Information processing device and information processing method

Abstract

To provide an information processing device and an information processing method that can control a behavior and a communication of a vehicle in consideration of a communication quality and realize a further improvement in terms of safety and convenience.SOLUTION: An information processing device mounted in a vehicle and including a communication unit that communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, has: a determination unit that determines intensity of a radio wave received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave intensity map indicating radio wave intensity in the mobile communication network; and a control unit that controls at least one of a behavior of the vehicle and the communication based on a result of the determination.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and an information processing method. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART There is known a so-called connected car, which is an automobile equipped with an ICT (Information and Communication Technology) function and constantly communicates with an external device via a predetermined network. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-109023 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, there was room for improvement in connected cars.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an information processing device and an information processing method that achieve further improvements. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An information processing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing device that is mounted on a vehicle and includes a communication unit that communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, and includes: a determination unit that determines the strength of radio waves received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave intensity map that indicates radio wave intensity in the mobile communication network; and a control unit that controls at least one of the behavior of the vehicle and the communication based on a result of the determination. When the determination unit determines that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, the control unit decelerates the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on the travel route on which the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold. . An information processing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing device mounted on a vehicle and equipped with a communication unit that communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, and includes: a judgment unit that judges the strength of the radio waves received by the vehicle based on the current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map that indicates the radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; and a control unit that controls at least one of the vehicle's behavior and the communication based on the result of the judgment, wherein the control unit stores information to be sent to the external device while the vehicle is traveling along a route where the strength of the received radio waves is less than a predetermined threshold, and controls the communication unit to send the stored information to the external device when the vehicle reaches a position where the strength of the received radio waves is greater than or equal to the threshold. An information processing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing device mounted on a vehicle and equipped with a communication unit that communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, and has: a judgment unit that judges the strength of the radio waves received by the vehicle based on the current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map that indicates the radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; a control unit that controls at least one of the vehicle's behavior and the communication based on the result of the judgment; and a measurement unit that measures the strength of the received radio waves.When the strength of the received radio waves measured by the measurement unit falls below a predetermined threshold during autonomous driving of the vehicle, the control unit drives the vehicle from the current position of the vehicle to return to the starting point via the route it has traveled.

[0007] An information processing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing device including a communication unit that communicates with an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle via a mobile communication network, and includes a determination unit that determines the strength of radio waves received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave intensity map that indicates radio wave intensity in the mobile communication network, and a control unit that controls the communication unit to transmit determination result information that indicates a result of the determination to the in-vehicle device, and the determination result information is used in the in-vehicle device to control at least one of the behavior and communication of the vehicle. When the determination result information indicates that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, the in-vehicle device decelerates the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on the travel route on which the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold. .

[0008] An information processing method according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing device that is mounted on a vehicle and communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, and determines the strength of a radio wave received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map that indicates radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; When it is determined that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, the vehicle is decelerated while the vehicle is traveling on the travel route on which the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold. .

[0009] An information processing method according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing device that communicates with an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle via a mobile communication network, and determines the strength of a radio wave received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave intensity map that indicates radio wave intensity in the mobile communication network; When the determination result information indicating the result of the determination indicates that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, the in-vehicle device decelerates the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on the travel route on which the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold. . [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an information processing device and an information processing method that have achieved further improvements. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of a computer included in each of an information processing device and a server according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3]1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a display example of a radio wave intensity map according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0013] An example of the configuration of a communication system 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the communication system 1.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 1 includes an information processing device 100 mounted on a vehicle (not shown), a server 200 on a network, and a wireless base station 300 of a mobile communication network.

[0015] An example of the mobile communication network is a fifth-generation mobile communication system (5G). An example of the server 200 is a low-latency cloud server or a multi-access edge computing (MEC) server. The server 200 corresponds to an example of an external device.

[0016] In this embodiment, a case will be described as an example in which the vehicle is a connected car that is capable of autonomous driving, and an ADAS (Advanced Driving Assistant System) is realized by communication between the information processing device 100 and the server 200.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing device 100 and the server 200 each have, as hardware, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 10, a main memory device 20 such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a RAM (Random Access Memory), a hard disk storing computer programs, an auxiliary memory device 30 such as a flash memory, and a bus 40 connecting them.

