Steering wheel position control method and steering wheel position control device

Abstract

A processor 10 of a steering wheel position control device 100 determines whether or not a brake pedal 2 of a host vehicle 1 has been operated when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in an automated driving mode, and upon determining that the brake pedal 2 has been operated, changes a steering wheel 3 from a stowed state, in which the steering wheel 3 is disposed in a predetermined stowed position, to a standard state, in which the steering wheel 3 is disposed in a standard position operable by the driver of the host vehicle 1.

Description

Steering position control method and steering position control device

[0001] The present invention relates to a steering position control method and a steering position control device.

[0002] In the vehicle described in Patent Document 1, the steering wheel is configured to be retractable, and during autonomous driving, operation of the steering wheel by the driver is physically disabled.

[0003] JP 2018-92336 A

[0004] However, if steering wheel operation is always disabled during autonomous driving, as in the vehicle described in Patent Document 1, the vehicle cannot accept the driver's operation request when the driver wants to operate the steering wheel.

[0005] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a steering position control method and a steering position control device that can control the position of the steering wheel so that driver operation requests can be accepted as necessary during automatic driving of the vehicle.

[0006] The present invention solves the above problem by changing the steering wheel from a stored state in which it is placed in a predetermined stored position to a reference state in which it is placed in a reference position where it can be operated by the driver when the vehicle is traveling in autonomous driving mode and it is determined that the brake pedal has been operated.

[0007] According to the present invention, the position of the steering wheel can be controlled so that an operation request from the driver can be accepted as needed during automatic driving of the host vehicle.

[0008] Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a steering position control device according to the present invention. Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a situation of a host vehicle traveling in a merging area. Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a situation of a host vehicle traveling in a diverging area. Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing the steps of a steering position control method executed by a driving control device according to a first embodiment. Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing the steps of a steering position control method executed by a driving control device according to a second embodiment. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the steps of a steering position control method executed by a driving control device according to a third embodiment.

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First Embodiment A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. As shown in FIG. 1, a host vehicle 1 has a steering position control device 100 that controls the position of a steering wheel 3 in response to operation of a brake pedal 2 by a driver. When the driver manually performs a steering operation, the steering wheel 3 is in a reference state where it is disposed at a reference position where the driver can grasp and operate it. On the other hand, when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in an autonomous driving mode, when the host vehicle 1 is stopped, etc., the steering position control device 100 can move the steering wheel 3 to a storage position within a storage space formed in front of the host vehicle 1 and store the steering wheel 3 in a stored state.

[0010] The host vehicle 1 also has a map database 101, a host vehicle position acquisition unit 103, and a driving control device 200. The map database 101 stores three-dimensional high-precision map information. The host vehicle position acquisition unit 103 is composed of a GPS unit, a gyro sensor, a vehicle speed sensor, etc., and acquires the current position of the host vehicle 1. The driving control device 200 controls the driving of the host vehicle 1 so that the host vehicle 1 can travel autonomously by controlling the braking actuator 105, the driving actuator 106, and the steering actuator 107 of the host vehicle 1. In this embodiment, when the host vehicle 1 travels in autonomous driving mode, the driving control device 200 controls the behavior of the host vehicle 1 at driving assistance level 3 or 4. An emergency stop button (not shown) is installed in the driver's seat of the host vehicle 1, and the vehicle 1 can be stopped at any time by the occupant pressing the emergency stop button.

[0011] The steering position control device 100 includes a processor 10. The processor 10 includes a brake operation determination unit 11, a driving mode determination unit 12, and a control unit 13.

