection information permits autonomous driving, or if the operation information indicates starting autonomous driving, the ECU 44 determines that driving control based on autonomous driving will be executed, and proceeds to step ST54. Otherwise, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST53.

[0029] In step ST53, the ECU 44 determines whether the driving control currently being executed is driving assistance based on the latest acquired information. For example, if the setting value of the driving control indicates driving assistance, if the detection information does not allow autonomous driving, or if the operation information indicates starting driving assistance, the ECU 44 determines that driving assistance driving control will be executed, and proceeds to step ST55. Otherwise, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST56.

[0030] In step ST54, the ECU 44 executes autonomous driving cruise control. In the cruise control for autonomous driving, the ECU 44 generates a course for the automobile 1 based on, for example, a route to a set destination, high-precision map data, and detection information, without relying on operation information. The ECU 44 generates control values ​​for controlling the cruise of the automobile 1 to follow the generated course, and outputs these values ​​to the drive control device 11, the steering control device 12, and the braking control device 13. In the cruise control for autonomous driving, the ECU 44 may execute controls such as lane keeping control, preceding vehicle following control, lane change, merging control in merging sections including merging, obstacle avoidance, and emergency stopping. The ECU 44 may select and execute at least a part of these various controls to control the cruise along the generated course. After that, the ECU 44 terminates this control.

[0031] In step ST55, the ECU 44 executes driving control by driving assistance. In driving control by driving assistance, the ECU 44 generates a course for the automobile 1 based on, for example, a route to a set destination, high-precision map data, and detection information, along with operation information. The generated course basically follows the driver's operation, but is adjusted to enhance driving safety. The ECU 44 generates control values ​​for controlling the driving of the automobile 1 along the generated course, and outputs these values ​​to the drive control device 11, the steering control device 12, and the braking control device 13. In the driving control by operation assistance, the ECU 44 may execute controls such as lane keeping control, preceding vehicle following control, lane change, merging control at merging sections including merging, obstacle avoidance, and emergency stopping. The ECU 44 may select and execute at least a part of these various controls to control driving along the generated course. Thereafter, the ECU 44 terminates this control.

[0032] In step ST56, the ECU 44 executes driving control based on the driver's operation. In this case, the ECU 44 basically generates control values ​​based only on the operation information and outputs them to the drive control device 11, the steering control device 12, and the braking control device 13. However, in the case of an emergency stop, for example, the ECU 44 may generate control values ​​similar to those used in driving control based on automatic driving and output them to the drive control device 11, the steering control device 12, and the braking control device 13. Thereafter, the ECU 44 ends this control.

[0033] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the merging driving control according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The ECU 44 that executes the basic driving control of FIG. 6 may execute the merging driving control of FIG. 7 at least in steps ST54 and ST55 of FIG. 6 when the automobile 1 is traveling in the merging lane L2 in the merging section of the road.

[0034] In step ST1, the ECU 44 determines whether or not the vehicle is traveling in a merging section. The merging section may be, for example, a merging section installed on a road such as those shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. The ECU 44 may determine, for example, based on the position information of the vehicle and the high-precision map data, whether or not the vehicle is traveling in a merging section included in the high-precision map data. If the vehicle is not traveling in a merging section, the ECU 44 ends this control. If the vehicle is traveling in a merging section, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST2.

[0035] In step ST2, the ECU 44 determines whether the host vehicle is traveling on the merging lane L1 in the merging section. The ECU 44 may determine whether the host vehicle is traveling on the merging lane L1 in the merging section of the high-precision map data, for example, based on the host vehicle's position information and the high-precision map data. Alternatively, the ECU 44 may determine whether the host vehicle is traveling on the merging lane L1 in the merging section of the high-precision map data by comparing the road shape, such as lane boundary lines, and the viewpoint position included in the image captured by the exterior camera 26 with information on the road shape of the current location in the high-precision map data. If the host vehicle is not traveling on the merging lane L1 in the merging section, the ECU 44 ends this control. If the host vehicle is traveling on the merging lane L1 in the merging section, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST3.

[0036] In step ST3, the ECU 44 determines whether there is another vehicle 2 traveling in the merging lane L2 in the merging section. The image captured by the exterior camera 26 basically captures a predetermined angle of view, based on the forward direction, which is the traveling direction of the host vehicle. If the host vehicle is equipped with multiple exterior cameras 26, the ECU 44 can also acquire images of the sides and rear of the host vehicle. The ECU 44 may determine the presence of another vehicle 2 traveling in the merging lane L2 based on image components of the parallel merging lane L2 contained in the images captured by these exterior cameras 26. A small, medium, or large vehicle 3 may be included in the captured image with a certain size and shape. The ECU 44 can detect another vehicle 2 traveling in the parallel merging lane L2 by analyzing portions of the image that are different from the road surface. If no other vehicle 2 traveling in the parallel merging lane L2 is detected, the ECU 44 terminates this control. If another vehicle 2 traveling in the parallel lane L2 from which the vehicle is to merge is detected, the ECU 44 advances the process to step ST4.

[0037] In step ST4, the ECU 44 selects a vehicle to be controlled from among multiple vehicles, including the host vehicle, traveling in the merging section, based on the front-to-back relationship of each vehicle, with the front end of each vehicle as the reference. The ECU 44 selects, from among the other vehicles 2 traveling in the merging source lane L2, another vehicle 2 whose front end is ahead of the host vehicle, as the vehicle to be controlled. In this case, not only the other vehicle 2 in FIG. 1, but also the other vehicle 2 in FIG. 2 and the large vehicle 3 in FIG. 3 are selected as vehicles to be controlled. If there is no other vehicle 2 whose front end is ahead of the host vehicle in the merging source lane L2, the ECU 44 does not select a vehicle to be controlled, even if there is another vehicle 2 in the merging source lane L2. When a driver independently determines whether or not to merge and selects a vehicle to be controlled when merging, the driver generally looks toward the adjacent lane to determine the front and rear positions of the other vehicle 2 in the adjacent lane. In this case, the driver may make a determination by checking the front-to-rear positions of the physical front end of the other vehicle 2 in the adjacent lane, or by checking the front-to-rear positions of the driver or other occupants of the other vehicle 2. The physical front end of a vehicle may be, for example, a bumper. Therefore, the ECU 44 may select a vehicle to be controlled based on a front-to-rear relationship based on the front end of each vehicle, so as to reproduce the driver's own confirmation of the front-to-rear positions. In this case, the ECU 44 may use, for example, the physical front end of each vehicle as one criterion for determining the front-to-rear positions, while also using the front-to-rear positions of the driver of each vehicle, or the position of the driver's eye line, or the front-to-rear positions of the driver's head or eyes, as additional criteria for determining the front-to-rear positions. In this case, the front end of the vehicle used by the ECU 44 to determine the front-to-rear positions is a position near the driver's eye line, or better, a position further forward in the direction of travel. Furthermore, when determining the front-rear position of a vehicle, the ECU 44 may determine the front-rear position of each vehicle based on at least the front-rear position of the driver or the position of the driver's line of sight or the part forward of the front-rear position of the head or eyes. Furthermore, the front end positions used by the ECU 44 to determine each vehicle may generally correspond among the multiple vehicles whose front-to-rear relationships are being determined, but they do not have to correspond among the multiple vehicles. For example, the ECU 44 may use the fore-and-aft position of the driver himself as the front end of the vehicle, and may use the physical front end, such as the bumper, of the other vehicle 2 as the front end. Even with such a comparative relationship, the front ends of the vehicles, which are the basis used by the ECU 44 to determine whether or not to perform merging control, are located forward of the line of sight of the vehicle or the driver.