[0018] The functions of the information processing device 100 and the server 200 described below are realized by the CPU 10 reading a computer program from the auxiliary storage device 30, expanding it into the RAM of the main storage device 20, and executing it. Note that the computer program may be provided to a user or the like by being recorded on a predetermined recording medium or distributed over a network.

[0019] First, the functions of the server 200 will be described.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 1, the server 200 includes a communication unit 210, a development unit 220, and a control unit 230.

[0021] The communication unit 210 is a device that transmits and receives information to and from the information processing device 100 via the wireless base station 300. Note that the communication unit 210 may be, for example, a cloud gateway.

[0022] For example, the communication unit 210 receives vehicle information from the information processing device 100. The vehicle information is information indicating, for example, the current location of the vehicle, the state of the vehicle, and the surrounding conditions of the vehicle (details will be described later).

[0023] Furthermore, for example, the communication unit 210 transmits instruction information to the information processing device 100. The instruction information is, for example, instruction information indicating an instruction on a behavior that a vehicle should take during autonomous driving (details will be described later). The vehicle performs autonomous driving based on this instruction information.

[0024] The decompression unit 220 is a device that decompresses (for example, decodes, decompresses, etc.) the vehicle information received by the communication unit 210 and outputs it to the control unit 230.

[0025] The control unit 230 is a device that determines the behavior (operations related to driving, such as acceleration / deceleration, steering, braking, etc.) that the vehicle should perform based on the vehicle information and map information, and controls the communication unit 210 to transmit instruction information indicating instructions for that behavior to the information processing device 100. Note that the instruction information may include information about the driving route based on the map information.

[0026] For example, the control unit 230 executes an ADAS application. Examples of the ADAS application include an anti-theft application that prevents the vehicle from being stolen, a home parking application that parks the vehicle at home, and a parking application that allows the user to drop off or call the vehicle.

[0027] Next, the functions of the information processing device 100 will be described.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing device 100 includes a communication unit 110, a position estimation unit 120, a storage unit 130, an information acquisition unit 140, a determination unit 150, a behavior control unit 160, a communication control unit 170, and a notification unit 180.

[0029] The communication unit 110 is a device that transmits and receives information to and from the server 200 via the wireless base station 300 .

[0030] For example, the communication unit 110 receives the above-mentioned instruction information from the server 200 and transmits the above-mentioned vehicle information to the server 200.

[0031] The instruction information received by the communication unit 110 is output to the determination unit 150 and the behavior control unit 160, for example.

[0032] The position estimation unit 120 is a device that estimates the current position of the vehicle. Examples of the position estimation unit 120 include a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver that receives GPS signals and a processor that estimates the current position, traveling direction, etc. based on the GPS signals.

[0033] The position estimation unit 120 may also include a processor that performs position estimation by dead reckoning based on various information (e.g., detection results of a gyro sensor or acceleration sensor, tire pulse, steering angle, etc.). This makes it possible to estimate the current position of the vehicle even in areas where it is difficult to receive a GPS signal (e.g., indoors, in a tunnel, urban canyon, etc.).

[0034] Information indicating the current position estimated by the position estimation unit 120 is output to the determination unit 150 and the communication control unit 170. The current position information may include traveling direction information indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle.

[0035] The storage unit 130 is a device that stores various types of information.

[0036] For example, the storage unit 130 stores a radio wave intensity map (which may also be called a field intensity map) that indicates radio wave intensity in a mobile communication network. The radio wave intensity map is data that defines radio wave intensity for each position on a map. This radio wave intensity map is used by the determination unit 150 and the behavior control unit 160.

[0037] The information acquisition unit 140 is a device that acquires various types of information.

[0038] For example, the information acquisition unit 140 acquires surrounding situation information, vehicle state information, big data collection information, and the like.

[0039] The surrounding situation information is information indicating the detection results of various sensors (e.g., camera, RADAR, LiDAR, sonar, etc.) that detect the surrounding situation of the vehicle. The vehicle state information is information indicating the state of various on-board devices (e.g., steering angle, rotation speed of the drive source, gear ratio, tire pulse, remaining power, measurement results by an inertial measurement unit (IMU), etc.). The big data collection information is, for example, a vehicle log including data that constitutes big data.

