JP7707840B2 - Following driving support device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a follow-up driving support device.

Conventionally, this type of following driving support device is a device that supports following a selected other vehicle, in which a controller acquires the driving characteristics of the vehicle itself and the driving characteristics of other vehicles traveling around the vehicle itself, compares the driving characteristics of the vehicle itself with the driving characteristics of the other vehicles to determine the degree of similarity between the respective characteristics, selects the other vehicle with a high degree of similarity as a recommended vehicle to follow, and notifies the driver of the vehicle of the selected recommended vehicle to follow (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2018-176859 A

The above-mentioned following vehicle support device needs to acquire the driving operation characteristics of the host vehicle and the other vehicle while the host vehicle and the other vehicle are traveling, and compare the acquired driving operation characteristics to find approximate characteristics of each vehicle. For this reason, the processing load on the processing unit (controller) when starting to support following vehicle traveling can be relatively high.

The main purpose of the following driving support device of the present invention is to prevent the processing load of the processing unit from becoming relatively high when starting to support following driving.

The following measures are taken to achieve the above-mentioned main objective of the following vehicle tracking support device of the present invention:

The following driving support device of the present invention comprises:
A following driving support device that is mounted on a vehicle and supports a following driving of the host vehicle to follow a preceding vehicle,
A storage unit that stores a matching vehicle, which is an arbitrary other vehicle among the other vehicles, whose driving characteristics match the host vehicle;
a processing unit that, when the execution of the following driving is instructed and the matching vehicle stored in the storage unit is present within a predetermined distance from the host vehicle, sets the matching vehicle to a candidate vehicle that is a candidate for the preceding vehicle and notifies the driver of the host vehicle of the candidate vehicle, or sets the matching vehicle to the preceding vehicle;
The gist of the invention is to provide the following:

The following driving support device of the present invention includes a memory unit and a processing unit. The memory unit stores a matching vehicle, which is any other vehicle whose driving characteristics match the vehicle's own vehicle, among other vehicles. When an instruction to perform following driving is given and a matching vehicle stored in the memory unit is present within a predetermined distance from the vehicle's own vehicle, the processing unit sets the matching vehicle as a candidate vehicle that is a candidate for the preceding vehicle and notifies the driver of the vehicle, or sets the matching vehicle as the preceding vehicle. This makes it possible to prevent the processing load on the processing unit from becoming relatively high when starting to support following driving.

In the following driving support device of the present invention, the driving characteristics may include at least one of the following when the execution of the following driving is not instructed and the other vehicle is present within the predetermined distance ahead of the host vehicle: the accelerator operation amount when accelerating the host vehicle, the brake operation amount when decelerating the host vehicle, the vehicle speed when the host vehicle is traveling at a constant speed, and the inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle ahead when the host vehicle is traveling at a constant speed.

1 is a diagram showing an outline of the configuration of an automobile 20 equipped with an adaptive cruise control device according to an embodiment of the present invention; 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing routine executed by an electronic control unit 50.

Next, we will explain how to implement the present invention using examples.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an automobile 20 equipped with a follow-up cruise support device as one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the automobile 20 of the embodiment is configured as an automobile that runs on power from a drive unit 62 having an engine, a motor, etc.

In addition to the drive device 62, the automobile 20 of the embodiment is equipped with an ignition switch 22, a GPS (Global Positioning System, Global Positioning Satellite) 24, a front camera 26, an interior camera 28, a vehicle speed sensor 30, an acceleration sensor 32, a millimeter wave radar 34, an accelerator sensor 36, a brake sensor 38, a cruise control switch 40, an electronic control unit 50, a drive actuator 60, a brake actuator 64, a brake device 66, a steering actuator 68, a steering device 70, a holographic optical device 72, a front window 74, a meter 76, a navigation system 80, and a DCM (Data Communication Module) 86. The electronic control unit 50 corresponds to the following driving support device of the embodiment.