[0012] The brake operation determination unit 11 determines whether the brake pedal 2 of the host vehicle 1 has been operated. For example, the brake operation determination unit 11 determines whether the brake pedal 2 has been operated based on a brake switch that determines whether the vehicle is in a braking range or a brake sensor that detects the depression angle (operation amount) of the brake pedal. The driving mode determination unit 12 determines whether the host vehicle 1 is traveling in an autonomous driving mode based on information acquired from the driving control device 200. Note that, in this embodiment, "the host vehicle 1 is traveling in an autonomous driving mode" means that the driving control device 200 is controlling the driving of the host vehicle 1 at driving assistance level 3 or 4. Furthermore, the driving assistance level in this embodiment is defined based on SAE J3016 of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). That is, at driving assistance level 3, the driving control device 200 performs all driving tasks, but the driver needs to regain control and prepare to drive manually when requested by the driving control device 200. At driving assistance level 4, manual driving by the driver is not required in certain sections, and the driving control device 200 can execute all driving tasks in those sections and monitor the conditions around the vehicle 1. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the driving control device 200 is not limited to the above definition, and may control the driving of the vehicle 1 based on a driving assistance level based on another definition, as long as it can execute all driving tasks of the vehicle 1.

[0013] Furthermore, the control unit 13 controls the steering wheel drive unit 31 to control the position of the steering wheel 3 based on the determination results of the brake operation determination unit 11 and the driving mode determination unit 12. The steering wheel drive unit 31 is, for example, a motor used to move the steering wheel 3. When the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and the brake pedal 2 is not operated, the control unit 13 places the steering wheel 3 in a predetermined storage position and stores it in a stored state. Note that the steering wheel drive unit 31 may store the steering wheel 3 in a stored state when a predetermined condition is met, such as when the steering wheel 3 or the brake pedal 2 is not operated for a certain period of time or when the driving mode is switched to the autonomous driving mode. On the other hand, when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and the brake pedal 2 is operated, the control unit 13 moves and stores the steering wheel 3 in a reference position where the driver of the host vehicle 1 can operate it. Note that when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and the brake pedal 2 is operated, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the reference position regardless of whether the brake pedal 2 is operated.

[0014] In addition, when the brake pedal 2 is operated when the vehicle speed of the vehicle 1 is higher than a predetermined speed, the control unit 13 may maintain the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position without moving it to the reference position.

[0015] 2, the control unit 13 acquires a merging point P1 where the lane T1 on which the host vehicle 1 is traveling merges with another lane T2 different from the host vehicle T1, based on the map information in the map database 101. Then, when the brake pedal 2 is operated while the host vehicle 1 is traveling in a predetermined merging area Xa upstream of the merging point P1 (for example, a range 2 km upstream from the merging point P1), the control unit 13 may move the steering wheel 3 to the reference position.

[0016] 3 , the control unit 13 acquires a merging point P2 where the current lane T1 on which the host vehicle 1 is traveling diverges, based on the map information in the map database 101. Then, the control unit 13 may move the steering wheel 3 to the reference position when the brake pedal 2 is operated while the host vehicle 1 is traveling in a predetermined merging area Xb upstream of the merging point P2 (e.g., a range 2 km upstream from the merging point P2). In other words, when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in an area other than the merging area Xa and / or the merging area Xb, the control unit 13 may maintain the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stowed position regardless of whether the brake pedal 2 is operated.

[0017] The control unit 13 may acquire infrastructure information via a communication means, and may acquire, for example, a merging point P1 and / or a branching point P2 that has occurred due to lane restrictions caused by construction work or fallen objects.

[0018] Next, the procedure of the steering position control method executed by the processor 10 of the steering position control device 100 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Figure 4. First, in step S1, the driving mode determination unit 12 determines whether the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode.

[0019] If it is determined in step S1 that the vehicle 1 is not traveling in the autonomous driving mode, the control unit 13 places the steering wheel 3 in the reference position in step S2.

[0020] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1 that "the vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode," then in step S3, the control unit 13 places the steering wheel 3 in the stored position and sets it to the stored state.

[0021] If the steering wheel 3 is in the retracted state in step S3, the brake operation determination unit 11 determines in step S4 whether the brake pedal 2 has been operated.

[0022] If it is determined in step S4 that the brake pedal 2 is not operated, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position in step S8.

[0023] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S4 that the brake pedal 2 has been operated, the brake operation determination unit 11 determines in step S5 whether the vehicle speed of the host vehicle 1 is higher than a predetermined vehicle speed. If it is determined in step S4 that the vehicle speed of the host vehicle 1 is higher than the predetermined vehicle speed, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position in step S8.

