Onboard equipment and its operating method, and vehicle

Abstract

This vehicle-mounted device is mounted in a vehicle provided with a driving assistance device that uses information from an external server, the vehicle-mounted device including: an in-vehicle server that can execute one or more sub-functions constituting a subset of functions of the external server, and that uses data received from the outside to output information about a subset that can replace a portion of the information; a function selection unit that, in response to an interruption of the reception of information from the external server, selects at least one sub-function to be executed by the in-vehicle server, in accordance with a priority based on the traffic environment around the vehicle; a reception determination unit that determines that the reception of information from the external server has been interrupted; and an internal / external linking device that, in response to a determination by the reception determination unit that the reception was interrupted, imparts to the driving assistance device the subset information from the in-vehicle server.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to an in-vehicle device, an operation method thereof, and a vehicle. This application claims priority based on Japanese Application No. 2021-109959 filed on July 1, 2021, and incorporates all the descriptions described in the said Japanese application.

Background Art

[0002] Systems that aggregate and analyze sensor data from a large number of sensors and utilize it for driving assistance are becoming widespread. Sensor data is transmitted from sensors mounted on vehicles and sensors included in infrastructure facilities provided on the roadside (hereinafter referred to as "infrastructure sensors"). In such systems, a vehicle connects to a nearby wireless base station using wireless communication and communicates with a server via the wireless base station. Also, it is possible to transmit sensor data of a certain vehicle to other vehicles or transmit information held by a certain vehicle to other vehicles by direct communication between vehicles (so-called vehicle-to-vehicle communication).

[0003] In the case of a driving assistance system, communication delay becomes a problem. For the purpose of reducing the latency of wireless communication between a vehicle and a server, a server is installed at a position close to the site where the vehicle is traveling, and the server processes sensor data. In the sense of a server installed at a position close to the site, this server is called an edge server.

[0004] In addition to edge servers that analyze sensor data in this way, a large number of so-called cloud servers that provide various services to vehicles via wireless communication are also becoming widespread. For example, distribution of so-called traffic information, management of dispatching schedules for transport vehicles, etc., distribution of sightseeing and event information near roads, vehicle fault diagnosis, route guidance, etc. By using edge servers and cloud servers, vehicles can travel more safely and can lead a meaningful life by making use of the vehicles.

[0005] Such systems assume that the vehicle communicates with the server. Therefore, if the vehicle loses communication with the server for any reason, the driver assistance systems it has become useless. It is permissible to connect to other servers if possible. However, in the case of edge servers, the areas managed by other edge servers do not necessarily cover the area where the vehicle is located. Therefore, even if driver assistance information is received from those edge servers, it is highly likely that it will not be useful to that vehicle.

[0006] Furthermore, even with cloud servers providing general services, there's a problem in that if there are no alternative servers nearby, information about such services becomes unavailable.

[0007] A proposal to solve these problems is disclosed in Patent Document 1. According to the disclosure in Patent Document 1, the in-vehicle device is equipped with the functionality of a mini-edge server, which is a scaled-down version of an edge server. The mini-edge server is activated when communication with the edge server is lost. When the mini-edge server is activated, it is initialized using the data that it had received from the edge server up to that point, and its output is used for driving assistance. Furthermore, a cooperative node that will receive sensor data is determined from among the surrounding vehicles and infrastructure sensors, and the information held by the mini-edge server is updated using the sensor data received from these nodes and the sensor data from the vehicle's own sensors. When communication with the edge server is restored, the mini-edge server is stopped, and the data received from the edge server is used for driving assistance. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0008] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2021 / 002223 [Overview of the project] [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The in-vehicle device relating to the first aspect of this disclosure is an in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle equipped with a driver assistance device that utilizes information from an external server, and includes an in-vehicle server capable of executing one or more sub-functions constituting a subset of the functions of the external server, and outputting subset information that can be replaced in part with the information using data received from the outside; a function selection unit that, in response to an interruption in the reception of information from the external server, selects at least one of the sub-functions to be executed by the in-vehicle server according to a priority based on the traffic environment in which the vehicle is located; a reception determination unit that determines that the reception of information from the external server has been interrupted; and an in-vehicle-external cooperation device that, in response to the determination by the reception determination unit that reception has been interrupted, provides the subset information from the in-vehicle server to the driver assistance device.

[0010] The method for operating an in-vehicle device relating to the second aspect of this disclosure is a method for operating an in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle equipped with a driver assistance device that utilizes information from an external server, comprising the steps of: constructing an in-vehicle server capable of executing one or more sub-functions constituting a subset of the functions of the external server, and outputting subset information that can be replaced in part with the information using data received from an external source; In response to an interruption in receiving information from an external server, the in-vehicle server selects one of the sub-functions to be executed according to priority based on the traffic environment in which the vehicle is located. The process includes the steps of determining that the reception of information from an external server has been interrupted, and providing a subset of information from the in-vehicle server to the driver assistance system in response to the determination that reception has been interrupted.

[0011] The vehicles relating to the third aspect of this disclosure are as described above. car It is equipped with onboard equipment. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic block diagram of an in-vehicle device and various parts of a vehicle controlled by the in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment of this disclosure. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of an in-vehicle device in the first embodiment of this disclosure. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram showing the contents of the module storage unit that stores functional modules available in the mini-edge server of the first embodiment of this disclosure. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows a priority table that a mini-edge server according to the first embodiment of this disclosure refers to when selecting a sub-function. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the control structure of a computer program that implements the functions of the in-vehicle device shown in Figure 1 using a computer. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a flowchart showing the control structure of the computer program that implements the step of generating a subset of server functions from the computer program shown in Figure 5. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration for realizing the in-vehicle device shown in Figure 1. [Figure 8] Figure 8 is a block diagram of an in-vehicle device according to a second embodiment of this disclosure. [Figure 9] Figure 9 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of an in-vehicle mini-server ECU, which is a computer that implements the mini-edge server according to the first and second embodiments of this disclosure. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0013] [Issues this disclosure aims to address] By using the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, even when communication with the server is interrupted, driver assistance information can be generated on the mini-edge server and made available to the vehicle. Therefore, it has the excellent effect of being able to continue providing driver assistance to the vehicle.