The GPS 24 is a device that detects the position of the vehicle based on signals transmitted from multiple GPS satellites. The front camera 26 is a camera that is attached to the upper center of the front of the passenger compartment and positioned to capture images of the front of the vehicle through the windshield 74. The interior camera 28 is a camera that is attached to the upper center of the front of the passenger compartment and positioned to capture images of the interior of the passenger compartment. The vehicle speed sensor 30 detects the vehicle speed based on the wheel speed, etc. The acceleration sensor 32 detects, for example, the acceleration in the front-rear direction of the vehicle and the acceleration in the left-right direction (lateral direction) of the vehicle. The millimeter wave radar 34 detects the distance and relative speed between the vehicle and the vehicle ahead, and the distance and relative speed between the vehicle and the vehicle behind.

The accelerator sensor 36 detects the accelerator opening as the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal by the driver. The brake sensor 38 detects the brake position as the amount of depression of the brake pedal by the driver. The cruise control switch 40 is located near the steering wheel of the driver's seat and is a switch for switching between executing and not executing cruise control. Examples of cruise control include vehicle speed control, in which the vehicle speed of the vehicle is kept approximately constant while the vehicle runs, and vehicle distance control, in which the vehicle runs while the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle is kept approximately constant while the vehicle runs.

The electronic control unit 50 includes a microcomputer having a CPU 51, a ROM 52, a RAM 53, a flash memory 54, an input/output port, and a communication port. When the cruise control switch 40 is off, the electronic control unit 50 sets the required torque required for the drive device and the required braking force required for the brake device based on the accelerator opening from the accelerator sensor 36, the brake position from the brake sensor 38, the vehicle speed from the vehicle speed sensor 30, etc., and transmits the set required torque to the drive actuator 60 and the set required braking force to the brake actuator 64.

When the cruise control switch 40 is on, the electronic control unit 50 sets the required driving force and the required braking force so that the vehicle speed of the vehicle becomes the target vehicle speed in the case of vehicle speed control, and sets the required driving force and the required braking force so that the distance between the vehicle and the vehicle ahead becomes the target distance in the case of vehicle distance control, and transmits the set required torque to the drive actuator 60 and the set required braking force to the brake actuator 64.

The drive actuator 60 drives and controls the drive unit 62 so that the required torque set by the electronic control unit 50 is output from the drive unit 62 to the drive shaft.

The brake actuator 64 controls the brake device 66 so that the required braking force set by the electronic control unit 50 is applied to the vehicle by the brake device 66.

The steering actuator 68 drives and controls the steering device 70 so that the steering position in the steering device 70 becomes the target steering position set by the electronic control unit 50.

The holographic optical device 72 is configured as an AR (Augmented Reality) device that displays various holograms on the windshield 74, and is built into the dashboard of the vehicle.

The navigation system 80 is a system that guides the vehicle to a set destination, and includes a map information database 82 and a display unit 84. The map information database 82 stores map information such as distance information, road width information, road type information (general roads, expressways), and legal speed information for each section. The display unit 84 displays the map information. When a destination is set, the navigation system 80 sets a driving route based on the destination information, current location information (current vehicle position) obtained by GPS 24, and information stored in the map information database 82, and displays the set driving route on the display unit 84 to provide route guidance.

DCM86 is a communication device that allows electronic control unit 50 and navigation system 80 to communicate with cloud server CS and the like. Examples of vehicle information about the vehicle that is transmitted from electronic control unit 50 and navigation system 80 to cloud server CS via DCM86 include the vehicle's driving history (e.g., the vehicle's position and speed at each time, driving force, on/off status of cruise control switch 40, etc.) and parking history (e.g., parking position and parking time, etc.).