[0040] The various information acquired by the information acquisition unit 140 is output to the communication control unit 170.

[0041] The determination unit 150 is a device that executes various determinations.

[0042] The determination unit 150 determines the strength of the radio waves received by the vehicle (which may be called the communication unit 110) (which may be called a communication quality determination) based on the current position of the vehicle estimated by the position estimation unit 120 and the radio wave intensity map read from the storage unit 130. This determination may be rephrased as a communication quality determination.

[0043] The determination unit 150 determines that the received radio wave is strong if the radio wave strength defined in the radio wave strength map is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, and determines that the received radio wave is weak if it is less than the threshold. The threshold is, for example, the minimum radio wave strength that allows information to be transmitted and received without any problems (the same applies hereinafter).

[0044] The determination unit 150 can determine the strength of currently received radio waves (received radio waves on the route currently being traveled) based on the current position and the radio wave intensity map.

[0045] In addition, the determination unit 150 can determine the strength of future received radio waves (received radio waves on the route to be traveled) based on the current position, a preset driving route (for example, a route instructed by instruction information), and a radio wave intensity map.

[0046] Information indicating the strength of the received radio waves at a predetermined position determined by the determination unit 150 (for example, the driving route currently being traveled or the driving route planned to be traveled from now on) is output to the behavior control unit 160 and the communication control unit 170.

[0047] Furthermore, the determination unit 150 may cause the notification unit 180 to output, for example, an image showing the current position and driving route of the vehicle on a radio wave intensity map.

[0048] The notification unit 180 is a device that notifies the vehicle occupants. For example, the notification unit 180 may be a display mounted in the vehicle cabin, but is not limited to this. For example, the notification unit 180 may be a speaker that outputs voice or warning sounds.

[0049] By looking at the image displayed on the notification unit 180, the vehicle occupants can grasp the strength of the received radio waves at their current location and the strength of the received radio waves along the route they are about to travel.

[0050] The behavior control unit 160 (an example of a control unit) is a device that executes control related to the behavior of the vehicle.

[0051] Basically, the behavior control unit 160 controls various devices (not shown, for example, steering devices, acceleration / deceleration devices, braking devices, etc.) related to the vehicle behavior so that autonomous driving is performed based on the instruction information received from the communication unit 110.

[0052] Furthermore, as a characteristic operation of this embodiment, the behavior control unit 160 controls the various devices described above based on the result of the determination by the determination unit 150. A specific example of this control will be described later.

[0053] The communication control unit 170 (an example of a control unit) is a device that executes control related to vehicle communication.

[0054] Basically, the communication control unit 170 controls the communication unit 110 to transmit to the server 200 vehicle information including the current location information received from the location estimation unit 120, and the surrounding situation information, vehicle condition information, and information for big data collection received from the information acquisition unit 140.

[0055] Furthermore, as a characteristic operation of this embodiment, the communication control unit 170 controls the communication unit 110 based on the result of the determination by the determination unit 150. A specific example of this control will be described later.

[0056] 1 , for example, the position estimation unit 120, the storage unit 130, the information acquisition unit 140, and the notification unit 180 may be provided outside the information processing device 100 (but inside the vehicle). That is, the information processing device 100 may have a configuration including at least the communication unit 110, the determination unit 150, the behavior control unit 160, and the communication control unit 170. Alternatively, the information processing device 100 may have a configuration including at least the communication unit 110, the determination unit 150, and either the behavior control unit 160 or the communication control unit 170.

[0057] Also, in Figure 1, arrows are shown indicating the destination of information between components, but information may be input and output between components for which no arrows are shown, and such arrows are omitted.

[0058] An example of the configuration of the communication system 1 (the information processing device 100 and the server 200) according to this embodiment has been described above.

[0059] Next, an example of the operation of the information processing device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the information processing device 100. The flow of Fig. 3 starts, for example, when automatic driving of a vehicle is started.

[0060] First, the information processing device 100 determines the strength of the radio wave received by the vehicle based on the current position of the vehicle and the field strength map (step S1).

[0061] Next, the information processing device 100 executes control relating to at least one of the vehicle behavior and communication based on the determination result of step 1 (step S2).

[0062] An example of the operation of the information processing device 100 according to the embodiment has been described above.