[0024] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S5 that "the vehicle speed of the vehicle 1 is equal to or lower than the predetermined vehicle speed," then in step S6, the brake operation determination unit 11 determines whether the vehicle 1 is traveling in the merging area Xa or the diverging area Xb based on the current position of the vehicle 1 acquired by the vehicle position acquisition unit 103 and the map information in the map database 101.

[0025] If it is determined in step S6 that "the host vehicle 1 is not traveling in either the merging area Xa or the diverging area Xb," then in step S8, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stowed position. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S6 that "the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the merging area Xa or the diverging area Xb," then in step S7, the control unit 13 moves the steering wheel 3 from the stowed position to the reference position. That is, in step S7, the control unit 13 changes the steering wheel 3 from the stowed state to the reference state.

[0026] In the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, as indicated by the dashed lines, the processing of step S5 and / or step S6 may be omitted.

[0027] As described above, when the steering position control device 100 determines that the brake pedal 2 has been operated while the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode, it changes the steering wheel 3 from a stored state in which the steering wheel 3 is located in a predetermined stored position to a reference state in which the steering wheel 3 is located in a reference position where the driver of the host vehicle 1 can operate it. This allows the steering position control device 100 to control the position of the steering wheel 3 so that an operation request from the driver can be accepted as necessary, even when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode. For example, if the driver wishes to change the route when the planned route is congested, the steering position control device 100 can release the stored state of the steering wheel 3 and return it to the reference position by operating the brake pedal 2. This allows the driver to manually perform steering operations. In other words, when the driver operates the brake pedal 2, the steering position control device 100 determines that the driver is likely to want to perform manual steering operations, and can release the stored state of the steering wheel 3. Furthermore, if the position of the steering wheel 3 is controlled in response to the operation of the emergency stop button, it may take time to release the stored state of the steering wheel 3, since it is unclear whether the driver wants to stop the vehicle 1 immediately on the spot or drive it for a while before stopping. In contrast, the steering position control device 100 controls the position of the steering wheel 3 in response to the operation of the brake pedal 2, and therefore can quickly release the stored state of the steering wheel 3 as needed.

[0028] Furthermore, the steering position control device 100 may maintain the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position when the brake pedal 2 is operated while the vehicle speed of the host vehicle 1 is higher than a predetermined speed. As a result, when the host vehicle 1 is traveling at high speed, the steering position control device 100 does not accept any intervention of the driver's steering operation, and driving control in the autonomous driving mode by the driving control device 200 can be prioritized.

[0029] Furthermore, if the brake pedal 2 is operated while the host vehicle 1 is traveling in a predetermined merging area Xa upstream of the merging point P1, the steering position control device 100 places the steering wheel 3 in the reference position. As a result, when the host vehicle 1 passes through the merging point P1, the steering position control device 100 can control the position of the steering wheel 3 so that the driver can manually steer while decelerating at their discretion.

[0030] Furthermore, if the brake pedal 2 is operated while the host vehicle 1 is traveling in a predetermined merging area Xb upstream of the merging point P2, the steering position control device 100 places the steering wheel 3 in the reference position. As a result, when the host vehicle 1 passes through the merging point P2, the steering position control device 100 can control the position of the steering wheel 3 so that the driver can manually steer while decelerating at their discretion to change lanes when the host vehicle 1 passes through the merging point P2.

[0031] Furthermore, the steering position control device 100 stores the steering wheel 3 when it determines that the brake pedal 2 is not being operated. As a result, when the vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and there is no operation request from the driver, the steering position control device 100 stores the steering wheel 3, thereby making it possible to increase the interior space of the vehicle.

[0032] Second Embodiment Next, a steering position control method according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 5. A steering position control device 100 that executes the steering position control method according to the second embodiment has the same configuration as that shown in Figure 1. In the following description, the same reference numerals as those in Figures 1 to 4 indicate the same or similar parts, and therefore detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0033] In this embodiment, the brake operation determination unit 11 shown in FIG. 1 acquires the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 by the driver. The amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is, for example, the amount of depression of the brake pedal 2. The brake operation determination unit 11 also sets a first threshold and a second threshold that is greater than the first threshold. The brake operation determination unit 11 compares the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 with the first threshold and / or the second threshold. Specifically, the brake operation determination unit 11 determines whether the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is less than the first threshold. The brake operation determination unit 11 also determines whether the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the second threshold. Note that an operation amount less than the first threshold is a very small amount of operation that may result in an erroneous operation of the brake pedal 2. Note that an operation amount equal to or greater than the second threshold is an operation amount that would cause driver intervention to have a predetermined or greater effect on the driving control of the driving control device 200.