[0014] However, there are further challenges that need to be addressed in order to put the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 into practical use. For example, as mentioned above, numerous cloud services are already available in addition to edge servers. Patent Document 1 does not take into account the use of such cloud services. Furthermore, there is the problem of how to respond when new services are added in the future. In addition, since the information processing resources installed in vehicles are limited, there is also the challenge that it may not be possible to fully realize the necessary services with mini edge servers.

[0015] Therefore, the present disclosure aims to provide an in-vehicle device and its operation method that can flexibly replace the functions even when connection to a server is not possible, and a vehicle equipped with the in-vehicle device.

[0016] [Effect of this disclosure] As described above, according to this disclosure, an in-vehicle device and its operation method that can flexibly replace the functions even when connection to a server is not possible, and a vehicle equipped with the in-vehicle device can be provided.

[0017] The object, configuration, and effect of this disclosure will be clarified by this specification and the accompanying drawings.

[0018] [Description of embodiments of this disclosure] In the following description and drawings, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals. Therefore, detailed descriptions thereof will not be repeated. Note that at least a part of the following disclosures may be arbitrarily combined.

[0019] (1) The in-vehicle device according to the first aspect of the present disclosure is an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle equipped with a driving support device that uses information from an external server, and is capable of executing one or more sub-functions that constitute a subset of the functions of the external server, and outputs subset information that can replace a part of the information using the data received from the outside. An in-vehicle server, a function selection unit that selects at least one of the sub-functions executed by the in-vehicle server according to the priority based on the traffic environment in which the vehicle is placed in response to the interruption of receiving information from the external server, a reception determination unit that determines that the reception of information from the external server has been interrupted, and an in-vehicle / out-vehicle cooperation device that gives the subset information from the in-vehicle server to the driving support device in response to the determination by the reception determination unit that the reception has been interrupted.

[0020] When communication with the external server is interrupted, the in-vehicle server is activated to provide the sub-functions selected according to the priority based on the traffic environment. Therefore, an in-vehicle device that can flexibly replace the functions even when the connection to the server is interrupted can be provided.

[0021] (2) The function selection unit may include a priority table storage device for storing a priority table that defines the priority of functions for each of one or more types of traffic environments; a priority table selection unit for identifying the traffic environment of a vehicle and selecting one of the priority tables stored in the priority table storage device that corresponds to that traffic environment; a resource information acquisition unit for acquiring current dynamic information of the information processing resources of the vehicle; and a sub-function selection unit for selecting a sub-function within the range permitted by the information processing resources, based on the dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit, according to the priority determined by the priority table selected by the priority table selection unit.

[0022] Sub-functions are selected according to the priority set by the priority table, within the limits permitted by the status of the information processing resources. Since effective sub-functions are selected within the limits of the information processing resources, an in-vehicle device can be provided that can flexibly substitute for the function to the extent possible, even when the connection to the server is interrupted.

[0023] (3) The priority table selection unit may identify the vehicle's traffic environment based on the dynamic map and the vehicle's location.

[0024] Since the dynamic map is transmitted from the server, the priority table selection unit can identify the traffic environment based on the latest information.

[0025] (4) The dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit is dynamic information that spans at least multiple information processing resources of the vehicle, and the in-vehicle server may distribute its functions and process the information across multiple information processing resources of the vehicle.

[0026] Vehicles may have multiple information processing resources. By distributing the execution of sub-functions of the in-vehicle server across these information processing resources, it is possible to effectively utilize the in-vehicle information processing resources and provide an in-vehicle device that can flexibly substitute functions even when the connection to the server is interrupted.

[0027] (5) The sub-function selection unit may include a first sub-function selection unit that selects sub-functions within the range permitted by the information processing resources based on dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit, according to the priority determined by the priority table selected by the priority table selection unit, and a second sub-function selection unit that selects other sub-functions required for the execution of the sub-functions selected by the first sub-function selection unit.

[0028] If one subfunction requires another subfunction to perform, the second subfunction selection unit automatically selects the necessary subfunction. This prevents the selected subfunction from becoming unusable during execution and provides an in-vehicle device that can flexibly and reliably substitute its function even when the connection to the server is interrupted.

[0029] (6) The function selection unit further includes a function storage unit that stores the function that the driver assistance device was performing in response to the determination by the reception determination unit that reception has been interrupted, and the sub-function selection unit selects a sub-function from among the functions stored in the function storage unit, within the range permitted by the information processing resources and based on the dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit, according to the priority determined by the priority table selected by the priority table selection unit. Priority order It may also include a sub-function selection section.

[0030] The function memory unit stores the function that was running when communication with the external server was interrupted. Priority order The sub-function selection unit prioritizes selecting this function. Therefore, even if the connection to the server is interrupted, it is possible to provide an in-vehicle device with flexible functionality that can continue to provide alternative functions.

[0031] (7) The in-vehicle server may determine, for each function selected by the function selection unit, the cooperative node which is the source of the data necessary to realize that function.

[0032] Different functions may require different types of external data. By separately determining the collaborative nodes for collecting data for these functions, each function can be executed effectively. As a result, it is possible to provide an in-vehicle device that can flexibly and efficiently replace a function even when the connection to the server is interrupted.

[0033] (8) The in-vehicle server may determine the collaborative nodes, which are the data collection destinations necessary to realize the functions selected by the function selection unit, in common for all selected functions.

[0034] By commonly determining the cooperating nodes for all selected functions, time spent determining these nodes can be saved. Furthermore, the number of cooperating nodes requiring communication is generally reduced. As a result, it becomes possible to provide an in-vehicle device that can flexibly and efficiently replace functions even when the connection to the server is interrupted.

