JP2018197964A - Vehicle control method and apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a practical vehicle control method and device which can be utilized for driving support or automatic driving. SOLUTION: A first detector 12 for detecting the position of a vehicle with respect to map data, second detectors 11 and 12 for detecting a position where the vehicle is temporarily stopped, and a temporary stop detected by the second detector. Recorders 30 and 50 that record the recorded position as pause position information, a calculator 60 that calculates a virtual stop line in the map data from the plurality of pause position information, and a virtual stop line calculated by the calculator. The controller 80 is provided to control the driving support or automatic running of the vehicle by using the above. [Selection diagram] FIG. 1A

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle control method and apparatus such as driving assistance or automatic driving using collected driving knowledge information.

  When driving assistance is performed based on vehicle traffic rules, it is actually performed in specific areas including intersections due to pre-defined traffic rules and road conditions or road structures specific to the specific area. To determine whether or not the traffic rules are consistent with each other, extract dangerous areas that are likely to violate pre-defined traffic rules, and in the dangerous areas, A driving support apparatus that performs driving support based on the above is known (Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent No. 4623145

  In automatic driving control, the vehicle is basically controlled in accordance with the traffic rules in accordance with the laws and regulations, so even with regard to the temporary stop, the stop line can be recognized by the in-vehicle camera, etc. To recognize. Therefore, if there is actually no pause line and there is no pause information in the map data, the pause operation control is not executed. However, in actual traffic conditions, to stop temporarily before joining the main road, stop once at the stop line and then stop again in front of it, or wait for a right turn at the intersection Even if there is no stop line on the road, such as when stopping, there are many scenes where it is necessary to stop at a specific position from the viewpoint of safety or security.

  In the above conventional driving support device, although it is possible to recognize the difference between the traffic rule according to the law described in the map data and the traffic rule actually performed, where should the vehicle be temporarily stopped, It does not hold the information about the specific pause position. For this reason, there is a practical problem that the temporary stop position of the host vehicle cannot be determined when it is used for driving assistance or control of automatic driving.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a practical vehicle control method and apparatus that can be utilized for driving assistance or automatic driving.

  The present invention detects a position where a vehicle is temporarily stopped, records the position as temporary stop position information, calculates a virtual stop line in map data from a plurality of temporary stop position information, and uses the virtual stop line to The above-mentioned problem is solved by executing driving support or automatic driving.

  According to the present invention, since a specific virtual stop line is specified on the map data, it is possible to provide a practical vehicle control method and apparatus that can be used for driving assistance or automatic driving.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a vehicle control device for carrying out a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the control apparatus of the vehicle for enforcing the control method of the vehicle which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the control apparatus of the vehicle for enforcing the control method of the vehicle which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the temporary stop position calculation ECU of FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the temporary stop position information calculation part of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the virtual stop line calculation part of FIG. 1A and 1B. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of travel route production | generation ECU of FIG. 1A and FIG. It is a top view which shows an example of the classification | category of the lane information in the intersection on map data. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL (scene where a non-priority road joins a priority road) set by the vehicle control device of FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 2. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL (scene where a priority road is turned to the right) set by the vehicle control device of FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 2; FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL set by the vehicle control device of FIGS. It is a top view which shows an example (scene in which it stops in three steps) of the virtual stop line VSL set by the control apparatus of the vehicle of FIG. 1A, FIG. 1B, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL set by the vehicle control device of FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 2 (a scene where a private land that is not recorded in map data joins a road on map data). FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL set by the vehicle control device of FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 2 (a scene of waiting for a right turn at an intersection with a signal).

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of a vehicle control method and a vehicle control apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1A is a block diagram showing a vehicle control apparatus (also a vehicle control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention) for carrying out a vehicle control method according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1B is a block diagram showing a vehicle control device (also a vehicle control device according to another embodiment of the present invention) for carrying out a vehicle control method according to another embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 shows a vehicle control device (also a vehicle control device according to still another embodiment of the present invention) for carrying out a vehicle control method according to still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 of FIGS. 1A and 1B.

  The gist of the present invention is as follows. First, a position at which a vehicle (the vehicle itself or a plurality of vehicles) is temporarily stopped is detected, and the position is recorded as temporary stop position information. The virtual stop line VSL is calculated, and secondly, vehicle driving assistance or automatic travel is performed using the virtual stop line VSL obtained from the plurality of temporary stop position information thus obtained. That is, in the present invention, when executing driving support or automatic driving of a vehicle, the virtual stop line VSL of each lane is obtained in advance from the traveling history of a plurality of vehicles or the host vehicle alone, and driving support of the host vehicle is obtained. Alternatively, the virtual stop line VSL of each lane is used when automatic traveling is executed. For this reason, it comprises as shown below and each structure acts as follows. Note that “temporary stop” in the present specification, claims and drawings is a term in the Road Traffic Act and other laws and regulations, and is synonymous with so-called “temporary stop”.

