Vehicle operation schedule notification device and vehicle operation schedule notification method

Abstract

To provide a vehicle controller and a vehicle control method, capable of optimally controlling deceleration of a vehicle on the basis of a deceleration quantity effected when a vehicle is driven in an automatic driving mode and a deceleration quantity dependent on a driver's depression of a brake pedal.SOLUTION: A processor 162 of an ECU 160 includes an action schedule determination block 162a that determines an action schedule of an own vehicle capable of being automatically driven, and a notification block 162b that notifies another surrounding vehicle of two or more successive action schedules. The notification block 162b includes at least one of a first notification block 162c that notifies the external surroundings of the two or more successive action schedules from the own vehicle by display or voice, and a second notification block 162d that notifies the other surrounding vehicle of the two or more successive action schedules by interior display or voice.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle action plan notification device and a vehicle action plan notification method.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, it is known to indicate the intention of lane change to the surroundings by means of characters, projection light of arrows, voice, etc., and to express gratitude to the driver when the driver of a surrounding vehicle permits an interruption or the like (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the technology described in the above patent document, only the content of the immediate action is notified outside the vehicle, so the next action cannot be grasped from the surroundings. Therefore, from the perspective of surrounding traffic participants, there is a possibility of unexpected movement and the risk of accidents still remains.

[0005] In view of the above problems, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a vehicle action plan notification device and a vehicle action plan notification method capable of notifying a plurality of consecutive action plans to the surroundings.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The gist of the present disclosure is as follows. (1) A vehicle action schedule notification device comprising: a determination unit that determines the action schedule of the vehicle capable of autonomous driving; and a notification unit that notifies other vehicles in the vicinity of two or more consecutive action schedules, wherein the notification unit has at least one of a first notification unit that notifies the two or more consecutive action schedules from the vehicle to the outside by display or sound, and a second notification unit that causes the two or more consecutive action schedules to be notified inside other vehicles in the vicinity by display or sound.

[0007] (2) The vehicle action plan notification device described in (1) above, wherein two or more consecutive action plans include, when the vehicle merges onto a road with multiple lanes, the vehicle merging onto the road, changing lanes again from the lane after merging, or continuing to drive in the lane after merging.

[0008] (3) A vehicle action plan notification device as described in (1) above, wherein two or more consecutive action plans include changing lanes toward a lane leading to an exit on a road having multiple lanes, and exiting the road at the exit.

[0009] (4) A vehicle action schedule notification device according to any one of (1) to (3) above, comprising a determination unit that determines whether or not the vehicle is traveling in an area where manually operated vehicles are present, and the notification unit notifies surrounding vehicles of two or more consecutive action schedules when the vehicle is traveling in an area where manually operated vehicles are present.

