Passage control method and device for autonomous vehicle, and autonomous vehicle

Abstract

A passage control method and device for an autonomous vehicle, and an autonomous vehicle. The method comprises: before an autonomous vehicle arrives at an entrance of a single-lane bidirectional passage area, acquiring vehicle information in the single-lane bidirectional passage area, wherein an exit of the single-lane bidirectional passage area is connected to a dual-lane bidirectional passage area (S201); when it is determined, on the basis of the vehicle information, that another vehicle is present in the single-lane bidirectional passage area, acquiring a traveling state of the another vehicle, and determining a passage strategy of the autonomous vehicle on the basis of the traveling state (S202); and when it is determined, on the basis of the vehicle information, that no another vehicle is present in the single-lane bidirectional passage area, and it is detected that a moving vehicle traveling towards the exit is present in the dual-lane bidirectional passage area, judging priorities of the moving vehicle and the autonomous vehicle on the basis of a preset priority rule, and determining a passage strategy of the autonomous vehicle on the basis of the judgement result (S203). Coordinated yielding for single-lane bidirectional passage is realized, thereby ensuring efficient operation of a mining autonomous driving system.

Description

Traffic control method and device for unmanned vehicle and unmanned vehicle Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of unmanned driving technology, and in particular to a traffic control method and device for an unmanned vehicle, and the unmanned vehicle. Background Art

[0002] For autonomous driving in mines, the driving scenarios are generally open and subject to constant change, with no ground markings. Furthermore, as mining progresses and the terrain influences the situation, long, narrow strips of road may appear, often referred to as single-lane, two-way narrow roads. In this case, both the unmanned vehicle at one end of the narrow road and the oncoming vehicles at the other end need to pass through the narrow road, but only one direction of traffic can pass within the same time window. As shown in Figure 1, vehicles A and B cannot simultaneously pass through the shared narrow road section in the middle. To avoid frequent traffic jams that affect operational efficiency in this section, it is necessary to find a way for vehicles in both directions to efficiently and collaboratively navigate the narrow road.

[0003] The current decision-making methods for two-way traffic on a single lane include the following:

[0004] 1. Manual traffic control

[0005] Leveraging human initiative and efficient judgment, traffic control near narrow roads shared by two-way autonomous vehicles is similar to how traffic police relieve traffic jams. However, in mining scenarios, shared narrow roads vary in length, sometimes exceeding 100 meters. Limited by human vision, it's impossible to provide comprehensive control of vehicles in both directions along the entire narrow road. Furthermore, human involvement can escalate safety issues, making this approach unsuitable for mining scenarios.

[0006] 2. Traffic light method

[0007] Similar to manual traffic control, fixed travel times and release times are set for each direction, and vehicles in both directions pass through in turn according to the traffic light's instructions. However, this method is extremely inefficient, unable to ensure simultaneous entry of vehicles in the same direction and preventing vehicles from entering from the opposite direction before vehicles in the same direction have exited, thus causing traffic jams.

[0008] To sum up, for mining scenarios, it is necessary to find a collaborative yielding strategy suitable for single-lane two-way traffic in mining scenarios to ensure the efficient operation of the mine unmanned driving system. Summary of the Invention

[0009] The disclosed embodiments provide a traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle, which is used to solve the problem of low traffic efficiency caused by the coordinated yielding strategy in the existing single-lane two-way traffic area in mining scenarios.

[0010] In view of the above problems, a first aspect is to provide a traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle, comprising:

[0011] Before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of a single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining vehicle information in the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area;

[0012] When it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining the driving status of the other vehicles and determining a traffic strategy for the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status;

[0013] When it is determined based on the vehicle information that no other vehicles exist in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and a moving vehicle is detected in the two-lane two-way traffic area traveling toward the exit,

[0014] The priorities of the moving vehicles and the unmanned vehicles are judged according to a preset priority principle, and the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined based on the judgment result.

[0015] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation, obtaining the driving status of the other vehicles and determining the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status includes: obtaining the driving status of the other vehicles and determining whether the other vehicles are followable vehicles based on the driving status; when the other vehicles are followable vehicles and there are moving vehicles in the two-lane two-way traffic area heading towards the exit, judging the priority of the moving vehicles and the unmanned vehicle according to a preset priority principle, and determining the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the judgment result; and / or when the other vehicles are non-followable vehicles, determining the driving traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle to be a yield strategy.