[0035] (9) A method for operating an in-vehicle device relating to the second aspect of this disclosure is a method for operating an in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle equipped with a driver assistance device that utilizes information from an external server, comprising the steps of: constructing an in-vehicle server capable of executing one or more subfunctions constituting a subset of the functions of the external server, and outputting subset information that can be replaced in part with the information using data received from the outside; selecting one of the subfunctions to be executed by the in-vehicle server in order of priority based on the traffic environment in which the vehicle is located, in response to an interruption in the reception of information from the external server; and determining that the reception of information from the external server has been interrupted. Rus The process includes the step of providing a subset of information from the in-vehicle server to the driver assistance system in response to a determination that reception has been interrupted.

[0036] If communication with the external server is interrupted, the in-vehicle server starts up and provides sub-functions selected according to priority based on the traffic environment. Therefore, even when the connection with the server is interrupted, the in-vehicle device can be provided with a flexible alternative function.

[0037] (10 The vehicle relating to the third aspect of this disclosure is equipped with any of the above-described in-vehicle devices.

[0038] If communication with the external server is interrupted, the in-vehicle server starts up, similar to the in-vehicle device described above, and provides sub-functions selected according to priority based on the traffic environment. Therefore, even when the connection to the server is interrupted, its functions are flexibly replaced. As a result, it is possible to provide vehicles that can continue to use a subset of the functions that the servers were providing when the connection was interrupted.

[0039] [Details of the embodiments of this disclosure] First Embodiment A vehicle-mounted device and its control method according to the first embodiment of this disclosure, as well as specific examples of vehicles, will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, this disclosure is not limited to these examples, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims, as indicated by the claims. Furthermore, parts of the following disclosure may be combined as desired.

[0040] 1. Configuration (1) Overall structure Figure 1 shows a block diagram of the driver assistance system 50 related to this disclosure. Referring to Figure 1, the driver assistance system 50 includes an edge server 62 and a cloud server 64 that distributes traffic information and various other information. The function of the edge server 62 is to collect sensor information from the vehicle 66 and infrastructure sensors such as LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) 68 and camera 70, integrate it with a pre-stored high-precision map, generate information to assist driving (driver assistance information), and distribute it to the vehicle. Driver assistance information includes, for example, dynamic maps related to the traffic environment and traffic conditions. The traffic environment here mainly refers to the shape of the road, such as intersections, junctions and merge points, straight roads, and curves. Traffic conditions refer to the state of the road, such as whether or not there is congestion, whether or not there are sections under traffic restrictions, whether or not there are accidents, and whether or not there are parked vehicles.

[0041] The driver assistance system 50 further includes a vehicle 60 capable of communicating wirelessly with external servers such as an edge server 62 and a cloud server 64. The driver assistance system 50 further includes an in-vehicle device 90 mounted on the vehicle 60, which uses information obtained from the edge server 62 for driver assistance and information obtained from the cloud server 64 for various purposes. The driver assistance system 50 further includes in-vehicle sensors connected to the in-vehicle device 90, namely a millimeter-wave radar 80, an in-vehicle camera 82, and a LiDAR 84, as well as various ECUs (Electronic Control Units) 92 for electronically controlling mechanical components of various parts of the vehicle 60 in cooperation with the in-vehicle device 90.

[0042] In this embodiment, the in-vehicle device 90 is essentially a computer and realizes an in-vehicle mini-server 94 by executing a predetermined program. The in-vehicle mini-server 94 executes a subset of the functions of the edge server and a subset of the functions of the cloud server. By executing a subset of the functions of each server in this way, the in-vehicle mini-server 94 generates some of the information that would normally be generated by the edge server and the cloud server, based on the data it collects. This information generated by the in-vehicle mini-server 94 is called subset information, in relation to the information provided by the edge server and the cloud server.

[0043] It should be noted that the subset information referred to here is not about the content of the information, but about the type of information. The subset information generated by the in-vehicle mini-server 94 is generated by a subset of the functions of each server. Therefore, this subset information is of the same type as some of the information provided by each server. For this reason, the in-vehicle device 90 can use this subset information to replace some of the information that would have been provided by the server. However, since the data and processing that form the basis of the subset information are different from those performed by the server, its content does not necessarily match the content of the information provided by the server.

[0044] (2) In-vehicle device Referring to Figure 2, the in-vehicle device 90 includes an external communication device 154 capable of wireless communication with external wireless base stations and other vehicles, and an in-vehicle GW (Gateway) 150 installed between the in-vehicle network and the external communication device 154. The function of the in-vehicle GW 150 is to transmit information obtained from in-vehicle sensors and various ECUs 92 (see Figure 1) mounted on the vehicle to the edge server 62. The in-vehicle GW 150 also performs processing such as distributing information received by the external communication device 154 from the edge server 62 or cloud server 64 to the in-vehicle device 90. The in-vehicle device 90 further includes an in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle coordination unit 152 connected to the external communication device 154, the in-vehicle GW 150, and the in-vehicle mini-server 94. The function of the in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle coordination unit 152 is to control the coordination between the inside and outside of the vehicle 60 by controlling the flow of data between the in-vehicle GW 150, the external communication device 154, and the in-vehicle mini-server 94 according to the communication status of the external communication device 154.

[0045] The in-vehicle mini-server 94 includes an in-vehicle resource observation unit 200 for observing the dynamic state of various ECUs 92 and information processing resources such as the in-vehicle network installed in the vehicle 60 via the in-vehicle GW 150. The in-vehicle mini-server 94 further includes a priority table storage unit 212 for storing a table called a priority table that is transmitted from the edge server 62 via the external communication device 154 and the in-vehicle GW 150. The hardware configuration of the in-vehicle mini-server 94 will be described later with reference to Figure 9.

[0046] The priority table will be described later with reference to Figure 4. The priority table is used to determine which functions the in-vehicle mini-server 94 should execute and in what order of priority when communication between the external communication device 154 and the external server is interrupted. The priority table is created in advance and stored in the edge server 62. Multiple priority tables are prepared depending on the traffic conditions in which the vehicle is located.