The cloud server CS is configured to be able to communicate wirelessly with each vehicle. The cloud server CS stores vehicle information for each vehicle and information similar to that of the map information database 82 described above. The cloud server CS sequentially selects a target vehicle from each vehicle, and based on the vehicle information (driving characteristics) of each vehicle, sets a matching vehicle among any other vehicle (driver) whose driving characteristics match the target vehicle (driver) for the target vehicle and transmits it to the target vehicle, and the CPU 51 of the electronic control unit 50 of the target vehicle stores the matching vehicle in the flash memory 54 while the target vehicle is stopped. Examples of the driving characteristics of each vehicle include the accelerator opening when accelerating the vehicle when the cruise control switch 40 is off and another vehicle is present within a predetermined distance in front of the vehicle, the brake position when decelerating the vehicle, the vehicle speed when the vehicle is traveling at a constant speed, and the distance between the vehicle and the other vehicle in front when the vehicle is traveling at a constant speed. In addition, when there are multiple matching vehicles, it is preferable to give priority according to the degree of matching. For example, the more times a vehicle is set as a leading vehicle in cruise control distance control among multiple matching vehicles, the higher the priority will be, since it is likely that the driving time and driving area are similar to that of the host vehicle.

Next, the operation of the automobile 20 of the embodiment thus configured will be described, in particular the operation when setting the preceding vehicle for vehicle distance control of the cruise control. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing routine executed by the electronic control unit 50. This routine is executed repeatedly when vehicle distance control of the cruise control is not being executed.

When the processing routine of FIG. 2 is executed, the electronic control unit 50 first determines whether the cruise control switch 40 is on or not (step S100), and ends this routine when it determines that the cruise control switch 40 is off.

When it is determined in step S100 that the cruise control switch 40 is on, it is determined whether or not a matching vehicle stored in the flash memory 54 is present within a predetermined distance from the vehicle (automobile 20) (step S110).

If it is determined in step S110 that the matching vehicle is not present within a predetermined distance from the host vehicle, this routine is terminated. In this case, for example, when another vehicle is present within a predetermined distance ahead of the host vehicle, the other vehicle (for example, the closest other vehicle when there are multiple other vehicles) is set as the preceding vehicle and vehicle distance control is performed, and when no other vehicle is present within the predetermined distance ahead of the host vehicle, vehicle speed control is performed.

When it is determined in step S110 that a matching vehicle is present within a predetermined distance from the vehicle, the matching vehicle is set as the preceding vehicle to be followed (step S120), and this routine ends. Here, when there are multiple matching vehicles within a predetermined distance from the vehicle, the vehicle with the highest priority may be set as the preceding vehicle. In this case, it is preferable to inform the driver by, for example, displaying a hologram (image) for marking the preceding vehicle on the front window 74 by the holographic optical device 72. When the preceding vehicle is set in this way, vehicle distance control is performed to follow the preceding vehicle. In this way, by setting a matching vehicle whose driving characteristics match those of the vehicle as the preceding vehicle, the driving characteristics during vehicle distance control can be made closer to the driver's preferences compared to when a vehicle other than the matching vehicle is set as the preceding vehicle.

In the embodiment, a matching vehicle stored in flash memory 54 is used to determine whether the matching vehicle is within a specified distance from the vehicle itself. This makes it possible to prevent the processing load on the CPU 51 of the electronic control unit 50 from becoming relatively high when the matching vehicle is set as the preceding vehicle and execution of vehicle distance control is started, compared to receiving driving characteristics from other vehicles within a specified distance from the vehicle itself while traveling and comparing the driving characteristics of the vehicle itself with the driving characteristics of the other vehicles to determine whether the other vehicles are matching vehicles.

In the electronic control unit 50 as a following driving support device mounted on the automobile 20 of the embodiment described above, when the cruise control switch 40 is turned on and a matching vehicle stored in the flash memory 54 is present within a predetermined distance from the host vehicle (automobile 20), the CPU 51 sets the matching vehicle as a preceding vehicle of the following vehicle and executes distance control to follow the preceding vehicle. This makes it possible to prevent the processing load of the CPU 51 of the electronic control unit 50 from becoming relatively high when the matching vehicle is set as a preceding vehicle and the execution of distance control is started.

