WO2023058362A1 - On-board device, vehicle system, server computer, control method, and computer program - Google Patents

Abstract

This on-board device is installed in a subject vehicle having an automatic-driving function. The on-board device includes: a recommended speed calculation unit for calculating a recommended speed on the basis of a distance between the subject vehicle and an intersection located on a travel route of the subject vehicle, and signal information regarding the state of a signaling device disposed at the intersection; a traffic information generation unit for generating traffic information representing traffic conditions along a road from the position of the subject vehicle to the intersection; a determination unit for determining the suitability or non-suitability of the recommended speed on the basis of the traffic information; and an output unit for outputting the recommended speed to an execution unit of the automatic driving function. The output unit, upon reception of a determination from the determination unit that the recommended speed is suitable, outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit.

Description

In-vehicle device, vehicle system, server computer, control method and computer program

The present disclosure relates to an in-vehicle device, a vehicle system, a server computer, a control method, and a computer program. This application claims priority based on Japanese application No. 2021-164423 filed on October 6, 2021, and incorporates all the descriptions described in the Japanese application.

Various systems have been proposed for assisting drivers of automobiles, motorcycles, etc. (hereinafter referred to as vehicles). For example, Traffic Signal Prediction Systems (TSPS) by the Road Traffic Information and Communication System Center is known. In this system, signal information is transmitted from the optical beacon, and the ETC 2.0 in-vehicle device and the car navigation system supporting TSPS perform signal passage support, red light deceleration support, and the like. The car navigation system presents a recommended speed for passing through the intersection while the light is green as traffic light passing assistance. As red light deceleration support, the car navigation system presents a message prompting deceleration as the traffic light ahead turns red.

Patent Document 1 below discloses a driving support device for solving the problem of predicting signal information when entering an intersection and providing stop support based on vehicle speed, distance to the intersection, and the like. That is, if there is a vehicle waiting at a traffic light, the own vehicle must stop behind the vehicle, which causes a problem in that the timing of the stop warning is shifted. In order to solve this problem, this driving support system stops the following vehicle (i.e., the own vehicle) based on the state quantity of the vehicle that has passed a predetermined point in front of the signal by the roadside device and the state of the traffic light toward which the passing vehicle is heading. Determine position.

Sensor information is collected from roadside devices equipped with various sensor devices (e.g., cameras, radars, etc.) installed on the road and its surroundings, and analyzed to obtain traffic-related information (e.g., accidents, traffic jams, etc.). It has also been proposed to provide such information to vehicles as general driving support information. In addition, with the speeding up of mobile communication lines, information is collected not only from sensors installed in roadside equipment, but also from sensors installed in vehicles, communicated via server computers, or used to communicate between vehicles. It is also proposed to directly communicate with each other and use it effectively for driving support.

The introduction of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) and electric vehicles (EV) is progressing, and recent vehicles including these are equipped with various electronic devices. A controlling ECU (Electronic Control Unit) is installed. For example, a vehicle capable of automatic operation is equipped with an ECU for automatic operation. The ECU for automatic driving appropriately communicates with the outside and acquires necessary information (for example, road traffic information and dynamic driving support information). In addition, there are an engine control ECU, a stop-start control ECU, a transmission control ECU, an airbag control ECU, a power steering control ECU, a hybrid control ECU, and the like.

JP-A-2009-25902

An in-vehicle device according to an aspect of the present disclosure is an in-vehicle device mounted on a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, and includes a distance between an intersection located on a travel route of the target vehicle and the target vehicle, and a distance between the target vehicle and the intersection. A recommended speed calculation unit that calculates a recommended speed based on signal information regarding the state of the placed traffic lights, a traffic information generation unit that generates traffic information representing traffic conditions on the road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection, A determination unit that determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on traffic information, and an output unit that outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function. The output unit is determined by the determination unit that the recommended speed is appropriate. In response, it outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit.

A vehicle system according to another aspect of the present disclosure is a vehicle system that is mounted on a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, and that provides signal information regarding the state of a traffic light placed at an intersection located on a travel route of the target vehicle. It includes a communication unit that acquires information, an automatic driving function execution unit, and the in-vehicle device described above.

A server computer according to still another aspect of the present disclosure is a server computer that supports driving of a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, and is a signal regarding the state of a traffic light placed at an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle. A communication unit that acquires information; a recommended speed calculation unit that calculates a recommended speed based on the distance between the intersection and the target vehicle; a traffic information generating unit for generating traffic information representing traffic conditions on the road from to the intersection; and a determining unit for determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information. In response to being determined to be appropriate, the recommended speed is transmitted to the target vehicle.

A control method according to yet another aspect of the present disclosure is a control method for supporting an automatic driving function of a target vehicle, the distance between the target vehicle and an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle, A recommended speed calculation step of calculating a recommended speed based on signal information relating to the state of the placed traffic lights; a traffic information generation step of generating traffic information representing traffic conditions on the road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection; A judgment step for judging whether or not the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information, and an output step for outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function. and outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit.

A computer program according to still another aspect of the present disclosure is a computer program installed in a target vehicle, which relates to the distance between the vehicle and an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle and the state of the traffic light placed at the intersection. A recommended speed calculation function that calculates a recommended speed based on signal information, a traffic information generation function that generates traffic information representing traffic conditions on the road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection, and a recommended speed based on the traffic information A computer program for realizing a judgment function that judges the propriety of and an output function that outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function, and the output function judges that the recommended speed is appropriate by the judgment function. It includes a function to output the recommended speed to the execution part in response to the fact.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a driving assistance system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a road including an intersection to which the driving assistance system of FIG. 1 is applied. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the in-vehicle system shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the vehicle-mounted gateway shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the in-vehicle gateway shown in FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a state in which vehicles stagnate at an intersection due to right-turning vehicles. FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a state in which vehicles stagnate between the host vehicle and the intersection. FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing processing related to dynamic map generation and management executed by the in-vehicle gateway. FIG. 9 is a flow chart showing processing executed by the in-vehicle gateway in relation to cooperative control of vehicle travel. FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a different road from FIG. 2 to which the driving assistance system of FIG. 1 is applied. FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of an in-vehicle system according to the first modified example. FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the expansion device shown in FIG. 11; FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the driving support system according to the second modified example.

[Problems to be Solved by the Present Disclosure]
In the current TSPS, even if the recommended speed of the vehicle is presented to the in-vehicle device based on the signal information, it is not always possible to pass through the intersection due to traffic conditions at the intersection (for example, stagnation of vehicles, etc.). A driver who sees the recommended speed may step on the accelerator to increase the vehicle speed to the recommended speed in hopes of being able to pass the intersection ahead, but a situation may arise in which the driver must step on the brake just before the intersection. As long as such recommended speeds are obeyed, similar problems may occur in vehicles having automatic driving functions. In such a case, unnecessary acceleration results in wasted energy (eg, gasoline or electric power). This problem cannot be solved by Patent Document 1, which is based on the premise of stopping at an intersection.

Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an in-vehicle device, a vehicle system, a server computer, a control method, and a computer program that can suppress unnecessary acceleration in a vehicle having an automatic driving function.

[Effect of the present disclosure]
According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an in-vehicle device, a vehicle system, a server computer, a control method, and a computer program capable of suppressing unnecessary acceleration in a vehicle having an automatic driving function.

[Description of Embodiments of the Present Disclosure]
The contents of the embodiments of the present disclosure are listed and described. At least some of the embodiments described below may be combined arbitrarily.