  As shown in FIG. 1A, the vehicle control apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a sensor group 10, a map database 20, a temporary stop position calculation ECU 30, an in-vehicle communication module 40, and temporary servers included in the server 3. The stop position database 50, the virtual stop line calculation unit 60, and the virtual stop line database 70 are configured.

  In FIG. 1A, the virtual stop line calculation unit 60 and the virtual stop line database 70 are included in the server 3, but as shown in FIG. 1B, the virtual stop line calculation unit 60 and the virtual stop line database 70 are included. The server 3 may be omitted by mounting in the vehicle 2. In this case, the in-vehicle communication module 40 is also unnecessary. However, in the vehicle control apparatus 1 of FIG. 1B that is mounted on the vehicle 2, the virtual stop line VSL is calculated based on the temporary stop position information for one host vehicle.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the position where the vehicle (the vehicle itself or a plurality of vehicles) is temporarily stopped is detected and recorded as the temporary stop position information. The virtual stop line VSL is calculated by the plurality of vehicles 2 and the server 3 shown in FIG. 1A, and the information of the virtual stop line database 70 shown in FIG. 1A is owned by the vehicle 2 shown in FIG. As indicated by a dashed line, the vehicle control device 1 that performs driving support or automatic traveling may be obtained by acquiring the information from an external server or the like via an in-vehicle communication module or the like.

  Returning to FIG. 1A, the sensor group 10 includes, for example, a vehicle speed sensor 11, a position sensor 12, and a front distance sensor 13, and includes a signal detection camera 14 as necessary. However, this configuration is an example of the sensor group 10 according to the present invention, and is not particularly limited as long as the sensor configuration can calculate the temporary stop information, the position information, and the presence or absence of the preceding vehicle of the vehicle 2. The calculation of the virtual stop line VSL using the signal detection camera 14 will be described later.

  The vehicle speed sensor 11 is configured using, for example, a rotation speed sensor installed on a vehicle wheel, calculates the vehicle speed of the vehicle, and outputs the vehicle speed to the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30.

  For example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) / INS (Inertial Navigation System) device may be used as the position sensor 12. The INS is a device that calculates the relative position from the initial state of the moving body using a gyroscope, an acceleration sensor, and the like. The GPS / INS device complements the absolute position information by the GPS with the relative position information by the INS. It is an apparatus which can implement | achieve position estimation. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the virtual stop line VSL is calculated based on the temporary stop position information of the vehicle and used for driving support or automatic driving (so-called automatic driving) control. Requires relatively high positional accuracy. As another example of the position sensor 12, an omnidirectional distance sensor (for example, an omnidirectional laser imaging unit) may be used. In this case, the vehicle position is calculated by so-called map matching in the subsequent processing. In addition, any method may be used as long as it can calculate vehicle position information. In the following embodiment, a case where a GPS / INS device is used will be described.

  The front distance sensor 13 is composed of, for example, a laser scanner, is attached near the front bumper of the vehicle, and detects the position and type (whether or not the vehicle is) of an object in front of the vehicle. Any sensor that can detect the position and type of an object in front of the vehicle is not particularly limited.

  As the map database 20, it is desirable to use a high-definition map for automatic driving in which accurate position information of road boundaries and stop lines of each lane is recorded. FIG. 7 is a plan view showing an example of classification of lane information at intersections on map data in the map database 20. For example, at the intersection, as shown in FIG. 7, each lane is assigned a unique ID # 1 to # 3, # 10, # 11, # 21, # 31 and the like. Even if there is no physical boundary line, each virtual lane (# 1 to # 3, # 10, # 11, # 11, as shown by the border lines of the straight lane # 1, the left turn lane # 2, and the right turn lane # 3) It is desirable to record the frame lines (# 21, # 31 etc.). The map database 20 is recorded in a storage device accessible from the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30, and can be rewritten as necessary. The map database 20 can be realized with a simple navigation map, but is desirably a high-precision map when it is finally used in automatic driving. In the present embodiment, the following description will be made assuming that a high-precision map is used.

  The temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 has a function of calculating temporary stop position information necessary for calculating the virtual stop line VSL, and is configured by a program that operates using a microcomputer and a memory, for example. Note that the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 is an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit, an integrated circuit for a specific application, which is one of the types of electronic components, and is an integrated circuit in which multiple functional circuits are combined into one for a specific application. And FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array, which is an integrated circuit that can be configured by a purchaser or designer after manufacture, and is a kind of programmable logic device PLD in a broad sense). . In the detailed description to be described later, each functional block will be described for convenience. The temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 receives input information from the sensors 11 to 13 from the sensor group 10, accesses the map database 20, and calculates the temporary stop position information of the vehicle through various processes described later. Output to the communication module 40.

