Patent Application
20220292889
This application claims priority to and the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-039455 filed on Mar. 11, 2021, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to an information processing technology.
A technique is known in which information while a vehicle is traveling is stored in the vehicle, and the stored information is used for inspection and maintenance (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-28045).
With advancements in a driving assistance system for a vehicle, various supports such as automatic braking, automatic steering, and a notification for attention attracting are given to a driver, and contribute to improvements in safety of the vehicle. On the other hand, when the driving assistance is activated, drivers may not be able to immediately recognize the cause of the activation. Hence, the drivers feel strange about the activation of the driving assistance, in some cases. The drivers who feel strange may consider that a failure might have occurred in the vehicle and ask for an explanation at an automobile dealer.
A person in charge at the dealer determines the state of the driving assistance system based on the information that has been accumulated in the vehicle, and gives an explanation to the driver that there is no abnormality as long as the driving assistance system is normal. However, the explanation includes technical contents, and it may be difficult for the drivers to understand the explanation only with oral explanation or written explanation indicating the technical matters.
An object of the present invention is to provide a tool capable of explaining an activation situation of a driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus comprising: an acquisition unit configured to acquire, from a vehicle, activation history information of driving assistance by a driving assistance system on the vehicle and motion history information of the vehicle; and a display control unit configured to cause a display device to display behavior information indicating chronological behavior of the vehicle in a situation in which the driving assistance was activated, based on the activation history information and the motion history information acquired by the acquisition unit.
Further features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments (with reference to the attached drawings).
Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention, and limitation is not made an invention that requires all combinations of features described in the embodiments. Two or more of the multiple features described in the embodiments may be combined as appropriate. Furthermore, the same reference numerals are given to the same or similar configurations, and redundant description thereof is omitted.
The control unit 7 is capable of recognizing a travel environment of the vehicle V, based on detection results of detection units 10A to 10D that respectively detect surrounding situations of vehicle V. In the present embodiment, the detection unit 10A is a camera that captures an image ahead the vehicle V, and the detection unit 10B is a camera that captures an image behind the vehicle V. By analyzing the images that have been captured by the detection units 10A and 10B, it is possible to extract a contour of a target or a lane division line (a white line or the like) on a road. The detection unit 10C is a millimeter wave radar, detects a target ahead the vehicle V, and measures a distance to the target. The detection unit 10D is an ultrasonic sensor, detects a target behind the vehicle V, and measures a distance to the target. As the detection units 10A to 10D, sensors other than the camera, the millimeter wave radar, and the ultrasonic sensor can also be used, and their arrangements and detection ranges can also be appropriately designed.
The control unit 7 is also capable of acquiring detection results of an inertial sensor 11, a wheel speed sensor 12, an accelerator pedal sensor 13, and a brake pedal sensor 14. The inertial sensor 11 includes, for example, an acceleration sensor, a yaw rate sensor, and the like, and is capable of calculating, for example, the posture of the vehicle V using the detection results and, for example, the vehicle speed of the vehicle V using the wheel speed sensor 12. An accelerator operation amount and a brake operation amount of a driver can be calculated respectively from detection results of the accelerator pedal sensor 13 and the brake pedal sensor 14.
The control unit 7 is capable of controlling a drive source 17, a brake device 18, and an electric power steering 19. The drive source 17 includes, for example, an internal combustion engine and an automatic transmission, and the control unit 7 is capable of controlling the drive source 17 to control acceleration or deceleration of the vehicle V. The brake device 18 is, for example, a disc brake device, and the control unit 7 is capable of controlling the brake of the vehicle V using the brake device 18.
The electric power steering 19 is a mechanism that steers front wheels in accordance with a driving operation by the driver (steering operation) on a steering wheel. The electric power steering 19 includes a motor that exerts driving force (referred to as steering assist torque, in some cases) for assisting the steering operation, a steering angle sensor, a torque sensor that detects steering torque loaded by the driver, and the like. The control unit 7 is capable of controlling the steering of the vehicle V using the electric power steering 19, and is capable of calculating a steering amount of the driver.
The control unit 7 is also capable of controlling a sound output device 15 and a meter panel 16. The sound output device 15 is capable of notifying the driver of an alarm sound and the like. Various types of information can be displayed on the meter panel 16.
The control unit 7 constitutes a driving assistance system. As driving assistance, the control unit 7 is capable of conducting, for example, collision reduction brake, lane deviation suppression, parking assistance, and the like.
