JP7647635B2 - vehicle - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle.

JP 2019-182046 A is known as a technical document related to vehicles. This publication describes an automatic driving device that updates the control parameters of the automatic driving control based on an evaluation of the control parameters input by the vehicle occupant after the automatic driving control is performed. The control parameters of the automatic driving control include at least one of the maximum speed, closest approach distance, number of turns, and degree of stationary steering in the automatic parking control.

JP 2019-182046 A

There is room for improvement in terms of providing the optimal speed to the driver, rather than simply inputting an evaluation of the parking speed (fast, normal, slow, etc.) after automatic parking.

One aspect of the present invention is a vehicle capable of performing automatic parking, comprising: a brake operation determination unit that determines whether or not the driver of the vehicle has applied the brakes while automatic parking is being performed; a speed change suggestion unit that suggests to the driver to reduce the set speed for automatic parking if the brake operation determination unit determines that the driver has applied the brakes, and suggests to the driver to increase the set speed for automatic parking if the brake operation determination unit does not determine that the driver has applied the brakes; and a set speed change unit that reduces the set speed for automatic parking if the driver agrees to reduce the set speed for automatic parking, and increases the set speed for automatic parking if the driver agrees to increase the set speed for automatic parking.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the set speed for automatic parking can be changed appropriately for the driver.

1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle according to an embodiment; 11 is a graph for explaining a change in a set speed for automatic parking. 13 is a flowchart showing a first set speed change suggestion process. 13 is a flowchart showing a second set speed change suggestion process.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

The vehicle according to this embodiment is a vehicle capable of performing automatic parking. Automatic parking is a driving control that performs parking by automatic driving without the driver performing driving operations. In automatic parking, driving control for parking is performed at a set speed that is preset by the driver.

As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle is equipped with an ECU [Electronic Control Unit] 10. The ECU 10 is an electronic control unit having a CPU [Central Processing Unit] and a storage unit such as a ROM [Read Only Memory] or a RAM [Random Access Memory]. The ECU 10 realizes various functions, for example, by having the CPU execute programs stored in the storage unit. The ECU 10 may be composed of multiple electronic units. In addition, some of the functions of the ECU 10 described below may be executed in a server capable of communicating with the vehicle.

The ECU 10 is connected to an automatic parking switch 1, a vehicle speed sensor 2, a brake pedal sensor 3, an actuator 4, and an HMI [Human Machine Interface] 5.

The automatic parking switch 1 is a switch that the driver operates when he or she wishes to perform automatic parking. The automatic parking switch 1 is provided, for example, next to the instrument panel, and detects the driver's operation. The automatic parking switch 1 transmits switch operation information by the driver to the ECU 10.

The vehicle speed sensor 2 is a detector that detects the vehicle speed of the vehicle. For example, a wheel speed sensor is used as the vehicle speed sensor 2, which is provided on the vehicle's wheels or a drive shaft that rotates integrally with the wheels and detects the rotation speed of the wheels. The vehicle speed sensor 2 transmits the detected vehicle speed information (wheel speed information) to the ECU 10.

The brake pedal sensor 3 detects the operation of the vehicle's brake pedal by the driver. The brake pedal sensor 3 may detect not only the amount of depression of the brake pedal but also the depression speed. The brake pedal sensor 3 transmits brake operation information related to the driver's operation of the brake pedal to the ECU 10.

The actuators 4 are devices used to control the vehicle. The actuators 4 include at least a drive actuator, a brake actuator, and a steering actuator. The drive actuator controls the amount of air supplied to the engine (throttle opening) in response to a control signal from the ECU 10, thereby controlling the driving force of the vehicle. If the vehicle is a hybrid vehicle (HEV: Hybrid Electric Vehicle), in addition to the amount of air supplied to the engine, a control signal from the ECU 10 is input to the motor serving as a power source to control the driving force. If the vehicle is an electric vehicle (BEV: Battery Electric Vehicle), a control signal from the ECU 10 is input to the motor serving as a power source to control the driving force. The motor serving as a power source in these cases constitutes the actuator 4.