  The temporary stop position information of the vehicle 2 in the present embodiment includes at least the temporary stop position of the vehicle 2. In addition to this, the temporary stop position information of the vehicle 2 may include information that the vehicle 2 has not been temporarily stopped when the vehicle 2 has passed the lane without being temporarily stopped. In addition to the position at which the vehicle 2 is temporarily stopped, information on the fact that the vehicle 2 has not stopped at that position is added to the temporary stop position information, so that the probability of pause is calculated and recorded in the subsequent processing in the series of processing. can do. The temporary stop position information of the vehicle 2 in this embodiment is further associated with each lane ID of the map database 20 (see # 1 to # 3, # 10, # 11, # 21, # 31, etc. in FIG. 7), for example, It may be saved as a stop position in the right turn lane # 3. In this way, it is possible to have different temporary stop position information for each course, such as going straight, turning right, and turning left.

  Next, each function of the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 of FIGS. 1A and 1B. The temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 includes a temporary stop detection unit 31, a host vehicle position detection unit 32, a preceding vehicle detection unit 33, and a temporary stop position information calculation unit 34, and a traffic signal detection unit 35 as necessary. May be. The calculation of the virtual stop line VSL using the traffic signal detector 35 will be described later together with the signal detection camera 14.

  The temporary stop detection unit 31 determines whether or not the vehicle 2 has been temporarily stopped based on the vehicle speed information output from the vehicle speed sensor 11, and sequentially and temporarily displays the information that has been temporarily stopped and the information that has not been temporarily stopped. It outputs to the stop position information calculation part 34. Whether or not the vehicle 2 has been temporarily stopped is basically determined that the vehicle has been temporarily stopped when the vehicle speed becomes 0 km / h. However, it may be determined that the vehicle is temporarily stopped when the vehicle speed becomes a certain vehicle speed (for example, 5 km / h) or less. This is based on the fact that a general driver may not always make a complete stop (vehicle speed is 0) even when making a temporary stop. However, when this determination is made, another process for uniquely determining the temporary stop position is required. As an example of this process, the moment when the vehicle speed becomes equal to or higher than the predetermined vehicle speed after the vehicle speed becomes equal to or lower than the specific vehicle speed may be set as the temporary stop position.

  The own vehicle position detection unit 32 detects the own vehicle position based on the position information output from the position sensor 12. When the position sensor 12 is the GPS / INS device described above, the input position information may be the vehicle position. On the other hand, when the position sensor 12 is an omnidirectional distance sensor, so-called map matching that calculates a relative position with respect to the map database 20 is performed. The vehicle position detection method is not particularly limited, and a widely known general method may be used as a map matching method. In the present embodiment, since the vehicle position to be finally calculated is a relative position with respect to the map data, map matching that directly calculates the position of the vehicle 2 on the map data is desirable. However, even in the case of the method using the GPS / INS device, there is no particular problem if the map data itself is assumed to have a sufficiently small error with respect to the absolute position.

  The preceding vehicle detection unit 33 refers to the information on the position and type (vehicle, pedestrian, bicycle, unknown, etc.) of the object in front of the vehicle output from the front distance sensor 13 and the presence or absence of the preceding vehicle with reference to the map database 20 Is detected. Since the position of the object output from the front distance sensor 13 is expressed as a relative position from the vehicle 2, it is converted into a map coordinate system using the information of the vehicle position detection unit 32. This coordinate transformation may be performed by a general method after assuming a plane. By collating the position information of the map coordinate system of each object obtained in this way with the map database 20, whether each object is in the lane or outside the lane, or which lane is in the lane Detect whether or not it exists. It is determined that a preceding vehicle exists when the vehicle is on the same lane as the lane to which the host vehicle belongs and is not more than a certain distance. This fixed distance may be changed according to the vehicle speed, as in the preceding vehicle detection method in general preceding vehicle following traveling. For example, the fixed distance when the host vehicle is traveling at 100 km / h is set to 100 m, and the fixed distance when the host vehicle is traveling at 20 km / h is set to 20 m.

  Since the detection of the preceding vehicle in the present embodiment is only for the purpose of determining whether the cause of the temporary stop is the preceding vehicle, a method that is completely different from the preceding vehicle detection method in the preceding vehicle following traveling described above may be taken. . Specifically, when the pause detection information is received from the pause detection unit 31, it is determined whether there is an object within a certain distance forward (for example, 10 m) at the moment when the pause is performed. May determine that there is a preceding vehicle.

  The temporary stop position information calculation unit 34 includes the temporary stop information detected by the temporary stop detection unit 31, the own vehicle position detected by the own vehicle position detection unit 32, and the presence / absence information of the preceding vehicle detected by the preceding vehicle detection unit 33. Based on the above, temporary stop position information is calculated. A specific processing procedure in the temporary stop position information calculation unit 34 will be described with reference to FIG. The process shown in FIG. 4 is a specific example of the case where the host vehicle enters an intersection as shown in FIG.