[0010] (5) A method for notifying a vehicle's action schedule, comprising the steps of determining the action schedule of a vehicle capable of autonomous driving, and notifying other vehicles in the vicinity of the vehicle of two or more consecutive action schedules, wherein the notification step comprises at least one of a first step of notifying the two or more consecutive action schedules from the vehicle to the outside by display or sound, and a second step of causing the two or more consecutive action schedules to be displayed or sounded upon inside other vehicles in the vicinity of the vehicle. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] This disclosure provides a vehicle action schedule notification device and a vehicle action schedule notification method that can notify the surroundings of a series of planned actions. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] [Figure 1] This is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the vehicle's installed action plan notification system. [Figure 2] This is a schematic diagram showing the functional blocks of the ECU processor installed in the vehicle. [Figure 3] This is a schematic diagram illustrating how a vehicle travels from its starting point to its destination, passing through merging and diverging points along the way, according to its planned route. [Figure 4] This is a schematic diagram showing an example where the planned route is displayed on the display screen of the device when the vehicle is driven along arrow A1 shown in Figure 3. [Figure 5] This is a schematic diagram showing an example where the planned route is displayed on the display screen of the device when the vehicle is driven along arrow A1 shown in Figure 3. [Figure 6] This is a schematic diagram showing the functional blocks of a processor in a vehicle-operated [Figure 7] This is a schematic diagram showing how a vehicle's scheduled movements are displayed on the screen of another vehicle's display device. [Figure 8] This diagram shows the vehicle's other planned movements and is a schematic diagram illustrating how a vehicle exits a highway when traveling on a two-lane highway. [Figure 9] This flowchart shows the processes that the ECU's processor performs at predetermined control cycles. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0013] Hereinafter, several embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, these descriptions are merely illustrative of preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention to such specific embodiments. In the following description, the same reference numerals are assigned to similar components.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a driving plan notification system mounted on a vehicle 100. This driving plan notification system is applied to, for example, a system capable of driving (hands-off driving) with the driver releasing the steering wheel. In the present embodiment, such driving is assumed to be, for example, driving at level 2 or level 3 or higher defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in the United States. Hereinafter, such driving is also referred to as automatic driving by the vehicle. In other words, in the present embodiment, a vehicle capable of automatic driving is a vehicle capable of driving at level 2 or level 3 or higher as described above, and may be a vehicle capable of partial automatic driving or a fully autonomous vehicle.

[0015] The driving plan notification system includes an in-vehicle camera 105, a positioning information receiver 110, vehicle control equipment 120, a wireless terminal 130, one or more sensors 140, a navigation device 150, an electronic control unit (ECU: hereinafter referred to as ECU) 160, a display device 170, a speaker 180, an input device 190, and a storage device 195. These are communicably connected via an in-vehicle network compliant with a standard such as Controller Area Network (CAN).

[0016] The in-vehicle camera 105 has a two-dimensional detector such as a CCD or a C-MOS, and an imaging optical system. The in-vehicle camera 105 photographs the surroundings of the vehicle 100 (for example, the front, side, or rear of the vehicle) and generates an image representing the surroundings of the vehicle 100.

[0017] The positioning information receiver 110 acquires positioning information representing the current position and orientation of the vehicle 100. For example, the positioning information receiver 110 can be a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver.

[0018] The vehicle control device 120 is various devices related to vehicle control, and includes an engine 120a and a motor 120b as driving sources for driving the vehicle, a friction brake 120c, and a steering device 120d, a transmission (not shown), etc.

[0019] The wireless terminal 130 performs communication between vehicles by vehicle-to-vehicle communication. In vehicle-to-vehicle communication, for example, DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communications) is used. Note that communication with other surrounding vehicles may also be performed via an external server.

[0020] One or more sensors 140 are sensors for monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle 100, and include sensors such as a lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) and a radar.

[0021] The navigation device 150 obtains a planned driving route from the current location of the vehicle 100 to the destination according to a predetermined route search method such as the Dijkstra method.

[0022] The ECU 160 has a processor 162, a memory 164, and a communication interface 166. The processor 162 has one or more CPUs and their peripheral circuits, and provides a predetermined function by executing a computer program developed executable in the working area of the memory 164. The memory 164 has, for example, a volatile semiconductor memory and a non-volatile semiconductor memory. The communication interface 166 has an interface circuit for connecting the ECU 160 to an in-vehicle network or an external communication network.

[0023] The display device 170 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD) and is installed on the exterior panels, windows, etc., of the vehicle 100. The display device 170 displays the vehicle 100's planned actions when the vehicle 100 is being driven automatically. The speaker 180 is installed on the outside of the vehicle 100, similar to the display device 170, and broadcasts the planned actions audibly to the outside of the vehicle. The display device 170 and the speaker 180 may be integrated to form an HMI device.

[0024] The input device 190 is a device into which driver operation information is input, and consists of buttons, touch sensors, etc. The input device 190 receives input such as settings to put the vehicle 100 into automatic driving mode based on the driver's operation.