[0063] Next, specific examples of control by the behavior control unit 160 and the communication control unit 170 will be described.

[0064] <Control example 1> Control example 1 is an example of control related to the behavior of a vehicle.

[0065] If the determination unit 150 determines that the strength of the received radio waves on the vehicle's driving route is weak (specifically, below a preset threshold), the behavior control unit 160 decelerates the vehicle while the vehicle is driving on the driving route where the strength of the received radio waves is weak (in other words, a driving route where the strength of the received radio waves is below a threshold; hereinafter referred to as a weak radio wave route).

[0066] The deceleration method here may be a method of reducing the current vehicle speed to a preset vehicle speed, a method of subtracting a vehicle speed determined according to the current vehicle speed from the current vehicle speed, or any other known method.

[0067] The driving route to be judged by the judgment unit 150 (hereinafter referred to as the judgment target driving route) may be a route that is planned to be traveled in the future (hereinafter referred to as the planned driving route), or a route that is currently being traveled (hereinafter referred to as the currently traveled route).

[0068] For example, if the travel route to be determined is a route currently being traveled, the behavior control unit 160 may control an acceleration / deceleration device (not shown; for example, a drive source, a transmission, etc.) to immediately decelerate the vehicle.

[0069] Furthermore, for example, when the travel route to be determined is the planned travel route, the behavior control unit 160 may control the acceleration / deceleration device to decelerate the vehicle when or before the vehicle reaches the weak radio wave route.

[0070] Note that the behavior control unit 160 may control the notification unit 180 to notify the driver before deceleration is performed. This causes the notification unit 180 to notify the driver that deceleration will be performed (for example, by displaying an image or outputting a sound). This allows the driver and passenger to know in advance that deceleration will be performed.

[0071] In this control example, the vehicle is decelerated on a weak radio wave path where it is difficult to receive instruction information from the server 200, thereby further improving safety.

[0072] <Control example 2> Control example 2 is an example of control related to the behavior of the vehicle.

[0073] If the judgment unit 150 determines that the strength of the received radio waves on the vehicle's driving route is weak, the behavior control unit 160 causes the vehicle to avoid the weak radio wave route and drive on a strong radio wave route (a driving route where the strength of the received radio waves is above a threshold).

[0074] In this case, for example, the behavior control unit 160 may select a route with strong radio waves based on the current position of the vehicle and a radio wave intensity map.

[0075] Furthermore, for example, the behavior control unit 160 may select a route with the shortest travel time from among the routes with strong radio wave reception, and cause the vehicle to travel that route.

[0076] Also, for example, the behavior control unit 160 may generate a driving route that does not include points where the strength of the received radio waves is below a threshold (generating a driving route that passes through only points where the strength of the received radio waves is above a threshold), and have the vehicle travel along that driving route.

[0077] In this control example, the vehicle is made to travel along a route with strong radio waves, avoiding a route with weak radio waves where it is difficult to receive instruction information from the server 200, thereby further improving safety.

[0078] The behavior control unit 160 may control the notification unit 180 to display an image showing the current position of the vehicle and the changed driving route on the radio wave intensity map.

[0079] An example of this image is shown in Figure 4. In Figure 4, V indicates a vehicle, a indicates an area where the received radio waves are strong, b indicates an area where the received radio waves are weaker than a, and c indicates an area where the received radio waves are weaker than b.

[0080] The dotted arrow in Figure 4 indicates the changed driving route. The changed driving route is set in area a, where the received radio wave strength is strongest, avoiding areas b and c.

[0081] By displaying such an image, the vehicle occupants can recognize that the driving route has been changed to avoid areas with weak radio wave reception.

[0082] <Control example 3> Control example 3 is an example of control related to the behavior of the vehicle.

[0083] If the determination unit 150 determines that the strength of the received radio waves on the vehicle's driving route is weak, the behavior control unit 160 may select a route from among the weak radio wave routes that has the shortest driving time and cause the vehicle to drive on that route.

[0084] In this control example, for example, in situations where driving on a weak radio wave route cannot be avoided (when there is no area with strong received radio waves and it is not possible to change to a strong radio wave route), the time spent driving on the weak radio wave route is reduced as much as possible, thereby further improving safety.

[0085] Moreover, by combining this control example with the above-described control example 1, safety can be further improved.

