Data collection device and data collection program

Abstract

A data collection device (102) receives and collects travel data pertaining to a vehicle (101) via a communication network (103). In the vehicle, a vehicle control program being verified is executed irrespective of control of the vehicle. The data collection device comprises a collection unit (51) that receives and collects travel data when the degree of divergence between a control result based on the vehicle control program being verified and an operation result based on an operation performed by the driver of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a prescribed threshold value, a calculation unit (52) that ascertains travel routes of the vehicle from the collected travel data and calculates the number of times the vehicle has traveled on each travel route, and an imparting unit (53) that imparts an incentive to the vehicle that has transmitted the collected travel data. The imparting unit changes the incentive in accordance with the number of instances of travel.

Description

Data collection device and data collection program CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is based on Japanese Application No. 2024-128878, filed on August 5, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] The present disclosure relates to a data collection device and a data collection program.

[0003] In recent years, a method has been adopted in which various data actually acquired from vehicles after they have been sold while they are being driven is collected on a server via a communication network, and the data collected on the server is analyzed and used in future vehicle development or to update the vehicle's control program.

[0004] Some of these servers aim to collect a large amount of information quickly by offering incentives in exchange for providing data, thereby gaining cooperation from users. Such technology is described, for example, in Patent Document 1.

[0005] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2020-194280

[0006] However, in the prior art, travel data was collected uniformly without distinction, which caused a problem in that the travel data included data that was not particularly appropriate.

[0007] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and has as its main object to provide a data collection device and a data collection program that can efficiently collect excellent data.

[0008] A data collection device for solving the above problem is a data collection device that receives and collects vehicle driving data via a communication network, wherein a vehicle control program to be verified is executed in the vehicle in a manner that is not related to the control of the vehicle, and when a degree of deviation between a control result based on the vehicle control program to be verified and an operation result based on the operation of the driver of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the data collection device receives and collects the vehicle's driving data; a calculation unit that determines the vehicle's driving route from the driving data collected by the collection unit and calculates the number of times the vehicle has been driven for each driving route; and an award unit that awards an incentive to the vehicle that transmitted the driving data collected by the collection unit or to the user of the vehicle, and causes the calculation unit to calculate the number of times the vehicle has been driven for the driving route identified by the driving data collected by the collection unit, and the award unit changes the incentive according to the number of times the vehicle has been driven.

[0009] In the above configuration, if the deviation is equal to or greater than a threshold, the data is collected as driving data. This makes it possible to selectively collect driving data that has a large deviation and needs to be verified or analyzed, i.e., valuable driving data. The incentive is changed according to the number of driving times. This makes it possible to prioritize the collection of driving data depending on the number of driving times. In other words, it is possible to intensively collect driving data from roads where the number of driving times is high, or conversely, to intensively collect driving data from roads where the number of driving times is low.

[0010] A data collection program for solving the above problem is a data collection program executed by a data collection device that receives and collects vehicle driving data via a communication network, wherein a vehicle control program to be verified is executed in the vehicle in a manner that is not involved in the control of the vehicle, and the data collection device performs the following steps if the degree of discrepancy between the control result based on the vehicle control program to be verified and the operation result based on the operation of the driver of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold: a collection step of receiving and collecting the vehicle's driving data; a calculation step of determining the vehicle's driving route from the driving data collected in the collection step and calculating the number of times the vehicle has been driven for each driving route; and an award step of awarding an incentive to the vehicle that transmitted the driving data collected in the collection step or to the user of the vehicle, wherein the calculation step calculates the number of times the vehicle has been driven for the driving route identified by the driving data collected in the collection step, and the award step changes the incentive according to the number of times the vehicle has been driven.

[0011] In the above configuration, if the deviation is equal to or greater than a threshold, the data is collected as driving data. This makes it possible to selectively collect driving data that has a large deviation and needs to be verified or analyzed, i.e., valuable driving data. The incentive is changed according to the number of driving times. This makes it possible to prioritize the collection of driving data depending on the number of driving times. In other words, it is possible to intensively collect driving data from roads where the number of driving times is high, or conversely, to intensively collect driving data from roads where the number of driving times is low.

[0012] The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a data collection system, Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing functions of a processing unit and a server, Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a travel route, Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the number of travels, Fig. 5 is a flowchart of a data acquisition process, Fig. 6 is a flowchart of a data collection process, Fig. 7 is a flowchart of a threshold determination process, and Fig. 8 is a flowchart of a data acquisition process according to a second embodiment.

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments of a data collection device and a data collection program according to the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that, between the embodiments and modifications, the same or corresponding parts in the drawings are designated by the same reference numerals, and their descriptions will not be repeated in principle.

[0014] (First embodiment) Fig. 1 shows a data collection system 100 according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the data collection system 100 includes a server 102 as a data collection device, and is capable of communicating with one or more vehicles 101 via a communication network 103 such as the Internet. Fig. 1 shows only one vehicle 101. The vehicle 101 includes a vehicle control device 10, various sensors 20, an actuator 30, and the like. The vehicle control device 10 is mounted on the vehicle 101 and controls the vehicle 101 and performs driving assistance.

[0015] The sensor 20 includes various sensors for measuring the traveling conditions of the vehicle 101, such as a vehicle speed sensor 21, an acceleration sensor 22, and a yaw rate sensor 23. The sensors for measuring the traveling conditions of the vehicle 101 may include other sensors, or any of the vehicle speed sensor 21, the acceleration sensor 22, and the yaw rate sensor 23 may not be included.

[0016] The sensor 20 also includes various sensors for detecting other vehicles and obstacles, such as a camera 24 and a millimeter-wave radar 25. The sensor for detecting other vehicles and obstacles is not limited to the millimeter-wave radar 25, but may also be a laser radar (LiDAR), an ultrasonic sensor, or a combination of these. The camera 24 may also be a monocular camera or a compound camera. The camera 24 may also capture either still images or videos. The number, position, and type of the cameras 24 may be changed as desired. For example, the vehicle may include a front camera that captures the area in front of the vehicle, a right-side camera that captures the area on the right side of the vehicle, a left-side camera that captures the area on the left side of the vehicle, and a rear camera that captures the area behind the vehicle.

[0017] The sensor 20 also includes sensors for detecting various amounts of operation by the driver, such as an accelerator sensor 26 that detects the amount of accelerator operation by the driver, a brake sensor 27 that detects the amount of brake operation, and a steering angle sensor 28 that detects the amount of steering (steering angle) of the steering wheel by the driver.