[0025] The storage device 195, for example, has a hard disk drive or an optical recording medium and its access device, and stores various types of information such as high-resolution maps.

[0026] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the functional blocks of the processor 162 of the ECU 160 installed in the vehicle 100. The processor 162 is one embodiment of the vehicle action schedule notification device according to this disclosure and includes an action schedule determination unit 162a, a notification unit 162b, a receiving unit 162e, a vehicle control unit 162f, and an area determination unit 162g. The notification unit 162b includes at least one of a first notification unit 162c and a second notification unit 162d. Each of these parts of the processor 162 is a functional module realized, for example, by a computer program running on the processor 162. In other words, each of these parts of the processor 162 consists of the processor 162 and a program (software) to make it function. The functional blocks of the processor 162 shown in Figure 2 may be located on a server in the cloud, and the processing of the functional blocks may be performed on the server in the cloud, and commands corresponding to the processing may be sent from the server to the vehicle 100, and the vehicle 100 may perform processing based on the received commands.

[0027] The action plan determination unit 162a determines the action plan for vehicle 100 while the vehicle is being driven in autonomous driving mode. Specifically, the action plan determination unit applies location information representing the current position of vehicle 100 and the planned route to the destination to a high-precision map, and determines the action plan at merging points, intersections, etc., that exist on the planned route obtained from the high-precision map.

[0028] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating how vehicle 100 travels from its starting point to its destination, passing through merging and branching points along the way, according to its planned route.

[0029] In the example shown in Figure 3, a road 20 merges from the left into the left lane of a two-lane road 10 at a merging point 30. Additionally, a road 40 branches off to the right from the right lane of the two-lane road 10 at a branching point 50. In Figure 3, the destination of vehicle 100 is a point beyond road 40, and vehicle 100 travels autonomously from a starting point located before road 20 to the destination beyond road 40. Figure 3 also shows other vehicles 100a-100d traveling on road 10, driven manually by their drivers. These other vehicles 100a-100d are set to manual driving mode and are being driven manually by their drivers. These other vehicles 100a-100d may also be vehicles that are only driven manually (conventional vehicles).

[0030] Furthermore, the high-precision map stored in the storage device 195 contains information that shows the detailed positional relationships of roads 10, 20, and 40, merging points 30, branching points 50, and lane markings separating the left and right lanes, as shown in Figure 3.

[0031] Vehicle 100 travels according to a series of three consecutive actions: merging from road 20 onto road 10, changing lanes from the left lane to the right lane on road 10, and entering road 40 from road 10. The action plan determination unit 162a determines this action plan by referring to a high-precision map stored in the storage device 195.

[0032] If the action plan determined by the action plan determination unit 162a includes two or more consecutive action plans, the notification unit 162b notifies other vehicles in the vicinity of two or more consecutive action plans. Here, consecutive action plans are action plans that vehicle 100 will perform consecutively within a predetermined time (for example, within 20 seconds), or action plans that vehicle 100 will perform consecutively while traveling a predetermined distance (for example, 100m).

[0033] The first notification unit 162c notifies the outside of the vehicle 100 of two or more consecutive action plans by display or sound. Specifically, the first notification unit 162c performs processing to display two or more consecutive action plans on a display device 170 provided outside the vehicle 100, or to output two or more consecutive action plans as sound from a speaker 180 provided outside the vehicle 100. Figures 4 and 5 are schematic diagrams showing an example in which the action plans are displayed on the display screen 170a of the display device 170 when the vehicle 100 is driven along arrow A1 shown in Figure 3 according to the three action plans described above.

[0034] Figures 4 and 5 illustrate the case where vehicle 100 is a truck, and the display device 170 is located at the rear (back) of vehicle 100. Figure 4 shows the state when vehicle 100 merges from road 20 into the left lane of road 10, and the first notification unit 162c processes the display screen 170a of the display device 170, showing two action plans: "1. Merging onto road 10," which is the immediate action plan, and "2. Changing lanes from the left lane to the right lane of road 10," which is the next action plan. The first notification unit 162c also processes these action plans, and these plans are output as audio from the speaker 180.