[0086] <Control example 4> Control example 4 is an example of control related to the behavior of the vehicle.

[0087] Here, we will explain an example of a vehicle automatically parking in a parking facility that includes multiple parking spaces (for example, a large parking lot at a commercial facility, etc.). Specifically, we will assume that the vehicle's occupants get off at the entrance of the parking facility, and then the vehicle automatically drives from the entrance to a specified vacant parking space and automatically parks in that space.

[0088] First, when the vehicle is at the entrance of the parking facility, the behavior control unit 160 acquires vacancy information indicating the location of an available parking space. This vacancy information may be received by the communication unit 110 from the server 200 or another device (not shown), or may be acquired by other methods.

[0089] Next, the behavior control unit 160 selects a vacant parking space where the strength of the received radio waves is above a threshold (hereinafter referred to as a parking space with strong radio waves) based on the location of the vacant parking space, the current location of the vehicle, and the radio wave strength map, and selects a strong radio wave route from the entrance to the vacant parking space.

[0090] Next, the behavior control unit 160 causes the vehicle to travel along the selected strong radio wave route and park in the selected strong radio wave parking space.

[0091] In this control example, even if the strength of received radio waves varies depending on the parking space or route in a parking facility, a vehicle performing automatic parking can travel along a route with strong radio waves and park in a parking space with strong radio waves, thereby further improving safety.

[0092] <Control Example 5> Control example 5 is an example of control related to vehicle communication.

[0093] If the determination unit 150 determines that the strength of the received radio wave along the vehicle's travel route is weak, the communication control unit 170 changes the settings related to communication with the server 200 while the vehicle is traveling along the weak radio wave route.

[0094] Specifically, the communication control unit 170 changes the frame rate so as to decrease it from its current value, or changes the compression rate so as to increase it from its current value, etc. Note that the communication control unit 170 may change either the frame rate or the compression rate, or may change both.

[0095] For example, when the travel route to be determined is a route currently being traveled, the communication control unit 170 may control the communication unit 110 to immediately change at least one of the frame rate and the compression rate.

[0096] Also, for example, if the travel route to be determined is a planned travel route, the communication control unit 170 may control the communication unit 110 to change at least one of the frame rate and the compression rate when the vehicle reaches a weak radio wave route.

[0097] In this control example, communication settings are changed on weak radio wave paths where instruction information from the server 200 is difficult to receive, thereby stabilizing the transmission and reception of various information in the vehicle and further improving safety.

[0098] <Control Example 6> Control example 6 is an example of control relating to vehicle communication.

[0099] The communication control unit 170 stores information (e.g., vehicle information) to be transmitted to the server 200 in the memory unit 130 while the vehicle is traveling on a weak radio wave route, and controls the communication unit 170 to transmit the stored information to the server 200 when the vehicle reaches a position where the strength of the received radio wave is above a threshold (e.g., a strong radio wave route).

[0100] In this control example, information is not sent via weak radio wave paths that make it difficult to send information to server 200, and information is sent in bulk when communication quality improves, so that information can be sent to server 200 reliably, thereby further improving safety.

[0101] Of the above-described control examples 1 to 6, only one of them may be performed, or two or more of them may be performed.

[0102] Specific examples of control by the behavior control unit 160 and the communication control unit 170 have been described above.

[0103] The information processing device (e.g., information processing device 100) of the above-described embodiment is an information processing device that is mounted on a vehicle and has a communication unit (e.g., communication unit 110) that communicates with an external device (e.g., server 200) via a mobile communication network, and is characterized by having a judgment unit (e.g., judgment unit 150) that judges the strength of radio waves received by the vehicle based on the current position of the vehicle and a radio wave intensity map that indicates the radio wave intensity in the mobile communication network, and a control unit (e.g., at least one of behavior control unit 160 and communication control unit 170) that controls at least one of the vehicle's behavior and communication based on the result of the judgment.

[0104] This feature allows vehicle behavior and communications to be controlled taking communication quality into consideration, thereby achieving further improvements in, for example, safety and convenience.

[0105] The above-described embodiments are merely examples of specific embodiments for carrying out the present disclosure, and the technical scope of the present disclosure should not be interpreted as being limited by these embodiments. In other words, the present disclosure can be carried out in various forms without departing from the gist or main features thereof.