[0018] These sensors 20 are connected to the vehicle control device 10 wirelessly or by wire, and the measurement results (or detection results) of these sensors 20 are input to the vehicle control device 10 or the like as sensor information.

[0019] The actuators 30 include, for example, actuators for driving the vehicle 101, such as a motor that serves as the main engine of the vehicle 101. The actuators 30 may also include actuators for controlling the behavior of the vehicle 101, such as an actuator for operating a steering wheel, an actuator for operating a brake pedal, or an actuator for operating an accelerator pedal. The actuators 30 may also include devices for operating accessories of the vehicle 101, such as a display, a speaker, an indicator, and a headlight. The driving and operation of the vehicle 101 are controlled by the actuators 30.

[0020] The vehicle control device 10 is primarily composed of a microcomputer including a processing unit 10a such as a CPU and a storage unit 10b such as various types of memory. The functions provided by the microcomputer can be provided by software recorded in a physical memory device and a computer executing the software, software alone, hardware alone, or a combination thereof. For example, when the microcomputer is provided by electronic circuits, which are hardware, the functions can be provided by digital circuits including numerous logic circuits or analog circuits. For example, the processing unit 10a of the microcomputer executes programs stored in a non-transitory tangible storage medium (non-transitory tangible storage medium) that serves as the storage unit 10b. The programs include, for example, programs that realize functions shown in FIG. 2 . Execution of the programs results in the execution of methods corresponding to the programs. The storage unit 10b is, for example, a non-volatile memory. The programs stored in the storage unit 10b can be downloaded and updated via a communication network 103, such as the Internet, via over-the-air (OTA) or other means.

[0021] The vehicle control device 10 has various functions (application programs) for assisting the driving of the vehicle 101, and these functions control the actuator 30 based on sensor information input from the sensor 20.

[0022] Typical functions for assisting the driving of the vehicle 101 include, for example, an adaptive cruise control system (ACC), a forward collision warning (FCW), an advanced emergency braking system (AEBS), a night vision / pedestrian detection (NV / PD), a traffic sign recognition (TSR), a lane departure warning (LDW), a lane keeping assist system (LKAS), a rear cross traffic alert (RCTA), an adaptive front lighting system (AFS), and an advanced parking assist (APA). The vehicle may be provided with all or some of these functions. Furthermore, other driving assistance functions may also be provided. These functions are realized by the arithmetic processing unit 10a executing a driving assistance control program stored in the storage unit 10b.

[0023] The driving assistance control program of this embodiment is assumed to be a program for performing vehicle control at autonomous driving level 2 or lower. That is, it is a program for realizing partial autonomous driving under specific conditions or driving assistance without autonomous driving. Therefore, although driving assistance is provided by the driving assistance control program, the vehicle 101 is controlled in principle so as to reflect the driver's operations (accelerator operation, brake operation, steering angle).

[0024] Furthermore, in order to verify the performance and safety of the vehicle control program, the vehicle control device 10 has a function called a shadow mode in which a vehicle control program to be verified (hereinafter referred to as a verification target program) is run while the vehicle is running after sales, that is, in an actual use case, and output values ​​are checked. In verification using the shadow mode, for example, the verification target program is run in the background, that is, in a manner not related to vehicle control, and data related to the output values ​​is stored, and the server 102 collects the data related to the output values ​​via the communication network 103. Note that the shadow mode is a type of data collection mode for collecting data.

[0025] The configuration and functions of the shadow mode according to this embodiment will be described below. The timing of switching to the shadow mode may be any timing. For example, the switching may be performed by an operation by the driver, or may be performed by a command from the server 102. Alternatively, the switching to the shadow mode may be performed when the ignition switch is turned on.

[0026] In the following, the driving assistance control program that actually operates the vehicle 101 will be referred to as an "implemented program" to contrast it with the program to be verified. It is also referred to as an "implemented program" in FIG. 1 . The program to be verified is stored in the storage unit 10b. A storage device dedicated to the shadow mode may be provided.

[0027] The program to be verified is a program for controlling a vehicle at autonomous driving level 3 or higher. In other words, it is a program for realizing conditional autonomous driving, fully autonomous driving under specific conditions, and fully autonomous driving without conditions. Therefore, in shadow mode, the program to be verified is executed, and various functions related to the autonomous driving of the vehicle 101 are performed in the background.

[0028] That is, during shadow mode, the vehicle control device 10 operates the program to be verified based on the input sensor information, performs various functions related to autonomous driving, and outputs various control signals for operating the actuator 30. However, these control signals are not actually input to the actuator 30, but are stored in the storage unit 10b as data related to the control results. At that time, the vehicle control device 10 also acquires data necessary for verifying and analyzing the program to be verified, such as data related to the sensor information that is an input value, and stores them together as driving data.

[0029] The vehicle control device 10 uploads the traveling data thus stored in the storage unit 10b to the server 102 via the communication network 103 at a predetermined transmission timing. The predetermined transmission timing may be any timing, for example, a timing when an upload instruction is issued from the server 102. Alternatively, the predetermined transmission timing may be, for example, a timing when the vehicle 101 is charging, when the vehicle is parked, when the ignition switch is turned off, or the like.

[0030] Incidentally, when the purpose is to collect sample driving data for automatically driving the vehicle 101, such as for autonomous driving, driving data from experienced drivers is more desirable than driving data from inexperienced drivers. However, even if one attempts to obtain driving data only from drivers whose occupation is driving the vehicle 101, such as taxi drivers, it is difficult to collect such data for various reasons, and since the number of drivers whose occupation is driving the vehicle 101 is limited, the amount of driving data that can be collected is also limited, resulting in inefficiency.

[0031] Therefore, if a driver has driven the same road multiple times, it is assumed that their driving proficiency on that road will naturally improve, and this type of driving data can be collected efficiently.

[0032] 2, the arithmetic processing device 10a of the vehicle control device 10 has a function as an input unit 11, a function as a driving control unit 12, a function as a verification unit 13, a function as a comparison and determination unit 14, a function as a data acquisition unit 15, a function as a threshold setting unit 16, and a function as a transmission unit 17. These functions are realized by the arithmetic processing device 10a by executing an in-vehicle program stored in the storage unit 10b.