The brake actuator controls the brake system in response to a control signal from the ECU 10, and controls the braking force applied to the vehicle wheels. For example, a hydraulic brake system can be used as the brake system. The steering actuator controls the drive of an assist motor that controls the steering torque of the electric power steering system in response to a control signal from the ECU 10. In this way, the steering actuator controls the steering torque of the vehicle.

The HMI 5 is an interface for inputting and outputting information between the vehicle and the occupant. The HMI 5 has a display 5a, a speaker 5b, and an input unit 5c. The display 5a is provided, for example, on the instrument panel of the vehicle, and displays a screen in response to a signal from the ECU 10. The display 5a may be an MID [Multi Information Display].

Speakers 5b are provided facing the vehicle interior and output sounds and voices according to signals from ECU 10. Speakers 5b output sounds and voices corresponding to the display on display 5a.

The input unit 5c is a device that allows the occupant to perform various inputs. The input unit 5c may be a button or a touch panel. The input unit 5c may have a voice input function using a microphone. The driver can preset the set speed for automatic parking by operating the input unit 5c.

Next, the functional configuration of the ECU 10 will be described. The ECU 10 has an automatic parking execution unit 11, a brake operation determination unit 12, a speed change suggestion unit 13, and a set speed change unit 14.

The automatic parking execution unit 11 executes automatic parking of the vehicle in response to the driver's operation of the automatic parking switch 1. The automatic parking execution unit 11 executes automatic parking by controlling the vehicle speed and steering by sending a control signal to the actuator 4. Note that the driver needs to specify a parking space to be the target of automatic parking as necessary. The automatic parking execution unit 11 executes automatic parking at a preset set speed. The set speed may be the same for all parking positions, or may be set to a different value depending on the parking position. There are no limitations on the control content of the automatic parking, and various well-known technologies can be adopted.

The brake operation determination unit 12 determines whether or not the driver has applied the brakes while automatic parking is being performed, based on the brake operation information from the brake pedal sensor 3. The brake operation determination unit 12 determines that the driver has applied the brakes, for example, when the amount of depression of the brake pedal by the driver reaches or exceeds a predetermined value.

The speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests to the driver a change to the set speed for automatic parking. The speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests to the driver a change to the set speed (a slower or faster speed) by displaying an image on the display 5a of the HMI 5. The image display may be an icon display or a text display. The speed change suggestion unit 13 may make the suggestion using sound or voice output from the speaker 5b instead of the display 5a. The speed change suggestion unit 13 may make the suggestion using both the display 5a and the speaker 5b.

When the brake operation determination unit 12 determines that the driver has applied the brakes while automatic parking is being performed, the speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests to the driver that the set speed for automatic parking be reduced. Note that the speed change suggestion unit 13 does not suggest reducing the speed if the set speed for automatic parking has reached a preset lower limit speed.

If the brake operation determination unit 12 does not determine that the driver has applied the brakes while automatic parking is being performed, the speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests to the driver that the set speed for automatic parking be increased. Note that the speed change suggestion unit 13 does not suggest an increase in speed if the set speed for automatic parking has reached a preset upper limit speed.

When parking is performed by the driver (manual parking) rather than automatically, and the parking speed set by the driver is lower than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more, the speed change suggestion unit 13 may suggest to the driver to reduce the set speed for automatic parking. The parking speed set by the driver being lower than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more corresponds to the value obtained by subtracting the parking speed from the set speed being equal to or greater than a predetermined value. The predetermined value is not particularly limited, and may be 3 km/h or 5 km/h. The predetermined value may be 0 km/h.

The parking speed can be calculated from the speed of the vehicle during manual parking. The time during manual parking can be, for example, the time from when the vehicle speed drops below a certain speed before the vehicle engine is stopped until it becomes zero. The certain speed may be 15 km/h, 10 km/h, or 5 km/h. The parking speed may be the average or median of the speed of the vehicle during manual parking by the driver.

The speed change suggestion unit 13 may also suggest to the driver that the set speed for automatic parking be increased when the parking speed set by the driver is higher than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more. The predetermined value is not particularly limited, but may be 3 km/h or 5 km/h. The predetermined value may be 0 km/h. The predetermined value when suggesting a speed decrease and the predetermined value when suggesting a speed increase may be the same value or different values.