In the electronic control unit 50 of the embodiment, when the cruise control switch 40 is turned on and the matching vehicle stored in the flash memory 54 is within a predetermined distance from the vehicle (automobile 20), the matching vehicle is set as the preceding vehicle to be followed. However, at this time, the matching vehicle may be set as a candidate vehicle that is a candidate for the preceding vehicle and notified to the driver of the vehicle, and the driver may be asked to decide whether or not to set the candidate vehicle as the preceding vehicle, and when the driver gives an instruction to set the candidate vehicle as the preceding vehicle, the candidate vehicle may be set as the preceding vehicle. As a method of notifying the candidate vehicle, for example, a hologram (image) for marking the candidate vehicle may be displayed on the windshield 74 by the holographic optical device 72.

In the embodiment, the cloud server CS sets a matching vehicle for each vehicle based on the vehicle information (driving characteristics) of each vehicle. However, in addition to the driving characteristics, the matching vehicle for each vehicle may be set taking into consideration the vehicle body type, the planned driving time period, and the planned driving area (planned departure point, planned destination, driving route, etc.). The vehicle body type can be obtained from each vehicle. Furthermore, data on the planned driving time period and the planned driving area can be obtained from the navigation system 80 of each vehicle, information posted on a social network service (SNS), etc.

In the embodiment, the cloud server CS sets a matching vehicle for each vehicle and transmits it to each vehicle, and the CPU 51 of the electronic control unit 50 of each vehicle stores the matching vehicle in the flash memory 54 while the target vehicle is stopped. However, instead of the cloud server CS setting the matching vehicle, each vehicle may set the matching vehicle while it is stopped.

The correspondence between the main elements of the embodiment and the main elements of the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem will be explained. In the embodiment, the flash memory 54 corresponds to the "storage unit" and the CPU 51 corresponds to the "processing unit."

The correspondence between the main elements of the Examples and the main elements of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column does not limit the elements of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column, since the Examples are examples for specifically explaining the form for implementing the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column. In other words, the interpretation of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column should be based on the description in that column, and the Examples are merely a specific example of the invention described in the Means for Solving the Problem column.

The above describes the form for carrying out the present invention using examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples in any way, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be carried out in various forms without departing from the scope of the invention.

The present invention can be used in the manufacturing industry of driving support devices.

20 automobile, 22 ignition switch, 24 GPS, 26 forward camera, 28 interior camera, 30 vehicle speed sensor, 32 acceleration sensor, 34 millimeter wave radar, 36 accelerator sensor, 38 brake sensor, 40 cruise control switch, 50 electronic control unit, 51 CPU, 52 ROM, 53 RAM, 54 flash memory, 60 drive actuator, 62 drive device, 64 brake actuator, 66 brake device, 68 steering actuator, 70 steering device, 72 holographic optical device, 74 front window, 76 meter, 80 navigation system, 82 map information database, 84 display unit, 86 DCM.

Claims (1)

A following driving support device that is mounted on a vehicle and supports a following driving of the host vehicle to follow a preceding vehicle,
A storage unit that stores a matching vehicle, which is an arbitrary other vehicle among the other vehicles, whose driving characteristics match the host vehicle;
a processing unit that, when the execution of the following driving is instructed and the matching vehicle stored in the storage unit is present within a predetermined distance from the host vehicle, sets the matching vehicle to a candidate vehicle that is a candidate for the preceding vehicle and notifies the driver of the host vehicle of the candidate vehicle, or sets the matching vehicle to the preceding vehicle;
Equipped with
The driving characteristics include, in a case where the execution of the following driving is not instructed and the other vehicle is present within the predetermined distance ahead of the host vehicle, an accelerator operation amount when accelerating the host vehicle, an brake operation amount when decelerating the host vehicle, a vehicle speed when the host vehicle is driving at a constant speed, and a vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle ahead when the host vehicle is driving at a constant speed.
Following driving assistance device.