[0016] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined based on the judgment result, including: when the priority of the unmanned vehicle is lower than that of the moving vehicle, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be a yield strategy; otherwise, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be normal driving.

[0017] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation, the preset priority principle includes: heavy-loaded vehicles have higher priority than unloaded vehicles; vehicles that have given way more than a preset number of times have higher priority than vehicles that have given way less than the preset number of times; vehicles that give way more times have higher priority.

[0018] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation, obtaining the vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area includes: obtaining the vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area when the unmanned vehicle drives to a first designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or when the unmanned vehicle detects a first sign before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area.

[0019] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation, when the determined traffic strategy is a yield strategy, it also includes: determining the yield strategy of the unmanned vehicle; determining the yield strategy of the unmanned vehicle includes: obtaining the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining the speed limit strategy corresponding to the location area; determining the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle as the speed limit strategy.

[0020] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation, obtaining the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining the speed limit strategy corresponding to the location area include: when the unmanned vehicle is in a first location interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the first location interval is to limit the speed to a first speed; when the unmanned vehicle is in a second location interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the second location interval is to limit the speed to a second speed; wherein, the first location interval is farther away from the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area than the second location interval, and the first speed is greater than the second speed.

[0021] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation, obtaining the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining the speed limit strategy corresponding to the location area also includes: when the unmanned vehicle is in a third location interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the third location interval is to slow down to 0 when reaching the second designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or detecting the second sign before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area; wherein, the third location interval is a location area close to the second designated position or the second sign.

[0022] In a second aspect, a traffic control device for an unmanned vehicle is provided, comprising:

[0023] a vehicle information acquisition module configured to acquire vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area before the unmanned vehicle drives to an entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area;

[0024] The traffic strategy determination module is configured to obtain the driving status of other vehicles when it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status; and, when it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and a moving vehicle is detected in the two-lane two-way traffic area traveling toward the exit, judge the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle according to a preset priority principle, and determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the judgment result.

[0025] In a third aspect, an unmanned vehicle is provided, comprising: an unmanned driving module and a driving control module; the unmanned driving module includes a planning control unit;

[0026] The planning control unit is configured to determine a traffic strategy according to the traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle as described in the first aspect or in combination with any possible implementation of the first aspect before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area;

[0027] The driving control module is configured to obtain the traffic strategy of the single-lane two-way traffic area from the planning control unit, and control the driving of the unmanned vehicle according to the traffic strategy.

[0028] The beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present disclosure include:

[0029] The unmanned vehicle traffic control method, device and unmanned vehicle provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure include: before the unmanned vehicle travels to the entrance of a single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining vehicle information in the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area; when it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining the driving status of the other vehicles, and determining the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status; when it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and a moving vehicle is detected in the two-lane two-way traffic area traveling toward the exit, judging the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle based on a preset priority principle, and determining the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the judgment result. The traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle provided by the present invention determines its own traffic strategy based on the driving status of vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area and in the opposite lane of the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area before the unmanned vehicle drives to the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, and drives according to the determined traffic strategy. At the same time, it takes into account the road conditions of the opposite lane in the single-lane two-way traffic area and the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area. There will be no congestion phenomenon such as vehicles in the opposite lane entering before vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area have driven out. The method is more scientific and reasonable, realizes the coordinated giving way of single-lane two-way traffic in mining scenarios, and ensures the efficient operation of the mine unmanned driving system. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a narrow road with a single lane and two-way traffic provided by the related art of the present disclosure;

[0031] FIG2 is a flow chart of a method for controlling traffic flow of an unmanned vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0032] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of one application scenario of the traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0033] FIG4 is a second schematic diagram of an application scenario of the traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0034] FIG5 is a second flow chart of a method for controlling traffic flow of an unmanned vehicle provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0035] FIG6 is a schematic structural diagram of a traffic control device for an unmanned vehicle provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The present disclosure provides a method and apparatus for controlling traffic flow in an unmanned vehicle, as well as an unmanned vehicle. Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the preferred embodiments described herein are intended only to illustrate and explain the present disclosure and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. Furthermore, the embodiments and features of the embodiments may be combined with one another unless there is a conflict.