When the speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests a speed decrease or increase, the set speed change unit 14 judges whether the driver has accepted the suggestion. The set speed change unit 14 judges whether the driver has accepted the suggestion from the driver's input to the input unit 5c of the HMI 5. The input by the driver may be a button input, a touch panel input, or a voice input.

The set speed change unit 14 changes the set speed for automatic parking that the driver has agreed to. If the driver has agreed to a speed reduction, the set speed change unit 14 reduces the set speed for automatic parking. The speed reduction is performed, for example, by lowering the set speed by a certain value. If a speed reduction is proposed due to the driver's braking operation, the set speed change unit 14 may reduce the set speed to a speed lower than the post-braking speed. The post-braking speed is the vehicle speed after it has been reduced by the driver's braking operation. In this way, by reducing the set speed to a speed lower than the post-braking speed due to the driver's braking operation, the driver can be given a sense of security regarding automatic parking.

When the driver agrees to a speed increase, the set speed change unit 14 increases the set speed for automatic parking. The speed increase is performed, for example, by increasing the set speed by a certain value. When the driver applied the brakes in the previous automatic parking and the speed was reduced, the set speed change unit 14 may increase the speed to a speed lower than the post-braking speed caused by the driver's brake operation (the increase in the set speed may be suppressed so as not to exceed the post-braking speed). In this case, when the driver agrees to a further speed increase in the next automatic parking, the set speed change unit 14 may increase the speed to a speed higher than the post-braking speed.

Figure 2 is a graph to explain the change in the set speed for automatic parking. The vertical axis of Figure 2 is the set speed for automatic parking, and the horizontal axis is the number of times automatic parking is performed.

As shown in Fig. 2, consider a case where automatic parking is performed at a set speed _Vn for the Nth automatic parking. During the execution of the Nth automatic parking, the driver applies the brakes and the vehicle speed is reduced to a post-brake speed _Vbn . In this case, the speed change suggestion unit 13 proposes to the driver to reduce the set speed for automatic parking, since it is determined that the driver applied the brakes during the execution of automatic parking. It is assumed that the driver agrees to this speed reduction. Since the driver agrees to the speed reduction, the set speed change unit 14 changes the set speed for automatic parking to a set speed Vn ₊₁ , which is lower than the set speed _Vn .

In the N+1th automatic parking, automatic parking is performed at a set speed Vn ₊₁ . It is assumed that the driver did not apply the brakes in the N+1th automatic parking. Since the speed change suggestion unit 13 does not determine that the driver applied the brakes during the execution of automatic parking, it suggests to the driver that the set speed for automatic parking be increased. It is assumed that the driver agrees to this speed increase. Since the driver agrees to the speed increase, the set speed change unit 14 changes the set speed for automatic parking to a set speed Vn _{+ 2 that is higher than the set speed Vn+1} .

In the N+2th automatic parking, automatic parking is performed at a set speed Vn ₊₂ . It is assumed that the driver does not apply the brakes even in the N+2th automatic parking. Since the speed change suggestion unit 13 does not determine that the driver applied the brakes during the execution of automatic parking, it suggests to the driver to increase the set speed for automatic parking. It is assumed that the driver does not agree to this speed increase. Since the driver did not agree to the speed increase, the set speed change unit 14 maintains the current set speed Vn ₊₂ .

In the N+3th automatic parking, automatic parking is performed at a set speed V _n+2 . Assume that the driver applies the brakes in the N+3th automatic parking, and the vehicle speed drops to a post-brake speed V _bn+3 . In this case, the speed change suggestion unit 13 proposes to the driver to reduce the set speed for automatic parking, since it is determined that the driver applied the brakes while automatic parking is being performed. Assume that the driver did not agree to this speed reduction. The set speed change unit 14 maintains the current set speed V _n+2 , since the driver did not agree to the speed reduction. In this case, automatic parking is also performed in the N+4th automatic parking at a set speed V _n+2 .

[ECU Processing]
Hereinafter, the process in the ECU 10 of the vehicle according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing a first set speed change suggestion process. The first set speed change suggestion process is executed when automatic parking is performed in a state where the driver has permitted the set speed change suggestion.