[0047] The in-vehicle device 90 further includes a mini-server 208, which is the main body of the in-vehicle mini-server; a module storage unit 204 that stores functional modules that the mini-server 208 can execute; and an executing function storage unit 210 for storing functions that the vehicle 60 was using, such as services, when communication with the server via the external communication device 154 was interrupted. The in-vehicle device 90 further includes an execution priority determination unit 202 for selecting the optimal priority table from the priority tables stored in the priority table storage unit 212 according to the traffic conditions in which the vehicle 60 is located. Traffic conditions can be determined based on the shape of the roads and the location of the vehicle 60, as shown by a dynamic map. The dynamic map is usually downloaded from the edge server 62 and is therefore updated with the latest information. The in-vehicle device 90 further includes a mini-server construction unit 206. The function of the mini-server construction unit 206 is to construct the mini-server 208 to select functional modules corresponding to the functions that the mini-server 208 should execute from the module storage unit 204 and execute them. At this time, the mini-server construction unit 206 uses the priority table selected by the execution priority determination unit 202, the functions currently running stored in the running function storage unit 210, and the dynamic state of the in-vehicle information processing resources observed by the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200.

[0048] The in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle communication unit 152 includes a communication status detection unit 180 that detects the communication status between the external server and the external communication device 154, and notifies the running function storage unit 210 of the in-vehicle mini-server 94 of the detection of an interruption in communication with any of the external servers. The in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle communication unit 152 further includes an operation mode switching unit 182. The function of the operation mode switching unit 182 is to switch the operation mode of the in-vehicle device 90 from normal mode to interruption mode in response to the detection of an interruption in communication with an external server by the communication status detection unit 180, and to notify the in-vehicle mini-server 94 of the change in operation mode. In normal mode, the in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle communication unit 152 operates by communicating with an external server. In interruption mode, the in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle communication unit 152 operates using information generated by the in-vehicle mini-server 94, rather than communicating with an external server. The in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle communication unit 152 further includes a selection unit 184 controlled by the operation mode switching unit 182, which switches between transmitting information received by the external communication device 154 to the in-vehicle GW 150 in normal mode and transmitting the output of the mini-server 208 to the in-vehicle GW 150 in interruption mode. The in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle communication unit 152 further includes a selection unit 186 controlled by the operation mode switching unit 182, which switches between transmitting the output of the in-vehicle GW 150 to the external communication device 154 in normal mode and transmitting it to the mini-server 208 in interruption mode.

[0049] (3) Functional module configuration Figure 3 shows an example of a group of functional modules stored in the module storage unit 204. These functional modules provide the same types of functions as those provided by the external server. However, looking at individual functions, it is difficult to completely replace them due to the limitations of the resources available to the vehicle 60. Therefore, the majority of functional modules can be called sub-functional modules in the sense that they provide only a part of the functions of the external server. However, in the following, these sub-functional modules will simply be referred to as "functional modules."

[0050] Referring to Figure 3, the functional modules stored in the module storage unit 204 can be broadly classified into three groups. The first is the in-vehicle mini edge server module group 250, which implements a subset of the functions of the edge server 62. The second is the in-vehicle mini cloud server module group 252, which implements a subset of the functions of the cloud server 64. The third is the common module group 254, which is used by both the in-vehicle mini edge server and the in-vehicle mini cloud server.

[0051] The in-vehicle mini edge server module group 250 includes, for example, an intersection assistance module 272 used when the vehicle is near an intersection, a driving lane control module 274 used when the vehicle is traveling on a multi-lane road, and a dynamic map construction module 270. The dynamic map construction module 270 is a functional module that is commonly required by the intersection assistance module 272 and the driving lane control module 274. In other words, the intersection assistance module 272 and the driving lane control module 274 constitute a first-layer functional module group, and the dynamic map construction module 270 is a second-layer functional module that forms the foundation of the first-layer functional module group. This hierarchical structure is the same for the in-vehicle mini cloud server module group 252 and the common module group 254. Note that there may be multiple first-layer functional modules other than the intersection assistance module 272 and the driving lane control module 274.

[0052] The first layer of the in-vehicle mini cloud server module group 252 includes a ride-hailing service module 294, a route guidance module 296, a vehicle fault diagnosis module 298, and the like. The second layer of the in-vehicle mini cloud server module group 252 includes a vehicle information management module 290 that manages basic vehicle information of the vehicle 60, and an AI (Artificial Intelligence) diagnostic module 292 required for vehicle diagnosis, etc.

[0053] The first layer of the common module group 254 includes a data backup module 312 for backing up data from the in-vehicle device 90 to a cloud server. The first layer of functional modules further includes a log management module 314 that writes the operating status of the in-vehicle device 90 as a temporary log to the in-vehicle storage device and periodically uploads it to the cloud server.

[0054] The second layer of the common module group 254 includes the vehicle anomaly management module 310. The vehicle anomaly management module 310 is a functional module commonly used by the data backup module 312 and the log management module 314.

[0055] The mini-server construction unit 206 uses various conditions to select these functional modules. These conditions include, for example, how much headroom there is in the information processing resources distributed throughout the entire vehicle, and the traffic environment in which the vehicle 60 is located. The traffic environment can be determined based on the road shape and the location of the vehicle 60, as shown by the dynamic map. Since the dynamic map is downloaded from the edge server 62 when communication with the edge server 62 was possible, it represents the latest information available to the mini-server construction unit 206. Therefore, the mini-server construction unit 206 can select functional modules based on the most up-to-date traffic environment possible. Information processing resources include the in-vehicle device 90, various ECUs 92 that perform some functions of the in-vehicle mini-server 94 together with the in-vehicle device 90, and the in-vehicle network connecting them.

[0056] (4)Priority table Figure 4 shows an example of a priority table that the priority table storage unit 212 receives and stores from the edge server 62 in Figure 2. The mini-server construction unit 206 refers to this priority table when specifying the functions of the mini-server 208.

[0057] Referring to Figure 4, the priority table 330 according to this embodiment defines the priority of each functional module, divided into three types based on the traffic environment in which the vehicle is located: intersections, junctions / merging points, and others.