(1) An in-vehicle device according to a first aspect of the present disclosure is an in-vehicle device that is mounted on a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, and is located on a travel route of the target vehicle and an intersection between the target vehicle and A recommended speed calculation unit that calculates a recommended speed based on the distance and signal information regarding the state of the traffic lights placed at the intersection, and a traffic information that generates traffic information that represents the traffic conditions on the road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection. An information generation unit, a determination unit that determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on traffic information, and an output unit that outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function. In response to the determination that it is appropriate, the recommended speed is output to the execution unit. As a result, only an appropriate recommended speed is presented for a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, so unnecessary acceleration due to provision of an inappropriate recommended speed can be suppressed. Note that the in-vehicle device is not limited to one that is installed as a standard device in a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, but also includes devices that can be installed later as expansion devices. Autonomous driving preferably includes all levels above Level 1 (that is, driving assistance), which will be described later.

(2) In (1) above, the output unit can output the signal information to the execution unit in addition to the recommended speed in response to the determination by the determination unit that the recommended speed is appropriate. As a result, it is possible to perform coordinated control of the running of the own vehicle (that is, the target vehicle) using the signal information, and realize appropriate automatic driving. Coordinated control means controlling the running of a vehicle by reflecting information (for example, signal information, sensor data, dynamic information, etc.) provided from traffic lights, infrastructure sensors, other vehicles, and the like.

(3) In (1) or (2) above, the traffic light information may include information on a specific traffic light that controls traffic in the direction in which the target vehicle enters the intersection, and the recommended speed calculation unit calculates the distance. The recommended speed may be calculated by dividing by the remaining green time of the specific traffic light. With this, it is possible to easily calculate a provisional recommended speed for which suitability is determined by the determination unit.

(4) In (3) above, the recommended speed calculation unit may calculate the recommended speed in response to the fact that the remaining time of the blue color of the specific traffic light is equal to or longer than a predetermined time. This makes it possible to avoid calculating a recommended speed that is highly likely to be determined to be inappropriate, thereby reducing the processing load.

(5) In any one of (1) to (4) above, the traffic information may be a representative speed of a vehicle traveling between the target vehicle and the intersection, and the determining unit may A difference between the speed and the recommended speed may be calculated, and whether or not the recommended speed is appropriate may be determined based on the difference. This makes it possible to accurately determine whether the recommended speed is appropriate.

(6) In (5) above, the difference may be a difference calculated by subtracting the recommended speed from the representative speed. is appropriate, and if the difference is less than a predetermined value, it may be determined that the recommended speed is not appropriate. This makes it possible to more accurately determine whether the recommended speed is appropriate.

(7) In (5) or (6) above, the representative speed is the average speed or minimum speed of a plurality of vehicles traveling in the same direction as the target vehicle between the target vehicle and the intersection. Among them, the speed of the vehicle closest to the intersection or the speed of the vehicle closest to the target vehicle among a plurality of vehicles may be used. As a result, an appropriate representative speed can be determined, and appropriateness of the recommended speed can be appropriately determined.

(8) In (5) or (6) above, the determining unit is traveling in the same direction as the target vehicle between the target vehicle and the intersection based on the dynamic information about the intersection and the intersection. For each of the plurality of vehicles, the estimated speed after a predetermined time may be calculated, and the representative speed is the average value or minimum value of the plurality of estimated speeds, the estimated speed of the vehicle closest to the intersection among the plurality of vehicles, Alternatively, it may be the estimated speed of the vehicle closest to the target vehicle among a plurality of vehicles. This makes it possible to determine a more appropriate representative speed and more appropriately determine whether the recommended speed is appropriate.

(9) In any one of (1) to (8) above, the in-vehicle device may further include a recommended speed correction unit that corrects the recommended speed based on the determination result of the determination unit; may output the recommended speed corrected by the recommended speed correction unit to the execution unit in response to the fact that the determination unit has determined that the recommended speed is not appropriate. As a result, appropriate automatic driving can be realized.

(10) In (9) above, the recommended speed correction unit may maintain the recommended speed in response to the determination by the determination unit that the recommended speed is appropriate, and the determination unit determines that the recommended speed is appropriate. The recommended speed may be corrected to a smaller value in response to the determination that it is not. As a result, more appropriate automatic driving can be realized.

(11) A vehicle system according to a second aspect of the present disclosure is a vehicle system mounted on a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, and the state of a traffic signal placed at an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle. a communication unit that acquires signal information regarding, an execution unit for an automatic driving function, and any one of the in-vehicle devices of (1) to (10) above. As a result, only an appropriate recommended speed is presented for a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, so unnecessary acceleration due to provision of an inappropriate recommended speed can be suppressed.

(12) A server computer according to a third aspect of the present disclosure is a server computer that supports driving of a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, and is a signal installed at an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle. A communication unit that acquires signal information regarding the state, a recommended speed calculation unit that calculates a recommended speed based on the distance between the intersection and the vehicle, and signal information regarding the state of the traffic light placed at the intersection, and the target vehicle. a traffic information generation unit that generates traffic information representing traffic conditions on the road from the position of to the intersection; and a determination unit that determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information. After it is determined that the recommended speed is appropriate, the recommended speed is transmitted to the target vehicle. As a result, only an appropriate recommended speed is presented for a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, so unnecessary acceleration due to provision of an inappropriate recommended speed can be suppressed.

(13) A control method according to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure is a control method for supporting an automatic driving function of a target vehicle, and the distance between the target vehicle and an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle , a recommended speed calculation step of calculating a recommended speed based on signal information regarding the state of the traffic signal placed at the intersection, and a traffic information generation step of generating traffic information representing traffic conditions on the road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection. a determination step of determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on traffic information; and an output step of outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function. The step of outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit is included in response to the determination that there is. As a result, only an appropriate recommended speed is presented for a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, so unnecessary acceleration due to provision of an inappropriate recommended speed can be suppressed.

(14) A vehicle computer program according to a fifth aspect of the present disclosure stores, in a computer mounted on a target vehicle, a distance between an intersection located on a travel route of the target vehicle and the target vehicle, and a position at the intersection. A recommended speed calculation function that calculates a recommended speed based on traffic signal information related to the state of the traffic light, a traffic information generation function that generates traffic information representing traffic conditions on the road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection, and traffic information and an output function for outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function, wherein the output function is the recommended speed by the determination function It includes a function of outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit in response to the fact that the speed is determined to be appropriate. As a result, only an appropriate recommended speed is presented for a target vehicle having an automatic driving function, so unnecessary acceleration due to provision of an inappropriate recommended speed can be suppressed.

[Details of the embodiment of the present disclosure]
In the following embodiments, identical parts are provided with identical reference numerals. Their names and functions are also the same. Therefore, detailed description thereof will not be repeated.

[overall structure]
Referring to FIG. 1, a driving assistance system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes an in-vehicle system 104a and an in-vehicle system 104b installed in a plurality of vehicles 102a and 102b, respectively. In-vehicle system 104a and in-vehicle system 104b can communicate with each other. Communication between the in-vehicle system 104 a and the in-vehicle system 104 b may be communication via the base station 108 or direct communication without the base station 108 . Thereby, as will be described later, each of the vehicle 102a and the vehicle 102b can perform coordinated control of the running of the own vehicle. The base station 108 provides mobile communication services through, for example, 4G (ie, fourth generation mobile communication system) lines and 5G (ie, fifth generation mobile communication system) lines.