[0033] The server 102 also has a function as a collection unit 51, a function as a calculation unit 52, a function as an assignment unit 53, a function as a threshold determination unit 54, and a function as a command unit 55. These functions are realized by the server CPU 102a executing a data collection program stored in the storage device 102b of the server 102.

[0034] First, various functions implemented by the arithmetic processing device 10a of the vehicle control device 10 will be described. The input unit 11 inputs sensor information from the sensor 20. The input unit 11 then inputs some or all of the input sensor information as input values ​​to the driving control unit 12 and the verification unit 13. Note that the input unit 11 may recognize the situation of the vehicle 101 and the surrounding environment based on the sensor information, and input the recognition results to the driving control unit 12 and the verification unit 13. In other words, the input unit 11 may perform functions related to recognition.

[0035] The driving control unit 12 executes various functions (application programs) realized by the installed programs based on input values ​​(sensor information, etc.) input from the input unit 11. The driving control unit 12 then inputs the resulting control signals (control signals for the actuator 30) to the actuator 30. The driving control unit 12 also outputs data related to the control results based on the installed programs (determination results, control signals to the actuator 30, etc.) to the comparison and determination unit 14.

[0036] The implementation program of this embodiment is a program for performing vehicle control for autonomous driving level 2 or lower. Therefore, although the output results based on the implementation program include assistance from various driving assistance programs, they are essentially operation results based on the driver's operations (accelerator operation, brake operation, steering angle). Therefore, the driving control unit 12 outputs data related to the operation results based on the driver's operations to the comparison and determination unit 14.

[0037] The verification unit 13 runs the program to be verified and performs functions related to autonomous driving realized by the program to be verified based on input values ​​(sensor information, etc.) input from the input unit 11. The verification unit 13 then inputs the control results to the comparison and determination unit 14. The control results include a control signal for the actuator 30 and a judgment result based on the program to be verified. As described above, the control signal for the actuator 30 is not input from the verification unit 13 to the actuator 30.

[0038] The comparison / determination unit 14 compares the control result based on the program to be verified with the operation result based on the operation of the driver of the vehicle 101, and identifies the degree of discrepancy. Any method may be used to identify the degree of discrepancy, but in this embodiment, the degree of discrepancy is calculated by calculating the proportion of the control result based on the program to be verified when the operation result by the driver is used as a reference, and assigning a score value (points) according to that proportion. Note that, when the operation result and the control result consist of multiple items (control signals, etc.), the degree of discrepancy is calculated by calculating a score value for each predetermined item and adding up the score values.

[0039] For example, the following description is based on the assumption that, among the control signals included in the operation results and the control results, the accelerator operation amount, brake operation amount, and steering angle are determined as items for calculating the deviation. In this case, the ratio of the accelerator operation amount included in the control results to the accelerator operation amount included in the operation results is calculated, and the further this ratio is from 100% (i.e., the greater the deviation), the larger the score value is set. Score values ​​are similarly set for the brake operation amount and steering angle. Then, the score values ​​for each item of the accelerator operation amount, brake operation amount, and steering angle are summed, and this sum is used as the deviation degree.

[0040] If the calculated deviation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the comparison / determination unit 14 notifies the data acquisition unit 15 of the determination result. The threshold is set by the threshold setting unit 16, which will be described later.

[0041] When the comparison / determination unit 14 determines that the degree of deviation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the data acquisition unit 15 stores the driving data in the storage unit 10b. The driving data includes sensor information (image data, etc.) input to the arithmetic processing device 10a. The driving data also includes, for example, control signals (control results) processed and output based on the program to be verified, and control signals (operation results) processed and output based on the implemented program. The driving data may also include the difference between the output results (operation results) based on the implemented program and the output results (control results) of the program to be verified.

[0042] The travel data is stored collectively for each travel route traveled by the vehicle 101. The travel route will be described with reference to Figures 3 and 4. Roads are classified according to predetermined criteria. For example, as shown in Figure 3, roads are classified in advance using dividing points such as road distance, points where the road width (including the number of lanes) changes, points where the road type (whether or not the road is a motorway or not) changes, intersections, merging points, branching points, and corners.

[0043] When the vehicle 101 travels from one end of a road to the other according to this division, it is considered that the vehicle 101 has traveled on the road in that division, and the travel route is also divided according to this division. In FIG. 3, Xn and Ym (n = 0 to 4, M = 0 to 3) are used as dividing points, and the road is divided into travel routes R11 to R14, R21 to R24, R31 to R33, R41 to R43, and R51. When the comparison / determination unit 14 determines that the deviation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value after the vehicle 101 has traveled from one end of the road to the other according to this division, the input values ​​(sensor information, etc.) and output results (control results and operation results) acquired during the travel are compiled and stored as travel data that is valuable for improving the functionality of the travel route.

[0044] The comparison / determination unit 14 calculates the deviation at predetermined intervals and compares it with a threshold value, and the data acquisition unit 15 stores the driving data of the driving route that was traveled when the calculated deviation value became equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold value. In other words, while the shadow mode is set, the data acquisition unit 15 constantly inputs and temporarily stores driving data, and stores in the storage unit 10b the driving data of the driving route that was traveled when the deviation value became equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold value.

[0045] The threshold setting unit 16 receives a threshold for each travel route from the server 102 and stores the threshold for each travel route in the storage unit 10b. The threshold setting unit 16 then identifies the travel route from the travel data and sets a threshold to be used by the comparison and determination unit 14 according to the identified travel route. As a method for identifying the travel route, for example, the travel route may be identified based on position information and map information of the vehicle 101. Note that the position information and map information of the vehicle 101 are assumed to be included in the sensor information.

[0046] In this embodiment, the threshold value for each travel route is stored in the storage unit 10b. As another example, the threshold value setting unit 16 may grasp the travel route and notify (transmit) the grasped travel route to the server 102, thereby receiving and setting a threshold value according to the travel route from the server 102. Furthermore, the area in which the vehicle 101 is located may be identified, and the threshold value for each travel route in the area may be stored in the storage unit 10b.

[0047] The transmitter 17 transmits the driving data acquired by the data acquisition unit 15 and stored in the memory unit 10b to the server 102 via the communication network 103 at a predetermined transmission timing. The predetermined transmission timing is as described above.