  First, in step 101, the own vehicle position information and the map database 20 are collated, the lane ID and the position of the own vehicle in the lane are acquired as the lane information of the own vehicle, and the process proceeds to step 102. The lane ID is not uniquely determined only by the position of the host vehicle. For example, in the example of the intersection shown in FIG. 7, the straight lane # 1, the left turn lane # 2, and the right turn lane # 3 have overlapping ranges. In this case, it is possible to determine which route is to be traveled using the navigation route information or the blinker information. However, in this embodiment, at the time of step 101, the determination of straight / left turn / right turn is not performed. It is assumed that a method of determining later which lane the vehicle was after passing through the intersection is adopted.

  In step 102, it is determined from the lane information and the own vehicle position information whether or not the vehicle has entered the intersection area. If the vehicle has entered the intersection area, the process proceeds to step 103. Otherwise, the process returns to step 101. The decision to enter the intersection area is made based on the ID information by holding information on whether or not the lane is in the intersection for each lane in the map database 20. For example, in the example of FIG. 7, if it belongs to one of the lanes # 1 to # 3, it is determined that it is an intersection. As another determination method, the center position of the intersection may be recorded in the map database 20, and it may be determined that the vehicle has entered the intersection area if the distance between the center position and the vehicle position is less than a certain value. .

  In step 103, based on the detection result of the pause detection unit 31, the process proceeds to step 104 if paused, and to step 106 if not paused. In step 104, based on the detection result of the preceding vehicle detection unit 33, if there is no preceding vehicle, the process proceeds to step 105, and if there is a preceding vehicle, the process proceeds to step 106. In step 105, since the vehicle is temporarily stopped in a situation where there is no preceding vehicle in the intersection, the position of the host vehicle is stored in the memory as a temporary stop position, and the process proceeds to step 106.

  The temporary stop position stored at this time is preferably not the center of gravity position of the vehicle 2 but the front position by a certain distance at the front end of the vehicle 2. This is because various vehicle temporary stop positions are calculated in the subsequent processing, but the difference in size for each vehicle is absorbed by using the front end portion of the vehicle as a reference. Further, the reason why the vehicle is positioned forward by a certain distance at the front end is that when the automobile stops at the stop line, it does not stop at the stop line, and it stops at the front with a little margin. The specific numerical value of the constant distance is preferably calculated from actual driver behavior data, but may be determined as a constant value, for example, 30 cm. However, in the present invention, the temporary stop position is not limited to the forward position by a certain distance at the front end of the vehicle 2. If the specifications of the vehicle to collect data are known, the position of the center of gravity of the vehicle 2 and other positions are determined. It may be a temporary stop position.

  In step 106, it is determined whether or not the vehicle has exited the intersection area. If the vehicle has exited the intersection area, the process proceeds to step 107. If not, the process returns to step 103. To determine whether or not the vehicle has passed the intersection area, a method similar to the method for determining whether or not the vehicle has entered the intersection area in step 102 may be used.

  In step 107, based on the position information of the host vehicle from entering the intersection area until passing through, the route (such as straight / left / right turn) taken by the host vehicle is determined, and the process proceeds to step. In the example of FIG. 7, after the host vehicle is temporarily stopped, it is determined that it is the straight lane # 1 if it exits the lane # 11, and if it exits # 21, it is determined that it is the left turn lane # 2, If you exit, turn right lane # 3.

  In step 108, each lane ID is associated with whether or not there is a temporary stop, and when there is a temporary stop, the position information is associated with each other and output to the in-vehicle communication module 40, and the process is terminated. Note that if there is a preceding vehicle in steps 103 and 104 and the vehicle is temporarily stopped, the temporary stop information is not output because it cannot be used for the calculation process of the virtual stop line VSL in the subsequent stage.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the stop information is collected and output only in the intersection area, but stop information outside the map area may be collected and output. In this way, in the subsequent processing, it is also possible to calculate temporary stop information when there is no record in the map data, for example, when coming out of the private land into the lane.

  Returning to FIG. 1A, the in-vehicle communication module 40 is a module for transmitting the temporary stop position information held in the vehicle 2 to the server 3 that exists remotely. For example, an in-vehicle device having a 4G LTE mobile communication function may be connected to the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 by CAN, and the received signal may be transmitted to the server 3 through the mobile communication line as needed. As another realization means, an in-vehicle device having a WiFi communication function is used, and information output from the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 is continuously stored in the in-vehicle HDD during operation, and information is simultaneously transmitted at the timing when the WiFi connection is established. May be sent.

  The server 3 is a program service that includes one or a plurality of computers, and performs various processes after receiving an external signal input. Details of the server configuration method are not particularly limited, and a general server may be used.