The in-vehicle system 104a and the in-vehicle system 104b installed in the vehicle 102a and the vehicle 102b, respectively, have communication functions according to the communication specifications (eg, 4G line, 5G line, etc.) serviced by the base station 108. As described above, the in-vehicle system 104a and the in-vehicle system 104b also have a function of communicating directly with each other without going through the base station 108 (for example, V2V (Vehicle to Vehicle)). A wireless LAN (Local Area Network), for example, is used for mutual communication not via the base station 108 .

The infrastructure sensor 110 and the road traffic signal 106 fixedly installed on the road (including intersections) and its surroundings (hereinafter also referred to as roadside) can also communicate with the in-vehicle system 104a and the in-vehicle system 104b. Pedestrian 900 , vehicle 102 a and vehicle 102 b are detection targets of infrastructure sensor 110 . Pedestrian 900 is also a detection target of sensors mounted on vehicles 102a and 102b.

The infrastructure sensor 110 is installed on the roadside, is a device equipped with a function of acquiring roadside information, and has a communication function with the base station 108 . The infrastructure sensor 110 is, for example, an image sensor (such as a digital surveillance camera), a radar (such as a millimeter wave radar), or a laser sensor (such as LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging)). In addition, the infrastructure sensor 110 may be equipped with or connected to a roadside device having a computing function.

The sensor data acquired by the sensors mounted on each of the vehicles 102a and 102b are analyzed by the in-vehicle system 104a and the in-vehicle system 104b, and the analysis results are stored as dynamic information. Dynamic information is used in self-driving functions of the ego vehicle. Autonomous driving is classified into Level 1 to Level 5 according to the driving subject (ie, human or system) and the driving area (ie, limited or unrestricted). Automated driving for which dynamic information can be used is not limited to level 4 or higher fully automated driving (i.e., the system is the main driving force without a human being driving), as well as level 1 and It is preferable to include Level 2 as well as Conditional Autonomous Driving (ie Level 3). That is, automated driving for which dynamic information can be used may be any of level 1 to level 5 automated driving, or any of level 1 to level 5 automated driving. Also, dynamic information may be communicated back and forth between in-vehicle system 104a and in-vehicle system 104b as described above. In addition to dynamic information, in-vehicle system 104a and in-vehicle system 104b communicate with each other information about the vehicle in which each is installed (eg, vehicle position, vehicle speed, direction of travel, etc.).

Information about dynamic objects detected by sensors (hereinafter referred to as dynamic information) is used to generate dynamic maps. A “dynamic map” is a map in which dynamic information is associated with a static map (for example, a road map, etc.). For example, as a dynamic map, {information specifying a dynamic object, dynamic information, information specifying an area on the map} is set as one data set, and a data structure is adopted that includes data sets as many as the number of dynamic objects. can. It should be noted that the dynamic map for use in automatic driving of the own vehicle may be related to a predetermined area including the travel route of the own vehicle (that is, the road on which the vehicle is scheduled to travel). Dynamic information contained in the predetermined area is used for coordinated control of travel of the host vehicle.

Dynamic objects are not limited to moving objects (that is, people, vehicles, etc.), but also include stationary objects that have the ability to move. The dynamic information includes information about the displacement of the dynamic object (that is, the position, the magnitude and direction of the change), and is composed of, for example, position, moving speed, moving direction and time information for each dynamic object. Dynamic information may also include forecast information. For example, if the in-vehicle system 104a and the in-vehicle system 104b have a prediction function, using the movement trajectory, movement speed, and movement direction of the dynamic object up to the present, future (for example, within a predetermined time from the present) Movement trajectory, movement speed and movement direction can be predicted. Therefore, they may be included in the dynamic information. The time information includes, for example, the generation time of the dynamic information and the expiration date. The validity period represents the upper limit of time that the dynamic information can be effectively used after it is generated.

An area on the map is, for example, each area (hereinafter referred to as a grid area) that divides the road map into a grid. In that case, the dynamic map stores the dynamic information contained in each grid area corresponding to the grid area. A dynamic map is updated from time to time with new data.

FIG. 1 exemplarily shows one base station 108, one infrastructure sensor 110, one traffic light 106, and two vehicles 102a and 102b equipped with an in-vehicle system. But this is only an example. Usually, a plurality of base stations are provided, and an in-vehicle system is installed in three or more vehicles. For example, referring to FIG. 2, vehicles 102a to 102d are traveling toward an intersection 910. At the intersection 910, traffic lights 106a to 106f and an infrastructure sensor 110 are arranged. etc. exist. The traffic signals 106a to 106d, etc. are traffic signals for vehicles, and the traffic signals 106e, 106f, etc. are traffic signals for pedestrians. The vehicles shown in FIG. 2 may include vehicles that do not have an in-vehicle system.

[Hardware configuration of in-vehicle system]
Referring to FIG. 3, an example of the hardware configuration of the in-vehicle system 104a mounted on the vehicle 102a is shown. An in-vehicle system 104b mounted on the vehicle 102b is similarly configured. The in-vehicle system 104 a includes a communication unit 120 , an in-vehicle gateway 122 , a sensor 124 , an automatic driving ECU 126 , an ECU 128 , and a bus 130 and a bus 132 . In addition, the in-vehicle system 104a includes a plurality of ECUs in addition to the automatic driving ECU 126, and FIG. 3 shows the ECU 128 as a representative of them.

The communication unit 120 performs wireless communication with an external device of the vehicle 102a (for example, communication with the in-vehicle system 104b via the base station 108). The communication unit 120 includes an IC for modulation and multiplexing employed in wireless communication, an antenna for transmitting and receiving radio waves of a predetermined frequency, an RF circuit, and the like. The communication unit 120 also has a function of communicating with GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) such as GPS (Global Positioning System). The communication unit 120 may also have a communication function such as a wireless LAN.

The in-vehicle gateway 122, which is an in-vehicle device, plays a role (that is, communication protocol conversion, etc.) that connects the communication function (that is, communication specification) with the outside of the vehicle and the communication function (that is, communication specification) inside the vehicle. The automatic driving ECU 126 can communicate with external devices via the in-vehicle gateway 122 and the communication unit 120 . The in-vehicle gateway 122 acquires dynamic information and data used for its generation (e.g., sensor data, sensor data analysis results, etc.) among the information received from the outside via the communication unit 120, and, as described later, Generate and update dynamic maps. The updated dynamic map (ie dynamic information) is transmitted to the autonomous driving ECU 126 . Data exchange between units occurs via bus 130 and bus 132 .

The sensor 124 is mounted on the vehicle 102a and is a sensor for acquiring information outside the vehicle 102a (for example, a video imaging device (for example, a digital camera (for example, a CCD camera, a CMOS camera)), a laser sensor (for example, LiDAR). etc.), and sensors for obtaining information on the vehicle itself (for example, an acceleration sensor, a load sensor, etc.). The sensor 124 acquires information within a detection range (for example, an imaging range in the case of a camera) and outputs it as sensor data. A digital camera outputs digital image data. A detection signal (that is, an analog or digital signal) of the sensor 124 is output as digital data to the bus 132 via an I/F unit (not shown) and transmitted to the vehicle-mounted gateway 122, the automatic driving ECU 126, and the like.

The automatic driving ECU 126 controls automatic driving of the vehicle 102a. For example, the automatic driving ECU 126 acquires sensor data, analyzes it to grasp the situation around the vehicle, and controls mechanisms related to automatic driving (for example, mechanisms such as the engine, transmission, steering, brakes, etc.). The automatic driving ECU 126 uses the dynamic information (that is, dynamic map) acquired from the in-vehicle gateway 122 for automatic driving.