[0034] Even when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and the brake pedal 2 is operated, if the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is less than a first threshold, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position. Furthermore, even when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and the brake pedal 2 is operated, if the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than a second threshold, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position. In other words, when the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the first threshold and less than the second threshold, the control unit 13 places the steering wheel 3 in the reference position.

[0035] Next, the procedure of the steering position control method executed by the processor 10 of the steering position control device 100 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 5. As shown in Fig. 5, if it is determined in step S4 that "the brake pedal 2 has been operated," the brake operation determination unit 11 determines in step S11 whether the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is less than a first threshold value.

[0036] If it is determined in step S11 that the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is less than the first threshold value, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position in step S8.

[0037] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S11 that "the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is greater than or equal to the first threshold value," then in step S12, the brake operation determination unit 11 determines whether the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is greater than or equal to the second threshold value.

[0038] If it is determined in step S12 that the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is less than the second threshold value, the control unit 13 moves the steering wheel 3 from the stored position to the reference position in step S7.

[0039] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S12 that the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the second threshold value, then in step S8, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position.

[0040] In the flowchart shown in Fig. 5, the process of step S12 may be omitted, as indicated by the dashed line. Also in this embodiment, the processor 10 may execute the determination process of step S5 and / or step S6 shown in Fig. 4.

[0041] As described above, the steering position control device 100 according to this embodiment maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position when the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is less than a predetermined first threshold value. As a result, the steering position control device 100 can maintain the stored state of the steering wheel 3 when there is a possibility of the driver erroneously operating the brake pedal 2.

[0042] Furthermore, the steering position control device 100 places the steering wheel 3 in the reference position when the amount of operation is equal to or greater than a first threshold and less than a second threshold that is greater than the first threshold, and places the steering wheel 3 in the stored position and stores it in a stored state when the amount of operation is equal to or greater than the second threshold. As a result, the steering position control device 100 can return the steering wheel 3 to the reference position so that the driver can operate it when the effect of the driver's intervention on the driving control of the driving control device 200 is equal to or less than a predetermined value. On the other hand, the steering position control device 100 can maintain the steering wheel 3 stored so as not to accept any operation from the driver when the effect of the driver's intervention on the driving control of the driving control device 200 is greater than the predetermined value.

[0043] Third Embodiment Next, a steering position control method according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 5. A steering position control device 100 that executes the steering position control method according to the second embodiment has the same configuration as that shown in Figure 1. In the following description, the same reference numerals as those in Figures 1 to 5 indicate the same or similar parts, and therefore detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0044] In this embodiment, the brake operation determination unit 11 shown in FIG. 1 acquires the amount of brake pedal 2 operation by the driver. The brake operation determination unit 11 also sets a first threshold, a second threshold greater than the first threshold, and a third threshold greater than the third threshold. The brake operation determination unit 11 compares the amount of brake pedal 2 operation with the first, second, and third thresholds. Specifically, the brake operation determination unit 11 determines whether the amount of brake pedal 2 operation is less than the first threshold. The brake operation determination unit 11 also determines whether the amount of brake pedal 2 operation is equal to or greater than the second threshold. If the amount of brake pedal 2 operation is equal to or greater than the second threshold, the brake operation determination unit 11 also determines whether the amount of brake pedal 2 operation is equal to or greater than the third threshold. Note that an amount of brake pedal operation equal to or greater than the third threshold is an amount of brake pedal operation at which it is determined that driving authority of the vehicle 1 needs to be urgently transferred to the driver.

[0045] Even when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and the brake pedal 2 is operated, if the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is less than a first threshold, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position. Furthermore, even when the host vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode and the brake pedal 2 is operated, if the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than a second threshold and less than a third threshold, the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position. Furthermore, if the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the third threshold, the control unit 13 moves the steering wheel 3 to the reference position.

