Patent Application
20250121853
The present disclosure relates to a range setting apparatus for setting a control target value of an autonomous driving vehicle.
There is known a technique of stopping an autonomous driving vehicle when an abnormality occurs in the autonomous driving vehicle. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for stopping an autonomous driving vehicle in case of an abnormality in a sensor mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2019-174168
The technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 stops an autonomous driving vehicle regardless of a degree of abnormality, which can sometimes obstruct the driving of other vehicles. For example, if an autonomous driving vehicle experiencing a minor abnormality that does not necessitate a halt is stopped on a narrow road, the stopped autonomous driving vehicle becomes an obstacle to other moving vehicles.
The present disclosure focuses on this point, and an object thereof is to avoid obstructing the driving of other vehicles.
An aspect of the present disclosure provides a range setting apparatus mounted on an autonomous driving vehicle, including an information acquisition part that acquires i) at least any of vehicle condition information indicating a condition of the autonomous driving vehicle and environmental condition information indicating condition of a surrounding environment of the autonomous driving vehicle, and ii) device condition information indicating condition of a device mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle, a determination part that determines at least any parameter among i) a first safety parameter indicating a degree of safety of the autonomous driving vehicle while driving based on the vehicle condition information and the device condition information and ii) a second safety parameter indicating the degree of safety based on the environmental condition information and the device condition information, and a range setting part that narrows the setting range according to the parameter, if the parameter determined by the determination part is below a determination threshold value for determining whether to restrict a setting range in which at least one of the speed control and the steering angle control of the autonomous driving vehicle can be set.
The range setting part may narrow the setting range according to a parameter range, including a value of the parameter determined by the determination part, among a plurality of parameter ranges obtained by dividing a range of possible values for the parameter into a plurality of segments.
The determination part may determine the first safety parameter and the second safety parameter, and the range setting part may set a setting range to be whichever range is narrower among i) a range narrowed from the setting range in accordance with the first safety parameter and ii) a range narrowed from the setting range in accordance with the second safety parameter.
The determination part may determine the first safety parameter and the second safety parameter, and the range setting part may narrow the setting range according to a lower one of the first safety parameter and the second safety parameter.
The information acquisition part may acquire i) the device condition information including detection accuracy degradation information indicating a degree of degradation of detection accuracy of the device that detects a surrounding environment of the autonomous driving vehicle and ii) the vehicle condition information including malfunction state information indicating a malfunction that has occurred in the autonomous driving vehicle, and the determination part may determine the first safety parameter on the basis of i) the degree of degradation of detection accuracy indicated by the detection accuracy degradation information and ii) a degree of threat due to the malfunction indicated by the malfunction state information.
The determination part may determine, as a degree of threat due to the malfunction, a value obtained by multiplying i) a value indicating occurrence of the malfunction indicated by the vehicle condition information by ii) a value indicating magnitude of an impact of the malfunction on safety while driving.
The determination part may determine, as the first safety parameter, a value obtained by subtracting a higher one of the degree of threat and the degree of detection accuracy degradation, from a maximum value of the degree of safety.
The determination part may determine, as the first safety parameter, whichever value is lower among i) a value obtained by subtracting the degree of threat from a maximum value of the degree of safety and ii) a value obtained by subtracting the degree of degradation of detection accuracy from a maximum value of the degree of safety.
The determination part may determine, as the second safety parameter, a sum of values obtained by multiplying each of a plurality of the degrees of safety by a weight of each of the degrees of safety.
The information acquisition part may acquire the environmental condition information including i) ground condition information indicating a condition of ground on which the autonomous driving vehicle is driving and ii) weather condition information indicating a condition of weather around the autonomous driving vehicle, detected by the device that detects a surrounding environment of the autonomous driving vehicle, and the device condition information including i) communication quality information indicating communication quality of a communication device mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle and ii) position detection accuracy information indicating position detection accuracy of a position detection device that detects a position of the autonomous driving vehicle, wherein the determination part may determine, as the second safety parameter, a sum of i) a ground safety degree indicating a degree of safety according to the ground condition indicated by the ground condition information, ii) a weather safety degree indicating a degree of safety according to the weather condition indicated by the weather condition information, iii) a communication safety degree indicating a degree of safety according to the communication quality indicated by the communication quality information, and iv) a position safety degree indicating a degree of safety according to the position detection accuracy indicated by the position detection accuracy information.