[0038] In step ST5, the ECU 44 determines whether or not a control target vehicle has been selected. If another vehicle 2 has been selected by the processing of step ST4, the ECU 44 determines that a selection has been made and proceeds to step ST6. If another vehicle 2 has not been selected by the processing of step ST4, the ECU 44 ends this control.

[0039] In step ST6, the ECU 44 executes last-minute merging control to cause the controlled vehicle to merge immediately before the host vehicle. For example, the ECU 44 decelerates the controlled vehicle during the merging section so that its speed is equal to or slower than that of the controlled vehicle. The ECU 44 also controls the vehicle speed so that the distance between the controlled vehicle and the preceding vehicle is greater than the longitudinal length of the controlled vehicle. This allows not only the other vehicle 2 in FIG. 1 but also the other vehicle 2 in FIG. 2 and the large vehicle 3 in FIG. 3 to move from the merging source lane L2 to the space in the merging destination lane L1 secured ahead of the controlled vehicle during the merging section. The ECU 44 then terminates this control.

[0040] In step ST6, the ECU 44 may determine whether the merging of the control target vehicle has been completed in order to determine the end of the merging control. The image captured by the exterior camera 26 shows the other vehicle 2 that has merged in front of the host vehicle. The ECU 44 may determine that the merging of the control target vehicle has been completed by confirming in the image captured by the exterior camera 26 that the other vehicle 2 that has merged is traveling within the lane. If the merging of the control target vehicle has not been completed, the ECU 44 may continue the merging control of step ST6. The ECU 44 may continue the merging control of step ST6 until it is determined that the merging of the control target vehicle has been completed.

[0041] 8 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section under the merging traveling control of the first embodiment, which corresponds to the second traveling state in FIG. In Figure 8, a vehicle 1 traveling in a merging lane L1 and another vehicle 2 traveling in a merging lane L2 are traveling side by side in a merging section. When a vehicle to be controlled is selected based on the leading edge as in Figure 7, the vehicle 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 selects the other vehicle 2 traveling in the merging lane L2 as the vehicle to be controlled. Then, the vehicle 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 decelerates due to the merging travel control of Figure 7. As a result, the other vehicle 2 traveling in the merging lane L2 can move from the merging lane L2 to the merging lane L1 in the merging section.

[0042] 9 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section under merging traveling control according to the first embodiment, and corresponds to the third traveling state in FIG. In Figure 9, a car 1 traveling in a merging lane L1 and a large vehicle 3 traveling in a merging lane L2 are traveling side by side in the merging section. When a control target vehicle is selected based on the leading edge as in Figure 7, the car 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 selects the large vehicle 3 traveling in the merging lane L2 as the control target vehicle. The car 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 then decelerates due to the merging travel control of Figure 7. As a result, the large vehicle 3 traveling in the merging lane L2 can move from the merging lane L2 to the merging lane L1 in the merging section.

[0043] As described above, in this embodiment, a vehicle 1 to be controlled that is traveling on the merging destination lane L1 in the merging section is selected from the vehicles 1 traveling on the merging source lane L2 in the merging section. Then, in this embodiment, the traveling of the vehicle 1 traveling on the merging destination lane L1 is controlled so that the selected vehicle to be controlled merges immediately before the vehicle on the merging destination lane L1. In particular, when two vehicles 1 are traveling side by side in a merging section as shown in Figures 8 and 9, in this embodiment, the front-rear positions of their front ends are compared. If the front end of the vehicle 1 in the merging lane L2 is ahead of the front end of the vehicle 1 in the merging destination lane L1, the vehicle 1 in the merging source lane L2 is selected as the vehicle to be controlled for the vehicle 1 traveling parallel to it in the merging destination lane L1. The vehicle 1 traveling parallel to it in the merging source lane L2 can be selected as the vehicle to be controlled, just as when it is ahead of the vehicle 1 in the merging destination lane L1. The vehicle 1 in the merging destination lane L1 executes control by the cruise control unit to cause the vehicle to merge in the merging source lane L2 into the merging destination lane L1 just before its own vehicle. In the merging section, vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 traveling parallel to vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 can merge smoothly in front of vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 traveling parallel to it without having to slow down excessively in order to merge behind vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 traveling parallel to it. Vehicle 1 in the merging lane L2, which is already ahead when traveling parallel to vehicle 1, can merge smoothly by having vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 traveling parallel to it yield to it. In contrast, if the front end of vehicle 1 in the parallel merging lane L2 is behind, not ahead of, vehicle 1 in the destination lane L1, vehicle 1 in the merging lane L2 is not selected as a vehicle to be controlled by vehicle 1 in the parallel merging lane L1. Then, vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 is not controlled by the driving control unit to cause vehicle 1 in the merging lane L2 to merge immediately before its own vehicle. Vehicle 1 in the merging lane L2 merges behind vehicle 1 in the parallel merging lane L1. Furthermore, these merging situations after parallel running correspond well to the judgments that drivers make in response to merging, and are unlikely to give the driver any sense of discomfort.

[0044] In this embodiment, smooth merging can be achieved while minimizing discomfort to the driver by switching driving control at the time of merging based on a comparison of the front-to-rear positions of the front end of vehicle 1 in the merging destination lane L1 and the front end of vehicle 1 in the merging origin lane L2. Furthermore, the automobile 1 of this embodiment can autonomously execute control when traveling on the merging lane L1 in the merging section. This makes it less likely that the driver of the car 1 or the driver of the other car 2 will feel uncomfortable with the driving control by such automatic driving. Furthermore, the car 1 and the other car 2 can merge smoothly.