  The temporary stop position database 50 shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B is a database for recording the temporary stop position information calculated by the temporary stop position information calculation ECU 30. In the present embodiment, there are a plurality of vehicles 2 from which data can be collected, and the temporary stop position information from the plurality of vehicles 2 is all collected in the same temporary stop position database 50.

  The virtual stop line calculation unit 60 rewrites the virtual stop line database 70 based on the temporary stop position database 50. A processing procedure for calculating the virtual stop line VSL in the virtual stop line calculation unit 60 will be described with reference to FIG. In the temporary stop position database 50, the presence / absence of the temporary stop and the position information in the case of the temporary stop are recorded for each lane ID, so the processing from step 201 to step 205 below is executed for each lane ID. Is done.

  First, in step 201, all the temporary stop position information of a selected lane is acquired, and the process proceeds to step 202. In step 202, temporary stop positions on the same lane are clustered (a kind of data analysis method (especially multivariate analysis method)), and representative positions for each cluster are calculated as virtual stop line candidates. Proceed to The clustering method is not particularly limited, and for example, a generally known K-means method (k-mean method. Non-hierarchical clustering algorithm. Cluster average is used to classify into k given clusters) is used. That's fine. If there are a plurality of virtual stop line candidates on the same lane, the clustering parameters are adjusted so that they are separated by a certain distance (for example, 1 m). The position of the virtual stop line candidate may be an average of stop positions classified into the same cluster, or may take a median value. Alternatively, another method may be used such as taking an average value of data after removing outliers.

  Subsequent steps 203 to 205 are performed for each virtual stop line candidate (each cluster) calculated in step 202. First, in step 203, the frequency of the temporary stop around the virtual stop line candidate is calculated. If the frequency is a certain frequency or more, the process proceeds to step 204. The process is terminated without registering as the line VSL. In this case, a criterion for determining the frequency of suspension may be arbitrarily determined, for example, 50%.

  In step 204, it is determined whether the virtual stop line candidate is away from the existing stop line by a certain distance or more. If it is away, the process proceeds to step 205. If not, the virtual stop line candidate is not calculated as the virtual stop line VSL. Exit. For this fixed distance, the threshold (for example, 1 m) used when the virtual stop line candidates are separated in step 202 may be used. By doing so, it is possible to appropriately extract the two-stage stop at the intersection where the stop line is already present.

  In step 205, the position information of the virtual stop line VSL and the stop frequency information are registered (recorded) in the virtual stop line database 70 in association with the lane ID, and the process ends.

  When the preceding vehicle is not detected in the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 (that is, when the preceding vehicle detection unit 33 in FIG. 3 is not provided), the first of the clustering calculated in step 202 is performed. The processing from step 203 to step 205 is performed only for the cluster in front (closest to the center of the intersection in the case of an intersection). Thereby, the temporary stop position when stopped due to the presence of a preceding vehicle can be eliminated.

  Further, the virtual stop line calculation unit 60 may further include a rewriting process of the map database 20. Specifically, when the virtual stop line VSL is calculated on the lane recorded as the priority road in the map database 20, it is determined that the priority / non-priority information of the map is incorrect, and the non-priority road And rewrite.

  In addition, since the processing from step 203 to step 205 is performed on a plurality of extracted virtual stop line candidates, at an intersection where a three-stage stop is required, in addition to the actual stop line, two virtual stop lines VSL Will be extracted.

  In step 201, the temporary stop information of the selected lane is extracted. Alternatively, a process of extracting temporary stop position information that is not associated with the lane may be added. In this case, steps 202 to 204 perform the same processing as described above. In step 205, the extracted lane ID where the virtual stop line VSL is closest is calculated and associated with the lane ID. The position information and stop frequency information of the virtual stop line VSL are registered in the virtual stop line database 70, and the process ends. By doing so, it is also possible to record a virtual stop line VSL that is not recorded in the map data, for example, when coming out from the private land to the lane.

  The virtual stop line calculation unit 60 may further include an erasing process of the virtual stop line VSL. Specifically, the temporary stop position information of the latest fixed times (for example, the latest 100 times) is acquired for each lane, and within the fixed range (for example, within 50 cm) of the virtual stop line VSL calculated by the above processing. Calculate the pause frequency. If the temporary stop frequency is less than or equal to a certain value (the determination criterion may be the same as that in step 203), the virtual stop line VSL is deleted. As a result, the virtual stop line VSL can be deleted when there is no longer a need for a temporary stop due to changes in the road structure or traffic conditions.

  The virtual stop line database 70 is a database that stores information related to the virtual stop line VSL. As information regarding the virtual stop line VSL, the position information may be included at a minimum, but it is desirable to record the position information and stop frequency of the virtual stop line VSL for each lane in association with the lane information of the map database 20. . Further, the virtual stop line database 70 may be recorded as a part of the map database 20, or may be provided to the vehicle 2 by means of data distribution or the like and used for the purpose of driving support or the like.