[0037] The present disclosure provides a method for controlling traffic flow of an unmanned vehicle, as shown in FIG2 , including:

[0038] S201. Before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of a single-lane two-way traffic area, obtain vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area;

[0039] S202: When it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining the driving status of the other vehicles and determining a traffic strategy for the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status;

[0040] S203. When it is determined based on vehicle information that there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and a moving vehicle is detected in the two-lane two-way traffic area heading for an exit, the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle is judged based on a preset priority principle, and the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined based on the judgment result.

[0041] The disclosed embodiments can be applied to urban road scenarios or non-urban road scenarios, such as mines, wilderness, and other scenarios. Under specific business requirements, an unmanned vehicle needs to pass through a single-lane two-way traffic area. From the perspective of any unmanned vehicle, the unmanned vehicle needs to enter and drive through the single-lane two-way traffic area from the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, exit from the single-lane two-way traffic area, and enter the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area. Because the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to the two-lane two-way traffic area, there may also be an unmanned vehicle in the opposite lane that needs to enter and pass through the single-lane two-way traffic area through the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area (from the perspective of any unmanned vehicle, it is an exit, from the perspective of the opposite unmanned vehicle, it is an entrance) of the single-lane two-way traffic area. However, the unmanned vehicle and the opposite unmanned vehicle cannot pass through the single-lane two-way traffic area at the same time. In this case, it is necessary to formulate a traffic strategy based on the vehicle conditions in the single-lane two-way traffic area and the opposite lane of the two-lane two-way traffic area, and control the driving of the unmanned vehicle.

[0042] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario for the traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3 , the area marked by A (or A') can be considered a single-lane two-way traffic area. Assuming that the unmanned vehicle is currently at position a (hereinafter referred to as unmanned vehicle a) and is traveling toward area A, the area marked by B (or B' corresponding to A') can be considered a two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area. The area marked by C (or C' corresponding to A') can be considered a traffic area connected to the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area. The type of area is not limited here. FIG3 takes area C as a two-lane two-way traffic area as an example. Taking area A as a single-lane two-way traffic area as an example, its entrance position can be position c at the intersection with area C, or a position within area C that is a first preset distance from position c. Its exit position can be position b at the intersection with area B, or a position within area B that is a second preset distance from position b. There are no restrictions here. The determination of the entrance and exit when area A' is a single-lane two-way traffic area is similar and will not be repeated here.

[0043] Alternatively, unmanned vehicles can be mining vehicles equipped with unmanned transport capabilities. Their fully functional, wire-controlled chassis can respond to commands from the autonomous driving module, including driving, braking, steering, lifting, and other driving and transport operations. Unmanned vehicles can be equipped with integrated navigation devices as positioning modules, as well as various types of sensing devices (e.g., cameras, lidar, millimeter-wave radar, ultrasonic radar, etc.). High-precision map services can also be provided through high-precision map modules.

[0044] In the disclosed embodiment, the unmanned vehicle may first obtain vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area before driving to the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area. The unmanned vehicle may use its own detection equipment (e.g., laser radar) or traffic equipment to obtain vehicle information in front of it within its own detection range or communication range through vehicle-to-vehicle communication (V2V). For example, the laser radar may be used to detect objects in front. If a vehicle is detected in front, the vehicle may be determined to be in the single-lane two-way traffic area based on the distance from the detected vehicle to itself and the map. For another example, a traffic connection may be established with a vehicle within the communication range through a communication module, and the vehicle's location information may be obtained to determine whether a vehicle is in the single-lane two-way traffic area. The unmanned vehicle may also obtain vehicle information in front by sending a request to the cloud platform, which is not limited here. Vehicle information includes but is not limited to at least one of the following information: vehicle identification information, location information, etc. In order to determine whether there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area based on the vehicle information.

[0045] Furthermore, when there are other vehicles in a single-lane two-way traffic area (for example, area A or A'), the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle can be determined based on the driving status of the other vehicles; when there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, there may be a moving vehicle (such as the vehicle at position d in Figure 3, hereinafter referred to as vehicle d) in the opposite lane of the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit (for example, area B or B') that also needs to pass through the single-lane two-way traffic area. At this time, it is necessary to judge the priority of the unmanned vehicle (such as unmanned vehicle a) and the moving vehicle in the opposite lane (such as vehicle d) according to the preset priority principle, and determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the judgment result.