According to the present disclosure, it is possible to avoid obstructing the driving of other vehicles.
The various sensors 2 are a plurality of devices that detect conditions of the surrounding environment of the autonomous driving vehicle M. The various sensors 2 include, but are not limited to, a camera, a radar, a Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), and a rain/snow sensor, for example. The camera captures an image of the surroundings of the autonomous driving vehicle M and generates a captured image. The radar and the LiDAR detect an object around the autonomous driving vehicle M and a state of the object. The rain/snow sensor detects whether the weather condition is clear, rainy, or snowy by determining the presence of moisture.
The various sensors 2 detect a ground condition about the ground on which the autonomous driving vehicle M is driving on the basis of, for example, the captured image and a detection result of the LiDAR. The ground condition includes, but is not limited to, “dry,” “wet,” and “snow-covered,” for example. Further, the various sensors 2 detect the weather condition on the basis of, for example, the captured image and the detection results of the LiDAR and the rain/snow sensor. The weather condition includes, but is not limited to, “clear,” “rainy,” and “snowy,” for example. The various sensors 2 output environmental condition information indicating the detected condition of the surrounding environment, to the range setting apparatus 1. Specifically, the various sensors 2 output, as the environmental condition information, the environmental condition information including at least one of i) ground condition information indicating the ground condition and ii) weather condition information indicating the weather condition.
The various sensors 2 have a self-diagnostic function of determining a degree of degradation of detection accuracy for each device. The degree of degradation of detection accuracy is represented by a number between 0 and 1, for example, and the higher the number, the lower the accuracy. The various sensors 2 determine the degree of degradation of detection accuracy on the basis of a degree of contamination of a lens surface of the LiDAR and a degree of inclination of a sensor axis, for example. Then, the various sensors 2 output device condition information including detection accuracy degradation information indicating the degree of degradation of detection accuracy, to the range setting apparatus 1.
The various Electronic Control Units (ECUs) 3 control a plurality of devices mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle M. The various ECUs 3 output vehicle condition information indicating the condition of the autonomous driving vehicle M, to the range setting apparatus 1. Specifically, the various ECUs 3 output the vehicle condition information including malfunction state information (Diagnostic Trouble Code) indicating malfunctions occurring in each device of the autonomous driving vehicle M. The vehicle malfunction information is a code defined according to details of possible malfunction in each device of the autonomous driving vehicle M. Specifically, the vehicle malfunction information is represented by a combination of alphanumeric characters. As a specific example, vehicle malfunction information [P0121] indicates a failure of a throttle position sensor circuit, and malfunction occurrence information [P0122] indicates a voltage drop of a throttle position sensor circuit.
The various ECUs 3 determine whether the malfunction indicated by the vehicle malfunction information has occurred at predetermined time intervals (for example, 100 milliseconds). If a malfunction indicated by the vehicle malfunction information has occurred a predetermined number of times (for example, 10 times), the various ECUs 3 output information indicating that the malfunction indicated by the vehicle malfunction information has occurred, to the range setting apparatus 1. As a specific example, the various ECUs 3 associate the vehicle malfunction information [P0121] with information [1], indicating that the malfunction indicated by the vehicle malfunction information [P0121] (failure of throttle position sensor circuit) has occurred, for output.
If the malfunction indicated by the vehicle malfunction information has not occurred, the various ECUs 3 output information (a numerical value) indicating that this malfunction has not occurred. For example, the various ECUs 3 associate the vehicle malfunction information [P0121] with information [0], indicating that the malfunction indicated by the vehicle malfunction information [P0121] (failure of throttle position sensor circuit) has not occurred, for output.
The Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver 4 is a position detection device for detecting a position of the autonomous driving vehicle M. The GPS receiver 4 receives radio waves transmitted from a GPS satellite and determines coordinates indicating the position of the autonomous driving vehicle M. The GPS receiver 4 has a self-diagnostic function and determines the position detection accuracy. Specifically, the GPS receiver 4 determines the position detection accuracy on the basis of received radio wave intensity and an s/n ratio of the radio waves transmitted from the GPS satellite. The GPS receiver 4 outputs the device condition information including position detection accuracy information indicating the position detection accuracy, to the range setting apparatus 1. It should be noted that the position detection device is not limited to GPS, and other satellite positioning systems (for example, a quasi-zenith satellite system) may be used to determine the coordinates indicating the position.
The communication device 5 is a wireless communication module for transmitting and receiving information to and from another device via a wireless communication line. The wireless communication line is a communication network for a mobile phone, for example, but is not limited thereto. The communication device 5 determines communication quality of communication between the communication device 5 and another device. For example, the communication device 5 determines radio wave intensity, throughput, and response delay as the communication quality. The communication device 5 outputs the device condition information including communication quality information indicating the communication quality, to the range setting apparatus 1.
The autonomous driving device 6 automatically drives the autonomous driving vehicle M by controlling speed and a steering angle of the autonomous driving vehicle M on the basis of the condition of the surrounding environment detected by the various sensors 2. The autonomous driving device 6 sets a target value of speed control (hereinafter, referred to as a “target speed”) on the basis of the condition of the surrounding environment or the like, and controls output of a power unit mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle M (for example, an engine) so that the speed of the autonomous driving vehicle M becomes the target speed. Further, the autonomous driving device 6 sets a target value of steering angle control (hereinafter, referred to as a “target steering angle”), and turns a steering wheel of the autonomous driving vehicle M, for example, so that the steering angle of the autonomous driving vehicle M becomes the target steering angle.
The autonomous driving device 6 may stop the autonomous driving vehicle M according to a malfunction of the device mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle M, an abnormality of the various sensors 2, degradation of the communication quality of the communication device 5, degradation of the position detection accuracy of the GPS receiver 4, and the condition of the surrounding environment such as the weather and the ground condition. For example, the autonomous driving device 6 stops the autonomous driving vehicle M if the various sensors 2 are unable to detect an object around the autonomous driving vehicle M and the state of the object. However, if the autonomous driving vehicle M is stopped on a narrow road when the various sensors 2 experience a minor abnormality (for example, degradation of detection accuracy within an acceptable limit) that does not necessitate a halt, the stopped autonomous driving vehicle M becomes an obstacle to other moving vehicles.
Therefore, the range setting apparatus 1 restricts a setting range in which at least one of the target value of the speed control and the target value of the steering angle control can be set, according to a malfunction state of the device mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle M, the condition of the surrounding environment of the autonomous driving vehicle M, and condition of the device mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle M. The autonomous driving device 6 then drives the autonomous driving vehicle M so as to achieve the target speed and the target steering angle within a range restricted by the range setting apparatus 1. As a result, the autonomous driving device 6 can drive the autonomous driving vehicle M at a speed and a steering angle within a range that does not compromise the safety, without stopping the autonomous driving vehicle M. Therefore, the autonomous driving device 6 can prevent the autonomous driving vehicle M from stopping in a situation where a halt is not necessary, thus preventing the autonomous driving vehicle M from becoming an obstacle to other moving vehicles.
A configuration of the range setting apparatus 1 will be described below.
The range setting apparatus 1 includes a storage 11 and a controller 12. The storage 11 is a storage medium including a Read Only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a hard disk, and the like. The storage 11 stores a program executed by the controller 12.
The controller 12 is a calculation resource including a processor such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU). The controller 12 achieves functions of an information acquisition part 121, a determination part 122, and a range setting part 123 by executing the program stored in the storage 11.
The information acquisition part 121 acquires i) at least one of the vehicle condition information and the environmental condition information, and ii) the device condition information. Specifically, the information acquisition part 121 acquires the vehicle condition information including the malfunction state information from the various ECUs 3, and acquires the device condition information including the detection accuracy degradation information from the various sensors 2. Further, the information acquisition part 121 acquires i) the environmental condition information including the ground condition information and the weather condition information from the various sensors 2, ii) the device condition information including the position detection accuracy information from the GPS receiver 4, and iii) the device condition information including the communication quality information from the communication device 5.