Examples of use in automated driving (from here to the end of the text)
As shown in FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 2, the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment further includes a travel route generation ECU 80 and a vehicle control ECU 90.

  The travel route generation ECU 80 is a controller that comprehensively controls automatic travel (so-called automatic operation) of the vehicle 2 and is configured by a program that operates using, for example, a microcomputer and a memory. Based on the sensor information from the sensor group 10, the map database 20, and the virtual stop line database 70, the travel route generation ECU 80 calculates a steering angle and a vehicle speed target value for performing automatic driving according to the processing procedure described later. It outputs to control ECU90.

  The vehicle control ECU 90 is configured by a program that operates using a microcomputer and a memory, like the travel route ECU 80. The vehicle control ECU 90 receives the target vehicle speed and steering angle of the vehicle from the travel route generation ECU 80, and performs drive control of the vehicle 2 in cooperation with an engine control ECU, a steering motor control ECU, and the like (not shown).

  Next, a processing procedure in the travel route generation ECU 80 will be described with reference to FIG. First, at step 301, information on the destination is obtained from a driver or the like, the position of the host vehicle is obtained from the position sensor 12, a route to the destination is calculated using the map database 20, and the process proceeds to step 302. Step 301 is a so-called navigation function. Since the map database 20 is a high-accuracy map for automatic driving, a route calculation at the lane level is performed as to which lane to take.

  In step 302, the latest lane information that the host vehicle should travel from now is acquired from the map database 20 from the current position information of the host vehicle and the route information that the host vehicle has traveled most recently. In step 303, based on the lane information acquired in step 302 and the surrounding environment conditions calculated from the forward distance sensor 13 and the like, the travel route and speed profile (the list of speed target values at each position) that the host vehicle should travel are determined. ) Is calculated. This is a so-called technical field called path planning, and a generally known realization method may be used.

  In step 304, information about the virtual stop line VSL in the nearest lane from which the host vehicle will travel is acquired from the virtual stop line database 70, and the process proceeds to step 305. In step 305, the speed profile calculated in step 303 is appropriately corrected based on the information regarding the virtual stop line VSL, and the process proceeds to step 306. Specifically, a speed profile may be created for the virtual stop line VSL such that the vehicle speed becomes zero before the virtual stop line VSL, as in the case of a general temporary stop line.

  In step 306, the target vehicle speed and the steering angle are calculated based on the travel route calculated in step 303 and the speed profile corrected in step 305, and output to the vehicle control ECU 90. This is so-called path following control, and a general realization method may be used.

  1A and 1B, the sensor group 10 may further include a signal detection camera 14, and in FIG. 3, the temporary stop position calculation ECU 30 may further include a traffic light detection unit 35. The traffic light detection unit 35 calculates the state of the traffic light to be followed by the host vehicle from the image data output from the signal detection camera 14 (a progress permission index such as whether the vehicle can travel, such as red, yellow, blue, or an arrow) The information is output to the temporary stop position information calculation unit 34.

  When the lane to which the host vehicle belongs is a lane that turns right at the signalized intersection in step 108 of FIG. 4, the temporary stop position information calculation unit 34 displays the traffic light in a blue or right-turnable arrow display (progress permission) The pause position information is output only for the index of (1). Then, in step 203 in FIG. 5, the virtual stop line calculation unit 60 calculates the virtual stop line VSL even when the stop frequency is low when the calculation target lane is a lane that turns right at the signalized intersection. To do. Further, in the travel route generation ECU 80, when the lane to which the host vehicle belongs is a lane that turns right at the signalized intersection, even if the traffic light is blue, the vehicle 2 is temporarily stopped on the virtual stop line VSL. Control.

  In this way, there are many vehicles that make a right turn at a signalized intersection where there is a crossing traffic depending on the situation, but even in such a case, the virtual stop line VSL is extracted and recorded. The vehicle 2 controlled by the automatic traveling can extract the reference information of the temporary stop position for confirming the situation of the crossing traffic.

  In the embodiment described above, an example in which the virtual stop line VSL is calculated and then used in automatic travel (automatic driving) has been described. However, as a method of using the calculated virtual stop line VSL, in addition to automatic travel, driving support It can also be used for predicting the behavior of other vehicles. When used for driving support, for example, when a person is driving, when approaching the virtual stop line VSL, an application such as prompting a temporary stop by sound or display is conceivable. In addition, in the case of utilizing for the behavior prediction of other vehicles, there is an application such as determining the behavior of the own vehicle on the assumption that the surrounding vehicle detected by the sensor or the like is temporarily stopped at the virtual stop line VSL. Conceivable.