[0048] The flow of data acquisition in this embodiment will be described below with reference to Fig. 5. The flow of data acquisition shown below is the flow of data acquisition processing performed by the arithmetic processing device 10a. This processing is performed at predetermined intervals after the shadow mode is set.

[0049] The input unit 11 of the arithmetic processing device 10a receives sensor information from the sensor 20 (step S101). The input unit 11 then inputs the received sensor information and the like to the traveling control unit 12 and the verification unit 13 as input values.

[0050] The traveling control unit 12 operates the implementation program based on the input values ​​input from the input unit 11, and performs various functions realized by the implementation program (step S102). Then, the traveling control unit 12 inputs a control signal generated based on the implementation program to the actuator 30 to control traveling. In addition, the traveling control unit 12 inputs an output result (operation result) based on the implementation program to the comparison and determination unit 14.

[0051] The verification unit 13 operates the program to be verified using the input values ​​input from the input unit 11, and performs processing based on the various functions realized by the program to be verified (step S103). The verification unit 13 inputs the output results (control signals, etc.) to the comparison and determination unit 14.

[0052] It is desirable that the program to be verified and the implementation program be executed in parallel, but if they cannot be executed in parallel due to issues such as processing load, the implementation program can be executed first. The program to be verified is not directly related to the control of the vehicle 101, so it can be executed later when there is processing capacity.

[0053] The threshold setting unit 16 determines the driving route from sensor information and the like, and sets a threshold for the comparison / determination unit 14 according to the driving route (step S104). The comparison / determination unit 14 then compares the control result based on the program to be verified with the operation result based on the operation of the driver of the vehicle 101, and identifies the degree of deviation therebetween (step S105). The comparison / determination unit 14 also determines whether the calculated degree of deviation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold (step S106). The threshold in step S106 is the one set by the threshold setting unit 16 in step S104. If the determination result is negative, the data acquisition process ends.

[0054] On the other hand, if the determination result in step S106 is positive, the data acquisition unit 15 determines to store the driving data of the driving route currently being driven in the storage unit 10b (step S107). As a result, the driving data of the driving route currently being driven is stored in the storage unit 10b. Then, the data acquisition process ends. The transmission unit 17 transmits the data acquired by the data acquisition unit 15 and stored in the storage unit 10b to the server 102 via the communication network 103 at a predetermined transmission timing.

[0055] Next, we will explain various functions realized by the server 102. When the collection unit 51 receives data transmitted from the transmission unit 17 of each vehicle 101, it stores the data in the storage device 102b of the server 102. At this time, it is desirable that the collection unit 51 understands the travel route of each vehicle 101 from the received travel data, and classifies the travel data by travel route and stores the data.

[0056] The vehicle control device 10 is configured to transmit driving data when the degree of deviation between the control result based on the program to be verified and the operation result based on the driver's operation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. As a result, the collection unit 51 receives and collects driving data of the vehicle 101 when the degree of deviation between the control result based on the program to be verified and the operation result based on the driver's operation of the vehicle 101 is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold.

[0057] The calculation unit 52 determines the travel route of each vehicle 101 from the travel data collected by the collection unit 51, and calculates the number of travels of each vehicle 101 for each travel route. The travel routes are as described above, and the method of identifying the travel routes is also as described above.

[0058] The granting unit 53 grants an incentive to the vehicle 101 that transmitted the traveling data collected by the collection unit 51 or to the user of the vehicle 101. The incentive may be, for example, points that can be used to obtain or discount a specific service or product. The granting unit 53 changes the incentive depending on the number of times the traveling route specified by the traveling data collected by the collection unit 51 has been traveled. For example, the granting unit 53 grants a larger incentive the more times the traveling route specified by the traveling data collected by the collection unit 51 has been traveled.

[0059] In other words, shadow mode is intended to verify actual use cases of a verification target program that has undergone sufficient machine learning and verification during the development phase. For frequently traveled routes, sufficient data is collected and sufficient verification is performed during the development phase. Nevertheless, if travel data is collected because the deviation is equal to or greater than a threshold, it is presumed to be important travel data. Therefore, a user who provides such important travel data is given a larger incentive, thereby increasing the user's motivation to travel on frequently traveled routes.

[0060] The threshold determination unit 54 determines a threshold for each travel route. When determining the threshold, the threshold determination unit 54 calculates the number of times each travel route has been traveled and determines the threshold according to the number of times traveled. In this case, the threshold determination unit 54 determines a smaller value as the threshold for the travel route, the greater the number of times the travel route has been traveled. In other words, as described above, for travel routes that have been traveled many times, sufficient data has been collected and sufficient verification has been performed in the development stage. Therefore, for travel routes that have been traveled many times, the degree of discrepancy between the control result and the operation result tends to be smaller. Based on this, the greater the number of times the travel route has been traveled, the smaller the value as the threshold for the travel route. On the other hand, for travel routes that have been traveled few times, there is a possibility that not enough data has been collected in the development stage and sufficient verification has not been performed. Therefore, for travel routes that have been traveled few times, the degree of discrepancy between the control result and the operation result tends to be larger. Based on this, the fewer the number of times the travel route has been traveled, the larger the value as the threshold for the travel route.

[0061] The command unit 55 transmits the threshold value for each driving route determined by the threshold value determination unit 54 to each vehicle 101, and if the deviation is equal to or greater than the transmitted threshold value, commands the vehicle 101 to transmit driving data. Since transmitting threshold values ​​for driving routes across the country is wasteful and burdensome, it is desirable to transmit threshold values ​​for each driving route in the area where the vehicle 101 is located, as described above. Also, as described above, the vehicle 101 may notify the vehicle 101 of the driving route, and transmit (reply) the threshold value corresponding to the notified driving route.

[0062] Next, the flow of the data collection process for collecting data will be described with reference to Fig. 6. The data collection process is executed when travel data is received from the vehicle 101.

[0063] When the collection unit 51 receives the travel data from the transmission unit 17 of each vehicle 101, the collection unit 51 stores and collects the travel data in the storage device 102b of the server 102 (step S201). At this time, the collection unit 51 identifies the travel route from the travel data and stores the travel data for each travel route.