The determination part 122 determines a parameter indicating a degree of safety of the autonomous driving vehicle M while driving (hereinafter, referred to as a “safety parameter”) on the basis of various pieces of information acquired by the information acquisition part 121. For example, the determination part 122 determines the safety parameter at predetermined time intervals. The predetermined time interval is a processing cycle of the controller 12, for example, and a specific value is 100 milliseconds.
The determination part 122 determines a first safety parameter which is based on i) a degree of threat due to the malfunction indicated by the malfunction state information included in the vehicle condition information and ii) the degree of degradation of detection accuracy indicated by the detection accuracy degradation information included in the device condition information. Specifically, the determination part 122 first determines the degree of threat due to the malfunction. Specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as the degree of threat due to the malfunction, a value obtained by multiplying i) information indicating an occurrence of the malfunction indicated by the vehicle malfunction information by ii) magnitude of an impact of that malfunction on the safety while driving. The magnitude of the impact of one malfunction on the safety while driving is determined in advance according to that one malfunction. In the event of simultaneous malfunctions, the determination part 122 determines, as the degree of threat, a sum of values obtained by multiplying i) information indicating the occurrence of each malfunction by ii) the magnitude of the impact of each malfunction on safety while driving. More specifically, the determination part 122 determines a degree of threat t using the following Equation (1).
(P0121) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not the malfunction indicated by the malfunction occurrence information [P0121] (failure of throttle position sensor circuit) has occurred, and is [1] if the malfunction has occurred, and is [0] if the malfunction has not occurred. (weight of P0121) is a value indicating the magnitude of the impact of the malfunction indicated by the malfunction occurrence information [P0121] on the safety while driving, and is represented by a numerical value between 0 and 1. (P0122) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not the malfunction indicated by the malfunction occurrence information [P0122] (voltage drop of throttle position sensor circuit) has occurred, and is [1] if the malfunction has occurred, and is [0] if the malfunction has not occurred. (weight of P0122) is a value indicating the magnitude of the impact of the malfunction indicated by the malfunction occurrence information [P0122] on the safety while driving, and is represented by a numerical value between 0 and 1. The higher the numerical value of the degree of threat t, the greater the impact of the malfunction on the safety while driving, that is, the greater the threat caused by the malfunction.
The determination part 122 determines, as the first safety parameter, a value obtained by subtracting the greater one of i) the degree of threat t of the malfunction and ii) the degree of degradation of detection accuracy, from the maximum value of the degree of safety (for example, 1). Specifically, the determination part 122 determines a first safety parameter sp1 within a range between 0 and 1 using the following Equation (2).
In Equation (2), d is the degree of degradation of detection accuracy and max(t, d) is a symbol representing the maximum value among the degree of threat t of the malfunction and a degree of degradation of detection accuracy d.
It should be noted that the determination part 122 may determine, as the first safety parameter sp1, the lower of i) a value obtained by subtracting the degree of threat t of the malfunction from the maximum value of the degree of safety and ii) a value obtained by subtracting the degree of degradation of detection accuracy d from the maximum value of the degree of safety. Specifically, the determination part 122 determines the first safety parameter sp1 using the following Equation (3).
The determination part 122 determines a second safety parameter on the basis of the environmental condition information and the device condition information. For example, the determination part 122 determines the second safety parameter on the basis of i) the degree of safety while driving under the surrounding environment in the condition indicated by the environmental condition information and ii) the degree of safety while driving using the device in the condition indicated by the device condition information.
The determination part 122 first determines a ground safety degree indicating the degree of safety according to the ground condition indicated by the ground condition information included in the environmental condition information. Specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as the ground safety degree, a value obtained by multiplying i) information (a numerical value) indicating that the ground on which the autonomous driving vehicle M is driving is in one condition indicated by the ground condition information by ii) the degree of safety when driving on ground in that condition. The degree of safety when driving on the ground in one condition is determined in advance according to that one condition, and is represented by a numerical value between 0 and 1. In one example, the degree of safety when driving on ground in a “dry condition” is [1]. More specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as a ground safety degree r, a sum of values obtained by multiplying i) information (numerical values) indicating each of a plurality of ground conditions by ii) a weight of each condition as the degree of safety.