[0035] Drivers of other vehicles 100a to 100d, which are driving manually around vehicle 100, can recognize in advance that vehicle 100 will merge from road 20 onto road 10 and change lanes from the left lane to the right lane of road 10 by looking at the display on the display device 170 or by listening to the sound from the speaker 180. Therefore, drivers can take measures to ensure safety, such as maintaining a safe distance from vehicle 100 when it merges and changes lanes.

[0036] The first notification unit 162c can dynamically change the display on the display device 170 as the vehicle 100 moves. Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing the action plan displayed when the vehicle 100 merges from road 20 onto road 10 and then changes lanes from the left lane to the right lane on road 10. After the vehicle 100 merges from road 20 onto road 10, the action plan showing "2. Change lanes from the left lane to the right lane on road 10," which was displayed on the right side of the display screen 170a in Figure 4, moves to the left side of the screen, and the next action plan after the lane change, "3. Enter road 40 branching off to the right," is newly displayed on the right side of the screen. Similarly, these action plans are output as audio from the speaker 180. As a result, drivers of other vehicles 100a to 100d traveling around vehicle 100 can recognize in advance that vehicle 100 will change lanes from the left lane to the right lane of road 10 and enter road 40 which branches off to the right from road 10, by looking at the display on the display device 170 or by listening to the sound from the speaker 180. Therefore, drivers can take measures to ensure safety, such as maintaining a safe distance from vehicle 100.

[0037] Similarly, if vehicle 100 enters road 40 and then enters store 60 on the left side of road 40, the planned action "3. Enter road 40 branching off to the right" will move to the left side of the screen, and the next planned action after vehicle 100 enters road 40, "4. Enter the store on the left," will be newly displayed on the right side of the screen. This allows drivers of other vehicles 100a to 100d traveling around vehicle 100 to recognize in advance that vehicle 100 will enter road 40 and then enter store 60.

[0038] In addition, in Figure 3, if vehicle 100 merges from road 20 into the left lane of road 10 and continues straight in the left lane without changing lanes, the right side of the display screen 170a in Figure 4 may show the planned action of continuing straight in the left lane of road 10. Thus, two or more consecutive planned actions may include, when vehicle 100 merges into road 10 which has multiple lanes, the vehicle merging onto road 10 and then changing lanes again from the lane after merging or continuing to drive in the lane after merging.

[0039] The two planned activities may be displayed alternately on the display screen 170a at predetermined time intervals. Furthermore, if the two planned activities are not consecutive, only the most recent planned activity may be displayed on the display screen 170a.

[0040] The receiving unit 162e processes the reception of location information, identification information (such as vehicle license plate numbers), and vehicle information of other vehicles 100a to 100d in the vicinity of vehicle 100 via the wireless terminal 130. Here, the vehicle information includes information indicating whether the other vehicles 100a to 100d are being driven in automatic driving mode or manual driving mode. In addition, if the other vehicles are driven only in manual driving mode, the vehicle information may include information indicating that fact.

[0041] When the vehicle 100 is set to automatic driving mode, the vehicle control unit 162f controls the vehicle control equipment 120 according to the planned route and action plan, driving the vehicle 100 to its destination. In this process, the vehicle control unit 162f drives the vehicle 100 by appropriately referring to an image representing the surroundings of the vehicle 100 or the output of the sensor 140.

[0042] The area determination unit 162g determines whether vehicle 100 is traveling in an area where manually operated vehicles are present. For example, based on the location information and vehicle information of other vehicles received by the receiving unit 162e, the area determination unit 162g determines that vehicle 100 is traveling in an area where manually operated vehicles are present if the proportion of manually operated vehicles among other vehicles traveling within a predetermined range in the surrounding area (for example, within a radius of 50m) is above a predetermined percentage (for example, 50% or more). The notification unit 162b may notify surrounding vehicles of two or more consecutive planned actions if vehicle 100 is traveling in an area where manually operated vehicles are present.