[0064] Next, the calculation unit 52 determines the travel route of each vehicle 101 from the travel data collected in step S201 (step S202). Then, the calculation unit 52 calculates the number of times each vehicle 101 has traveled on the travel route determined in step S203 (step S203). In step S203, the calculation unit 52 refers to the storage device 102b and calculates the number of times each vehicle 101 has traveled on the travel route determined in step S203 from the amount of travel data for each travel route for each vehicle 101. As a result, in step S203, the number of times each vehicle 101 has traveled on each travel route is calculated, for example, as shown in FIG. 4. It is also possible to identify the start point and end point of the travel route.

[0065] The granting unit 53 then determines an incentive according to the expected level of proficiency on the target road, based on the number of times of driving calculated in step S203 (step S204), and grants the incentive to the user of the vehicle 101 that transmitted the driving data collected in step S201 (step S205). At this time, if the number of times of driving is large, a larger incentive is granted than if the number of times of driving is small.

[0066] For example, as shown in Figure 4, when travel data is acquired for travel routes R11, R12, and R41 to R43 that have been traveled many times (1000 or more travels), a larger incentive is awarded compared to when travel data is collected for travel routes R13, R14, R21 to R24, R31 to R33, and R51 that have been traveled few times (less than 1000 travels).Then, the data collection process ends.

[0067] Next, the flow of the threshold determination process will be described with reference to FIG. 7. The threshold determination process is executed at predetermined intervals. First, the calculation unit 52 calculates the number of times each travel route has been traveled (step S301). The threshold determination unit 54 determines a threshold for each travel route based on the calculated number of times each travel route has been traveled (step S302). At this time, the threshold determination unit 54 determines a smaller value as the threshold for the travel route, the more times the travel route has been traveled.

[0068] For example, as shown in Figure 4, when driving data is acquired for driving routes R11, R12, and R41 to R43 with a large number of driving counts (1,000 or more), a smaller threshold value is set compared to when driving data is collected for driving routes R13, R14, R21 to R24, R31 to R33, and R51 with a small number of driving counts (less than 1,000). This is because the greater the traffic volume (number of driving counts) of a driving route, the more opportunities there are to collect driving data, and the more likely it is that existing automated driving control programs adapted through previous developments are in an optimal state (degree of completion). On the other hand, the greater the number of driving counts (experience value) of the driver on the driving route for which data is being recorded, the more likely it is that more accurate driving operations suited to the road shape and road conditions will be performed, and smoother driving data than previous training data will be recorded. Therefore, in such cases, setting a small threshold value enables the efficient collection of high-quality data.

[0069] The command unit 55 transmits the threshold value for each travel route determined by the threshold value determination unit 54 to each vehicle 101, and if the deviation degree is equal to or greater than the transmitted threshold value, transmits a command to the vehicle 101 to cause the vehicle 101 to transmit travel data (step S303). At this time, as described above, the threshold value for each travel route in the area where the vehicle 101 is located may be transmitted to each vehicle 101. Then, the threshold value determination process ends.

[0070] When the threshold setting unit 16 of the vehicle control device 10 of each vehicle 101 receives the threshold and the command, the threshold setting unit 16 stores the information in the storage unit 10b. That is, the threshold for each travel route is stored in the storage unit 10b. Note that each vehicle control device 10 may be configured to be able to set the shadow mode in response to the input of the command, that is, in response to the storage of the threshold.

[0071] According to the first embodiment, the following effects are achieved.

[0072] The vehicle control device 10 transmits driving data of the vehicle 101 when the degree of discrepancy between the control result based on the program to be verified and the operation result based on the operation of the driver of the vehicle 101 is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. The collection unit 51 of the server 102 stores and collects such driving data in the storage device 102b. Furthermore, when the server 102 collects the driving data, it grants an incentive to the vehicle 101 or the user of the vehicle 101 according to the number of times the vehicle has been driven. Specifically, the granting unit 53 grants a larger incentive the more times the driving route identified by the driving data collected by the collection unit 51 has been driven. As a result, a larger incentive is granted to a user who provides driving data on a driving route that has been driven frequently. This can increase the user's motivation to preferentially drive driving routes that have been driven frequently.

[0073] The threshold value is set according to the number of times the vehicle 101 has traveled the travel route. In this embodiment, the threshold value is set to a smaller value as the number of times the travel route has been traveled increases. In other words, as described above, the more times the driver has traveled (experience value), the more accurate the driving operation suited to the road shape and road conditions will be, and the more likely it is that smoother driving data will be recorded that exceeds previous training data. Furthermore, the more times the driver has traveled, the less fluctuation there will be in the driver's operation results.

[0074] Therefore, it is considered that the deviation between the control result and the operation result will be small for a route that has been driven many times. Based on this, the threshold value for a route is set to be smaller the more times the route has been driven. This allows for the efficient collection of high-quality driving data.

[0075] The server 102 includes a threshold determination unit 54 and a command unit 55 that transmits the threshold for each driving route determined by the threshold determination unit 54 to each vehicle 101 and commands the vehicle 101 to transmit driving data if the deviation is equal to or greater than the transmitted threshold. The server 102 calculates the number of driving times for each driving route and determines the threshold, thereby reducing the processing load on the vehicle 101. Furthermore, the server 102 calculates the number of driving times based on the driving data of all vehicles 101 collected by the server 102, so the threshold can be determined uniformly, reflecting the driving results of all vehicles 101 that can communicate with the server 102.

[0076] Second Embodiment The configuration of the data collection system 100 of the first embodiment may be partially modified. A second embodiment in which the configuration of the data collection system 100 of the first embodiment is partially modified will be described below.

[0077] In the second embodiment, even if the comparison / determination unit 14 determines that the deviation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the data acquisition unit 15 does not store the driving data in the storage unit 10b if the operation result based on the driver's operation does not comply with the predetermined driving rules. In other words, if the operation result based on the driver's operation does not comply with the predetermined driving rules, the driving data is not transmitted to the server 102.

[0078] For example, traffic laws and regulations are set as driving rules, and if a driver does not comply with the laws and regulations, the driving data is not stored or transmitted. In other words, if a driver does not comply with traffic signals or traffic signs, the driving data is not stored or transmitted. Also, if the vehicle speed is outside the legal speed range, the driving data is not stored or transmitted. Furthermore, if abrupt turns, sudden acceleration, sudden deceleration, etc. are prohibited as driving rules, the driving data is not stored or transmitted if abrupt acceleration, etc. occurs (however, this does not include cases where abrupt turns or sudden deceleration is made to avoid obstacles such as pedestrians).