  As described above, according to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment, a specific virtual stop line VSL is calculated on the map data in order to record the temporary stop position information of the plurality of vehicles 2. be able to. In addition to this, since the vehicle 2 is temporarily stopped based on the calculated virtual stop line VSL, it is possible to realize driving assistance and control of automatic driving in accordance with the actual traffic environment.

  The reason why the vehicle 2 is temporarily stopped at the intersection is due to the road structure that needs to be stopped, if there is a preceding vehicle, or other temporary special factors (lane congestion, emergency vehicle approach, traffic accident, etc.) In this case, there are three patterns. When calculating a virtual stop line VSL that can be used for driving support or automatic driving, it is necessary to extract only universal information such as when a stop is necessary due to the road structure. In this regard, according to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment, when a plurality of temporary stop positions are recorded in the same lane, Since only the temporary stop position closest to the center of the intersection is calculated and recorded as a virtual stop line VSL, the virtual stop line VSL calculated when there is a preceding vehicle and the vehicle stops can be deleted, and the reliability of the virtual stop line VSL is improved. improves.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment, the preceding vehicle traveling in front of the vehicle 2 is detected, and the temporary stop position information is recorded only when the preceding vehicle is not detected. The virtual stop line VSL formed when the vehicle is stopped can be deleted, and the reliability of the virtual stop line VSL is improved.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the calculated virtual stop line VSL is used as the actual stop line in order to record the position ahead of the vehicle front end position by a certain amount as the temporary stop position information. Can be treated as equivalent information. In particular, when performing automatic operation control, it is not necessary to change the control method between the actual stop line and the virtual stop line VSL, so that information processing is simplified.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, in each lane, the position where the vehicle 2 has not stopped is also detected and recorded, and the stop frequency is equal to or higher than a certain level. Since the virtual stop line VSL is calculated only in the case where the vehicle stops due to temporary special factors (the degree of congestion of the lane, the approach of an emergency vehicle, the occurrence of a traffic accident, etc.), the reliability of the virtual stop line VSL can be eliminated. improves. For example, FIG. 8 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL (a scene where the host vehicle merges from the non-priority road NPR to the priority road PR) set by the present embodiment. In this type of merging lane, there are cases where it can be smoothly merged without temporarily stopping, as in the case of a merger on a highway, but priority road PR and non-priority road NPR, such as when merging from a side road to a main road. In some cases, it is clear that identification is clear and that temporary suspension is required. In such a case, the priority road PR and the non-priority road NPR can be clearly identified.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, a virtual stop line is calculated by classifying an intersection road into a straight course, a right turn course, a left turn course, and other courses after the intersection. Different appropriate virtual stop lines VSL can be calculated. For example, FIG. 9 is a plan view showing an example of the virtual stop line VSL (scene where the priority road PR is turned to the right) set by the present embodiment. Thus, when driving on the priority road PR with good prospects, the vehicle does not stop temporarily when going straight or turning left, but temporarily stops because there is crossing traffic when turning right. In this case, since the virtual stop line VSL is recorded in association with the information that it is a right turn, it can be applied only when making a right turn when used for driving assistance or automatic driving. It can also be applied to scenes with different traffic rules depending on the direction of travel, such as Turn on red in the United States.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment, when the virtual stop line VSL is calculated for the straight road lane on the priority road side, the priority road record in the map data is incorrect. Judged to be a non-priority road. In other words, even if it is a priority road, there is a possibility of a temporary stop when making a right or left turn. Judgment with the road becomes possible.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment, in a lane in which a map line has a stop line on road regulations, the vehicle 2 is more than a certain amount ahead of the stop line on the road regulations. When the vehicle stops, this position is also recorded as the virtual stop line VSL, so that the virtual stop line VSL corresponding to a so-called two-stage stop can be calculated. FIG. 10 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL (scene where two stages stop) set by the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, in the case of entering the priority road PR from the non-priority road NPR with poor visibility, if the two-stage stop that stops once before the temporary stop line SL is performed, the presence of the host vehicle is indicated as the priority road PR. Since it is recognized by other vehicles above, safety is further improved.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the three-stage stop line is recorded further ahead of the two-stage stop position. FIG. 11 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL (scene in which three stages stop) set by the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, when entering a priority road PR with a sidewalk WL from a non-priority non-priority road NPR, the three-stage stop stops before the intersection with the sidewalk WL and before the intersection with the roadway Can be realized and safety is further improved.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment, the virtual stop line VSL is calculated even when the vehicle enters a lane on the map data from a lane that is not recorded on the map data. FIG. 12 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL set by the present embodiment (a scene where a private land PA that is not recorded in the map data merges with the road R on the map data). As shown in the figure, since the temporary stop position when entering the road R from the private land PA, for example, which is not recorded in the map data, is also recorded, the driving assistance based on the intersection road information not included in the map data and automatic Driving is also possible.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, when making a right turn at an intersection where a traffic signal is installed, the traffic signal in the traveling direction of the vehicle indicates permission to travel, and a preceding vehicle is present on the vehicle. If not, the temporarily stopped position at the intersection is calculated as a right turn waiting stop line of the virtual stop lines. FIG. 13 is a plan view showing an example of a virtual stop line VSL (scene for waiting for a right turn at an intersection with a signal) set according to the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, even at an intersection where no stop line is actually drawn, driving assistance or automatic driving can be performed so as to wait for a right turn at an appropriate position.