[0045] In the above-described embodiment, the merging driving control is described using as an example a case where the autonomously driven automobile 1 is traveling in the merging destination lane L1 in the merging section. In addition, for example, the autonomously driven automobile 1 may also be traveling in the merging source lane L2 in the merging section. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of merging driving control that can also accommodate a case where the automobile 1 is traveling in the merging source lane L2 in the merging section. The merging control of FIG. 10 corresponds well to the merging control of FIG.

[0046] In step ST11, the ECU 44 determines whether the host vehicle is traveling in a merging section. The ECU 44 may determine whether the host vehicle is traveling in a merging section in the high-precision map data, for example, based on the position information of the host vehicle and the high-precision map data. Furthermore, the ECU 44 may compare the road shape, such as lane boundary lines, and viewpoint position included in the image captured by the exterior camera 26 with information on the road shape at the current location in the high-precision map data to determine which lane in the merging section of the high-precision map data the vehicle is traveling in. For example, if the vehicle is traveling in the merging lane L1, the merging lane L2 is the parallel lane. Conversely, if the vehicle is traveling in the merging lane L2, the merging lane L1 is the parallel lane. If the vehicle is not traveling in a merging section, the ECU 44 ends this control. If the vehicle is traveling in a merging section, the ECU 44 advances the process to step ST12.

[0047] In step ST12, the ECU 44 determines whether there is another vehicle 2 traveling in a parallel lane different from the host vehicle in the merging section. The image captured by the exterior camera 26 basically captures a predetermined range of angle of view based on the forward direction, which is the direction of travel of the host vehicle. If the host vehicle is equipped with multiple exterior cameras 26, the ECU 44 can also acquire captured images of the sides and rear of the host vehicle. The ECU 44 may determine the presence or absence of another vehicle 2 traveling in the parallel lane based on image components of the parallel lane contained in the images captured by these exterior cameras 26. A small, medium, or large vehicle 3 may be included in the captured image with a certain size and shape. The ECU 44 can detect another vehicle 2 traveling in the parallel lane by analyzing portions of the image that are different from the road surface. If no other vehicle 2 traveling in the parallel lane is detected, the ECU 44 terminates this control. If another vehicle 2 traveling in the parallel lane is detected, the ECU 44 advances the process to step ST13.

[0048] In step ST13, the ECU 44 selects a target vehicle for merging control from among the vehicles traveling in the parallel lanes, based on the front ends of the vehicles, including the vehicle itself. The ECU 44 may select a target vehicle from among the vehicles traveling in the multiple lanes in the merging section, using the front ends of the vehicles as the reference, so as to prioritize the vehicle whose front end is ahead. For example, when the host vehicle is traveling in the merging lane L2, the ECU 44 uses the host vehicle traveling in the merging lane L2 as a reference and selects, as a control target vehicle, another vehicle 2 traveling in the merging destination lane L1 whose front end is ahead of the host vehicle. If there is no other vehicle 2 whose front end is ahead of the host vehicle in the merging destination lane L1, the ECU 44 does not select a control target vehicle. Furthermore, when the host vehicle is traveling on the merging lane L1, the ECU 44 uses the host vehicle traveling on the merging lane L1 as a reference and selects, as a control target vehicle, another vehicle 2 traveling on the merging lane L2 whose front end is ahead of the host vehicle. If there is no other vehicle 2 whose front end is ahead of the host vehicle on the merging lane L2, the ECU 44 does not select a control target vehicle.

[0049] In step ST14, the ECU 44 determines whether or not a control target vehicle has been selected. If another vehicle 2 has been selected by the processing of step ST13, the ECU 44 determines that a selection has been made and proceeds to step ST15. If another vehicle 2 has not been selected by the processing of step ST13, the ECU 44 determines that no selection has been made and proceeds to step ST16.

[0050] In step ST15, the ECU 44 executes merging control with the control target vehicle immediately ahead. For example, when the host vehicle is traveling on the merging lane L1, the ECU 44 executes control to maintain or decelerate the speed in order to allow the controlled vehicle to merge immediately beforehand. This allows another vehicle 2 traveling on the merging lane L2 to travel from the merging lane L2 to the merging lane L1 in front of the host vehicle and merge. For example, when the host vehicle is traveling in the merging source lane L2, the ECU 44 executes control to maintain or decelerate the vehicle's speed in order to merge immediately after the control target vehicle. The ECU 44 also executes control to move from the merging source lane L2 to the merging destination lane L1. This allows the host vehicle, i.e., the automobile 1, to travel from the merging source lane L2 to the merging destination lane L1 and merge behind the other automobile 2 traveling in the merging destination lane L1. When the merging is completed, the ECU 44 ends this control.

[0051] In step ST16, since there is no vehicle to be controlled, the ECU 44 executes normal merging control similar to that performed when there is no other vehicle 2 in the parallel lane. For example, when the vehicle is traveling in the merging lane L1, the ECU 44 executes control to maintain the speed, assuming that no other vehicle 2 is present in the merging lane L2 from which the vehicle is merging. This allows the other vehicle 2 traveling in the merging lane L2 to travel from the merging lane L2 to the merging lane L1 behind the vehicle and merge. For example, when the vehicle 1 is traveling in the merging lane L2, the ECU 44 executes control to maintain the speed, assuming that no other vehicle 2 is present in the merging lane L1. The ECU 44 also executes control to move from the merging lane L2 to the merging lane L1. This allows the vehicle 1 to travel from the merging lane L2 to the merging lane L1 and merge in front of the other vehicle 2 traveling in the merging lane L1. When the merging is completed, the ECU 44 ends this control.

[0052] In step ST15 or step ST16, the ECU 44 may determine whether or not the merging of the control target vehicle has been completed in order to determine the end of the merging control.

[0053] [Second embodiment] Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Differences from the above-described embodiment will be mainly described below. Features similar to those in the above-described embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals as in the above-described embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

[0054] 11 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section that can be handled by the merging traveling control of the second embodiment, and corresponds to the third traveling state in FIG. In FIG. 11, automobile 1, which is the host vehicle that is executing merging driving control, is traveling at a speed V1 in a merging section on a destination lane L1. In contrast, the large vehicle 3 is traveling in the merging section on the merging source lane L2 at a speed V2.

[0055] Large vehicles 3 are not only longer from front to back than small and medium-sized vehicles, but also have difficulty adjusting their speed by accelerating and decelerating. A large vehicle 3 that is long from front to back may not be able to accelerate or decelerate sufficiently in the merging section. In this case, even if the vehicle 1 in the merging destination lane L1 selects the large vehicle 3 in the merging out lane L2 as the vehicle to be controlled and decelerates for merging driving control, it may not be able to decelerate sufficiently to allow the large vehicle 3 in front of it to merge safely. This is particularly likely when the speed V1 of the vehicle 1 is higher than the speed V2 of the large vehicle 3.