As shown in FIG. 3, in S10, the ECU 10 determines whether the driver has applied the brakes while automatic parking is being performed using the brake operation determination unit 12. The brake operation determination unit 12 determines that the driver has applied the brakes when, for example, the amount of depression of the brake pedal by the driver reaches or exceeds a predetermined value. If it is determined that the driver has applied the brakes (S10: YES), the ECU 10 proceeds to S11. If it is not determined that the driver has applied the brakes (S10: NO), the ECU 10 proceeds to S15.

In S11, the ECU 10 determines whether the set speed for automatic parking is the lower limit speed using the speed change suggestion unit 13. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is not the lower limit speed (S11: YES), it proceeds to S12. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is the lower limit speed (S11: NO), it ends this processing.

In S12, the ECU 10 uses the speed change suggestion unit 13 to suggest slowing down the set speed for automatic parking. The speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests slowing down the set speed to the driver by displaying an image on the display 5a of the HMI 5 or outputting an audio signal from the speaker 5b. The ECU 10 then transitions to S13.

In S13, the ECU 10 determines whether the driver has accepted the suggestion through the set speed change unit 14. The set speed change unit 14 determines whether the driver has accepted the suggestion from the driver's input to the input unit 5c of the HMI 5. If the ECU 10 determines that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S13: YES), it transitions to S14. If the ECU 10 does not determine that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S13: NO), it ends this processing.

In S14, the ECU 10 reduces the set speed for automatic parking by the set speed change unit 14. The set speed change unit 14 reduces the set speed so that the set speed is lower than the post-braking speed, which is the vehicle speed reduced by the driver's braking operation while automatic parking is being performed, for example. The ECU 10 then ends this processing.

In S15, the ECU 10 determines whether the set speed for automatic parking is the upper limit speed by the speed change suggestion unit 13. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is not the upper limit speed (S15: YES), the ECU 10 proceeds to S16. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is the upper limit speed (S15: NO), the ECU 10 ends this processing.

In S16, the ECU 10 uses the speed change suggestion unit 13 to suggest increasing the set speed for automatic parking. The speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests to the driver to increase the set speed by displaying an image on the display 5a of the HMI 5 or outputting an audio signal from the speaker 5b. The ECU 10 then proceeds to S17.

In S17, the ECU 10 determines whether the driver has accepted the suggestion through the set speed change unit 14. If the ECU 10 determines that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S17: YES), the ECU 10 proceeds to S18. If the ECU 10 does not determine that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S17: NO), the ECU 10 ends this processing.

In S18, the ECU 10 increases the set speed for automatic parking by the set speed change unit 14. The set speed change unit 14 increases the set speed so that the set speed is lower than the post-braking speed, which is the vehicle speed that is reduced after the driver applies the brakes while automatic parking is being performed. After that, the ECU 10 ends the current process.

Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the second set speed change proposal process. The second set speed change proposal process is executed when the driver has permitted the set speed change proposal for manual parking.

As shown in FIG. 4, in S20, the ECU 10 determines whether or not parking by the driver (manual parking) has been completed using the speed change suggestion unit 13. The speed change suggestion unit 13 recognizes that parking by the driver has been completed from engine stop when automatic parking is not being performed. If the ECU 10 determines that parking by the driver has been completed (S20: YES), it proceeds to S21. If the ECU 10 does not determine that parking by the driver has been completed (S20: NO), it ends the current process.

In S21, the ECU 10 determines whether the parking speed set by the driver is lower than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more using the speed change suggestion unit 13. The speed change suggestion unit 13 calculates the parking speed from the speed of the vehicle during manual parking. If the ECU 10 determines that the parking speed set by the driver is lower than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more (S21: YES), it proceeds to S22. If the ECU 10 does not determine that the parking speed set by the driver is lower than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more (S21: NO), it proceeds to S26.

In S22, the ECU 10 determines whether the set speed for automatic parking is the lower limit speed using the speed change suggestion unit 13. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is not the lower limit speed (S22: YES), the ECU 10 proceeds to S23. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is the lower limit speed (S22: NO), the ECU 10 ends this processing.