[0058] For example, in the case of an intersection, intersection assistance is the first priority, lane control is the second priority, and dispatch service, route guidance, and vehicle fault diagnosis are all the third priority. In this embodiment, a smaller number indicates a higher priority.

[0059] The only functional modules listed in Figure 4 are those of the first layer in Figure 3. For the second layer functional modules, when a first layer functional module is selected, the functional modules required by that functional module are automatically selected. This prevents situations where a required first layer functional module is selected, but execution fails because the necessary second layer functional modules are not available.

[0060] In this embodiment, the priority list is distributed from the edge server 62 to each vehicle. However, this embodiment is not limited to such an embodiment. For example, the manufacturer of the in-vehicle equipment may create it in advance and install it in the in-vehicle mini-server, or if there is a cloud server that provides a service for distributing such priority lists, it may be downloaded from there. Also, the traffic environment in which the priority list is prepared is not limited to the three classifications shown in Figure 4, but may be two or four or more. In some cases, it may also be possible to use a single priority list.

[0061] (5) Computer programs Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the control structure of a computer program for causing a computer to function as an in-vehicle device 90 according to this embodiment. Referring to Figure 5, this program is executed, for example, when data delivery from the edge server 62 is interrupted, and includes a step 350 that identifies the device (service) whose delivery was interrupted and stores that information in the running function storage unit 210 shown in Figure 2. This program further includes a step 352 in which the execution priority determination unit 202 determines an appropriate priority table from the priority table storage unit 212 based on the traffic environment of the vehicle 60.

[0062] This program further includes step 354, in which the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200 observes the static and dynamic states of the information processing resources available within the vehicle 60. Examples of static states of information processing resources include the CPU (Central Processing Unit) specifications, operating clock, memory capacity, and network communication capacity. Examples of dynamic states include the CPU load, available memory, network throughput, and latency. A dynamic map is stored in the in-vehicle device 90 based on information from when communication with the edge server 62 was possible. Using this dynamic map and information regarding the vehicle's location, the traffic environment of the vehicle at least at the time the mini-server was started can be determined.

[0063] The program further includes step 356, which generates a subset of server functions provided by an external server that the miniserver 208 will perform, based on the interrupted services identified in step 350, the priority table determined in step 352, and the in-vehicle information processing resources observed in step 354. The program further includes step 358, which determines a cooperating node for each function that makes up the subset generated in step 356. A cooperating node is a node from the surrounding communication nodes, such as infrastructure sensors and vehicles, that will collect sensor data to be used to generate information about its service. The program further includes step 360, which dynamically constructs and starts the miniserver 208 to perform each function by collecting sensor data from the cooperating nodes determined in step 358 for the subset of server functions generated in step 356. After step 360, the execution of the program ends.

[0064] Figure 6 shows a flowchart illustrating the control structure of the computer program executed in step 356 of Figure 5. Referring to Figure 6, step 356 of Figure 5 includes step 400, which executes the following steps 402 in order from the server function with priority 1 in the priority table selected in step 352 of Figure 5.

[0065] Step 402 includes step 404, which, when the priority being processed is assigned to multiple server functions, executes step 404 in the order of the default priority assigned to those server functions. Here, it is assumed that the default priority is pre-set, for example by the manufacturer of the in-vehicle device 90, the manufacturer of the vehicle 60, or the seller of the vehicle 60, so that the same priority is not assigned to multiple server functions. The default priority may be made configurable by the user.

[0066] Step 404 includes step 420, which branches the control flow according to whether there are sufficient resources to execute the server function being processed, based on the observation results in step 354 in Figure 5. Step 404 further includes step 422, which branches the control flow according to whether the server function to be evaluated was running on the in-vehicle device 90 immediately before the interruption of communication with the external server (whether the server function was being used or an application was running), if the determination in step 420 is affirmative. Step 404 further includes step 424, which branches the control flow according to whether the current vehicle position is within the execution area of ​​the function to be evaluated, if the determination in step 422 is affirmative. Step 404 further includes step 426, which adds a function module corresponding to the function to be evaluated as a function of the mini-server and terminates step 404, if the determination in step 424 is affirmative. If the determinations in steps 420 and 422 and step 424 are negative, the function module to be evaluated is not added and step 404 terminates.

[0067] 2 operations (1) Normal time Referring to Figure 1, if communication with all external servers, such as the edge server 62 and the cloud server 64, is functioning normally, the operation mode switching unit 182 shown in Figure 2 sets the operation mode to normal mode. That is, the operation mode switching unit 182 switches the selection unit 184 so that the external communication device 154 provides the data received from the external server to the on-board GW 150. The operation mode switching unit 182 switches the selection unit 186 so that the sensor data and data that should be sent to the external server regarding the vehicle 60, output by the on-board GW 150, are sent to the external server via the external communication device 154.

[0068] The in-vehicle GW150 transmits data received from an external server to the autonomous driving ECU. The in-vehicle GW150 also transmits sensor data output by the millimeter-wave radar 80, in-vehicle camera 82, and LiDAR 84 mounted on the vehicle 60 to the external server via the external communication device 154.

[0069] In this embodiment, the in-vehicle mini-server 94 is idle while this normal mode is being executed. However, the in-vehicle mini-server 94 may be kept running even in normal mode, and the selection units 184 and 186 may be switched to immediately use the output of the in-vehicle mini-server 94 when communication with the external server is interrupted.

[0070] The function memory unit 210 constantly monitors and records the functions being performed by the autonomous driving ECU via the in-vehicle GW150.

[0071] Under normal circumstances, the priority table received from the edge server 62 via the external communication device 154 is separated from the received data by the onboard GW 150 and stored in the priority table storage unit 212.

[0072] (2) Interruption mode If communication with any external server is interrupted, the communication status detection unit 180 detects the interruption and notifies the running function storage unit 210. The running function storage unit 210 stores information representing the function that the autonomous driving ECU is currently executing. The communication status detection unit 180 also notifies the operation mode switching unit 182 of the communication interruption.