The control unit 7 stores, in an internal storage device (drive recorder), activation history information of such driving assistance, and motion history information and operation history information of the vehicle V within a certain period of time before and after activation of the driving assistance. The activation history information includes all of driving assistance in the past that has been activated without an instruction of the driver, such as the collision reduction brake and the lane deviation suppression, and also includes driving assistance in the past that has been started by an instruction of the driver but has not been completed, such as a case where the parking assistance has been cancelled on a partway. The activation history information is stored in association with, for example, a total travel distance of the vehicle V, and includes information related to the driving assistance (activation trigger, activation timing, control amount, and the like). The motion history information is information related to a motion of the vehicle V, and includes control amounts of a vehicle speed, acceleration, deceleration, an angular velocity, a steering angle, the drive source 17, and the like. The operation history information denotes information related to the driving operation by the driver (accelerator operation amount, brake operation amount, steering angle, and the like).
Returning to
A display device 5 and an input device 6 are connected with the information processing apparatus 1. The display device 5 is, for example, a liquid crystal display device, and the information processing apparatus 1 causes the display device 5 to display the behavior information, as will be described later. The input device 6 is a mouse, a keyboard, or the like, and the information processing apparatus 1 is capable of receiving an operator's instruction that has been input into the input device 6. The information processing apparatus 1, the display device 5, and the input device 6 may be a desktop personal computer, a laptop personal computer, or a tablet provided with a touch panel.
A process example of the information processing apparatus 1 will be described. At the time of inspection, maintenance, or the like of the vehicle V, the information processing apparatus 1 is connected to the control unit 7 of the vehicle V through the communication adapter 8.
In S2, the history information that has been acquired is analyzed to generate information to be displayed on the display device 5. In S3, display control of displaying the information generated in S2 on the display device 5 is conducted. The display in S3 includes a display for service staff of an automobile dealer to check the state of the vehicle V, and in addition, a display for explaining the driving assistance time of the vehicle V in response to a request from the owner of the vehicle V. When the owner of the vehicle V feels strange about the activation of the driving assistance in the past, the owner requests its explanation in some cases. The service staff gives the explanation to the owner using the display of the display device 5.
The behavior information 21 includes a total travel distance display area 22. As described above, in the present embodiment, the activation history information is associated with the total travel distance of the vehicle V. The total travel distance display area 22 displays a list of travel distances while the driving assistance was being activated, so that information of the driving assistance in the past to be desired to reproduce can be selected from the list.
For example, the service staff makes a conversation with the owner, and obtains an approximate travel distance at the time of activation of the driving assistance for which the owner requests an explanation, and selects, from the total travel distance display area 22, one of the traveled distances that is similar to the traveled distance that has been obtained from the owner. In the illustrated example, the history when traveled for 1352 km is selected by a cursor 22a. When the traveled distance is selected, the corresponding history information is determined.
The behavior information 21 includes a setting display area 23. In the setting display area 23, various settings of the vehicle V at the time of activation of the driving assistance are indicated. The illustrated example shows that “alarm distance setting” was normal, “lane keeping control” was OFF (not activated) and “autocruise” was OFF. The “alarm distance setting” denotes a setting of a predetermined distance to be notified to the driver, when an obstacle and the vehicle V becomes in proximity to each other to a predetermined distance. The “lane keeping control” is the same as the lane deviation suppression described above, and when this is OFF, the driving assistance related to the lane deviation suppression is not activated. The “autocruise” denotes automatic following control with respect to a preceding vehicle, and does not activate when this is OFF.
The behavior information 21 includes a reproduced video display area 24 in which a video reproducing the behavior of the vehicle V is displayed. In the present embodiment, the chronological behavior of the vehicle V is displayed in a video, as the behavior information. In the illustrated example, a vehicle image VI corresponding to the vehicle V is displayed in a plan view, and the video showing the behavior of the vehicle V in a bird's-eye view is displayed. The vehicle image VI may be a photographic image of the actual vehicle. The display at the stage of
The behavior information 21 includes an assistance content display area 25. In the assistance content display area 25, information indicating the type of the driving assistance that has been activated is displayed. This information is displayed at a timing corresponding to an actual activation timing in synchronization with the reproduced video displayed in the reproduced video display area 24. In the illustrated example, the video is not displayed yet.
The behavior information 21 includes a meter reproduction area 26. In the meter reproduction area 26, an image for reproducing the display content of the meter panel 16 while the driving assistance was being activated is displayed. In the illustrated example, the shift range of the automatic transmission of the drive source 17 is D range, and the vehicle speed is 53 km/h.
The behavior information 21 includes an operation display area 27. In the operation display area 27, information indicating a driving operation or the like performed by the driver while the driving assistance was being activated is displayed. In the illustrated example, an accelerator operation amount is indicated by a level meter 30. In addition, the level meter 30 indicates a throttle opening degree of the internal combustion engine (control information of the internal combustion engine). Regarding steering information 29, a steering amount operated by the driver or a steering amount of automatic steering activated by the driving assistance is displayed with use of an icon indicating a steering wheel. Regarding brake information 28, the brake operation performed by the driver or the presence or absence of the automatic braking activated by the driving assistance is displayed with use of an icon indicating a brake pedal.