[0056] FIG. 12 is a flowchart of the control for selecting a vehicle to be controlled in the merging driving control according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The ECU 44 of the automobile 1 that executes the merging running control of FIG. 7 may execute the control of selecting a control target vehicle of FIG. 12 as part of the processing of step ST4. It should be noted that even when the ECU 44 executes the merging running control of FIG. 10, it may execute the control of selecting the control target vehicle of FIG. 12 as part of the processing of step ST13.

[0057] In step ST21, the ECU 44 determines whether or not there is a preceding vehicle in the merging lane L2 that runs parallel to the vehicle traveling from the front end reference. The ECU 44 selects a vehicle to be controlled based on the front-to-back relationship of the vehicles using the front ends of the vehicles as the reference, using the basic processing of step ST4 in FIG. 7 described above. If a vehicle to be controlled has been selected, the ECU 44 determines that there is a preceding vehicle in the merging lane L2 that runs parallel to the vehicle traveling from the front end reference, and proceeds to step ST22. If a vehicle to be controlled has not been selected, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST26.

[0058] In step ST22, the ECU 44 provisionally selects the vehicle to be controlled, which has been selected through the basic processing in step ST4 of FIG. 7, as a candidate for the vehicle to be controlled.

[0059] In step ST23, the ECU 44 calculates the deceleration rate for bringing the provisionally selected control target vehicle in front of the host vehicle. In this case, the ECU 44 may calculate the deceleration rate at an offset point before the end point PE of the merging section, rather than the deceleration rate up to the end point PE of the merging section. The offset amount may be, for example, three times the length between the front and rear of the merging large vehicle 3, or the distance traveled by the host vehicle at its current speed for three seconds. The ECU 44 may calculate the deceleration A1, for example, using the following equation 1. In the equation below, V1 is the current speed of the host vehicle. V2 is the current speed of the provisionally selected control target vehicle. Lm is the remaining distance to an offset point before the end PE of the merging section. Using the following equation 1, the ECU 44 can calculate the deceleration A1 required for the host vehicle to decelerate to the vehicle speed of the provisionally selected control target vehicle by the time it reaches the offset point. "*2" means squared.

[0060] A1=(V1*2-V2*2) / (2×Lm)...Equation 1

[0061] In step ST24, the ECU 44 determines whether deceleration is possible so as to achieve safe merging at the merging section. The ECU 44 compares, for example, the deceleration A1 of the host vehicle at the previous point calculated in step ST23 with the threshold value A2. The threshold value A2 used here may be a deceleration that does not cause the occupants to feel uncomfortable about the deceleration. Furthermore, if there is a possibility of a rear-end collision with a vehicle currently following the host vehicle, the threshold value A2 used here may be a deceleration that makes it unlikely for the following vehicle to collide with the host vehicle. If the deceleration A1 of the host vehicle is equal to or greater than the threshold value A2, the ECU 44 proceeds to step 26 so as not to decelerate the host vehicle to allow the temporarily selected control target vehicle to move in front of the host vehicle. If the deceleration A1 of the host vehicle is less than the threshold value A2, the ECU 44 proceeds to step 25 so as to decelerate the host vehicle to allow the temporarily selected control target vehicle to move in front of the host vehicle.

[0062] In step ST25, the ECU 44 finally selects the control target vehicle provisionally selected in step ST22 as the official control target vehicle. Thereafter, the ECU 44 ends this control. In this case, the ECU 44 executes the last-minute merging control in step ST6 of FIG. 7 to execute deceleration control to allow the large vehicle 3 to merge in front of the host vehicle. As shown in FIG. 9, the large vehicle 3 can move from the merging source lane L2 to the merging destination lane L1 in front of the decelerated automobile 1 and merge.

[0063] In step ST26, the ECU 44 does not finally select the control target vehicle provisionally selected in step ST22 as the official control target vehicle. In this case, there is no control target vehicle. The ECU 44 does not execute the last-minute merging control in step ST6 of FIG. 7, and continues traveling on the merging destination lane L1 of the merging section at the current speed, as shown in FIG. 11. Alternatively, the ECU 44 accelerates while traveling on the merging destination lane L1 of the merging section. The large vehicle 3 can merge by moving from the merging source lane L2 to the merging destination lane L1 behind the automobile 1 traveling on the merging destination lane L1 at the same speed.

[0064] In this embodiment, when selecting a vehicle to be controlled, the front-to-rear positions of the front end of the vehicle 1, which is the vehicle in the merging lane L1, and the front end of the other vehicle 2, which is a large vehicle 3, in the merging lane L2, are compared. Then, in this embodiment, the large vehicle 3 ahead of the vehicle is tentatively selected as the vehicle to be controlled. Next, in this embodiment, it is determined whether the host vehicle can decelerate within a normal deceleration range that does not result in sudden deceleration to a speed equal to or lower than that of the provisionally selected large vehicle 3 at a point before the end PE of the merging section. If deceleration is possible, in this embodiment, the provisionally selected large vehicle 3 in the merging source lane L2 is finally selected as the vehicle to be controlled. On the other hand, if deceleration is not possible, in this embodiment, the provisionally selected large vehicle 3 in the merging source lane L2 is not finally selected as the vehicle to be controlled. As a result, in this embodiment, even if the front end of the large vehicle 3 in the merging origin lane L2 is ahead of the front end of the host vehicle in the merging destination lane L1, the large vehicle 3 is selected as a vehicle to be controlled to merge in front of the host vehicle only if the host vehicle can sufficiently decelerate so that it is behind the large vehicle 3. If the host vehicle cannot sufficiently decelerate, the large vehicle 3 in the merging origin lane L2 will merge behind the host vehicle, even if its front end is ahead of the host vehicle. The driver of the automobile 1 and the driver of the large vehicle 3, which is the other automobile 2, are less likely to feel uncomfortable with such automated driving control. Furthermore, the automobile 1 and the large vehicle 3 can merge smoothly.