[0073] In response to this notification, the operation mode switching unit 182 switches the operation mode from normal mode to interruption mode. For communication with an external server where communication has been interrupted, the operation mode switching unit 182 switches the selection unit 184 so that the output of the mini-server 208 is provided to the in-vehicle GW 150. It also switches the selection unit 186 so that the output of the in-vehicle GW 150 is provided to the mini-server 208. At this time, the operation mode switching unit 182 switches the selection units 184 and 186 so that data flows through the same path as in normal times for external servers with which communication is continuing. The operation mode switching unit 182 also notifies the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200, the execution priority determination unit 202, and the mini-server construction unit 206 that the operation mode has been switched to interruption mode.

[0074] When the execution priority determination unit 202 is notified of a communication interruption, it reads a priority table from the priority table stored in the priority table storage unit 212 that is appropriate for the traffic environment at the vehicle's current location. The traffic environment can be identified based on the road shape and the location of the vehicle 60, as shown by the dynamic map. The execution priority determination unit 202 also reads information from the running function storage unit 210 regarding the service from the external server that was interrupted among the processes that the autonomous driving ECU was executing at the time of the communication interruption. The execution priority determination unit 202 then provides the priority information and running function information read in this manner to the mini-server construction unit 206.

[0075] Meanwhile, the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200 observes the dynamic state of other ECUs in the vehicle (CPU load, memory usage, etc.) and the dynamic state of the network (throughput, latency) via the in-vehicle GW 150, and provides the results to the mini-server construction unit 206.

[0076] The mini-server construction unit 206, using the program shown in Figure 6, selects functional modules from among the functional modules stored in the module storage unit 204 that correspond to the functions that the mini-server 208 should perform and adds them to the functions of the mini-server 208. The added functional modules are the first-layer functional modules that correspond to the functions that the mini-server 208 should perform and the second-layer functional modules necessary to perform those functional modules. At this time, the mini-server construction unit 206 selects functional modules within an acceptable range using the priority table and information on currently running functional modules provided by the execution priority determination unit 202 and the dynamic state of in-vehicle resources provided by the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200. In practice, the mini-server construction unit 206 writes the selected functional modules to an initial setup file that identifies the functional modules to be read when the mini-server 208 is started. Note that when the mini-server construction unit 206 performs step 420 in Figure 6, the second-layer functional modules required by the first-layer functional modules may not yet have been added to the functions of the mini-server 208. In such cases, the mini-server construction unit 206 needs to determine whether or not there are the necessary in-vehicle resources to run both the first-layer functional modules and the second-layer functional modules.

[0077] This determination is based on whether the available memory capacity and the memory capacity consumed by adding the new functional module are within the range of the memory capacity available to the mini-server 208 (for example, within 80%). Other criteria may also be used, such as whether adding the new functional module will cause the predicted average network traffic to exceed an acceptable level (for example, 65%), or whether the average CPU utilization will fall below a predetermined threshold (for example, 80%). If multiple criteria are used, the mini-server construction unit 206 will not add the module if any of the criteria are not met.

[0078] Thus, the mini-server construction unit 206 adds all the functional modules that can be executed on the vehicle 60 from the necessary functional resources to the initial setup file of the mini-server 208. After this, for each function, the mini-server construction unit 206 determines the nodes (cooperative nodes) from which the mini-server 208 will collect sensor data from among the surrounding infrastructure sensors and communication nodes such as vehicles, and adds them to the initial setup file of the mini-server 208. After writing the necessary information to the initial setup file of the mini-server 208 in this way, the mini-server construction unit 206 starts up the mini-server 208. When the mini-server 208 starts up, it first reads this initial setup file, reads the recorded functional modules from the module storage unit 204, and incorporates them into its own functions. Furthermore, based on the contents of the initial setup file, the mini-server 208 collects and analyzes sensor data from the cooperative nodes determined for each function, and begins providing a subset of the functions that were provided by the external server whose communication was interrupted.

[0079] After the mini-server 208 starts up, it updates its own position based on the sensors mounted on the vehicle 60, the high-precision map stored in the vehicle 60, and the sensor data received from the cooperating node. The mini-server 208 also updates the vehicle and infrastructure sensors that constitute the cooperating node according to its own position. The in-vehicle mini-server 94 distributes some of the functions it performs to other ECUs based on the dynamic state of the in-vehicle information processing resources acquired in step 354 of Figure 5. Basically, the in-vehicle mini-server 94 performs each function, and other ECUs may be used only when the load on the in-vehicle mini-server 94 becomes large. Alternatively, most of the functions that the in-vehicle mini-server 94 performs may be distributed to other ECUs, and the in-vehicle mini-server 94 may only control those ECUs.

[0080] Then, when communication with the external server, which had been interrupted, is restored, the mini-server 208 stops functioning, and the operating mode switching unit 182 switches the selection units 184 and 186 to normal mode connection, causing the in-vehicle device 90 to return to normal mode.

[0081] 3 Hardware Configuration Figure 7 shows the hardware configuration of the in-vehicle device 90 and its surroundings mounted on the vehicle 60 according to this embodiment. Referring to Figure 7, the in-vehicle device 90 includes an HMI (Human-Machine Interface) controller 554 connected to the in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network) and an external communication controller 552 connected to the in-vehicle LAN, similar to the HMI controller 554. The in-vehicle device 90 further includes an integrated antenna 550 connected to the external communication controller 552. The integrated antenna 550 functions as an antenna for fifth-generation mobile communication systems (so-called "5G"), intelligent transport systems (ITS), GPS (Global Positioning System), a type of GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System), and Wi-Fi. The in-vehicle device 90 further includes an autonomous driving controller 556 connected to the HMI controller 554 and the external communication controller 552 via the in-vehicle LAN, and a driving system controller 558 connected to the in-vehicle LAN.

[0082] The HMI controller 554 is connected to the monitor 500 and multiple ECUs 502, 504, etc.

[0083] The autonomous driving controller 556 is connected to the millimeter-wave radar 80, the in-vehicle camera 82, the LiDAR 84, and the autonomous driving ECU 514.

[0084] The drive system controller 558 is connected to multiple ECUs 506, 508, 510, and 512, which are used to electronically control various parts related to the vehicle's operation.