[0046] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the above step S202 of "obtaining the driving status of the other vehicles and determining the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status" can be implemented as follows:

[0047] Step 1: Obtain the driving status of the other vehicle, and determine whether the other vehicle is a followable vehicle based on the driving status;

[0048] Step 2: When the other vehicle is a followable vehicle and there is a moving vehicle in the two-lane two-way traffic area heading towards an exit, the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle is judged according to the preset priority principle, and the passage strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined based on the judgment result; and / or when the other vehicle is a non-followable vehicle, the passage strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be a yield strategy.

[0049] The disclosed embodiment is directed to the situation where there are other vehicles in a single-lane two-way traffic area (e.g., area A or A'). The driving status of the other vehicle can be obtained, and the driving status can include the driving direction and / or driving speed. In one embodiment, the driving speed can be obtained first, where the driving speed can be 0, that is, the vehicle can be in a stationary state. When the driving speed is not 0, the driving direction is obtained. If the other vehicle is traveling in the same direction as the unmanned vehicle and the speed is not 0, it can be determined that the other vehicle is a followable vehicle.

[0050] Furthermore, in the case that the other vehicle is a followable vehicle, it is possible to further determine whether there is a moving vehicle (such as vehicle d) in the opposite lane of a two-lane two-way traffic area (such as area B or B') connected to the exit (such as position b) of a single-lane two-way traffic area (such as area A or A') traveling towards the exit. If so, it is necessary to determine the priority of the unmanned vehicle (such as unmanned vehicle a) and the moving vehicle (such as vehicle d) according to the preset priority principle, and further determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle.

[0051] Furthermore, if the other vehicle's speed is zero in a single-lane, two-way traffic zone, or if the other vehicle's speed is not zero but its direction of travel is opposite to that of the unmanned vehicle, the other vehicle can be determined to be a non-followable vehicle. In this case, the unmanned vehicle's traffic strategy is determined to be a yield strategy, which can include deceleration or stopping.

[0052] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the above step S203, or the step 2 of "determining the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle according to the judgment result", can be implemented as follows:

[0053] When the priority of the unmanned vehicle is lower than that of the moving vehicle, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be the yield strategy; otherwise, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be normal driving.

[0054] In one embodiment, if the priority of the unmanned vehicle is not lower than the priority of the moving vehicle, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle may be normal driving, that is, the unmanned vehicle may follow the other vehicle through the single-lane two-way traffic area at its own normal speed or at the speed of the followable vehicle; and if the priority of the unmanned vehicle is lower than the priority of the moving vehicle, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle may be a yield strategy, where the yield strategy may be slowing down or stopping, etc.

[0055] Furthermore, the unmanned vehicle (such as unmanned vehicle a) can obtain vehicle information of a moving vehicle (such as vehicle d) in the opposite lane in a two-lane two-way traffic area through V2V within its own detection range or traffic range, and can also obtain the information of the moving vehicle through the cloud platform. The acquisition method can refer to the description in the above embodiment, including but not limited to at least one of the following information: identification information, location information, driving direction information, driving speed information, priority information, etc.

[0056] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the above-mentioned preset priority principles include: heavy-loaded vehicles have higher priority than unloaded vehicles; vehicles that have given way more than a preset number of times have higher priority than vehicles that have given way less than the preset number of times; vehicles that give way more times have higher priority.

[0057] In the disclosed embodiment, priority principles can be pre-set. Priority principles can be determined based on load or the number of times a vehicle yields. Different priority principles can be used independently or in combination. For example, if one priority principle cannot determine the priority of two vehicles, another priority principle can be used to determine the priority of the vehicle with the highest priority until it is determined.

[0058] In addition, when determining the priority principle based on the number of times of giving way, the number of times of giving way here can be the number of times of giving way counted for this single-lane two-way traffic area, or the number of times of giving way counted for this transportation process (which may pass through multiple single-lane two-way traffic areas), and there is no restriction here.

[0059] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the step S201 of “obtaining vehicle information in a single-lane two-way traffic area” may be implemented as follows:

[0060] When the unmanned vehicle drives to a first designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or the unmanned vehicle detects a first marker before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, vehicle information in the single-lane two-way traffic area is obtained.

[0061] In the disclosed embodiments, a trigger mechanism can be set for the unmanned vehicle to obtain information about other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area. In one embodiment, the acquisition of information about other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area can be triggered when the unmanned vehicle travels to a first designated position, for example, when unmanned vehicle a travels to a preset distance before the entrance position c of area A. In another embodiment, a first sign, such as a warning line or indicator light, can be set before the entrance to the single-lane two-way traffic area. When unmanned vehicle a detects the first sign, the acquisition of information about other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area is triggered.