The dynamic information of the vehicle 102a is transmitted to the in-vehicle systems of other vehicles, such as the in-vehicle system 104b of the vehicle 102b. For example, the in-vehicle gateway 122 generates packet data including dynamic information, and transmits it from the communication unit 120 to the in-vehicle system 104b via the base station 108. FIG. Sensor data may also be transmitted to the in-vehicle system 104b of the vehicle 102b. Thereby, the in-vehicle system 104b can use the received data for automatic driving of the vehicle 102b. That is, each of the in-vehicle system 104a and the in-vehicle system 104b can implement cooperative control of the running of the own vehicle.

[Hardware configuration of in-vehicle gateway]
Referring to FIG. 4, in-vehicle gateway 122 includes control unit 140 and memory 142 . The control unit 140 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and controls the memory 142 . The memory 142 is, for example, a rewritable non-volatile semiconductor memory, and stores computer programs (hereinafter simply referred to as programs) executed by the control unit 140 . Memory 142 provides a work area for programs executed by control unit 140 . The control unit 140 acquires data to be processed via the buses 130 and 132 , stores the processing results in the memory 142 , and outputs them to the buses 130 and 132 .

[Functional configuration of in-vehicle gateway]
The functions of the in-vehicle gateway 122 will be described with reference to FIG. In the following description, it is assumed that the vehicle 102a shown in FIG. 2 is the own vehicle. The in-vehicle gateway 122 includes a storage unit 200, a dynamic information generation unit 202, a dynamic map generation unit 204, a traffic information generation unit 206, a recommended speed calculation unit 208, a determination unit 210, a recommended speed correction unit 212, and an output unit 214. . Storage unit 200 stores data received by communication unit 120 and input via bus 130 and sensor data of sensor 124 input via bus 132 . A road map is stored in the storage unit 200 . The data input via the bus 130 includes signal information, other vehicle information (for example, position information, speed information, traveling direction), dynamic information, sensor data, and the like. Storage unit 200 is realized by memory 142 in FIG. Other functions, which will be described later, are implemented by the control unit 140 .

The dynamic information generation unit 202 reads sensor data from the storage unit 200 and generates dynamic information. The dynamic information generation unit 202 stores the generated dynamic information in the storage unit 200 . The dynamic map generation unit 204 generates information on other vehicles and dynamic information read from the storage unit 200, the position information of the own vehicle (that is, GPS data) received from the communication unit 120, and the driving force for running the own vehicle. The dynamic map is updated using the speed information acquired from the unit (that is, the control target of the automatic driving ECU 126). The updated dynamic map is stored in storage unit 200 .

The traffic information generation unit 206 reads the dynamic map from the storage unit 200 and generates information representing traffic conditions (hereinafter referred to as traffic information) used to determine whether cooperation is possible, which will be described later. The traffic information generation unit 206 outputs the generated traffic information to the determination unit 210 and the recommended speed correction unit 212 . Traffic information is, for example, information representing the traffic conditions (for example, the state of dynamic objects) from the current position of the vehicle to an intersection (for example, the nearest intersection) located on the travel route of the vehicle. . For example, in FIG. 2, the traffic information includes a plurality of vehicles (i.e., vehicle group 114) traveling between vehicle 102a (i.e., the host vehicle) and intersection 910 (including intersection 910), and pedestrians 900a and pedestrians. It includes information about the state of the person 900b, etc. (for example, attributes, position, speed, direction of travel, etc.).

Information on the representative speed Vg of one or more vehicles (hereinafter referred to as a group of vehicles) located between the vehicle 102a and the intersection 910 can be used as the traffic information. The representative speed is used to determine whether the recommended speed is appropriate, which will be described later. The representative speed is, for example, the average or minimum speed of the fleet of vehicles 114 (ie, vehicle 102b, vehicle 102c, and vehicle 102d). The representative speed may be the speed of the vehicle 102b closest to the intersection 910 among the vehicles in the vehicle group, or the speed of the vehicle 102d closest to the host vehicle 102a among the vehicles in the vehicle group 114 . As a result, an appropriate representative speed can be determined, and appropriateness of a recommended speed, which will be described later, can be appropriately determined.

In addition, the traffic information generation unit 206 drives the vehicle between the vehicle and the intersection in the same direction as the vehicle based on the dynamic information (for example, the position and moving speed of the dynamic object) at the intersection and around the intersection. An estimated speed after a predetermined time (for example, t seconds) may be estimated for each of a plurality of vehicles that are connected to each other, and a representative speed may be determined from the estimated speed. For example, an average value or minimum value of a plurality of estimated speeds can be used as the representative speed. As the representative speed, the estimated speed of the vehicle closest to the intersection among the plurality of vehicles or the estimated speed of the vehicle closest to the own vehicle among the plurality of vehicles may be used. This makes it possible to determine a more appropriate representative speed and more appropriately determine whether the recommended speed is appropriate.

Note that there may be cases where there is no vehicle between the vehicle 102a and the intersection 910 that affects the running of the vehicle 102a. In such a case, the representative speed is the legal speed of the road on which the vehicle 102a is traveling. The legal speed of each road should be stored in the memory 142 in association with the road map. For roads that are not stored, the legal speed limit in Japan is 60 km/h (=16.7 m/sec), so that value can be used as the representative speed. Also, a value obtained by estimating the legal speed based on the width of the road, the number of lanes, etc. may be used as the representative speed.

The recommended speed calculation unit 208 calculates the speed at which the vehicle should travel (hereinafter referred to as the recommended speed) in order to pass through an intersection located on the travel route of the vehicle while the traffic light is currently green. ) is calculated. Specifically, the recommended speed calculation unit 208 uses the current position of the vehicle acquired from the control unit 160 and the map information read from the storage unit 200 to calculate the distance L ( 2) is calculated. Note that the distance L means the distance along the road. The distance L is not limited to the distance from the vehicle to the center of the intersection, but may be the distance from the vehicle to the vicinity of the intersection (for example, the position of the stop line). In addition, the recommended speed calculation unit 208 reads from the storage unit 200 the signal information of a traffic signal (hereinafter referred to as a specific signal) that controls traffic in the direction in which the vehicle enters the intersection, among the traffic signals placed at the intersection. If so, the remaining time Δt is acquired. For example, in FIG. 2, for vehicle 102a, traffic light 106a is the specific traffic light. The recommended speed calculator 208 divides the calculated distance L by the remaining time Δt to calculate a recommended speed Vr (=L/Δt). Recommended speed calculation unit 208 outputs the calculated recommended speed Vr to determination unit 210 and recommended speed correction unit 212 . Since the recommended speed can be corrected as described later, the recommended speed output from the recommended speed calculator 208 can be said to be a provisional recommended speed. By using the remaining green time of the specific traffic light, it is possible to easily calculate a provisional recommended speed whose suitability is determined by the determination unit 210, which will be described later.

Traffic light information includes, for example, traffic light position information, cycle, split, current color, and elapsed time of the current color. A cycle represents the time (eg, in seconds) that the traffic light cycles through green, yellow, and red. A split represents the time allocation (eg, in percent) assigned to each occurrence (ie, the time period during which each intersecting traffic flow is granted the right-of-way) during a cycle. For example, with respect to orthogonal first and second roads, for a traffic signal controlling traffic on the first road with the higher traffic volume and a traffic signal controlling traffic on the second road with the lower traffic volume, for example, 60 % and 40% splits are set. If the traffic light controlling traffic on the first road is blue, then the traffic light controlling traffic on the second road is red, and since the cycles of both traffic lights are the same (i.e., the yellow time is relatively short). time), the duration of the green color for each traffic light can be calculated by multiplying the cycles and splits.