[0106] Modifications that can be applied to the embodiment will be described below.

[0107] [Variation 1] Since the radio wave intensity map is data generated in advance, the strength of the received radio waves may change to a value different from the value defined in the radio wave intensity map during autonomous driving of the vehicle. To deal with such a situation, the vehicle (or the information processing device) may be provided with a measuring unit (not shown) that measures the strength of the received radio waves.

[0108] For example, while the vehicle is in automatic driving mode, the determination unit 150 determines from time to time whether the strength of the received radio wave measured by the measurement unit (hereinafter referred to as measured strength) is equal to or greater than a preset threshold value.

[0109] When the determination unit 150 determines that the measured intensity is less than the threshold, the behavior control unit 160 first controls the notification unit 180 to issue a notification that automatic driving will be switched to manual driving. As a result, the notification unit 180 executes a notification (for example, by displaying an image or outputting a sound) that automatic driving will be switched to manual driving. This allows the occupant to prepare for manual driving.

[0110] Next, the behavior control unit 160 performs control to switch from automatic driving to manual driving, causing various devices related to the vehicle's behavior (for example, steering devices, acceleration / deceleration devices, braking devices, etc.) to perform operations based on the driver's operations.

[0111] Furthermore, the behavior control unit 160 may control the notification unit 180 to display a guide image. The guide image is, for example, an image showing a route from the current position of the vehicle to a position where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than a threshold (for example, a strong radio wave route). This allows the occupant who is performing manual driving to easily reach a position where automatic driving can be resumed.

[0112] In this modified example, it is possible to cope with a situation in which the radio wave intensity defined in the radio wave intensity map changes, thereby further improving safety.

[0113] [Variation 2] The measured intensity described in the first modification may be used to perform other control.

[0114] For example, when the vehicle is being driven automatically, if the determination unit 150 determines that the measured intensity is less than a threshold value, the behavior control unit 160 may drive the vehicle from its current position back to the starting point via the route it has traveled.

[0115] In this modified example, even if there is no location around the current location where the strength of the received radio waves is above a threshold and it becomes difficult to continue autonomous driving, the vehicle can return to the starting point by retracing the route it has traveled up to now, thereby further improving safety.

[0116] [Variation 3] In an embodiment, the determination unit 150 may determine the level of communication quality of radio wave communication based on the measured communication delay time or communication band instead of or in addition to the radio wave intensity map, and the behavior control unit 160 may perform control related to at least one of the vehicle's behavior and communication in the same way when the communication quality is high as when the received radio wave intensity is strong, and in the same way when the communication quality is low as when the received radio wave intensity is weak.

[0117] [Variation 4] In the embodiment, the information received by the information processing device 100 is described as instruction information for controlling a vehicle, but this is not limited to this and the information may be other information (for example, content information, etc.).

[0118] [Variation 5] In the embodiment, the location estimation unit 120, the storage unit 130, and the determination unit 150 are provided in the information processing device 100 (vehicle) as an example. However, these may be provided in the server 200.

[0119] In this case, various information (e.g., surrounding situation information, vehicle condition information, information for big data collection, etc.) acquired by the information acquisition unit 140 is transmitted from the communication unit 110 to the server 200 under the control of the communication control unit 170, and is used for the position estimation processing of the position estimation unit 120.

[0120] Furthermore, determination result information indicating the determination result by the determination unit 150 is transmitted from the communication unit 210 to the information processing device 110 under the control of the control unit 230, and is input to the behavior control unit 160 and the communication control unit 170. Then, the behavior control unit 160 and the communication control unit 170 execute the various controls described above (control examples 1 to 6) based on the determination result information.

[0121] In control examples 1 to 3 and 5, the determination result information is, for example, information indicating that the strength of the received radio waves on the vehicle's travel route is less than a preset threshold. In control example 2, the determination result information may include information showing an image of the vehicle's current position and the changed travel route on a radio wave strength map. In control example 4, the determination result information is, for example, information indicating the route and the position of an empty parking space at a parking facility where the strength of the received radio waves is equal to or greater than a preset threshold. In control example 5, the determination result information is, for example, information indicating the position of the travel route where the strength of the received radio waves is less than a preset threshold. In addition,

[0122] Furthermore, when this modification is combined with modifications 1 and 2, the communication unit 210 may receive information indicating the measured intensity from the information processing device 100, and the determination unit 150 may determine whether the measured intensity is equal to or greater than a preset threshold. In this case, the determination result information transmitted to the information processing device 100 is information indicating that the measured intensity is less than the threshold. Furthermore, the determination result information may include the guide image described above, or may include location information of the strong radio wave route from the current position of the vehicle to the starting point via the route traveled.