[0062] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, when the determined traffic strategy is a yield strategy, the method may further include a step of determining a yield strategy for the unmanned vehicle;

[0063] Determining the autonomous vehicle's yielding strategy can be implemented in the following steps:

[0064] Step 1: Obtain the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determine the speed limit policy corresponding to the location area;

[0065] Step 2: Determine the speed limit strategy of the unmanned vehicle as the yield strategy.

[0066] In the aforementioned embodiments, there are multiple situations where the unmanned vehicle's traffic strategy needs to be determined as a yield strategy, for example: Situation 1: The unmanned vehicle determines that there is a vehicle that cannot be followed in the single-lane two-way traffic area; Situation 2: The unmanned vehicle determines that there is a vehicle that can be followed in the single-lane two-way traffic area, but there is a moving vehicle in the opposite lane of the two-lane two-way traffic area, and its priority is higher than the unmanned vehicle situation; Situation 3: The unmanned vehicle determines that there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, but there is a moving vehicle in the opposite lane of the two-lane two-way traffic area, and its priority is higher than the unmanned vehicle situation, etc.

[0067] The yielding strategy provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure can be executed after determining that the traffic strategy is the yielding strategy to ensure higher safety during the yielding process, obtain the speed limit strategy of the location of the unmanned vehicle, and yield according to the speed limit strategy.

[0068] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the above-mentioned "Step 1: Obtaining the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining the speed limit policy corresponding to the location area" can be implemented as follows:

[0069] Step 1: When the unmanned vehicle is in a first position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the first position interval is to limit the speed to a first speed;

[0070] Step 2: When the unmanned vehicle is in the second position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the second position interval is to limit the speed to the second speed;

[0071] The first position interval is farther away from the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area than the second position interval, and the first speed is greater than the second speed.

[0072] In this embodiment, the speed of the unmanned vehicle can be gradually reduced before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area. For example, multiple speed limit intervals can be set, and the speed limit corresponding to the speed limit interval closer to the entrance is lower.

[0073] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the above-mentioned "step 1, obtaining the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining the speed limit policy corresponding to the location area" may further include the following steps:

[0074] When the unmanned vehicle is in the third position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the third position interval is to reduce the speed to 0 when reaching the second designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or detecting the second sign before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area;

[0075] The third location interval is a location area close to the second designated location or the second marker.

[0076] In this embodiment, if the yielding strategy includes stopping, a third position interval and a second designated position or second marker (e.g., a stop line, indicator light, etc.) can be set before the entrance to the single-lane two-way traffic area. When the unmanned vehicle enters the third position interval and reaches the second designated position or detects the second marker, the vehicle can be decelerated to 0, ensuring that the unmanned vehicle stops at the second designated position or second marker before the entrance to the single-lane two-way traffic area. Therefore, compared with the first position interval and the second position interval, the third position interval can be set at the position closest to the entrance.

[0077] FIG4 shows an embodiment of setting the first position interval to the third position interval while taking area A as an example of a single-lane two-way traffic area. As shown in FIG4 , before the entrance c of the single-lane two-way traffic area A, the first position interval S1, the second position interval S2, and the third position interval S3 are sequentially set from far to near. And the warning line (i.e., the first mark) can be set according to the starting position of the interval S1, and the stop line (i.e., the second mark) can be set according to the position of the entrance c. When the unmanned vehicle reaches the warning line, it can trigger the acquisition of information about other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area. When a series of judgments determine that the traffic strategy is a yield strategy, the speed limit can be executed according to the position of the unmanned vehicle itself. For example: if the unmanned vehicle is located in interval S1, the speed limit is implemented according to the speed limit rules of interval S1, and the same applies to intervals S2 and S3. According to the positional relationship between sections S1 to S3 and entrance c from far to near, the speed limit of sections S1 to S3 can be reduced successively until the stop line is detected and the speed is limited to 0, completing the parking; and if, after a series of judgments, it is determined that the traffic strategy is normal driving, the vehicle can drive at the normal driving speed within the current position section, and once it enters the single-lane two-way traffic area, it is no longer necessary to give way to vehicles outside the single-lane two-way traffic area.