[0046] Next, the procedure of the steering position control method executed by the processor 10 of the steering position control device 100 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 6. As shown in Fig. 6, if it is determined in step S12 that "the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the second threshold value," the brake operation determination unit 11 determines in step S13 whether the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than a third threshold value.

[0047] If it is determined in step S12 that "the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the third threshold value," the control unit 13 moves the steering wheel 3 from the stored position to the reference position in step S7.

[0048] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S13 that "the operation amount of the brake pedal 2 is less than the third threshold value," the control unit 13 maintains the position of the steering wheel 3 in the stored position in step S8.

[0049] In this embodiment, the processor 10 may also execute the determination process of step S5 and / or step S6 shown in FIG.

[0050] As described above, the steering position control device 100 according to this embodiment places the steering wheel 3 in the stored position and sets it in a stored state when the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the second threshold and less than a third threshold that is greater than the second threshold. On the other hand, the steering position control device 100 places the steering wheel 3 in the reference position when the amount of operation of the brake pedal 2 is equal to or greater than the third threshold. As a result, the steering position control device 100 can maintain the steering wheel 3 in a stored state so as not to accept operation from the driver when the effect of driver intervention on the driving control of the driving control device 200 is greater than a predetermined value. On the other hand, in an emergency, the steering position control device 100 can release the stored state of the brake pedal 2 and return it to the reference position so that driving authority of the vehicle 1 can be smoothly transferred to the driver.

[0051] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1... Vehicle 2... Brake pedal 3... Steering wheel 100... Steering position control device 10... Processor 11... Brake operation determination unit 13... Control unit P1... Merging point P2... Diverging point Xa... Merging area Xb... Diverging area

Claims

1. A steering position control method for controlling the position of a steering wheel of a host vehicle using a processor, wherein the processor determines whether a brake pedal of the host vehicle has been operated when the host vehicle is traveling in an automatic driving mode, and when it is determined that the brake pedal has been operated, the steering wheel is changed from a stored state in which it is disposed at a predetermined storage position to a reference state in which it is disposed at a reference position operable by a driver of the host vehicle.

2. The steering position control method according to claim 1, wherein the processor maintains the position of the steering wheel at the storage position when an operation amount of the brake pedal is less than a predetermined first threshold value.

3. The steering position control method according to claim 2, wherein the processor disposes the steering wheel at the reference position when the operation amount is greater than or equal to the first threshold value and less than a second threshold value greater than the first threshold value, and disposes the steering wheel at the storage position to set a stored state when the operation amount is greater than or equal to the second threshold value.

4. The steering position control method according to claim 3, wherein the processor disposes the steering wheel at the storage position to set a stored state when the operation amount is greater than or equal to the second threshold value and less than a third threshold value greater than the second threshold value, and disposes the steering wheel at the reference position when the operation amount is greater than or equal to the third threshold value.

5. The steering position control method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the processor maintains the position of the steering wheel at the storage position when the brake pedal is operated when a vehicle speed of the host vehicle is higher than a predetermined speed.

6. The steering position control method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the processor acquires a merging point at which a host lane in which the host vehicle travels merges with another lane different from the host lane, and disposes the steering wheel at the reference position when the brake pedal is operated when the host vehicle is traveling in a predetermined merging region upstream of the merging point.

7. The processor acquires a divergence point at which the lane in which the host vehicle travels diverges, and when the brake pedal is operated while the host vehicle is traveling in a predetermined divergence area on the upstream side of the divergence point, arranges the steering wheel at the reference position. The steering position control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. When the processor determines that the brake pedal has not been operated, the processor sets the steering wheel to the stored state. The steering position control method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. A steering position control device for controlling the position of the steering wheel of a host vehicle, comprising: a brake operation determination unit that determines whether or not the brake pedal of the host vehicle has been operated when the host vehicle is traveling in an automatic driving mode; and a control unit that, when it is determined that the brake pedal has been operated, changes the steering wheel from a stored state in which it is arranged at a predetermined storage position to a reference state in which it is arranged at a reference position operable by the driver of the host vehicle. A steering position control device.

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