Changes in the display of the behavior information 21 after the reproduction button 21a is operated will be described with reference to
By presenting the behavior information 21 as described above to the owner of the vehicle V who has requested the explanation, it becomes possible to explain the activation situation of the driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner, and it becomes possible to clear up misunderstanding of malfunction and failure. In particular, by displaying the video reproducing the behavior of the vehicle V in the reproduced video display area 24, it is possible to explain in a visually recognizable manner. In addition to the reproduced video, information regarding the working situation of the vehicle V and the operating situation by the driver at the time of activation of the driving assistance is also displayed. Therefore, it becomes possible for the owner of the vehicle V to understand the relationship and the like between the activation situation of the driving assistance system and the driving operation performed by the driver in a more easily understandable manner.
In the first embodiment, the behavior of the vehicle V has been displayed in a video. However, in the present embodiment, furthermore, a description will be given with regard to a tool capable of displaying reference information about a travel environment of a road on which the vehicle V is traveling at the time of activation of the driving assistance. It becomes easy for the owner of the vehicle V who listens to the explanation to intuitively recognize the situation that triggered the activation of the driving assistance.
In an item area 32, items that can be displayed in the reproduced video display area 24 are listed. An item 32a is an icon representing an automobile, an item 32b is an icon representing a pedestrian, and an item 32c is an icon representing a bicycle and a rider. An item 32d is an icon representing a street tree, an item 32e is an icon representing an intersection, and an item 32f is an icon representing a road. An operator performs a selection operation of selecting an item from the item area 32 using the input device 6, and performs a drag operation or the like of dragging the selected item into the reproduced video display area 24. Accordingly, the selection is received and the selected item is displayed in the reproduced video display area 24.
In an editing area 33, a free drawing tool 33a, an eraser tool 33b, and a trash box tool 33c are displayed. The operator selects the free drawing tool 33a using the input device 6, and is able to freely draw a line and a figure in the reproduced video display area 24. The eraser tool 33b is a tool for deleting the free line and the figure that have been drawn in the reproduced video display area 24, and the trash box tool 33c is a tool for deleting the icon that has been selected from the item area 32 and displayed in the reproduced video display area 24.
The service staff interviews the owner about the travel environment of the road on which the vehicle V was traveling at the time of activation of the driving assistance, and performs an editing operation on the reproduced video display area 24 by using the item in the item area 32 and each tool of the editing area 33.
In the second embodiment, a still image that has been created by the operator is displayed in a superimposed manner as reference information about the travel environment on the road. However, the map information may be displayed in a superimposed manner.
In a map display area 34, an image of an aerial photograph is displayed as the map information. The image of the aerial photograph may be stored beforehand in the storage unit 3, or may be acquired by the information processing apparatus 1 from a providing server for providing the map information through a network such as the Internet. The operator performs a selection operation of selecting a display range from the map display area 34 using a frame 34a on the input device 6, and performs a drag operation or the like of dragging the display range into the reproduced video display area 24. Accordingly, the selection is received and the image of the frame 34a is displayed in the reproduced video display area 24. By inputting regional information into an input box 35, the region of the map displayed in the map display area 34 can be changed.
The service staff interviews the owner about the location of the road on which the vehicle V was traveling at the time of activation of the driving assistance, inputs information of the location into the input box 35, and selects map information from the map display area 34 to display the map information in the reproduced video display area 24.
As another method for displaying the map information on the reproduced video display area 24 in a superimposed manner, method of setting transmission of the background of the reproduced video display area 24 selectable and displaying the map information as the background is also adoptable.
A window of the behavior information 21 is superimposed on the window 40.
The behavior information 21 is provided with a transmission selection button 21c. When the operator operates the transmission selection button 21c, the reproduced video display area 24 becomes a transmissive state as illustrated in
By enabling the selection between a transmissive state and a non-transmissive state of the reproduced video display area 24 in this manner, the map information from various sources can be displayed on the rear side.
In each of the above embodiments, the case where the collision reduction brake was activated has been described as an example of the driving assistance. However, each of the above embodiments is also applicable to other types of driving assistance. In the present embodiment, a description will be given with regard to a display example in a case where the parking assistance was activated as the driving assistance, but did not complete.
The behavior information 21 includes an activation result display area 36, and displays a reason why the parking assistance did not complete (a cancellation reason). In the illustrated example, the parking that did not complete within a prescribed time is displayed with its reason.