[0065] In this embodiment, the ECU 44 calculates the deceleration when the host vehicle decelerates to the speed of the temporarily selected control target vehicle in the processing of steps ST23 to ST24 in FIG. 12, and compares the calculated deceleration with the threshold value. Alternatively, for example, the ECU 44 may calculate and compare the speed of the host vehicle when it decelerates in the merging section up to the offset point before the target point with the speed of the temporarily selected control target vehicle when it decelerates in the merging section. In this case, the ECU 44 may calculate the speed at the target point before the target point when the host vehicle decelerates at a predetermined deceleration from its current speed V1. Alternatively, the ECU 44 may calculate the speed at the target point before the target point when the large vehicle 3 decelerates at a predetermined deceleration from its current speed V2. Here, the predetermined deceleration may be the maximum deceleration within a range that causes a sudden deceleration so that the driver does not feel uncomfortable. The deceleration of the large vehicle 3 may also be similar, but it is generally preferable to estimate a value smaller than the deceleration of the host vehicle. The latest speed or deceleration of the large vehicle 3 may be obtained from the large vehicle 3 by the external communication device 17 communicating with the large vehicle 3 via V2V communication. The speed of the large vehicle 3 can also be estimated from changes in the image capturing position of the large vehicle 3 in the image captured by the external camera 26. In this modified example, the ECU 44 determines in step ST24 whether deceleration is possible so as to achieve safe merging at the merging section. The ECU 44, for example, compares the speed of the host vehicle at the previous point calculated in step ST23 with the speed of the large vehicle 3. Then, for example, if the speed of the host vehicle at the previous point is not equal to or less than the speed of the large vehicle 3, the ECU 44 determines that deceleration is not possible and proceeds to step ST26. On the other hand, if the speed of the host vehicle at the previous point is equal to or less than the speed of the large vehicle 3, the ECU 44 determines that deceleration is possible and proceeds to step ST25. Even in this modified processing, ECU 44 can determine whether a vehicle in the merging lane can decelerate at a point before the end of the merging section so that a vehicle in the selected merging lane can move in front of the vehicle. However, in the case of the process of this modified example, if the vehicle in the selected lane from which the vehicle is to merge actually accelerates, the ECU 44 may not be able to select the process that corresponds to the acceleration. In the process of the above-described embodiment, such a situation is unlikely to occur.

[0066] [Third embodiment] Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. Differences from the above-described embodiment will be mainly described below. Features similar to those in the above-described embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals as in the above-described embodiment, and description thereof will be omitted.

[0067] When the vehicle 1 merges, it is not limited to the merging section set on the road, and there may be cases where lanes are restricted due to road construction, etc. In such cases, there is a high possibility that the merging section will not be set in the high-precision map data, etc. Furthermore, merging sections set on roads are not necessarily designed to allow autonomously driven vehicles 1 to merge safely. The length L of a merging section that can be set is limited by factors such as the terrain. As a result, the merging section may become extremely short. Furthermore, even if there is no merging section as a road, merging may occur at intersections without traffic lights, entrances and exits to toll booths, entrances and exits to parking lots, and the like. In such cases, even if merging control is initiated after the autonomously driven vehicle 1 is actually traveling through the merging section, it may be difficult to achieve a safe and smooth merging.

[0068] FIG. 13 is a flowchart of the control for determining whether the vehicle is traveling in a merging section in the merging traveling control according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The ECU 44 of the automobile 1 that executes the merging traveling control of FIG. 7 may execute the merging section traveling determination control of FIG. 13 as part of the processing of step ST1. It should be noted that even when the ECU 44 executes the merging section traveling control of FIG. 10, the ECU 44 may execute the merging section traveling determination control of FIG. 13 as part of the processing of step ST11.

[0069] In step ST31, the ECU 44 determines whether or not the host vehicle is traveling in a merging section. The ECU 44 may determine whether or not the host vehicle is actually traveling in a merging section by performing processing similar to that of step ST1 in FIG. 7. If the host vehicle is actually traveling in a merging section, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST35. Otherwise, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST32.

[0070] In step ST32, the ECU 44 determines whether or not there is a merging point in the traveling direction of the host vehicle while the host vehicle is not traveling through a merging section. The ECU 44 may determine whether or not there is a merging point in the traveling direction from the current position based on high-precision map data, traffic regulation information acquired by the external communication device 17 from the server device 31, and the like. The merging point may include a merging section that is set on a road and included in the high-precision map data. If there is a merging section in the traveling direction, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST33. If there is no merging section in the traveling direction, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST36.

[0071] In step ST33, the ECU 44 calculates the remaining distance to the merging point. If the merging point is a merging section, the ECU 44 may calculate the remaining distance to the end point PE of the merging section.

[0072] In step ST34, the ECU 44 compares the remaining distance calculated in step ST33 with a determination threshold. Here, the determination threshold may be, for example, a distance at which the vehicle can be stopped at a deceleration that does not cause discomfort to the driver, given the current vehicle speed. If the remaining distance is equal to or less than the determination threshold, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST35. If the remaining distance is greater than the determination threshold, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST36.

[0073] In step ST35, the ECU 44 finally determines that the host vehicle is traveling in a merging section. Thereafter, the ECU 44 ends this control. In this case, the ECU 44 determines that the host vehicle is traveling in a merging section in step ST1 of the merging traveling control in FIG. 7, and proceeds to step ST2.

[0074] In step ST36, the ECU 44 finally determines that the host vehicle is not traveling in the merging section. Thereafter, the ECU 44 ends this control. In this case, the ECU 44 determines that the host vehicle is not traveling in the merging section in step ST1 of the merging traveling control in FIG. 7, and ends the control in FIG. 7.

[0075] FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of the determination threshold for the merging section according to the remaining distance from the end of the merging section and the vehicle speed. In Fig. 14, the horizontal axis represents the vehicle speed, and the vertical axis represents the threshold for determining the remaining distance from the merging point. The threshold in Fig. 14 is a constant value up to a predetermined speed. At speeds above that, the threshold increases in accordance with the speed. By using such a determination threshold, the ECU 44 of the autonomously driven automobile 1 can determine that the vehicle is traveling in a merging section not only when the vehicle is actually traveling in the merging section but also when the vehicle is traveling within a certain distance from the merging point. The ECU 44 can start merging traveling control before the vehicle actually starts traveling in the merging section.

[0076] As described above, in this embodiment, the vehicle to be controlled can be selected from the vehicles 1 in the merging lane L2, including, for example, vehicles 1 traveling on the road before the start of the merging section. As a result, even if the merging section is short, the vehicle 1 can start control for merging before the merging section begins. If the vehicle 1 performs merging driving control only in the merging section, the control is likely to be abrupt if the merging section is short. In this embodiment, such a situation is less likely to occur. In addition, in this embodiment, merging control can be performed for merging points that are not set on the road. In this embodiment, in addition to merging sections set on the road, merging control can be performed by selecting a vehicle to be controlled for merging points such as intersections without traffic lights, entrances and exits of toll booths, and entrances and exits of parking lots.