[0078] In one embodiment, the interval range of interval S1 can be set to 40 meters to 60 meters from the entrance c. When the yield strategy is implemented, the unmanned vehicle needs to limit its speed to 10 kilometers per hour when traveling in interval S1; the interval range of interval S2 can be set to 20 meters to 40 meters from the entrance c. When the yield strategy is implemented, the unmanned vehicle needs to limit its speed to 5 kilometers per hour when traveling in interval S2; the interval range of interval S3 can be set to 0 meters to 20 meters from the entrance c. When the yield strategy is implemented, the unmanned vehicle needs to stop at the stop line when traveling in interval S3.

[0079] Furthermore, each time the unmanned vehicle yields, it can increase its yield count, thus raising its priority based on the number of yields. After the unmanned vehicle stops to yield for a preset time, or after detecting that a high-priority vehicle has passed through the single-lane two-way traffic area, it can again initiate the step of acquiring vehicle information from vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, i.e., re-execute the unmanned vehicle traffic control method provided by any embodiment of the present disclosure, until the unmanned vehicle passes through the single-lane two-way traffic area.

[0080] The following is a complete example of an embodiment. FIG5 is a flow chart of a method for controlling traffic flow of an unmanned vehicle provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5 , the method includes:

[0081] S501, when the unmanned vehicle drives to a first designated position before the entrance to a single-lane two-way traffic area or the unmanned vehicle detects a first marker before the entrance to the single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area;

[0082] S502: Determine whether there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area based on the vehicle information; if there are other vehicles, proceed to step S503; if there are no other vehicles, proceed to step S505;

[0083] S503, obtaining the driving status of other vehicles, and determining whether the other vehicles are stationary vehicles according to the driving status; if they are stationary vehicles, proceeding to step S507; otherwise, proceeding to step S504;

[0084] This step may also be incorporated into step S504 . When determining whether the other vehicle is a followable vehicle, if the other vehicle is a stationary vehicle, it is determined to be a non-followable vehicle.

[0085] S504: Determine whether the other vehicle is a followable vehicle based on the driving status; if it is a followable vehicle, proceed to step S505; otherwise, proceed to step S507;

[0086] S505: Determine whether there is a moving vehicle in the two-lane two-way traffic area traveling toward the exit; if so, proceed to step S506; otherwise, proceed to step S508;

[0087] S506: Determine the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle according to the preset priority principle. If the unmanned vehicle has a lower priority than the moving vehicle, proceed to step S507; otherwise, proceed to step S508.

[0088] S507: Obtain the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle, determine the speed limit policy corresponding to the location area, and determine the speed limit policy as the traffic policy of the unmanned vehicle. This process ends.

[0089] S508: The unmanned vehicle drives normally. This process ends.

[0090] Based on the same disclosed concept, the embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a traffic control device for an unmanned vehicle and an unmanned vehicle. Since the principles of the problems solved by these devices and unmanned vehicles are similar to those of the previous traffic control methods for unmanned vehicles, the implementation of the device and the unmanned vehicle can refer to the implementation of the aforementioned methods, and the repeated parts will not be repeated.

[0091] The present disclosure provides a traffic control device for an unmanned vehicle, as shown in FIG6 , including the following modules:

[0092] The vehicle information acquisition module 601 is configured to acquire vehicle information within a single-lane two-way traffic area before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area;

[0093] a traffic strategy determination module 602 configured to, when determining based on the vehicle information that there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, obtain the driving status of the other vehicles and determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status; and

[0094] When it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and when it is detected that there is a moving vehicle in the two-lane two-way traffic area heading towards the exit, the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle is judged according to the preset priority principle, and the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined based on the judgment result.

[0095] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the traffic strategy determination module 602 is configured to obtain the driving status of the other vehicle and determine whether the other vehicle is a followable vehicle based on the driving status; when the other vehicle is a followable vehicle and there is a moving vehicle in the two-lane two-way traffic area heading towards the exit, the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle is judged according to a preset priority principle, and the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined based on the judgment result; and / or when the other vehicle is a non-followable vehicle, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be a yield strategy.

[0096] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the traffic strategy determination module 602 is configured to determine that the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is a yield strategy when the priority of the unmanned vehicle is lower than that of the moving vehicle; otherwise, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be normal driving.

[0097] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the preset priority principle includes: heavy-loaded vehicles have higher priority than unloaded vehicles; vehicles that have given way more than a preset number of times have higher priority than vehicles that have given way less than the preset number of times; vehicles that give way more times have higher priority.