[0079] On the other hand, even if the comparison judgment unit 14 judges that the deviation is less than a predetermined threshold, if a predetermined acquisition condition is met, the data acquisition unit 15 stores the driving data in the memory unit 10b and transmits it to the server 102.

[0080] The acquisition condition may be satisfied, for example, when the vehicle is traveling on a predetermined road, i.e., when the vehicle is traveling on a road where traffic volume increases only during a particular season, such as in a tourist area.

[0081] The acquisition conditions may also include, for example, thresholds for one or more parameters as components. The parameters of the acquisition conditions may be, for example, parameters included in sensor information such as vehicle speed, yaw rate, accelerator operation amount, brake operation amount, and steering amount, or parameters included in output results such as required torque and an output instruction signal to a display. The acquisition conditions may also include parameters calculated or estimated from sensor information or output results. For example, the acquisition condition parameters may include the relative distance to an obstacle (such as a preceding vehicle or pedestrian), the relative speed to the obstacle, and the time-to-collision (TTC) calculated from the recognition results of a camera image or the detection results of the millimeter-wave radar 25. The acquisition condition parameters may also include the difference between the output results based on the implemented program and the output results of the program to be verified. For example, the parameter may be the difference between the brake operation amount output by processing based on the implemented program and the brake operation amount output by processing based on the program to be verified. The threshold may be either the upper limit or lower limit of any of these parameters, or both.

[0082] Furthermore, whether or not the scene in which the vehicle 101 is traveling (hereinafter simply referred to as the scene) is a predetermined acquisition scene may be included as a component of the acquisition condition. The scene refers to various scenes that are expected when the vehicle 101 is traveling, such as a scene in which the vehicle overtakes a preceding vehicle, a scene in which the vehicle passes between vehicles, a scene in which the vehicle follows a preceding vehicle, a scene in which a pedestrian crosses in front of the vehicle 101 at night, a scene in which the vehicle 101 merges from an acceleration lane onto a main lane on a motorway, a scene in which the vehicle is parking or stopping, a scene in which the vehicle is waiting at a traffic light, and the like.

[0083] These scenes are estimated based on sensor information. For example, the vehicle control device 10 may recognize camera images or the like and estimate the scenes. More specifically, the sensor information such as camera images may be input to a machine-learned inference model such as a deep neural network to estimate the scenes. Note that image recognition does not have to be performed by the vehicle control device 10, and may be performed by an external device of the vehicle control device 10, such as an image recognition device, and the results may be input as sensor information.

[0084] Furthermore, among the various functions based on the program to be verified, the executed function (executed function) may be included as a component of the acquisition condition. For example, the acquisition condition may be satisfied when a collision damage mitigation braking control function is executed. Note that which function has been executed can be determined based on the output result (control signal) input from the verification unit 13.

[0085] In this embodiment, the acquisition condition is set by combining the acquisition scene, the execution function, and the parameter threshold (i.e., an AND condition). For example, the acquisition condition may be satisfied when the scene is following a preceding vehicle and the vehicle speed (a parameter of the acquisition condition) is equal to or greater than a threshold (50 km / h).

[0086] The combination of components of the acquisition condition may be an acquisition scene and an implementation function, an acquisition scene and a parameter threshold, or an implementation function and a parameter threshold. Furthermore, the components included in one acquisition condition may include two or more implementation functions, and in this case, the implementation functions may be an AND condition or an OR condition. For example, the condition may be that both the forward vehicle approach warning function and the collision damage mitigation braking control function are implemented, or that either one of them is implemented. Similarly, the parameter threshold may be a threshold for two or more types of parameters.

[0087] Furthermore, the acquisition condition is established when all of the conditions of the components that make up the acquisition condition are satisfied. For example, if the acquisition scene of the acquisition condition is "a scene of following a preceding vehicle," the implementation function of the acquisition condition is "a following driving function," and the threshold value of the parameter of the acquisition condition is "50 km / h or more," the acquisition condition is established when the following driving function is implemented in a scene of following a preceding vehicle and the vehicle speed (a parameter of the acquisition condition) is equal to or greater than the threshold value (50 km / h).

[0088] The number of acquisition conditions is not limited to one, and multiple acquisition conditions may be set. For example, a first acquisition condition may be a scene in which the vehicle is following a preceding vehicle and the vehicle speed is equal to or greater than a first threshold, and a second acquisition condition may be a scene in which a pedestrian is crossing in front of the vehicle 101, the distance to the pedestrian is equal to or less than a second threshold, and the amount of brake operation is equal to or greater than a third threshold.

[0089] The acquisition condition may also be changed depending on the number of times the vehicle 101 has traveled on the travel route. For example, if the number of times the vehicle 101 has traveled is a first number (e.g., 100) or more, the travel data may be stored and transmitted when the first acquisition condition or the second acquisition condition is met, and if the number of times the vehicle 101 has traveled is a second number (e.g., 300) or more, the travel data may be stored and transmitted when the first acquisition condition is met.

[0090] The data acquisition process in the second embodiment will be described below with reference to Fig. 8. Note that steps S401 to S406 of the data acquisition process shown in Fig. 8 are the same as steps S101 to S106 of the data acquisition process in the first embodiment, respectively, and therefore will not be described again.

[0091] If the determination result in step S406 is positive (if the deviation is equal to or greater than the threshold), the data acquisition unit 15 determines whether the operation result based on the driver's operation complies with a predetermined driving rule (step S407). Specifically, the data acquisition unit 15 determines whether the driver has suddenly accelerated based on the vehicle speed, acceleration, turning angle, etc. included in the sensor information. The data acquisition unit 15 also recognizes traffic signals and road signs from the image data included in the sensor information and determines whether the driver has operated in accordance with the traffic signals, etc. If the determination result is negative, the data acquisition process is terminated.

[0092] On the other hand, if the determination result in step S407 is positive, the data acquisition unit 15 stores the travel data for the travel route currently being traveled in the storage unit 10b (step S408), and then ends the data acquisition process.

[0093] On the other hand, if the determination result in step S406 is negative (if the deviation is less than the threshold), it is determined whether any of the predetermined acquisition conditions is met (step S409). If the determination result is negative, the data acquisition process ends.

[0094] On the other hand, if the determination result in step S409 is positive, the data acquisition unit 15 stores the travel data for the travel route currently being traveled in the storage unit 10b (step S408), and then ends the data acquisition process.