[0043] Furthermore, the second notification unit 162d displays or announces two or more consecutive action plans inside the other surrounding vehicles 100a to 100d. Specifically, the second notification unit 162d performs processing to transmit two or more consecutive action plans to the other vehicles 100a to 100d in order to display them on display devices installed inside the other surrounding vehicles, or to output them as sound from speakers installed inside the other vehicles 100a to 100d. In addition to the action plans, the second notification unit 162d transmits identification information of vehicle 100 (such as the license plate number of vehicle 100) and location information of vehicle 100 to the other vehicles 100a to 100d.

[0044] The system for notifying the action schedule of other vehicles 100a to 100d is basically configured the same as in Figure 1, but the display device 170 and speaker 180 are installed inside the vehicle and display the action schedule of vehicle 100 to the driver and also output the action schedule by voice.

[0045] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram showing the functional blocks of a processor 162 provided in the action schedule notification system for other vehicles 100a to 100d, which receives the action schedule transmitted from vehicle 100, displays it on the in-vehicle display device 170, and outputs it as audio from the in-vehicle speaker 180.

[0046] The receiving unit 162h of the processor 162 of other vehicles 100a to 100d processes information such as the vehicle's planned movements, identification information, and location information transmitted from vehicle 100 via the wireless terminal 130. The receiving unit 162h also processes information such as the identification information and location information of other vehicles other than its own. For example, if a server on the cloud is tracking and managing the location information of vehicle 100 and other vehicles 100a to 100d based on their identification information, the receiving unit 162h may receive this information from the server.

[0047] The notification unit 162i of other vehicles 100a to 100d, if the action schedule received from vehicle 100 includes two or more consecutive action schedules, performs processing to display the two or more consecutive action schedules on the display device 170 installed inside its own vehicle, or performs processing to output the two or more consecutive action schedules as sound from the speaker installed inside its own vehicle. The notification unit 162i can dynamically change the display or sound output of the received action schedule as vehicle 100 moves. As a result, inside the other vehicles 100a to 100d, the action schedule of vehicle 100 is displayed on the display device 170 as in Figures 4 and 5, and the same sound output is produced from the speaker 180.

[0048] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram showing how the planned actions of vehicle 100 are displayed on the display screen 170a of the display device 170 of vehicle 100b, one of the other vehicles 100a to 100d. The display of vehicle 100's planned actions shown in Figure 7 corresponds to the display in Figure 4, and when vehicle 100 merges from road 20 into the left lane of road 10, two planned actions are displayed: "1. Merging onto road 10," which is vehicle 100's immediate planned action, and "2. Changing lanes from the left lane to the right lane of road 10," which is the next planned action.

[0049] In the example shown in Figure 7, the planned movements of vehicle 100 are displayed along with the real-time locations of vehicle 100 and other vehicles 100a to 100d superimposed on a high-precision map, and an arrow indicating the planned movements of vehicle 100 is displayed. This display allows the driver of other vehicle 100b to visually recognize the planned movements of vehicle 100, the shape of the road, and the locations of vehicle 100, their own vehicle, and other vehicles 100a, 100c, and 100d.

[0050] Furthermore, the notification unit 162i processes information to display on the in-vehicle display device 170 the identification information (vehicle number ○○-××) of the vehicle 100 that transmitted the planned route, or the relative position of the vehicle 100 relative to the vehicle's position, "left diagonally forward". Based on the identification information or relative position of the other vehicle 100b, the driver of the other vehicle 100b can locate the vehicle 100 in the vicinity of their own vehicle. Based on the display shown in Figure 7, the driver can then recognize in advance that the discovered vehicle 100 will merge onto the road on which their own vehicle is traveling and, after merging, will change lanes from the left lane to the right lane.