The determination unit 210 determines whether or not the recommended speed input from the recommended speed calculation unit 208 is appropriate. As will be described later, this determination result determines whether or not cooperative control is possible in automatic driving, so this determination can also be said to be a determination of whether or not cooperation is possible. Based on the traffic information input from the traffic information generation unit 206, the determination unit 210 determines whether the recommended speed Vr input from the recommended speed calculation unit 208 is appropriate. When the representative speed is input as traffic information from the traffic information generator 206, the determination unit 210 subtracts the recommended speed Vr from the representative speed Vg to calculate the difference ΔV, and determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the difference ΔV. judge. For example, if the difference ΔV is equal to or greater than a predetermined value equal to or greater than 0 (eg, 0 km/h, 5 km/h, etc.), the speed of the vehicle group traveling in front of the host vehicle is greater than the recommended speed by a predetermined value or more ( (i.e., fast) can be expected. Therefore, if the current speed of the host vehicle is lower than the recommended speed, it can be determined that acceleration to the recommended speed will not cause any problems, and determination unit 210 determines that the recommended speed is appropriate (that is, cooperation is possible). On the other hand, if the difference ΔV is smaller than the predetermined value, the speed of the vehicle running in front of the host vehicle is approximately the same as the recommended speed (that is, the difference is less than the predetermined value) or smaller than the recommended speed ( slow), so accelerating to the recommended speed causes problems. Therefore, determination unit 210 determines that the recommended speed is not appropriate. The determination section 210 outputs the determination result to the recommended speed correction section 212 and the output section 214 . The determination result is, for example, 1-bit information indicating suitability (for example, "1" is appropriate, "0" is inappropriate).

In the above, the difference ΔV obtained by subtracting the recommended speed Vr from the representative speed Vg is used, but the difference obtained by subtracting the representative speed Vg from the recommended speed Vr (that is, -ΔV) may be used. In that case, the adequacy of the recommended speed can be judged in the same manner as described above, considering that the sign (ie, positive or negative) of the difference (ie, -ΔV) is opposite to the sign of ΔV. Further, it is sufficient to express the difference between the recommended speed Vr and the representative speed Vg, and the adequacy of the recommended speed may be determined using the ratio between the recommended speed Vr and the representative speed Vg.

In the above, the case of using one representative speed as traffic information has been explained, but it is not limited to this. As described above, there are multiple methods for determining the representative speed. A representative speed may be determined by two or more methods, and a combination thereof may be used to determine whether the recommended speed is suitable (that is, whether cooperation is possible). Also, the traffic information may be dynamic information about a dynamic object that affects the vehicle's travel to the intersection (including passage through the intersection).

Based on the determination result input from the determination unit 210, the recommended speed correction unit 212 corrects the recommended speed input from the recommended speed calculation unit 208 to an appropriate value or maintains the recommended speed. If the determination result is 1 (that is, appropriate), the recommended speed correction unit 212 outputs the recommended speed input from the recommended speed calculation unit 208 to the output unit 214 as it is. On the other hand, if the determination result is 0 (that is, inappropriate), the recommended speed correction unit 212 considers the traffic information (for example, the representative speed) input from the traffic information generation unit 206, and The corrected recommended speed is corrected to an appropriate value, and the corrected recommended speed is output to the output unit 214 . For example, the recommended speed correction unit 212 sets a new recommended speed to a value between the current speed of the host vehicle and the representative speed. For example, if the current speed of the host vehicle is lower than the representative speed, the vehicle can be accelerated to the representative speed. That is, the current speed is set as the new recommended speed. If the current speed of the own vehicle is equal to or higher than the representative speed, for example, a value smaller than the current speed (for example, the representative speed) is set as the new recommended speed. The own vehicle can thereby be decelerated. Therefore, useless acceleration can be efficiently suppressed, and appropriate automatic driving can be realized.

The output unit 214 outputs the recommended speed input from the recommended speed correction unit 212 to the automatic driving ECU via the bus 132 . The output unit 214 also acquires the signal information of the traffic lights arranged at the intersection from the storage unit 200 based on the determination result input from the determination unit 210, and outputs the signal information to the automatic driving ECU via the bus 132. That is, the output unit 214 outputs the signal information to the automatic driving ECU if the determination result is 1 (that is, appropriate). As a result, using the recommended speed and signal information, it becomes possible to perform cooperative control of the running of the own vehicle, and appropriate automatic driving is realized. On the other hand, if the determination result is 0 (that is, inappropriate), the output unit 214 does not output the signal information to the automatic driving ECU. In this case, there is a high possibility that the own vehicle will stop before the intersection, so the signal information of the intersection is unnecessary. Thereby, the load on the automatic driving ECU 126 can be reduced. Note that the output unit 214 outputs dynamic information acquired from other vehicles traveling in front of the own vehicle to the automatic driving ECU regardless of the determination result input from the determination unit 210 .

From the above, if the recommended speed is appropriate, the recommended speed is output to the automatic driving ECU, and the vehicle is likely to be able to pass the intersection while the specific traffic light is currently in blue, for example by accelerating. . At this time, signal information and dynamic information are provided to the automatic driving ECU, and cooperative control in automatic driving is executed. Thus, the autonomous driving ECU uses dynamic information about the ego-vehicle's surroundings while the e-vehicle reaches and navigates the intersection to enable safe and appropriate driving. On the other hand, if the recommended speed is inappropriate, there is a high possibility that the intersection cannot be passed while the specific traffic light is currently green. Useless acceleration due to provision of an appropriate recommended speed is suppressed.

For example, referring to FIG. 2, at an intersection 910, even if the traffic light 106a, which is a specific traffic light, has a sufficient amount of remaining green time, and the intersection 910 can be reached while the traffic light 106a is currently green, the recommended speed is calculated. If the traffic conditions shown in FIG. 6 or FIG. 7 are present at the point in time, the calculated recommended speed is not appropriate. In FIG. 6, at an intersection 910, the vehicle 102b about to turn right has stopped because of the oncoming vehicle 102e and the pedestrian 900a, and the following three vehicles have also stopped. Under such traffic conditions, the vehicle 102a is likely to stop before the intersection 910. FIG. Further, in FIG. 7, the traffic condition is smooth at the intersection 910, and the vehicle 102b, which is the leading vehicle of the vehicle group, can run without any trouble. However, a large vehicle 102f (for example, a bus) is stopped on the road leading to the intersection 910, and an oncoming vehicle such as the vehicle 102g is also running, so the following vehicle of the vehicle 102f is stopped. Under such traffic conditions, the vehicle 102a is likely to stop behind the vehicle 102f. Under the traffic conditions shown in FIG. 6 or 7, it is highly likely that the vehicle cannot pass through the intersection 910 while the traffic light 106a is currently green. Therefore, the in-vehicle gateway 122 of the vehicle 102a functions as described above, so that the vehicle 102a can suppress unnecessary acceleration and maintain the current speed or decelerate.

The determination unit 210 preferably considers the legal speed of the road on which the vehicle is traveling when determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate. Since it is not preferable to set a speed exceeding the legal speed as the recommended speed, the determination unit 210 determines that the recommended speed meets the above-described conditions (i.e., the difference ΔV obtained by subtracting the recommended speed Vr from the representative speed Vg is 0 or more). a predetermined value or more), it is determined to be inappropriate. Most of the vehicles in the vehicle group can be expected to travel at legal speeds (i.e., representative speed ≤ legal speed). It can also be said.