[0095] The transmitting unit 17 transmits the data acquired by the data acquiring unit 15 and stored in the storage unit 10b to the server 102 via the communication network 103 at a predetermined transmission timing.

[0096] According to the second embodiment, the following effects are achieved.

[0097] The vehicle control device 10 stores and transmits the driving data when a predetermined acquisition condition is met, even if the deviation is less than a predetermined threshold. The collection unit 51 receives the driving data, stores it in the storage device 102b, and collects it when a predetermined acquisition condition is met, even if the deviation is less than the predetermined threshold. This allows for the collection of driving data regardless of the deviation by setting desired acquisition conditions. For example, driving data can be collected when driving on roads with high traffic volume only during certain seasons, such as tourist destinations. Driving data can also be collected in specific scenes that may lead to an accident, such as when a pedestrian jumps out and crosses the vehicle 101. Similarly, driving data can be collected when a collision damage mitigation braking control function is activated, which may lead to or result in an accident. The likelihood of such driving data occurring is low, making it valuable driving data.

[0098] The vehicle control device 10 does not store or transmit driving data if the result of the driver's operation does not comply with the predetermined driving rules, even if the deviation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. Therefore, the collection unit 51 of the server 102 does not collect driving data if the result of the driver's operation does not comply with the predetermined driving rules, even if the deviation is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. This makes it possible to exclude driving data that is not exemplary driving in autonomous driving.

[0099] (Variations) In the above embodiment, the granting unit 53 may grant a larger incentive the fewer the number of times a travel route identified by the travel data collected by the collection unit 51 is traveled. In other words, a travel route that has been traveled less may have been insufficiently verified. In this case, the granting unit 53 may grant a larger incentive the fewer the number of times it has been traveled, thereby increasing motivation to travel a travel route that has been traveled less. This makes it possible to efficiently collect travel data for travel routes that have been traveled less.

[0100] In step S204 of the above embodiment, the granting unit 53 may add points to the incentive to be granted if the driving data stored in the storage device 102b is driving data obtained when the vehicle was driven in accordance with predetermined driving rules. The driving rules are the same as those in the second embodiment, and whether the driving rules are being followed may be determined in the same manner as in the second embodiment.

[0101] Furthermore, if the driving data stored in the storage device 102b is driving data obtained by driving that deviates from predetermined driving rules, the granting unit 53 may deduct points from the incentive to be granted. This motivates the driver to follow the driving rules, and makes it possible to efficiently collect excellent driving data.

[0102] In the above embodiment, the comparison / determination unit 14 of the vehicle control device 10 calculates the degree of discrepancy between the control result and the operation result and determines whether the degree of discrepancy is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, but this may be done by the server 102. That is, all driving data may be received from the vehicle 101, the degree of discrepancy between the control result and the operation result may be calculated, and whether the degree of discrepancy is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold may be determined. If the degree of discrepancy is equal to or greater than the threshold, the received driving data may be stored in the storage device 102b.

[0103] In the above embodiment, the threshold value determination unit 54 is provided in the server 102. However, the threshold value determination unit 54 may be provided in the vehicle control device 10. In this case, the calculation unit 52 may transmit the number of times of travel for each travel route to the vehicle control device 10.

[0104] In the above embodiment, when driving data is collected for a predetermined driving route, such as an area where traffic accidents are frequent and data collection is particularly desirable, the awarding unit 53 may refer to the number of times each vehicle 101 has driven that route, and award additional incentive points that take into account the fact that driving with a high level of proficiency can be expected depending on the number of times that the route has been driven.

[0105] The implementation program (driving assistance control program) of the above embodiment may be a program that does not involve driving assistance. In other words, it may be a program for autonomous driving level 0. Furthermore, it may be configured to be able to switch the driving assistance function on and off.

[0106] In the above embodiment, the vehicle control device 10 may include a verification processing device for executing the program to be verified, separate from the processing device 10a, in consideration of the processing load when executing the implemented program. The verification processing device may have performance equivalent to or different from that of the processing device 10a, as long as it has the performance required to execute the program to be verified. The verification processing device may be configured to be able to perform any or all of the functions of the input unit 11, the verification unit 13, the comparison / determination unit 14, the data acquisition unit 15, the threshold setting unit 16, and the transmission unit 17.

[0107] In the above embodiment, the method for calculating the deviation may be changed as desired. For example, the score value for each item may be calculated, and the average or weighted average of the scores may be used as the deviation value. Furthermore, while the ratio of the control result based on the program under verification to the driver's operation result is calculated, the difference may simply be calculated, and the score may be set according to the difference.

[0108] In the above embodiment, the number of times each vehicle 101 travels on each travel route is measured for each vehicle 101. However, as a modification of this, the number of times each route is traveled may be measured for all vehicles 101 connected to the communication network 103. A threshold value may then be set according to the number of times traveled. By using such a method, it becomes possible to improve the efficiency of data collection on travel routes where absolute traffic volume is low and data collection does not progress efficiently, but where important data must be collected early from the perspective of autonomous driving.

[0109] In the above embodiment, anonymization processing may be performed on the driving data acquired during shadow mode. Anonymization processing refers to making personal information that could lead to the identification of an individual unrecognizable. For example, in image data, a driver's face, license plate, or the like may be blurred or painted black or white. Location information may also be erased in part or in whole. When anonymization processing is performed, it is desirable to notify the driver of this. This increases the likelihood of obtaining consent to the provision of driving data.

[0110] In the above embodiment, the granting unit 53 may grant a large incentive when a predetermined acquisition condition is met. For example, the granting unit 53 may grant a large incentive when driving data is acquired in bad weather. Furthermore, for example, the granting unit 53 may grant a large incentive when the scene is heavy traffic. Similarly, the granting unit 53 may grant a large incentive when driving data is collected for a predetermined driving route. For example, the granting unit 53 may grant a large incentive when driving data is collected for a winding mountain road that is not a normal road shape.

[0111] The controller and methods described herein may be implemented by a special-purpose computer configured with a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions embodied in a computer program. Alternatively, the controller and methods described herein may be implemented by a special-purpose computer configured with a processor configured with one or more dedicated hardware logic circuits. Alternatively, the controller and methods described herein may be implemented by one or more special-purpose computers configured with a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions in combination with a processor configured with one or more hardware logic circuits. Furthermore, the computer program may be stored as instructions executed by a computer on a computer-readable non-transitory storage medium.