[0051] Figure 7 shows an example in which a touch sensor, which is an input device 190, is integrated into the display device 170 to form a touch panel. The driver of the other vehicle 100b can communicate their approval or rejection of the vehicle 100's planned actions by operating the approval button 170b and rejection button 170c, which are made up of touch sensors. When the driver of the other vehicle 100b presses the approval button 170b, the transmitter unit 162j of the processor 162 transmits to the vehicle 100 via the wireless terminal 130 that the driver approves the vehicle 100's planned actions, and when the driver presses the rejection button 170c, the transmitter unit 162j transmits to the vehicle 100 that the driver rejects the vehicle 100's planned actions.

[0052] In this case, the receiving unit 162e of the processor 162 of vehicle 100 processes a message sent from the other vehicle 100b indicating approval or rejection of vehicle 100's planned actions. Upon receiving an approval message, the vehicle control unit 162f controls the vehicle control equipment 120 according to the planned actions determined by the planned actions determination unit 162a. On the other hand, upon receiving a rejection message, the vehicle control unit 162f modifies the planned actions determined by the planned actions determination unit 162a. For example, when vehicle 100 merges from road 20 onto road 10, the vehicle control unit 162f may slow down vehicle 100 to allow the other vehicle 100b, which sent the rejection message, to go first before merging onto road 10. In Figure 7, it is shown that the driver of the other vehicle 100c approved vehicle 100's planned actions.

[0053] Furthermore, the second notification unit 162d may perform processing to transmit two or more consecutive action plans to a mobile terminal in order to display them on a display device held by a person in the vicinity (for example, a passenger other than the driver of another vehicle 100a to 100d, a pedestrian, a cyclist, etc.) and to output them as audio from the speaker of the mobile terminal.

[0054] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating other planned actions for vehicle 100, specifically when vehicle 100 is traveling on a two-lane highway 70 and exits highway 70 at an exit 80. The exit 80 of highway 70 is connected to the left lane 70a, and vehicle 100 is traveling in the right lane 70b, which is not the lane 70a that connects to the exit 80. Vehicle 100 travels along the dashed arrow A2 and exits highway 70 at the exit 80. In this case, two or more consecutive planned actions include vehicle 100 changing lanes towards the lane 70a that connects to the exit 80 while traveling in a lane 70b other than the lane 70a that connects to the exit 80 of highway 70, which has multiple lanes, and exiting highway 70 at the exit 80.

[0055] Therefore, the display device 170 located outside the vehicle 100 displays two planned actions as a result of processing by the first notification unit 162c: "1. Change lanes from the right lane 70b to the left lane 70a on road 70," which is the most immediate planned action, and "2. Exit the expressway 70 at exit 80," which is the next planned action. Preferably, the second planned action includes information that identifies the exit 80 (for example, the name of the exit 80 (interchange)). Furthermore, the first notification unit 162c may also display an image indicating that the vehicle is exiting the expressway 70 at exit 80.

[0056] Aside from the examples shown in Figures 3 and 8, various other actions can be envisioned as two or more consecutive planned actions for vehicle 100. For example, when vehicle 100 exits a store's parking lot onto a two-lane road, or when it exits a two-lane road at a T-junction, it may change lanes after merging onto the road. In this case, two or more consecutive planned actions would be to enter the left lane of the two-lane road and to change lanes from the left lane to the right lane. In addition, when the notification unit 162b notifies surrounding vehicles of the planned actions, it may also notify them of an apology (for example, "Excuse me," "I'm leaving," etc.).

[0057] Furthermore, even if the notification unit 162b has already notified the vehicle 100 of its planned actions, if the situation around the vehicle 100 makes it difficult to merge or change lanes, or if the destination or route changes, and the actions related to the planned actions become unnecessary, the notification unit 162b may also notify surrounding vehicles that the previously notified planned actions are being canceled.