[0098] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the vehicle information acquisition module 601 is configured to acquire vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area when the unmanned vehicle drives to a first designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or when the unmanned vehicle detects a first sign before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area.

[0099] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the traffic strategy determination module 602 is also configured to determine the yielding strategy of the unmanned vehicle when the traffic strategy is determined to be the yielding strategy; the traffic strategy determination module 602 is configured to obtain the location area where the unmanned vehicle is located and determine the speed limit strategy corresponding to the location area; and determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle as the speed limit strategy.

[0100] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the traffic strategy determination module 602 is configured such that, when the unmanned vehicle is in a first position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the first position interval is to limit the speed to a first speed; and when the unmanned vehicle is in a second position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the second position interval is to limit the speed to a second speed; wherein, the first position interval is farther away from the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area than the second position interval, and the first speed is greater than the second speed.

[0101] In another embodiment provided by the present disclosure, the traffic strategy determination module 602 is configured to, when the unmanned vehicle is in a third position interval, have a speed limit strategy corresponding to the third position interval of slowing down to 0 when reaching a second designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or detecting a second sign before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area; wherein the third position interval is a position area close to the second designated position or the second sign.

[0102] The embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an unmanned vehicle, comprising: an unmanned driving module and a driving control module; the unmanned driving module comprises a planning control unit;

[0103] The planning control unit is configured to determine a traffic strategy according to the traffic control method for the unmanned vehicle as described in any of the above embodiments before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area;

[0104] The driving control module is configured to obtain the traffic strategy of the single-lane two-way traffic area from the planning control unit, and control the driving of the unmanned vehicle according to the traffic strategy.

[0105] The unmanned vehicle provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure can plan and control the unmanned vehicle's traffic strategy through a planning control unit, and control the unmanned vehicle's driving according to the traffic strategy through a driving control unit. In one possible implementation, the planning control unit can send a local reference trajectory with location information of a single-lane two-way traffic area to a driving control module, and the driving control module controls the unmanned vehicle to drive according to the local reference trajectory; and when the unmanned vehicle is detected to be driving to a warning line outside the single-lane two-way traffic area, the planning control module is informed, and the planning control module formulates a traffic strategy according to the unmanned vehicle traffic method described in any embodiment of the present disclosure; the driving control module obtains the traffic strategy for the single-lane two-way traffic area from the planning control unit, and controls the unmanned vehicle's driving according to the traffic strategy.

[0106] In one embodiment provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, the cloud control platform can also determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle, issue it to the unmanned vehicle, and form an unmanned vehicle traffic system with at least one unmanned vehicle. In one embodiment, when the unmanned vehicle drives to the warning line outside the single-lane two-way traffic area, it sends a traffic strategy acquisition request to the cloud control platform; the cloud control platform determines the unmanned vehicle traffic strategy according to the acquisition request, according to the traffic information of the opposite lane of the single-lane two-way traffic area and the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit, and provides it to the unmanned vehicle according to the traffic control method of the unmanned vehicle provided by any embodiment of the present disclosure; the unmanned vehicle drives according to the traffic strategy provided by the cloud control platform; in another embodiment, the cloud control platform can also only provide the traffic information of the opposite lane of the single-lane two-way traffic area and the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit, and the unmanned vehicle determines its own traffic strategy according to the traffic control method of the unmanned vehicle provided by any embodiment of the present disclosure based on the received traffic information, and drives according to the traffic strategy.

[0107] The traffic control method, device and unmanned vehicle provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure determine their own traffic strategy based on the driving status of vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area and in the opposite lane of the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area before the unmanned vehicle drives to the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, and drives according to the determined traffic strategy. At the same time, the road conditions of the opposite lane in the single-lane two-way traffic area and the two-lane two-way traffic area connected to the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area are taken into account. There will be no congestion phenomenon such as vehicles in the opposite lane entering before vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area have left. This is more scientific and reasonable, realizes the coordinated giving way of single-lane two-way traffic applicable to mining scenarios, and ensures the efficient operation of the mine unmanned driving system.

[0108] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented through hardware or by means of software plus a necessary general hardware platform. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure can be embodied in the form of a software product, which can be stored in a non-volatile storage medium (which can be a CD-ROM, a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, etc.), including a number of instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in the various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0109] Those skilled in the art will understand that the accompanying drawings are merely schematic diagrams of a preferred embodiment, and the modules or processes in the accompanying drawings are not necessarily required for implementing the present disclosure.