[0077] [Fourth embodiment] Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. Differences from the above-described embodiment will be mainly described below. Features similar to those of the above-described embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals as those of the above-described embodiment, and description thereof will be omitted. As described above, in a merging section, it is not necessarily the case that only the own vehicle 1 and another vehicle 2 are present. For example, there may be a state in which multiple other vehicles are traveling in the merging source lane L2. Also, there may be a state in which other vehicles 2 than the own vehicle 1 are traveling in the merging destination lane L1. In particular, when vehicles 1 are concentrated in the merging section, congestion occurs in the merging section. Even in such cases, the autonomously driven vehicle 1 is required to merge smoothly without causing any discomfort to the driver.

[0078] FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of a traveling state in a merging section under merging traveling control according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 15, the automobile 1, which is the own vehicle that is executing the merging driving control, is traveling alone in the merging section on the merging destination lane L1. In contrast, a plurality of other vehicles, including another vehicle 2 and a merging preceding vehicle 4 traveling in front of the other vehicle 2, are traveling in the merging lane L2 of the merging section.

[0079] In this case, when the ECU 44 of the vehicle 1 traveling on the merging lane L1 executes the merging travel control of the above-described embodiment, since the second vehicle 2 from the end point PE of the merging section is ahead of the vehicle 1, the ECU 44 will basically select this second vehicle 2 as the vehicle to be controlled. As a result, the multiple vehicles traveling on the merging lane L2 will merge together in front of the vehicle 1. However, if multiple other vehicles traveling in the merging lane L2 merge together, it may impede the travel of vehicle 1 traveling in the merging destination lane L1. In particular, if the merging section is congested, the drivers of vehicles 1 traveling in the merging destination lane L1 will be stressed if vehicles 1 traveling in the merging source lane L2 are the only ones moving ahead. When traveling in a congested merging section, it is considered most efficient and desirable for vehicles 1 in the merging source lane L2 and vehicles 1 in the merging destination lane L1 to merge one by one in sequence just before the end of the merging section.

[0080] FIG. 16 is a flowchart of the control for selecting a vehicle to be controlled in the merging driving control according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The ECU 44 of the automobile 1 that executes the merging running control of FIG. 7 may execute the control of selecting a control target vehicle of FIG. 16 as part of the processing of step ST4. It should be noted that even when the ECU 44 executes the merging traveling control of FIG. 10, the ECU 44 may execute the control of selecting a control target vehicle of FIG. 16 as part of the processing of step ST13.

[0081] In step ST41, the ECU 44 compares the host vehicle speed with a threshold value. The threshold value to be compared with the host vehicle speed may be, for example, 20 km / h, as long as it is used to determine whether or not there is congestion. If the host vehicle speed is equal to or less than the threshold value, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST42. If the host vehicle speed is greater than the threshold value, the ECU 44 terminates this control. In this case, the ECU 44 selects a control target vehicle in accordance with the order of entry into a merging section that is not congested. In the case of FIG. 15, the other vehicle 2 traveling behind the merging preceding vehicle 4 is selected as the control target vehicle. The ECU 44 of the host vehicle, i.e., the vehicle 1, executes driving control to allow the other vehicle 2 to merge in front of the host vehicle.

[0082] In step ST42, the ECU 44 determines whether there are multiple other vehicles 2 ahead in the merging lane L2, which are traveling parallel to the vehicle 1 in the congested merging section. The image captured by the exterior camera 26 may capture multiple other vehicles ahead in the congested parallel lane. The ECU 44 may determine whether there are multiple other vehicles 2 ahead in the congested parallel lane based on the captured image. If there are multiple vehicles 1 ahead in the congested merging lane L2 that can be controlled, the ECU 44 proceeds to step ST43. If there is only one vehicle 1 ahead in the congested merging lane L2 that can be controlled, the ECU 44 terminates this control. In this case, the ECU 44 selects the other vehicle 2 ahead in the congested parallel lane as the vehicle to be controlled. The ECU 44 of the vehicle 1 executes driving control to allow the other vehicle 2 to merge in front of the vehicle.

[0083] In step ST43, the ECU 44 selects, as the control target vehicle, another vehicle 2 in the parallel lane that is in the same order as the host vehicle from the end PE of the congested merging section. In this case, the ECU 44 can select, as the control target vehicle, the other vehicle 2 in the parallel lane that is in the same order as the host vehicle from the end PE of the merging section, from among multiple other vehicles that are ahead in the congested parallel lane. For example, if the host vehicle is the first vehicle from the end PE of the merging section, the ECU 44 selects, as the control target vehicle, the other vehicle 2 that is the first vehicle in the congested parallel lane. In the case of FIG. 15 , the ECU 44 selects, as the control target vehicle, not the other vehicle 2 traveling in the merging source lane L2, but the merging preceding vehicle 4 that is in front of it and is circled by a dashed line in the figure. Thereafter, the ECU 44 terminates this control. In this case, the ECU 44 executes driving control to allow the merging preceding vehicle 4 that is ahead in the congested parallel lane to merge in front of the host vehicle. As a result, when traveling through a congested merging section, the vehicle 1 on the merging source lane L2 and the vehicle 1 on the merging destination lane L1 can merge one by one in order just before the end of the merging section.

[0084] As described above, in this embodiment, when there are multiple vehicles 2 that can be controlled in the merging lane L2, the vehicle that is in the same order as the vehicle itself from the end PE of the merging section is selected as the vehicle to be controlled. In contrast, if, for example, the last vehicle among the multiple vehicles 2 that can be controlled in the merging lane L2 is selected as the vehicle to be controlled, all of the multiple vehicles that can be controlled in the merging lane L2 will merge forward. This would hinder the travel of the vehicle 1 traveling in the lane where the vehicle is to merge, making it difficult for the vehicle to travel smoothly. In this embodiment, such a situation is less likely to occur. In particular, by determining in advance whether the speed of the vehicle 1 traveling in the lane where the vehicle is to merge is lower than the threshold value, as in this embodiment, even if the merging section is long, the vehicle can merge near the end of the merging section. As a result, in this embodiment, even if a long merging congestion occurs due to the reduction in lanes caused by construction, for example, the vehicle can merge smoothly near the beginning of the merging section.

[0085] In this embodiment, when selecting a target vehicle from among multiple vehicles ahead in a parallel lane, the ECU 44 determines whether a traffic jam is occurring based on the speed of the vehicle itself. Alternatively, the ECU 44 may use the speeds of other vehicles 2 other than the vehicle itself, or the group velocity of all of these speeds, to determine whether a traffic jam is occurring.

[0086] [Fifth embodiment] Next, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described. Differences from the above-described embodiments will be mainly described below. Features similar to those of the above-described embodiments will be designated by the same reference numerals as those of the above-described embodiments, and description thereof will be omitted.