[0085] In this embodiment, the in-vehicle mini-server ECU 516 is connected to the external communication controller 552. The in-vehicle mini-server ECU 516 cooperates with the in-vehicle device 90 and effectively implements the mini-server function as part of the in-vehicle device 90. Furthermore, ECUs 502, 504, 506, 508, 510, and 512, as well as the autonomous driving ECU 514, are all essentially computers, each possessing a CPU, memory, and communication functions. By distributing the mini-server functions among these components, the in-vehicle mini-server ECU 516 can effectively utilize these resources and provide stable mini-server functionality.

[0086] Second second embodiment Figure 8 is a block diagram of an in-vehicle device 600 according to the second embodiment of this disclosure. The in-vehicle device 600 differs from the in-vehicle device 90 shown in Figure 2 in that it includes an in-vehicle resource observation unit 620 instead of the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200 in Figure 2, and an execution priority determination unit 622 instead of the execution priority determination unit 202. The in-vehicle device 600 also differs from the in-vehicle device 90 in that it newly includes a mini-server construction unit 624 instead of the mini-server construction unit 206, and a change detection unit 626. The change detection unit is used to give instructions to the execution priority determination unit 622 and the mini-server construction unit 624 to rebuild the mini-server 208 when a predetermined change occurs in the in-vehicle resources based on the output of the in-vehicle resource observation unit 620.

[0087] The functions of the in-vehicle resource observation unit 620, the execution priority determination unit 622, and the mini-server construction unit 624 are basically the same as those of the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200, the execution priority determination unit 202, and the mini-server construction unit 206 shown in Figure 2. However, the in-vehicle resource observation unit 620 differs from the in-vehicle resource observation unit 200 shown in Figure 2 in that it also provides its output to the fluctuation detection unit 626. The execution priority determination unit 622 differs from the execution priority determination unit 202 in Figure 2 in that it determines the execution priority not only when it receives notification of switching to interruption mode from the operation mode switching unit 182, but also when it receives an instruction to rebuild the mini-server 208 from the fluctuation detection unit 626. The mini-server construction unit 624 rebuilds the mini-server 208 when it receives notification of switching to interruption mode from the operation mode switching unit 182. However, the mini-server construction unit 624 differs from the mini-server construction unit 206 shown in Figure 2 in that it rebuilds the mini-server 208 not only when it receives notification of switching to interruption mode from the operation mode switching unit 182, but also when it receives an instruction to rebuild from the fluctuation detection unit 626.

[0088] In this embodiment, the operation of the in-vehicle device 600 in normal mode and when the operating mode is switched from normal mode to interruption mode is the same as that of the in-vehicle device 90 in the first embodiment. However, this embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that when there is a significant change in the dynamic state inside the vehicle, the change detection unit 626 detects it and reconstructs and restarts the mini-server 208 to match the new situation. For this purpose, the change detection unit 626 notifies the execution priority determination unit 622 and the mini-server construction unit 624 of this change.

[0089] Significant changes could include situations where there is a large surplus of in-vehicle resources, or a significant decrease in them. For example, such changes could occur when the in-vehicle communication latency exceeds a threshold, or when the CPU load (utilization rate) of the CPU running the functions of the mini-server 208 exceeds a predetermined threshold. With this configuration, the functions of the mini-server 208 can be flexibly rearranged according to the situation, not only at startup but also after startup, to realize a subset of the functions of an external server whose communication has been interrupted, within the vehicle.

[0090] Third: Hardware configuration of the in-vehicle mini-server ECU516 Referring to Figure 9, the in-vehicle mini-server ECU 516 (see Figure 7) that realizes the in-vehicle mini-server 94 according to the first embodiment and the in-vehicle mini-server 610 according to the second embodiment described above includes a processor, an MPU (Micro-Processing Unit) 702, a high-speed bus 700 to which the MPU 702 is connected, an SRAM (Static Random Access Memory) 704 connected to the high-speed bus 700, a flash memory 706 connected to the high-speed bus 700, and a ROM (Read-Only Memory) 708 connected to the high-speed bus 700. The SRAM 704 holds data necessary for program execution. The SRAM 704 corresponds to the priority table storage unit 212 and the running function storage unit 210 shown in Figures 2 and 8. The flash memory 706 stores a program 726 for realizing the functions realized by the in-vehicle mini-server 610. The flash memory 706 is further shown in Figures 2, 3 and 8. Tamo It also functions as a Joule memory unit 204. ROM 708 stores the boot-up program for the MPU 702, among other things.

[0091] The in-vehicle mini-server ECU516 further includes a low-speed bus 710 connected to the high-speed bus 700 via a bridge 712, and a serial interface 714, an analog-to-digital converter 716, a timer / counter 718, a clock generator 720, a power supply control unit 722, and a general-purpose interface 724, all connected to the low-speed bus 710. The serial interface 714 is connected to an in-vehicle network (not shown) and is used to receive information necessary for the in-vehicle mini-server ECU516 to operate as in-vehicle mini-servers 94 and 610 via the in-vehicle network.

[0092] The workings of the MPU are well known, and what is meaningful in each embodiment is the functionality implemented by the program it executes; therefore, the operation of the MPU itself will not be explained here.

[0093] 4. Variation In the second embodiment described above, the functions of the mini-server 208 are rearranged in response to significant changes in in-vehicle resources. However, this disclosure is not limited to such embodiments. For example, in the event of a communication interruption, the execution priority determination unit 622 and the mini-server construction unit 624 may be operated at regular intervals to rearrange the functions of the mini-server 208. Alternatively, instructions may be given to manually rearrange the functions of the mini-server 208.

[0094] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a coordinating node is determined separately for each functional module. This allows the data required by each functional module to be available, enabling each functional module to operate efficiently. However, this disclosure is not limited to such embodiments. The same coordinating node may be used for all functional modules. This saves time in determining the coordinating node. By using a set of coordinating nodes in this way, the amount of communication with the coordinating nodes can be reduced. As a result, the functions of each functional module can be utilized efficiently. Functional modules may be divided into several groups, and the same coordinating node may be determined for each group. These methods for determining coordinating nodes may be combined as appropriate in accordance with changes in the traffic environment.