[0110] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the modules in the devices of the embodiments may be distributed in the devices of the embodiments as described in the embodiments, or may be located in one or more devices different from the embodiments with corresponding changes. The modules of the above embodiments may be combined into one module or further split into multiple submodules.

[0111] The serial numbers of the above-mentioned embodiments of the present disclosure are for description only and do not represent the advantages or disadvantages of the embodiments.

[0112] Obviously, those skilled in the art may make various changes and modifications to the present disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present disclosure fall within the scope of the claims of the present disclosure and their equivalents, the present disclosure is intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A method for controlling traffic flow of an unmanned vehicle, comprising: Before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of a single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining vehicle information in the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area; When it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, obtaining the driving status of the other vehicles and determining a traffic strategy for the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status; When it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and when it is detected that there is a moving vehicle in the two-lane two-way traffic area heading towards the exit, the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle is judged according to the preset priority principle, and the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined based on the judgment result.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The obtaining of the driving status of the other vehicles and determining the passage strategy of the unmanned vehicle according to the driving status includes: Acquiring the driving status of the other vehicle, and determining whether the other vehicle is a followable vehicle based on the driving status; In the case where the other vehicles are followable vehicles and there is a moving vehicle in the two-lane two-way traffic area traveling toward the exit, the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle is judged according to a preset priority principle, and the passage strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined according to the judgment result; and / or In the case that the other vehicle is a vehicle that cannot be followed, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be a yield strategy.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined according to the judgment result, including: In the case where the priority of the unmanned vehicle is lower than that of the moving vehicle, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be a yield strategy; otherwise, the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be normal driving.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The preset priority principle includes: heavy-loaded vehicles have higher priority than unloaded vehicles; vehicles that have given way more than a preset number of times have higher priority than vehicles that have given way less than the preset number of times; vehicles that give way more times have higher priority.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The acquiring of vehicle information in the single-lane two-way traffic area includes: When the unmanned vehicle drives to a first designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or the unmanned vehicle detects a first marker before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, vehicle information in the single-lane two-way traffic area is obtained.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: In the case where the determined traffic strategy is a yield strategy, the method further includes: determining a yield strategy for the unmanned vehicle; Determining the yielding strategy of the unmanned vehicle includes: Obtaining the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining a speed limit policy corresponding to the location area; The traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle is determined to be the speed limit strategy.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein: Obtaining the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining the speed limit policy corresponding to the location area includes: When the unmanned vehicle is in a first position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the first position interval is to limit the speed to a first speed; When the unmanned vehicle is in the second position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the second position interval is to limit the speed to the second speed; The first position interval is farther away from the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area than the second position interval, and the first speed is greater than the second speed.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein: The obtaining of the location area of ​​the unmanned vehicle and determining the speed limit policy corresponding to the location area further includes: When the unmanned vehicle is in the third position interval, the speed limit strategy corresponding to the third position interval is to decelerate to 0 when reaching the second designated position before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area or detecting the second sign before the entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area; The third location interval is a location area close to the second designated location or the second identifier.

9. A traffic control device for an unmanned vehicle, comprising: a vehicle information acquisition module configured to acquire vehicle information within the single-lane two-way traffic area before the unmanned vehicle drives to an entrance of the single-lane two-way traffic area, wherein the exit of the single-lane two-way traffic area is connected to a two-lane two-way traffic area; The traffic strategy determination module is configured to obtain the driving status of other vehicles when it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the driving status; and, when it is determined based on the vehicle information that there are no other vehicles in the single-lane two-way traffic area, and a moving vehicle is detected in the two-lane two-way traffic area traveling toward the exit, judge the priority of the moving vehicle and the unmanned vehicle according to a preset priority principle, and determine the traffic strategy of the unmanned vehicle based on the judgment result.

10. An unmanned vehicle comprising: Unmanned driving module and driving control module; the unmanned driving module includes a planning control unit; The planning control unit is configured to determine a traffic strategy according to the traffic control method for an unmanned vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 8 before the unmanned vehicle reaches the entrance of a single-lane two-way traffic area; The driving control module is configured to obtain the traffic strategy of the single-lane two-way traffic area from the planning control unit, and control the driving of the unmanned vehicle according to the traffic strategy.

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