Note that the recommended speed correction unit 212 may be omitted. In that case, the recommended speed output from the recommended speed calculation unit 208 is also input to the output unit 214 . The output unit 214 outputs the determination result input from the determination unit 210 to the automatic driving ECU, and only when the determination result is 1 (that is, appropriate), the recommended speed input from the recommended speed calculation unit 208 is used for automatic driving. Output to ECU. That is, if the determination result is 0 (that is, inappropriate), the recommended speed input from the recommended speed calculation unit 208 is discarded without being output to the automatic driving ECU. In this case as well, only appropriate recommended speeds are provided, so unnecessary acceleration due to provision of inappropriate recommended speeds can be suppressed.

[In-vehicle gateway operation]
8 and 9, the processing by the in-vehicle gateway 122 will be described more specifically with reference to the functions shown in FIG. The processes shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 are implemented by control unit 140 in FIG. 4 reading corresponding programs from memory 142 and executing them in parallel.

Referring to FIG. 8, at step 300, control unit 140 stores data received by communication unit 120 in memory 142. FIG. The received data includes sensor data transmitted from infrastructure sensors 110 and other vehicles 102 b , dynamic information, and signal information transmitted from traffic lights 106 .

At step 302, the control unit 140 determines whether or not it is time to update the dynamic map. If it is determined that it is time to update, control proceeds to step 304 . Otherwise control passes to step 308 .

At step 304, the control unit 140 updates the dynamic map stored in the memory 142 using the dynamic information. This corresponds to the function of the dynamic map generator 204 (see FIG. 5) described above. Control then passes to step 306 .

At step 306 , the control unit 140 analyzes the dynamic map, generates traffic information used for judging whether cooperation is possible, and stores it in the memory 142 . This corresponds to the function of the traffic information generator 206 (see FIG. 5) described above. As described above, the determination of whether cooperation is possible is made by determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate. Control then passes to step 308 .

At step 308, the control unit 140 determines whether or not an end instruction has been received. If it is determined that an end instruction has been received, this program ends. Otherwise, control returns to step 300 and the above process is repeated. The end instruction is made, for example, by turning off a power supply mounted on the vehicle 102a.

This allows the in-vehicle gateway 122 to repeatedly update the dynamic map at predetermined timings and generate the traffic information used during the processing shown in FIG.

With reference to FIG. 9, at step 400, control unit 140 determines whether signal information has been received by communication unit 120 or not. The communication unit 120 receives signal information via the base station 108 of FIG. 1 or directly from the traffic light 106 (for example, by optical beacon, wireless LAN, etc.). If it is determined that signaling information has been received, control proceeds to step 402 . Otherwise control passes to step 416 .

At step 402, the control unit 140 determines whether or not to calculate the recommended speed. If the signal information received in step 400 includes information indicating that the specific traffic light (eg, the traffic light 106a in FIG. 2) related to the host vehicle is blue (eg, current color=blue), the controller 140 sets the recommended speed is calculated. Otherwise (that is, when the specific traffic light is red or yellow), it is determined that the recommended speed is not calculated. A specific traffic light can be identified from the location information of the traffic light and the road map. If it is determined to calculate the recommended speed, control proceeds to step 404 . Otherwise control passes to step 418 .

It should be noted that it may be determined that the recommended speed is calculated when the remaining blue time of the specific traffic light is equal to or longer than a predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds). If the remaining blue time is short, it will turn yellow or red quickly, so calculating the recommended speed is useless. This is preferable because it is possible to avoid calculating a recommended speed that is determined to be inappropriate, and to reduce the processing load. Alternatively, instead of the remaining blue time, the recommended speed may be calculated using the total time of the remaining blue time and the subsequent yellow time.

At step 404, the control unit 140 calculates the remaining blue time Δt of the specific traffic light. For example, from the signal information received in step 400, the control unit 140 uses the duration of blue color and the elapsed time of the current color (e.g., the elapsed time of blue) for the specific traffic light to determine the remaining time for which blue is maintained. calculate. The blue duration can be calculated from cycles and splits as described above. Control then passes to step 406 .

At step 406 , the control unit 140 calculates the distance from the current position of the vehicle to the intersection 910 . Specifically, the map information is read from the memory 142 and the corresponding distance L is calculated. Control then passes to step 408 .

At step 408, the control unit 140 divides the distance L calculated at step 406 by the remaining time Δt calculated at step 404 to calculate the recommended speed Vr. Control then passes to step 410 . The processing from step 404 to step 408 corresponds to the function of the recommended speed calculator 208 (see FIG. 5) described above.

At step 410, the control unit 140 subtracts the recommended speed Vr from the representative speed Vg of the vehicle group positioned between the host vehicle and the intersection to calculate the difference ΔV (=Vg−Vr). Control then passes to step 412 . The processes of step 410 and step 412 described later correspond to the function of the determination unit 210 (see FIG. 5) described above.

At step 412, the control unit 140 determines whether or not the recommended speed Vr calculated at step 408 is appropriate based on the difference ΔV calculated at step 410. For example, if the difference ΔV is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, the control unit 140 determines that the recommended speed Vr is appropriate (that is, cooperation is possible). On the other hand, if difference ΔV is smaller than the predetermined value, control unit 140 determines that recommended speed Vr is not appropriate. If recommended speed Vr is determined to be appropriate, control proceeds to step 414 . Otherwise control passes to step 418 .

At step 414 , the control unit 140 outputs the recommended speed Vr calculated at step 408 to the automatic driving ECU 126 via the bus 132 . Moreover, the control part 140 outputs signal information to automatic operation ECU126. Control then passes to step 416 . Thereby, the automatic driving ECU 126 automatically controls the running of the vehicle 102a using the recommended speed and signal information.

At step 416, the control unit 140 determines whether or not an end instruction has been received. If it is determined that an end instruction has been received, this program ends. Otherwise, control returns to step 400 and the above process is repeated. The end instruction is made, for example, by turning off a power supply mounted on the vehicle 102a.

If the determination result in step 402 or step 412 is NO, in step 418 the control unit 140 determines whether the current speed of the host vehicle is equal to or less than the representative speed. If it is determined that the current speed of the host vehicle is equal to or less than the representative speed, control proceeds to step 420 . Otherwise control passes to step 422 .

At step 420, the control unit 140 sets the current speed of the own vehicle as the recommended speed. As a result, even if the recommended speed has been calculated in step 408, the recommended speed is replaced with the current speed of the host vehicle. This is to prevent unnecessary acceleration of the vehicle 102a because the vehicle 102a cannot pass the intersection 910 and is likely to stop before the intersection 910 while the traffic light 106a is currently green. Control then passes to step 424 .

At step 422, the control unit 140 sets a value smaller than the current speed of the host vehicle (hereinafter referred to as deceleration speed) as the recommended speed. As a result, even if the recommended speed has been calculated in step 408, the recommended speed is replaced with the deceleration speed. This is to prevent unnecessary acceleration of the vehicle 102a because there is a high possibility that the vehicle 102a will stop before the intersection 910 as in the above. This is also to decelerate in advance, as it is faster than the speed of the vehicle group. Control then passes to step 424 . The processing from step 418 to step 422 corresponds to the function of the recommended speed correction unit 212 (see FIG. 5) described above.

At step 424 , the control unit 140 outputs the recommended speed determined at step 420 or step 422 to the automatic driving ECU 126 via the bus 132 . Control then passes to step 416 . Thereby, the automatic driving ECU 126 automatically controls the running of the vehicle 102a using the recommended speed. As a result, the vehicle 102a can stop before the intersection 910 without unnecessary acceleration.