[0087] As shown in FIG. 4, the control system 10 of the autonomously driven automobile 1 includes an external communication device 17 that can communicate with an external server device 31 via a base station 30. In this case, the server device 31 can collect and acquire information about the driving behavior of each of multiple automobiles traveling on a road including a merging section, and generate driving control values ​​to be used for driving control of each automobile based on the information. The control system 10 of the automobile 1 can also receive and acquire driving control values ​​from the server device 31 and use them for driving control of the automobile 1. In this case, the server device 31 controls the driving of multiple automobiles traveling in the merging section remotely or by remote control. In this way, the server device 31 can acquire information about the driving behavior of the multiple automobiles traveling in the merging section. Based on the acquired information, the server device 31 can generate driving control values ​​to control the driving of the automobile 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 so that the controlled automobile merges into the merging lane L1 immediately before the merging lane L1.

[0088] FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram of a server device 31 that controls the running of the automobile 1. As shown in FIG. The server device 31 in FIG. 17 includes a communication device 51, a server timer 52, a server memory 53, a server CPU 54, and a server bus 55 to which these are connected.

[0089] The communication device 51 is connected to a communication network such as the Internet. The communication device 51 transmits and receives information to and from the automobile 1 traveling on a road via, for example, a base station 30 connected to the communication network. The communication device 51 is a communication unit capable of communicating with the automobile 1 to control or assist the traveling of the automobile 1. The server timer 52 measures the time or duration. The time of the server timer 52 may be calibrated, for example, based on the time based on radio waves from a GNSS satellite (not shown). In this case, the time of the server timer 52 is synchronized with the time of the automobile 1. The server memory 53 stores programs and data executed by the server CPU 54. The server memory 53 may be configured, for example, with a non-volatile semiconductor memory, a HDD, a RAM, or the like. The server CPU 54 reads and executes the program recorded in the server memory 53. This realizes a server control unit. The server CPU 54 as the server control unit manages the operation of the server device 31. The server control unit can function as a vehicle driving control device that remotely controls the driving of the automobile 1. The server CPU 54 can function as a control unit that generates driving control information for the automobile 1 based on at least information acquired by the communication device 51.

[0090] FIG. 18 is a flowchart of the driving control of the automobile 1 by the server device 31 of FIG. The server CPU 54 repeatedly executes the driving control of the automobile 1 shown in Fig. 18. This allows the server CPU 54 to continue to remotely control the driving of a plurality of automobiles.

[0091] In step ST61, the server CPU 54 controls the operation of the communication device 51 and the server memory 53 to receive driving information. The communication device 51 receives information on the driving status of each of the multiple vehicles from the multiple vehicles. The information received by the communication device 51 may be recorded in the server memory 53. In this case, the server CPU 54 may acquire the driving information from the server memory 53. This allows the server CPU 54 to receive driving information on the multiple vehicles driving in the merging section.

[0092] In step ST62, the server CPU 54 uses the driving information acquired in step ST61 to map the multiple vehicles whose driving information has been acquired onto high-precision map data, etc. The server CPU 54 may generate a diagram for each lane of the road based on the high-precision map data, and map each vehicle onto the diagram of the lane in which it is traveling. The server CPU 54 may map the latest current position, latest traveling direction, latest speed, etc. of each vehicle onto the lane diagram. As a result, the driving status of each vehicle is mapped onto each lane diagram. Note that the server CPU 54 may also map vehicles 1 whose driving is not managed by the server device 31, for example, based on images captured by ITS cameras installed at road intersections and merging sections. In the lane diagram, sections where vehicles 1 are not continuously mapped can be assumed to be sections where the driving of vehicles 1 is restricted due to lane regulations, etc. Information on merging points that are not included in the high-precision map data may be generated in the lane diagram. Furthermore, when an automobile 1 moves between lanes, the lane diagram to be mapped changes from the one before the movement to the one after the movement.

[0093] In step ST63, the server CPU 54 selects the vehicle 1 for which the driving information is to be generated.

[0094] In step ST64, the server CPU 54 determines the driving state of the automobile 1 selected in step ST63 based on the mapping result in step ST62, and generates driving control values ​​according to the determined driving state.

[0095] In step ST65, the server CPU 54 transmits the generated driving control values ​​to the automobile 1 selected in step ST63 via the communication device 51 and the base station 30. The external communication device 17 of the automobile 1 uses the driving control values ​​received from the server device 31 for driving control to control the driving of its own vehicle.

[0096] In step ST66, the server CPU 54 determines whether or not there are any remaining vehicles that have not yet been processed. If there are any remaining vehicles, the server CPU 54 returns the process to step ST63. The server CPU 54 repeats the processes from step ST63 to step ST66 to generate and transmit driving control values ​​for each of the multiple vehicles that are the targets of remote control. If there are no remaining vehicles, the server CPU 54 ends this control.

[0097] When remotely controlling the driving of multiple vehicles in this manner, the server CPU 54 may execute the merging driving control of each of the above-mentioned embodiments, for example, when generating driving control values ​​for each vehicle in the above-mentioned step ST64. In this case, the server CPU 54 can determine whether each vehicle is traveling in the merging lane L2 or the merging lane L1 in the merging section based on the mapping results for each lane of the road for the vehicle 1 for which the driving control values ​​are generated. In addition, the server CPU 54 can compare the front-to-rear positions of the front end of the vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 with the front end of the vehicle 1 in the merging lane L2, and select a vehicle to be controlled for the vehicle 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 of the merging section from among the vehicles 1 traveling in the merging lane L2 of the merging section. Furthermore, the server CPU 54 can select another vehicle 2 traveling in a parallel lane as a vehicle to be controlled based on the mapping results for each lane. Furthermore, the server CPU 54 can identify a section where the automobile 1 is not continuously mapped as a merging point where a lane change is required. Furthermore, the server CPU 54 can determine whether congestion has occurred in the merging section based on the number and traveling speed of the automobiles 1 in the merging section.