  According to the vehicle control method and the vehicle control apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the frequency of temporary stop of the vehicle 2 in a specific period in the past from the present is calculated for a plurality of recorded virtual stop lines VSL, and the temporary When the stop frequency is below a certain value, the record of the virtual stop line VSL is deleted, so when the situation changes, such as the location of the temporary stop changes or the temporary stop stops due to changes in the road structure, etc. , Can respond flexibly.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle control apparatus 10 ... Sensor group 11 ... Vehicle speed sensor 12 ... Position sensor 13 ... Forward distance sensor 14 ... Signal detection camera 20 ... Map database 30 ... Temporary stop position information calculation ECU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 31 ... Temporary stop detection part 32 ... Own vehicle position detection part 33 ... Preceding vehicle detection part 34 ... Temporary stop position information calculation part 35 ... Traffic light detection part 40 ... In-vehicle communication module 50 ... Temporary stop position database 60 ... Virtual stop line calculation part 70 ... Virtual stop line database 80 ... Driving route generation ECU
90 ... Vehicle control ECU
2 ... Vehicle 3 ... Server

Claims (13)

Detect the position of the vehicle relative to the map data,
Detecting the position where the vehicle is paused;
Recording the paused position as pause position information,
Calculate a virtual stop line in the map data from a plurality of the pause position information,
A vehicle control method for performing driving assistance or automatic driving of a vehicle using the virtual stop line.   2. The vehicle control method according to claim 1, wherein the virtual stop line calculates a frontmost temporary stop position as a virtual stop line when a plurality of pieces of temporary stop position information are recorded in the same travel lane. Detecting a preceding vehicle traveling in front of the vehicle;
The vehicle control method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the position is recorded as temporary stop position information only when the position where the vehicle is temporarily stopped is detected and the preceding vehicle is not detected.   The control of the vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when a position where the vehicle is temporarily stopped is detected, a position ahead by a certain amount of the front end position of the vehicle is recorded as the temporary stop position information. Method. In each lane of the map data, the position where the vehicle did not stop is also detected and recorded,
The vehicle control method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the vehicle stop frequency for the same position is calculated as a virtual stop line only at a temporary stop position having a certain value or more.   6. The virtual stop line is calculated by classifying the intersection road into a straight course, a right turn course, a left turn course, and other courses after the intersection when the traveling lane is an intersection road. Vehicle control method.   When the driving lane is an intersection of a priority road and a non-priority road according to road regulations, when a virtual stop line is calculated for the straight lane of the priority road, the priority road record in the map data is incorrect The vehicle control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the priority road record in the map data is corrected to a non-priority road record.   In the lane where the map line has stop line information on road regulations, the virtual stop line calculated from a plurality of the pause position information is more than a certain amount ahead of the position of the stop line on the road regulations The vehicle control method according to claim 1, wherein the position of the virtual stop line is recorded as a two-stage stop position.   When another virtual stop line different from the virtual stop line is calculated from a plurality of the temporary stop position information and the other virtual stop line is further forward than the two-stage stop position, the other virtual stop line is calculated. The vehicle control method according to claim 8, wherein the line position is recorded as a three-stage stop position.   The virtual stop line is calculated according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the virtual stop line is calculated even when a vehicle enters the travel lane recorded in the map data from other than the travel lane recorded in the map data. Vehicle control method.   When the vehicle turns right at the intersection where the traffic signal is installed, the traffic signal in the direction of travel of the vehicle indicates permission to travel, and when there is no preceding vehicle in the vehicle, the temporarily stopped position at the intersection, The vehicle control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the vehicle is calculated as a right turn waiting stop line among the virtual stop lines.   A request for calculating the frequency of temporary stop of a vehicle for a plurality of recorded virtual stop lines from the present to a specific period in the past and deleting the record of the virtual stop line when the frequency of the stop is below a certain value Item 12. The vehicle control method according to any one of Items 1 to 11. A first detector for detecting the position of the vehicle relative to the map data;
A second detector for detecting a position where the vehicle is temporarily stopped;
A recorder for recording the paused position detected by the second detector as pause position information;
A calculator for calculating a virtual stop line in the map data from a plurality of the pause position information;
And a controller that controls driving assistance or automatic driving of the vehicle using the virtual stop line calculated by the calculator.