[0058] Next, the processing performed by the processor 162 of the ECU 160 of the vehicle 100 will be explained based on the flowchart in Figure 9. Figure 9 is a flowchart showing the processing performed by the processor 162 of the ECU 160 at predetermined control cycles.

[0059] First, it is determined whether or not the vehicle 100 is set to automatic driving mode (step S10). If it is set to automatic driving mode, the action plan determination unit 162a determines the action plan for the vehicle 100 while it is operating in automatic driving mode (step S12). On the other hand, if it is not set to automatic driving mode, the processing for this control cycle ends.

[0060] Next, it is determined whether there are two or more consecutive scheduled actions (step S14). If there are two or more consecutive scheduled actions, the area determination unit 162g determines whether the proportion of manually operated vehicles within a predetermined range in the surrounding area is above a predetermined percentage (step S16).

[0061] If the proportion of manually operated vehicles within a predetermined range in the surrounding area is greater than or equal to a predetermined percentage (YES in step S16), the notification unit 162b notifies surrounding vehicles of two or more consecutive planned actions (step S18). The process in step S18 includes at least one of the following: a first step in which the first notification unit 162c notifies the outside of the vehicle of two or more consecutive planned actions by display or sound from the vehicle itself, and a second step in which the second notification unit 162d causes other surrounding vehicles to notify the inside of two or more consecutive planned actions by display or sound. On the other hand, if there are no two or more consecutive planned actions in step S14, or if the proportion of manually operated vehicles within a predetermined range in the surrounding area is less than a predetermined percentage in step S16, the process in this control cycle ends.

[0062] As described above, according to this embodiment, two or more consecutive planned actions of vehicle 100 are communicated to surrounding vehicles, so that the drivers of other surrounding vehicles 100a to 100d can recognize two or more consecutive planned actions in advance and take measures to ensure safety, such as maintaining a safe distance from vehicle 100. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0063] 160 Electronic Control Unit (ECU) 162 processors 162a Action Plan Decision Section 162b Hochi Department 162c First News Department 162d The Second News Department 162g Area determination section 164 memory 170 Display device 170a display screen 180 speakers

Claims

1. A decision unit that determines the planned actions of the vehicle capable of autonomous driving, It includes a notification unit that notifies other vehicles in the vicinity of two or more consecutive action plans, The aforementioned notification department, Two or more consecutive scheduled actions are announced by display or sound in the interiors of other vehicles in the vicinity. Along with the aforementioned planned actions, the real-time locations of the vehicle itself and other vehicles are displayed on a map inside the other vehicles. A vehicle operation schedule notification device.

2. The vehicle action plan notification device according to claim 1, wherein two or more consecutive action plans include, when the vehicle merges onto a road with multiple lanes, the vehicle merging onto the road, changing lanes again from the lane after merging, or continuing to drive in the lane after merging.

3. The vehicle action plan notification device according to claim 1, wherein two or more consecutive action plans include changing lanes toward a lane leading to an exit while the vehicle is traveling in a lane other than the lane leading to an exit on a road having multiple lanes, and exiting the road at the exit.

4. It includes a determination unit that determines whether or not the vehicle is traveling in an area where manually operated vehicles are present. The vehicle action schedule notification device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the notification unit notifies surrounding vehicles of two or more consecutive action schedules when the vehicle is traveling through an area where manually operated vehicles are present.

5. The steps include determining the planned route for vehicles capable of autonomous driving, The system includes the step of notifying other vehicles in the vicinity of the vehicle of two or more consecutive planned actions, The aforementioned notification step is: Two or more consecutive scheduled actions are displayed or announced by voice in other vehicles surrounding the vehicle, and the real-time locations of the vehicle and the other vehicles are displayed on a map inside the other vehicles along with the scheduled actions. A method for notifying the planned movements of vehicles.

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