[0098] By utilizing these judgments, the server CPU 54 can execute the merging driving control of FIG. 7, the merging driving control of FIG. 10, the control to select a vehicle to be controlled of FIG. 12, the control to determine whether a vehicle is traveling in a merging section of FIG. 13, and the control to select a vehicle to be controlled of FIG. 16. For example, if the server CPU 54 has selected a vehicle 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 in the merging section as a vehicle to be controlled, the server CPU 54 can generate and transmit cruise control values ​​that involve deceleration so as to merge the vehicle in front of the vehicle. On the other hand, if the server CPU 54 has not selected a vehicle 1 traveling in the merging lane L1 as a vehicle to be controlled, the server CPU 54 can generate and transmit cruise control values ​​that cause the vehicle to merge behind the vehicle. In this case, the vehicle 1 in the merging lane L1 does not execute control to cause the vehicle 1 in the merging out lane L2 to merge immediately before the vehicle in the merging lane L1. Furthermore, when a vehicle 1 traveling in the merging lane L2 of the merging section is selected as a vehicle to be controlled, the server CPU 54 can generate and transmit a cruise control value that causes the vehicle to merge behind the vehicle to be controlled. On the other hand, when a vehicle 1 traveling in the merging lane L2 of the merging section is not selected as a vehicle to be controlled, the server CPU 54 can generate and transmit a cruise control value that causes the vehicle to move from the merging lane L2 to the merging destination lane L1 and merge.

[0099] In this embodiment, the server CPU 54 of the server device 31 generates driving control values ​​that can be used for driving control in the automobile 1 based on the driving information of the automobile 1 and transmits them to the automobile 1. In addition, for example, the server CPU 54 of the server device 31 and the ECU 44 of the automobile 1 may perform distributed and collaborative processing from collecting driving information of the automobile 1 to generating driving control values ​​that can be used for driving control.

[0100] The above-described embodiment is an example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0101] L1...Destination lane of merging section, L2...Originating lane of merging section, 1...Automobile (vehicle), 2...Other automobile, 3...Large vehicle (other automobile), 4...Preceding merging vehicle (other automobile), 10...Control system (vehicle driving control device), 11...Drive control device, 12...Steering control device, 13...Braking control device, 14...Operation detection device, 15...Driving control device, 16...Detection control device, 17...External communication device, 18...Central gateway device, 21...Steering 22...accelerator pedal, 23...brake pedal, 24...shift lever, 25...GNSS receiver, 26...exterior camera, 27...Lidar, 28...acceleration sensor, 30...base station, 31...server device, 40...controller, 41...input / output device, 42...timer, 43...memory, 44...ECU, 45...internal bus, 51...communication device, 52...server timer, 53...server memory, 54...server CPU, 55...server bus

Claims

1. A vehicle travel control device that can be used to control travel of a vehicle traveling in a merging section, a selection unit that selects a control target vehicle traveling in a merging destination lane of the merging section from among vehicles traveling in a merging source lane of the merging section; a travel control unit that controls travel of the vehicle traveling on the merging destination lane so that the selected vehicle to be controlled merges immediately before the host vehicle on the merging destination lane; and The selection unit comparing the longitudinal positions of a front end of the vehicle in the merging lane with a front end of the vehicle in the merging out lane, and selecting the vehicle in the merging out lane that is ahead of the vehicle in the merging lane as the vehicle to be controlled for the vehicle in the merging out lane; The traveling control unit When the control target vehicle is selected from the vehicles in the merging source lane, control is executed for the vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane to cause the control target vehicle in the merging source lane to merge into the merging destination lane immediately before the host vehicle; When the vehicle to be controlled is not selected from the vehicles in the merging source lane, control is not executed for the vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane to merge the vehicle in the merging destination lane immediately before the host vehicle. Vehicle driving control device.

2. The selection unit comparing the longitudinal positions of a front end of the vehicle in the merging lane and a front end of the vehicle in the merging lane, and provisionally selecting the vehicle in the merging lane that is ahead of the vehicle in the merging lane as the vehicle to be controlled; determining whether the vehicle in the merging destination lane can decelerate at a point before the end of the merging section so as to allow the provisionally selected vehicle in the merging source lane to move in front of the vehicle; If deceleration is possible, the temporarily selected vehicle in the merging lane is finally selected as the vehicle to be controlled; If deceleration is not possible, the temporarily selected vehicle in the merging lane is not finally selected as the vehicle to be controlled.

2. The vehicle driving control device according to claim 1.

3. The selection unit selecting the vehicle to be controlled from the vehicles in the merging lane, including vehicles traveling on the near side of the point where the merging section starts on the road; 3. A vehicle driving control device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The selection unit In addition to the merging section set on the road, the vehicle to be controlled is selected at least for a merging point such as an intersection without a traffic light, an entrance / exit of a toll booth, or an entrance / exit of a parking lot. The vehicle travel control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The selection unit When there are a plurality of vehicles that can be controlled in the merging lane from which the vehicle is merging and the speed of the vehicle is lower than a threshold, the vehicle that is in the same order as the vehicle from the end of the merging section is selected as the vehicle to be controlled. The vehicle travel control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. A vehicle having a sensor that detects other vehicles around the vehicle, and a driving control unit that controls driving of the vehicle using at least a detection result of the sensor, When traveling on a merging lane in a merging section, the traveling control unit If a vehicle to be controlled is selected from the vehicles traveling in the merging lane of the merging section based on a comparison of the front-to-rear positions of a vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane of the merging section and a vehicle traveling in the merging origin lane of the merging section, the vehicle to be controlled in the merging origin lane is controlled to merge into the merging destination lane just before the vehicle; When the vehicle to be controlled is not selected from the vehicles in the merging source lane, control to cause the vehicle in the merging source lane to merge into the merging destination lane immediately before the host vehicle is not executed. vehicle.

7. A server device having a communication unit capable of communicating with a vehicle to control or assist the driving of the vehicle, and a control unit that generates driving control information for the vehicle based on at least information acquired by the communication unit, The control unit an acquisition unit that acquires information about the traveling of a plurality of vehicles traveling in a merging section; a selection unit that compares the front-to-rear positions of a front end of a vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane of the merging section with the front end of a vehicle traveling in the merging origin lane of the merging section based on the acquired information, and selects a vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane of the merging section as a control target vehicle from among the vehicles traveling in the merging origin lane of the merging section; a travel control unit that controls travel of the vehicle traveling in the merging lane so that the control target vehicle merges into the merging lane immediately before the merging lane; and functions as at least the acquisition unit and the selection unit in The selection unit comparing the longitudinal positions of a front end of the vehicle in the merging lane with a front end of the vehicle in the merging lane from which the vehicle is to be merging, and selecting the vehicle in the merging lane from which the vehicle is to be merging that is ahead of the vehicle in the merging lane from which the vehicle is to be merging as a vehicle to be controlled; The traveling control unit When the control target vehicle is selected from the vehicles in the merging source lane, control is executed for the vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane to cause the control target vehicle in the merging source lane to merge into the merging destination lane immediately before the host vehicle; When the vehicle to be controlled is not selected from the vehicles in the merging source lane, control is not executed for the vehicle traveling in the merging destination lane to merge the vehicle in the merging destination lane immediately before the host vehicle. Server device.

Images