[0095] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of this disclosure is not indicated by the description in the detailed description of the disclosure but by each claim, and all modifications within the meaning and scope of the equivalents of the wording of the claims are intended. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0096] 50. Driver assistance systems Vehicles 60 and 66 62 Edge Servers 64 Cloud Servers 68, 84 LiDAR 70 Cameras 80 mm wave radar 82 In-car cameras 90, 600 Onboard equipment 92 Various ECUs 94 In-car mini server 150 Automotive GW 152 In-vehicle / external communication unit 154 External communication device 180 Communication status detection unit 182 Operation Mode Switching Section 184, 186 Selection Section 200, 620 In-vehicle resource observation unit 202, 622 Execution Priority Determination Unit 204 Module Storage Unit 206, 624 Mini Server Construction Department 208 Mini Servers 210 Executing Function Storage Unit 212 Priority table storage unit 250 In-vehicle Mini Edge Server Modules 252 In-vehicle mini cloud server module group 254 Common Modules 270 Dynamic Map Construction Module 272 Intersection Assistance Module 274 Lane control module 290 Vehicle Information Management Module 292 AI Diagnostic Modules 294 Ride-hailing service module 296 Route guidance module 298 Vehicle diagnostic module 310 Vehicle Anomaly Management Module 312 Data Backup Module 314 Log Management Module 330 Priority table 350, 352, 354, 356, 358, 360, 400, 402, 404, 420, 422, 424, 426 steps 500 monitors 502, 504, 506, 508, 510, 512 ECU 514 Autonomous Driving ECU 516 In-vehicle mini server ECU 550 Integrated Antenna 552 External communication controller 554 HMI Controller 556 Autonomous Driving Controller 558 Driving System Controller 626 Fluctuation detection unit 700 Express Bus 702 MPU 704 SRAM 706 Flash Memory 708 ROM 710 Slow Bus 712 Bridge 714 Serial I / F 716 ADC 718 Timer Counter 720 Clock Generator 722 Power Control Unit 724 General Purpose Interface 726 Programs

Claims

1. An in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle equipped with a driver assistance system that utilizes information from an external server, An in-vehicle server capable of executing one or more sub-functions that constitute a subset of the functions of the external server, and which outputs subset information that can be replaced with a part of the information using data received from an external source, A function selection unit that, in response to an interruption in the reception of the information from the external server, selects at least one of the sub-functions to be executed by the in-vehicle server according to priority based on the traffic environment in which the vehicle is located, A reception determination unit that determines that the reception of information from the external server has been interrupted, The vehicle includes an in-vehicle / out-of-vehicle communication device that, in response to the determination by the reception determination unit that reception has been interrupted, provides the subset information from the in-vehicle server to the driver assistance device, The aforementioned function selection unit is A priority table storage device for storing a priority table that defines the priority order of the aforementioned functions for each of one or more types of traffic environments, A priority table selection unit identifies the traffic environment of the vehicle and selects one of the priority tables stored in the priority table storage device that corresponds to that traffic environment. A resource information acquisition unit that acquires current dynamic information of the information processing resources possessed by the vehicle, An in-vehicle device comprising: a sub-function selection unit that selects the sub-function within the range permitted by the information processing resource, based on the dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit, according to the priority determined by the priority table selected by the priority table selection unit.

2. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, wherein the priority table selection unit identifies the traffic environment of the vehicle based on a dynamic map and the location of the vehicle.

3. The dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit is dynamic information that spans at least multiple information processing resources among the information processing resources of the vehicle. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the in-vehicle server distributes its functions to the plurality of information processing resources for processing.

4. The aforementioned sub-function selection unit is A first sub-function selection unit selects the sub-function within the range permitted by the information processing resource, based on the dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit, according to the priority determined by the priority table selected by the priority table selection unit, The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising: a second sub-function selection unit that selects other sub-functions necessary for the execution of the sub-function selected by the first sub-function selection unit.

5. The function selection unit further includes a function storage unit that stores the function that the driver assistance device was performing in response to the determination by the reception determination unit that reception has been interrupted. The aforementioned sub-function selection unit is The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a priority order sub-function selection unit that, based on the dynamic information acquired by the resource information acquisition unit, selects the sub-function from among the functions stored in the function storage unit, within the range permitted by the information processing resource, according to the priority determined by the priority table selected by the priority table selection unit.

6. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the in-vehicle server determines, for each function selected by the function selection unit, a cooperative node which is the data collection destination necessary to realize that function.

7. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the in-vehicle server determines, for all selected functions, a common cooperative node which is the data collection destination necessary to realize the function selected by the function selection unit.

8. A method for operating an in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle equipped with a driver assistance system that utilizes information from an external server, The steps include constructing an in-vehicle server capable of executing one or more sub-functions that constitute a subset of the functions of the external server, and outputting subset information that can be replaced with a part of the information using data received from an external source, In response to the interruption of receiving the information from the external server, the in-vehicle server selects one of the sub-functions to be executed according to priority based on the traffic environment in which the vehicle is located. A step of determining whether the reception of the information from the external server has been interrupted, The determination step includes, in response to the determination that the reception of the information from the external server has been interrupted, providing the subset information from the in-vehicle server to the driver assistance device. The aforementioned selection step is, A selection step involves storing a priority table in a storage device that defines the priority order of the functions for each of one or more types of traffic environments. The steps include: identifying the traffic environment of the vehicle and selecting one of the priority tables stored in the storage device that corresponds to that traffic environment; The steps include: obtaining the current dynamic information of the information processing resources of the vehicle; A method for operating an in-vehicle device, comprising the steps of selecting a sub-function within the limits permitted by the information processing resource, based on the dynamic information acquired in the acquisition step, according to the priority determined by the priority table selected in the selection step.

9. A vehicle equipped with the in-vehicle device described in claim 1 or claim 2.

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