In the reproduced video display area 24, an image FI of a parking frame assumed at the time of the parking assistance is displayed. The reproduction of the video is started by an operation of the reproduction button 21a. In the illustrated example, it is assumed that a video in which the vehicle image VI moves from a location represented by a broken line to a location represented by a solid line is reproduced. The location represented by the solid line is the location where the parking assistance of the vehicle V was cancelled.
Also in the present embodiment, by presenting the behavior information 21 to the owner of the vehicle V who has requested the explanation, it becomes possible to explain the activation situation of the driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner, and it becomes possible to clear up misunderstanding of malfunction and failure. In particular, by displaying the video in which the behavior of the vehicle V is reproduced in the reproduced video display area 24, it becomes possible to explain in a visually understandable manner. By also displaying the image FI of the parking frame, it becomes possible to make the owner deeply understand the system, while a service person and the owner are checking the situation during the activation.
In the first to fourth embodiments, the behavior information 21 includes the reproduced video display area 24, and the reproduced video including the behavior of the vehicle V is displayed. However, instead of this, any other display form, such as displaying a chronological change in each parameter included in the motion history information, in a bar graph, a line graph, or the like may be applicable.
The above embodiments disclose at least an information processing apparatus, a program, and a storage medium in the following.
1. The information processing apparatus (1) of the embodiment includes an acquisition unit (2, S1) configured to acquire, from a vehicle (V), activation history information of driving assistance by a driving assistance system (7) on the vehicle and motion history information of the vehicle; and a display control unit (2, S3) configured to cause a display device (5) to display behavior information (21) indicating chronological behavior of the vehicle in a situation in which the driving assistance was activated, based on the activation history information and the motion history information acquired by the acquisition unit.
According to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a tool capable of explaining an activation situation of the driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner.
2. In the embodiment, the behavior information includes a video that reproduces the behavior of the vehicle.
According to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a visually recognizable explanation.
3. In the embodiment, the video (24) shows the behavior of the vehicle in a bird's eye view.
According to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a visually recognizable explanation.
4. In the embodiment, the display control unit causes the display device to display the video superimposed on map information (
According to this embodiment, it is possible to explain the activation situation of the driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner while referring to the travel environment of the road.
5. In the embodiment, the acquisition unit acquires operation history information of a driver of the vehicle, and the display control unit displays, together with the video, information (27) indicating a driving operation by the driver in a situation in which the driving assistance was activated, based on the operation history information.
According to this embodiment, it is possible to explain the relationship between the activation situation of the driving assistance system and the driving operation performed by the driver in a more easily understandable manner.
6. In the embodiment, the motion history information includes a vehicle speed and a steering angle of the vehicle, and the operation history information includes information regarding an accelerator operation, a brake operation, and a steering operation by the driver.
According to this embodiment, it is possible to reproduce the behavior of the vehicle more accurately, and it is possible to explain the relationship with the driving operation performed by the driver in a more easily understandable manner.
7. In the embodiment, the display control unit displays, together with the video, information (25) indicating a type of the driving assistance at an activation timing of the driving assistance (
According to this embodiment, it is possible to enhance understanding of an activation trigger of the driving assistance system.
8. The information processing apparatus of the embodiment, further includes a reception unit (32) configured to receive a selection of an item indicating a travel environment of a road on which the vehicle was traveling at a time of activation of the driving assistance, wherein the display control unit displays, together with the video, the item the selection received by the reception unit (
According to this embodiment, it is possible to explain the activation situation of the driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner while referring to the travel environment of the road.
9. In the embodiment, the driving assistance includes automatic braking (
According to this embodiment, it is possible to explain the activation situation of the driving assistance system about which the driver may feel strange, in a more easily understandable manner.
10. In the embodiment, the driving assistance includes parking assistance of the vehicle (
According to this embodiment, it is possible to explain the activation situation of the parking assistance in a more easily understandable manner.
11. The program (
According to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a tool capable of explaining an activation situation of the driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner.
12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of the embodiment stores a program that causes a computer (2) to function as: an acquisition unit (2, S1) configured to acquire, from a vehicle (V), activation history information of driving assistance by a driving assistance system (7) on the vehicle and motion history information of the vehicle; and a display control unit (2, S3) configured to cause a display device (5) to display behavior information (21) indicating chronological behavior of the vehicle in a situation in which the driving assistance was activated, based on the activation history information and the motion history information acquired by the acquisition unit.
According to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a tool capable of explaining an activation situation of the driving assistance system in a more easily understandable manner.
The invention is not limited to the foregoing embodiments, and various variations/changes are possible within the spirit of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-039455 | Mar 2021 | JP | national |