From the above, if the recommended speed is appropriate, the recommended speed is output to the automatic driving ECU, and the vehicle is likely to be able to pass the intersection while the specific traffic light is currently in blue, for example by accelerating. . Step 414 allows, for example, vehicle 102a to accelerate to the recommended speed and pass intersection 910 while traffic light 106a is currently green. At this time, signal information is provided to the automatic driving ECU, and cooperative control in automatic driving is executed. In addition, when the dynamic information is provided to the autonomous driving ECU, the dynamic information about the vehicle's surroundings is used while the vehicle reaches and travels through the intersection to ensure safe and appropriate driving. be possible. On the other hand, if the recommended speed is inappropriate, it is likely that the intersection cannot be passed while the particular traffic light is currently green, so step 420 or step 422 sets the recommended speed to the current speed or deceleration speed. , useless acceleration is suppressed.

　Figures 2, 6 and 7 show traffic conditions at an intersection 910 where roads with one lane each way intersect, but are not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the driving support system 100 can cope with traffic conditions at an intersection 912 where roads with two or more lanes on each side intersect. For example, if one of the vehicle 102h, the vehicle 102i, and the vehicle 102j is the own vehicle, the representative speed of the vehicle group 116 positioned between the own vehicle and the intersection 912 is used to determine whether the recommended speed is appropriate. Just do it. Alternatively, a plurality of vehicles in the vehicle group 116 that are traveling in the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling may be regarded as a vehicle group, and their representative speeds may be used to determine whether the recommended speed is appropriate. Further, for example, when the destination is set in the car navigation system and the direction of travel at the intersection 912 is determined, the vehicle of the vehicle group 116 may travel in the lane in which it is scheduled to travel. It is sufficient to determine whether or not the recommended speed is appropriate using the representative speed of a group of vehicles that are in the same vehicle.

(First modification)
In the above description, as shown in FIG. 3, the case where the in-vehicle gateway 122, which is an in-vehicle device standardly installed in the in-vehicle system 104a, executes the process of determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate or not has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. . In the first modified example, the process of determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate is executed by a device that is not standard equipment in the in-vehicle system and that can be installed later (in other words, in-vehicle).

Referring to FIG. 11, an in-vehicle system 150 installed in a vehicle includes a communication unit 120, an in-vehicle gateway 154, a sensor 124, an automatic driving ECU 126, an ECU 128, and a bus 130 and a bus 132. The in-vehicle system 150 is equipped with an extension device 152 that is not standard equipment but is attached later. In FIG. 11, constituent elements with the same reference numerals as in FIG. 3 have the same functions as in FIG. In the following, different components, the expansion device 152 and the in-vehicle gateway 154 will be described.

With reference to FIG. 12, expansion device 152 includes control unit 160 and memory 162 . The control unit 160 includes a CPU and controls the memory 162 . The memory 162 is, for example, a rewritable non-volatile semiconductor memory, and stores programs executed by the control unit 160 . Memory 162 provides a work area for programs executed by control unit 160 . The control unit 160 acquires data to be processed via the bus 130, stores the processing results in the memory 162, and outputs them to the bus 130 as appropriate. The expansion device 152 has the same functions as the in-vehicle gateway 122 shown in FIG. 3, namely the functions shown in FIG.

The expansion device 152 transmits data received by the communication unit 120 (e.g., signal information, information on own vehicle and other vehicles (e.g., position, speed, direction of travel), dynamic information, sensor data, etc.) to the bus 130. can be obtained through In-vehicle gateway 154 does not have the functions shown in FIG. 5, unlike in-vehicle gateway 122 . In-vehicle gateway 154 transmits sensor data output from sensor 124 to bus 132 to expansion device 152 via bus 130 . The in-vehicle gateway 154 acquires the speed of the vehicle from the driving unit for driving the vehicle, and transmits it to the expansion device 152 via the bus 130 . In-vehicle gateway 154 also transmits data output from expansion device 152 to bus 130 to automatic driving ECU 126 via bus 132 . As a result, the expansion device 152 can calculate the recommended speed of the vehicle in which the in-vehicle system 150 is mounted, determine whether it is appropriate, and transmit the recommended speed to the automatic driving ECU 126 as it is if it is appropriate. In that case, the expansion device 152 also transmits signal information and dynamic information to the autonomous driving ECU 126 . If the recommended speed is inappropriate, the expansion device 152 corrects the recommended speed to a smaller value (for example, a value between the current speed and the representative speed) and transmits it to the automatic driving ECU 126 .

Therefore, if the recommended speed is appropriate, the recommended speed will be output to the autonomous driving ECU, and there is a high possibility that the vehicle will be able to pass the intersection while the specific traffic light is currently green, for example by accelerating. At this time, signal information and dynamic information are provided to the automatic driving ECU, and cooperative control in automatic driving is executed. Thus, the autonomous driving ECU uses dynamic information about the ego-vehicle's surroundings while the e-vehicle reaches and navigates the intersection to enable safe and appropriate driving. On the other hand, if the recommended speed is inappropriate, there is a high possibility that the vehicle cannot pass the intersection while the specific traffic light is currently green, so the recommended speed is set to a value between the current speed and the representative speed. , unnecessary acceleration due to provision of an inappropriate recommended speed is suppressed.

(Second modification)
In the above description, a case where a device mounted on the vehicle (that is, the vehicle-mounted gateway 122 or the expansion device 152) executes processing for determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. In the second modified example, a server computer (hereinafter referred to as a server) calculates the recommended speed of the vehicle and executes the process of judging its propriety.

With reference to FIG. 13 , a driving support system 170 according to the second modification includes an in-vehicle system 104 a and an in-vehicle system 104 b installed in a plurality of vehicles 102 a and 102 b, respectively, and a server 172 . A driving support system 170 is obtained by adding a server 172 to the driving support system 100 shown in FIG. Components other than the server 172 shown in FIG. 13 are the same as in FIG. However, the in-vehicle system 104a and the in-vehicle system 104b may not have the functions shown in FIG.

The server 172 includes a control unit, memory and communication unit, and implements the functions shown in FIG. Server 172 communicates with in-vehicle system 104a and in-vehicle system 104b, traffic light 106, and infrastructure sensor 110 via base station 108 and network 112 by an internal communication unit. The server 172 receives vehicle information and sensor data from the in-vehicle system 104 a and the in-vehicle system 104 b and receives sensor data from the infrastructure sensor 110 . Server 172 receives signal information from traffic light 106 .

As a result, the server 172 can implement the functions shown in FIG. 5 by means of the control unit, memory, and communication unit. The server 172 calculates a recommended speed for a specific vehicle (eg, vehicle 102a or vehicle 102b), determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate, and if appropriate, transmits the recommended speed directly to the in-vehicle system installed in the specific vehicle. do. If the recommended speed is inappropriate, the server 172 corrects the recommended speed and transmits it to the in-vehicle system installed in the specific vehicle. As a result, the specific vehicle that has received the corrected recommended speed can suppress unnecessary acceleration by providing the corrected recommended speed to the automatic driving ECU. Also, if the recommended speed is appropriate, the server 172 transmits signal information to the particular vehicle in addition to the recommended speed. As a result, the specific vehicle can provide the recommended speed signal information to the automatic driving ECU, thereby enabling coordinated control of the own vehicle's running and realizing appropriate automatic driving.

Each process (each function) of the above-described embodiment may be realized by a processing circuit (circuitry) including one or more processors. The processing circuit may be configured by an integrated circuit or the like in which one or more memories, various analog circuits, and various digital circuits are combined in addition to the one or more processors. The one or more memories store programs (instructions) that cause the one or more processors to execute the processes. The one or more processors may execute the processes according to the program read from the one or more memories, or execute the processes according to a logic circuit designed in advance to execute the processes. may be executed. The processor may be a CPU, GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), DSP (Digital Signal Processor), FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or any other suitable processor for computer control. .