[0123] The information processing device (e.g., server 200) of the above-mentioned modified example is an information processing device equipped with a communication unit (e.g., communication unit 210) that communicates with an on-board device (e.g., information acquisition unit 100) mounted on a vehicle via a mobile communication network, and has a judgment unit (e.g., judgment unit 150) that judges the strength of the radio waves received by the vehicle based on the current position of the vehicle and a radio wave intensity map that indicates the radio wave intensity in the mobile communication network, and a control unit (e.g., control unit 230) that controls the communication unit to send judgment result information that indicates the result of the judgment to the on-board device, and is characterized in that the judgment result information is used in the on-board device to control at least one of the vehicle's behavior and communication.

[0124] This feature allows vehicle behavior and communications to be controlled taking communication quality into consideration, thereby achieving further improvements in, for example, safety and convenience.

[0125] The above-described modifications may be combined as appropriate. [Industrial Applicability]

[0126] The information processing device and information processing method of the present disclosure are useful for a mobile object that communicates via a mobile communication network. [Explanation of symbols]

[0127] 1. Communication Systems 100 Information processing device 110 Communications Department 120 Position estimation part 130 Storage section 140 Information Acquisition Department 150 Judgment section 160 Behavior control unit 170 Communication control unit 180 Notification Department 200 servers 210 Communications Department 220 Development Section 230 Control Unit 300 wireless base stations

Claims

1. An information processing device that is mounted on a vehicle and includes a communication unit that communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, a determination unit that determines the strength of radio waves received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map that indicates radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; a control unit that performs control related to at least one of the behavior of the vehicle and the communication based on the result of the determination, When the determination unit determines that the intensity of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The control unit decelerating the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold; Information processing device.

2. When the determination unit determines that the intensity of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The control unit causing the vehicle to avoid a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold and to travel on a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. The control unit causing the vehicle to travel a route with the shortest travel time among travel routes along which the strength of the received radio waves is equal to or greater than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 2 .

4. When the determination unit determines that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The control unit causing the vehicle to travel a route with the shortest travel time among travel routes along which the strength of the received radio waves is less than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

5. When the determination unit determines that the intensity of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The control unit changing at least one of a frame rate and a compression rate related to the communication while the vehicle is traveling on a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

6. When an occupant of the vehicle gets off at the entrance of a parking facility including a plurality of parking spaces, and then the vehicle drives autonomously from the entrance to a predetermined vacant parking space and parks in the vacant parking space, The control unit the vehicle is caused to travel from the entrance along a route where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, and is caused to park in an empty parking space where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than a threshold; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

7. An information processing device that is mounted on a vehicle and has a communication unit that communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, a determination unit that determines the strength of radio waves received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map that indicates radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; a control unit that performs control related to at least one of the behavior of the vehicle and the communication based on the result of the determination, The control unit While the vehicle is traveling along a route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than a preset threshold, the information to be transmitted to the external device is stored, When the vehicle reaches a position where the intensity of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than the threshold, the communication unit is controlled to transmit the stored information to the external device. Information processing device.

8. a measuring unit for measuring the intensity of the received radio wave; a notification unit that notifies an occupant of the vehicle, During autonomous driving of the vehicle, if the strength of the received radio wave measured by the measurement unit becomes less than a preset threshold, The notification unit Notify the driver that the car will switch from automatic to manual driving. The control unit Controls switching from automatic to manual driving, The information processing device according to claim 1 .

9. The notification unit and simultaneously with the execution of the notification, displaying an image showing a route from the current position of the vehicle to a position where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than the threshold. The information processing device according to claim 8 .