In S23, the ECU 10 uses the speed change suggestion unit 13 to suggest slowing down the set speed for automatic parking. The speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests slowing down the set speed to the driver by displaying an image on the display 5a of the HMI 5 or outputting audio from the speaker 5b. The ECU 10 then proceeds to S24.

In S24, the ECU 10 determines whether the driver has accepted the suggestion through the set speed change unit 14. If the ECU 10 determines that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S24: YES), the ECU 10 proceeds to S25. If the ECU 10 does not determine that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S24: NO), the ECU 10 ends this processing.

In S25, the ECU 10 reduces the set speed for automatic parking by the set speed change unit 14. The set speed change unit 14 reduces the set speed, for example, to a speed lower than the parking speed of the driver. After that, the ECU 10 ends this processing.

In S26, the ECU 10 determines whether the parking speed set by the driver is higher than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more using the speed change suggestion unit 13. The speed change suggestion unit 13 calculates the parking speed from the speed of the vehicle during manual parking. If the ECU 10 determines that the parking speed set by the driver is higher than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more (S26: YES), it proceeds to S27. If the ECU 10 does not determine that the parking speed set by the driver is higher than the set speed for automatic parking by a predetermined value or more (S26: NO), it ends this processing.

In S27, the ECU 10 determines whether the set speed for automatic parking is the upper limit speed by the speed change suggestion unit 13. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is not the upper limit speed (S27: YES), the ECU 10 proceeds to S28. If the ECU 10 determines that the set speed for automatic parking is the upper limit speed (S27: NO), the ECU 10 ends this processing.

In S28, the ECU 10 uses the speed change suggestion unit 13 to suggest increasing the set speed for automatic parking. The speed change suggestion unit 13 suggests to the driver to increase the set speed by displaying an image on the display 5a of the HMI 5 or outputting an audio signal from the speaker 5b. The ECU 10 then proceeds to S29.

In S29, the ECU 10 determines whether the driver has accepted the suggestion through the set speed change unit 14. If the ECU 10 determines that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S29: YES), the ECU 10 proceeds to S30. If the ECU 10 does not determine that the driver has accepted the suggestion (S29: NO), the ECU 10 ends this processing.

In S30, the ECU 10 increases the set speed for automatic parking by the set speed change unit 14. The set speed change unit 14 increases the set speed so that it is close to the parking speed of the driver, for example. After that, the ECU 10 ends this processing.

According to the vehicle of this embodiment described above, it is possible to appropriately suggest slowing down or speeding up the set speed for automatic parking depending on whether the driver applies the brakes while automatic parking is being performed, so that the set speed for automatic parking can be appropriately changed for the driver. Furthermore, according to this vehicle, when speeding down, the set speed is set to a value lower than the post-braking speed based on the driver's post-braking speed, so that the set speed can be appropriately changed taking into account the driver's post-braking speed to give the driver a sense of security.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments. The present invention can be implemented in various forms, including the above-mentioned embodiments, with various modifications and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

The vehicle according to this embodiment does not necessarily need to change the set speed based on the post-braking speed. In addition, the vehicle according to this embodiment does not necessarily need to be able to execute the second set speed change suggestion process as shown in FIG. 4. The input section 5c of the HMI 5 does not necessarily need to have a voice input function.

1...automatic parking switch, 2...vehicle speed sensor, 3...brake pedal sensor, 4...actuator, 5...HMI, 10...ECU, 11...automatic parking execution unit, 12...brake operation determination unit, 13...speed change suggestion unit, 14...set speed change unit.

Claims (1)

A vehicle capable of performing automatic parking,
a brake operation determination unit that determines whether or not a driver of the vehicle has performed a brake operation while the automatic parking is being performed;
a speed change suggestion unit that suggests to the driver to reduce a set speed for automatic parking when the brake operation determination unit determines that the driver has performed a brake operation, and that suggests to the driver to increase a set speed for automatic parking when the brake operation determination unit does not determine that the driver has performed a brake operation;
a set speed changing unit that reduces the set speed for automatic parking when the driver agrees to reduce the set speed for automatic parking, and that increases the set speed for automatic parking when the driver agrees to increase the set speed for automatic parking;
A vehicle equipped with:

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