Also, a recording medium recording a program for causing a computer to execute the processing of the in-vehicle device (specifically, the processing executed by the in-vehicle gateway 122 (for example, the processing shown in FIGS. 8 and 9)) can be provided. , for example, an optical disk (DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), etc.), a removable semiconductor memory (USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, etc.).The computer program can be transmitted via a communication line, but the recording medium is a non-temporary recording medium. By loading the program stored in the recording medium into the computer installed in the vehicle, the computer can suppress unnecessary acceleration in vehicles with automatic driving functions as described above. and

(Appendix)
That is, the computer-readable non-transitory recording medium is
The computer installed in the target vehicle,
A recommended speed calculation function for calculating a recommended speed based on the distance between the target vehicle and an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle, and signal information regarding the state of the traffic light placed at the intersection;
a traffic information generation function for generating traffic information representing traffic conditions on a road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection;
a judgment function for judging whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information;
A computer program for realizing an output function that outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function,
The output function stores a computer program including a function of outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit in response to the determination that the recommended speed is appropriate by the determination function.

Although the present disclosure has been described above by describing the embodiments, the above-described embodiments are examples, and the present disclosure is not limited only to the above-described embodiments. The scope of the present disclosure is indicated by each claim after taking into account the description of the detailed description of the invention, and includes all changes within the meaning and scope of equivalents to the words described therein .

100, 170 Driving support system 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e, 102f, 102g, 102h, 102i, 102j Vehicles 104a, 104b, 150 In- vehicle system 106, 106a, 106b, 106c, 106d, 106e, 106f Signal 108 Base station 110 infrastructure sensor 112 network 114, 116 vehicle group 120 communication unit 122, 154 in-vehicle gateway 124 sensor 126 automatic driving ECU
128 ECUs
130, 132 buses 140, 160 control units 142, 162 memory 152 expansion device 172 server 200 storage unit 202 dynamic information generation unit 204 dynamic map generation unit 206 traffic information generation unit 208 recommended speed calculation unit 210 determination unit 212 recommended speed correction Unit 214 Output units 300, 302, 304, 306, 308, 400, 402, 404, 406, 408, 410, 412, 414, 416, 418, 420, 422, 424 Steps 900, 900a, 900b Pedestrians 910, 912 intersection L distance

Claims (14)

1. An in-vehicle device mounted on a target vehicle having an automatic driving function,
   a recommended speed calculation unit that calculates a recommended speed based on the distance between the target vehicle and an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle, and signal information regarding the state of a traffic light placed at the intersection;
   a traffic information generation unit that generates traffic information representing traffic conditions on a road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection;
   a determination unit that determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information;
   an output unit that outputs the recommended speed to the automatic driving function execution unit,
   The in-vehicle device, wherein the output unit outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit in response to the determination by the determination unit that the recommended speed is appropriate.
2. 2. The vehicle-mounted vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said output unit outputs said signal information to said execution unit in addition to said recommended speed in response to said determination unit determining that said recommended speed is appropriate. Device.
3. The traffic light information includes information on a specific traffic light that controls traffic in a direction in which the target vehicle enters the intersection;
   3. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, wherein said recommended speed calculation unit calculates said recommended speed by dividing said distance by the time remaining in green of said specific traffic light.
4. The in-vehicle device according to claim 3, wherein the recommended speed calculation unit calculates the recommended speed in response to the fact that the remaining time of the green color of the specific traffic light is equal to or longer than a predetermined time.
5. the traffic information is a representative speed of a vehicle traveling between the target vehicle and the intersection;
   The vehicle-mounted vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the determination unit calculates a difference between the representative speed and the recommended speed, and determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the difference. Device.
6. The difference is a difference calculated by subtracting the recommended speed from the representative speed,
   The determination unit is
   determining that the recommended speed is appropriate if the difference is equal to or greater than a predetermined value equal to or greater than 0;
   6. The in-vehicle device according to claim 5, wherein said recommended speed is determined to be inappropriate if said difference is less than said predetermined value.
7. The representative speed is
   Average speed or minimum speed of a plurality of vehicles traveling in the same direction as the target vehicle between the target vehicle and the intersection;
   The speed of the vehicle closest to the intersection among the plurality of vehicles, or
   The in-vehicle device according to claim 5 or 6, which is the speed of the vehicle closest to the target vehicle among the plurality of vehicles.
8. Based on the dynamic information of the intersection and the surroundings of the intersection, the determination unit determines whether each of the plurality of vehicles traveling in the same direction as the target vehicle between the target vehicle and the intersection is detected for a predetermined time. Calculate the estimated speed after
   The representative speed is
   average or minimum value of the plurality of estimated speeds;
   the estimated speed of the vehicle closest to the intersection among the plurality of vehicles, or
   The in-vehicle device according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the estimated speed is the vehicle closest to the target vehicle among the plurality of vehicles.
9. further comprising a recommended speed correction unit that corrects the recommended speed based on the determination result of the determination unit;
   The output unit outputs the recommended speed after being corrected by the recommended speed correction unit to the execution unit in response to the determination by the determination unit that the recommended speed is not appropriate. Item 9. The in-vehicle device according to any one of Items 8.
10. The recommended speed correction unit
    maintaining the recommended speed in response to the judgment that the recommended speed is appropriate by the judging unit;
    10. The in-vehicle device according to claim 9, wherein said recommended speed is corrected to a smaller value in response to said determination unit determining that said recommended speed is not appropriate.
11. A vehicle system mounted on a target vehicle having an automatic driving function,
    a communication unit that acquires signal information regarding the state of a traffic signal placed at an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle;
    an execution unit for the automatic driving function;
    A vehicle system comprising the vehicle-mounted device according to any one of claims 1 to 10.
12. A server computer that supports driving of a target vehicle having an automatic driving function,
    a communication unit that acquires signal information regarding the state of a traffic signal placed at an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle;
    a recommended speed calculation unit that calculates a recommended speed based on the distance between the intersection and the target vehicle and signal information regarding the state of a traffic light placed at the intersection;
    a traffic information generation unit that generates traffic information representing traffic conditions on a road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection;
    a determination unit that determines whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information;
    The server computer, wherein the communication unit further transmits the recommended speed to the target vehicle in response to the determination by the determination unit that the recommended speed is appropriate.
13. A control method for supporting an automatic driving function of a target vehicle,
    a recommended speed calculation step of calculating a recommended speed based on the distance between the target vehicle and an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle, and signal information regarding the state of the traffic light placed at the intersection;
    a traffic information generation step of generating traffic information representing traffic conditions on a road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection;
    a determination step of determining whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information;
    An output step of outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function,
    The control method, wherein the output step includes a step of outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit in response to the determination that the recommended speed is appropriate by the determination step.
14. The computer installed in the target vehicle,
    A recommended speed calculation function for calculating a recommended speed based on the distance between the target vehicle and an intersection located on the travel route of the target vehicle, and signal information regarding the state of the traffic light placed at the intersection;
    a traffic information generation function for generating traffic information representing traffic conditions on a road from the position of the target vehicle to the intersection;
    a judgment function for judging whether the recommended speed is appropriate based on the traffic information;
    A computer program for realizing an output function that outputs the recommended speed to the execution unit of the automatic driving function,
    The computer program according to claim 1, wherein the output function includes a function of outputting the recommended speed to the execution unit when the determination function determines that the recommended speed is appropriate.

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