10. An information processing device mounted on a vehicle and having a communication unit that communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, a determination unit that determines the strength of radio waves received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map that indicates radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; a control unit that controls at least one of the behavior of the vehicle and the communication based on the result of the determination; a measuring unit that measures the intensity of the received radio wave, During autonomous driving of the vehicle, if the strength of the received radio wave measured by the measurement unit becomes less than a preset threshold, The control unit driving the vehicle from the current position of the vehicle to return to the starting point along the route it has traveled; Information processing device.

11. The communication unit transmitting vehicle information indicating a current position of the vehicle, the status of various in-vehicle devices, and a surrounding situation of the vehicle to the external device, and receiving instruction information indicating an instruction for a behavior of the vehicle determined based on the vehicle information from the external device; The control unit causing the vehicle to perform automatic driving based on the instruction information; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

12. An information processing device including a communication unit that communicates with an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle via a mobile communication network, a determination unit that determines the strength of radio waves received by the vehicle based on a current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map that indicates radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; a control unit that controls the communication unit to transmit determination result information indicating a result of the determination to the in-vehicle device, The determination result information is The vehicle-mounted device is used to control at least one of the vehicle behavior and communication, When the determination result information indicates that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device decelerating the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold; Information processing device.

13. When the determination result information indicates that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device causing the vehicle to avoid a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold and to travel on a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 12.

14. The in-vehicle device causing the vehicle to travel a route with the shortest travel time among travel routes along which the strength of the received radio waves is equal to or greater than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 13.

15. When the determination result information indicates that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device causing the vehicle to travel a route with the shortest travel time among travel routes along which the strength of the received radio waves is less than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 12.

16. When the determination result information indicates that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device changing at least one of a frame rate and a compression rate related to the communication while the vehicle is traveling on a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold; The information processing device according to claim 12.

17. When an occupant of the vehicle gets off at the entrance of a parking facility including a plurality of parking spaces, and then the vehicle drives automatically from the entrance to a predetermined vacant parking space and parks in the vacant parking space, If the determination result information is information indicating a route and a location of an empty parking space where the strength of the received radio wave at the parking facility is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device the vehicle is caused to travel from the entrance along a route where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, and is caused to park in an empty parking space where the strength of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than a threshold; The information processing device according to claim 12.

18. When the determination result information is information indicating a position on the travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device While the vehicle is traveling along a route where the strength of the received radio waves is less than a preset threshold, information to be transmitted to the in-vehicle device is stored, When the vehicle reaches a position where the intensity of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than the threshold, the communication unit is controlled to transmit the stored information to the in-vehicle device. The information processing device according to claim 12.

19. If the determination result information indicates that the strength of the received radio waves measured by the vehicle during autonomous driving is less than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device Notifying the driver that automatic driving will be switched to manual driving, and controlling the switch from automatic driving to manual driving. The information processing device according to claim 12.

20. the determination result information includes an image showing a route from the current position of the vehicle to a position where the intensity of the received radio wave is equal to or greater than the threshold; The in-vehicle device displaying the image together with the execution of the notification; The information processing device according to claim 19.

21. If the determination result information indicates that the strength of the received radio waves measured by the vehicle during autonomous driving is less than a preset threshold, The in-vehicle device driving the vehicle from the current position of the vehicle to return to the starting point along the route it has traveled; The information processing device according to claim 12.

22. The communication unit receiving vehicle information indicating the current position of the vehicle, the status of various on-board devices, and the surrounding conditions of the vehicle from the on-board device, and transmitting instruction information indicating an instruction for the behavior of the vehicle determined based on the vehicle information to the on-board device; The in-vehicle device causing the vehicle to perform automatic driving based on the instruction information; The information processing device according to claim 12.

23. An information processing device that is mounted on a vehicle and communicates with an external device via a mobile communication network, determining the strength of the radio waves received by the vehicle based on the current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map showing the radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; when it is determined that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold, decelerating the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on the travel route on which the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold; Information processing methods.

24. An information processing device that communicates with an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle via a mobile communication network, determining the strength of the radio waves received by the vehicle based on the current position of the vehicle and a radio wave strength map showing the radio wave strength in the mobile communication network; When the determination result information indicating the result of the determination indicates that the strength of the received radio wave on the travel route of the vehicle is less than a preset threshold value, The in-vehicle device decelerating the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on a travel route where the strength of the received radio wave is less than the threshold; Information processing methods.

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