[0112] The following describes technical ideas that can be derived from the above-described embodiment and modifications.

[0113] [Configuration 1] A data collection device (102) that receives and collects driving data of a vehicle (101) via a communication network (103), wherein a vehicle control program to be verified is executed in the vehicle without being involved in the control of the vehicle, and the data collection device includes: a collection unit (51) that receives and collects driving data of the vehicle when a degree of discrepancy between a control result based on the vehicle control program to be verified and an operation result based on an operation of a driver of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold; a calculation unit (52) that determines the driving route of the vehicle from the driving data collected by the collection unit and calculates the number of times the vehicle has been driven for each driving route; and an awarding unit (53) that awards an incentive to a vehicle that has transmitted the driving data collected by the collection unit or to a user of the vehicle, and the data collection device causes the calculation unit to calculate the number of times the vehicle has been driven for a driving route identified by the driving data collected by the collection unit, and the awarding unit changes the incentive according to the number of times the vehicle has been driven.

[0114] [Configuration 2] The data collection device according to Configuration 1, comprising: a threshold determination unit (54) that determines the threshold for each of the travel routes; and a command unit (55) that transmits the threshold for each of the travel routes determined by the threshold determination unit to each vehicle, and commands the vehicle to transmit travel data when the deviation is equal to or greater than the transmitted threshold, wherein the threshold is set according to the number of times the vehicle has traveled the travel route.

[0115] [Configuration 3] The data collection device according to configuration 1 or 2, wherein the threshold value is set to a smaller value as the number of times the route traveled by the vehicle increases.

[0116] [Configuration 4] The data collection device according to any one of Configurations 1 to 3, wherein, when travel data of a predetermined travel route is collected, the granting unit causes the calculation unit to calculate the number of times the vehicle has traveled along the predetermined travel route, and changes the incentive according to the number of times the vehicle has traveled.

[0117] [Configuration 5] The data collection device according to any one of configurations 1 to 4, wherein the granting unit adds points to the incentive to be granted if the driving data was acquired when the vehicle was driven in accordance with a predetermined driving rule, or subtracts points from the incentive to be granted if the driving data was acquired when the vehicle was driven in a manner that deviated from the predetermined driving rule, or performs both of these.

[0118] [Configuration 6] The data collection device according to any one of Configurations 1 to 5, wherein the collection unit receives and collects the vehicle's traveling data when a predetermined acquisition condition is met even if the degree of deviation is less than a predetermined threshold.

[0119] [Configuration 7] A data collection program executed by a data collection device (102) that receives and collects driving data of a vehicle (101) via a communication network (103), wherein a vehicle control program to be verified is executed in the vehicle in a manner not related to control of the vehicle, and the data collection device is caused to perform the following steps when a degree of discrepancy between a control result based on the vehicle control program to be verified and an operation result based on an operation by a driver of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold: a collection step of receiving and collecting driving data of the vehicle; a calculation step of determining a driving route of the vehicle from the driving data collected in the collection step and calculating the number of times the vehicle has been driven for each driving route; and an award step of awarding an incentive to a vehicle that transmitted the driving data collected in the collection step or a user of the vehicle; and the data collection program is caused to calculate the number of times the driving route specified by the driving data collected in the collection step in the calculation step, and change the incentive according to the number of times the driving

[0120] Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to the embodiments, it is understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments or structures. The present disclosure also encompasses various modifications and equivalent modifications. In addition, various combinations and forms, including only one element, more than one element, or less than one element, are also within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A data collection device (102) that receives and collects driving data of a vehicle (101) via a communication network (103), wherein a vehicle control program to be verified is executed in the vehicle without being involved in the control of the vehicle, the data collection device comprising: a collection unit (51) that receives and collects driving data of the vehicle when a degree of discrepancy between a control result based on the vehicle control program to be verified and an operation result based on an operation of the driver of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold; a calculation unit (52) that determines the driving route of the vehicle from the driving data collected by the collection unit and calculates the number of times the vehicle has been driven for each driving route; and an awarding unit (53) that awards an incentive to a vehicle that has transmitted the driving data collected by the collection unit or to a user of the vehicle, wherein the data collection device causes the calculation unit to calculate the number of times the vehicle has been driven for a driving route identified by the driving data collected by the collection unit, and the awarding unit changes the incentive according to the number of times the vehicle has been driven.

2. A data collection device as described in claim 1, comprising: a threshold determination unit (54) that determines the threshold for each driving route; and a command unit (55) that transmits the threshold for each driving route determined by the threshold determination unit to each vehicle and commands the vehicle to transmit driving data if the deviation is equal to or greater than the transmitted threshold, wherein the threshold is set according to the number of times the vehicle has driven the driving route.

3. The data collection device according to claim 1, wherein the threshold value is set to a smaller value as the number of times the route traveled by the vehicle increases.

4. The data collection device according to claim 1, wherein when driving data for a predetermined driving route is collected, the granting unit causes the calculation unit to calculate the number of times each vehicle has driven that route, and changes the incentive according to the number of times it has driven.

5. A data collection device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the granting unit adds points to the incentive to be granted if the driving data was acquired when the vehicle was driven in accordance with predetermined driving rules, or deducts points from the incentive to be granted if the driving data was acquired when the vehicle was driven in a manner that deviated from predetermined driving rules, or does both.

6. A data collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the collection unit receives and collects the vehicle's driving data when predetermined acquisition conditions are met, even if the deviation is less than a predetermined threshold.

7. A data collection program executed by a data collection device (102) that receives and collects driving data of a vehicle (101) via a communication network (103), wherein a vehicle control program to be verified is executed in the vehicle without being involved in the control of the vehicle, and the data collection device is caused to perform the following steps if the degree of discrepancy between the control result based on the vehicle control program to be verified and the operation result based on the operation of the driver of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold: a collection step of receiving and collecting driving data of the vehicle; a calculation step of determining the driving route of the vehicle from the driving data collected in the collection step and calculating the number of times the vehicle has been driven for each driving route; and an award step of awarding an incentive to the vehicle that transmitted the driving data collected in the collection step or to the user of the vehicle; and the data collection program is caused to calculate the number of times the driving route identified by the driving data collected in the collection step in the calculation step, and change the incentive according to the number of times the driving

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