The determination part 122 determines the ground safety degree r using the following Equation (4).
The (dry condition) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not the ground on which the autonomous driving vehicle M is driving is in the dry condition, and is [1] if the ground is in the dry condition, and is [0] if the ground is not in the dry condition. The (wet condition) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not the ground on which the autonomous driving vehicle M is driving is in a wet condition, and is [1] if the ground is in the wet condition, and is [0] if the ground is not in the wet condition. That is, if the ground on which the autonomous driving vehicle M is driving is in the dry condition, the (dry condition) is [1], and the (wet condition) is [0].
Next, the determination part 122 determines a weather safety degree indicating the degree of safety according to the weather condition indicated by the weather condition information. Specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as the weather safety degree, a value obtained by multiplying i) information indicating that the weather around the autonomous driving vehicle M while driving is in a condition indicated by the weather condition information by ii) the degree of safety while driving under the weather in that condition. The degree of safety while driving under the weather in one condition is determined in advance according to that condition, and is represented by a numerical value between 0 and 1. For example, the degree of safety while driving in a “clear condition” is [1]. More specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as a weather safety degree w, a sum of values obtained by multiplying i) information (numerical values) indicating each of a plurality of weather conditions by ii) a weight of each condition as the degree of safety.
The determination part 122 determines the weather safety degree w using the following Equation (5).
The (clear condition) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not the weather around the autonomous driving vehicle M while driving is in the clear condition, and is [1] if the weather is in the clear condition, and is [0] if the weather is not in the clear condition. The (rainy condition) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not the weather around the autonomous driving vehicle M while driving is in the rainy condition, and is [1] if the weather is in the rainy condition, and is [0] if the weather is not in the rainy condition. That is, if the weather around the autonomous driving vehicle M is clear, the (clear condition) is [1], and the (rainy condition) is [0].
Subsequently, the determination part 122 determines a communication safety degree indicating the degree of safety according to the communication quality indicated by the communication quality information. Specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as the communication safety degree, a value obtained by multiplying i) information indicating that the communication quality between the communication device 5 and another device is in a state indicated by the communication quality state information by ii) the degree of safety when the autonomous driving vehicle M drives while communicating with that communication quality. More specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as a communication safety degree c, a sum of values obtained by multiplying i) information (numerical values) indicating each of a plurality of communication quality states by ii) a weight of that state as the degree of safety.
The determination part 122 determines the communication safety degree c using the following Equation (6).
The (radio wave intensity) is information (a numerical value) indicating the radio wave intensity of wireless communication of the communication device 5. The determination part 122 increases the (weight of radio wave intensity) as the value of the (radio wave intensity) increases. The (throughput) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not the throughput is equal to or less than a predetermined value causing the communication quality to be degraded. The (throughput) is [1] if an amount that can be processed per unit time decreases such that the throughput becomes the predetermined value or less, and is [0] if the amount that can be processed per unit time is larger than the predetermined value. The (response delay) is information (a numerical value) indicating whether or not a delay time is equal to or greater than a predetermined value such that the communication quality is degraded. The (response delay) is [1] if a time taken for receiving a response to a request becomes the predetermined value or more, and is [0] if the time taken for receiving a response to a request is less than the predetermined value.
The (weight of radio wave intensity) is represented by a value higher than 0 and lower than or equal to 1. On the other hand, the (weight of throughput) and the (weight of response delay) are represented by values from minus 1 to less than 0. In this way, the determination part 122 can determine a higher communication safety degree c as the radio wave intensity increases. In addition, when the communication quality is degraded due to the degradation of throughput or the response delay, the determination part 122 can determine a communication safety degree c that is lower than that when the communication quality is not degraded. It should be noted that if the communication safety degree c is determined to be less than 0 due to the degradation of throughput or the response delay, the determination part 122 sets the communication safety degree c to 0 and determines the communication safety degree as a value between 0 and 1.
Further, the determination part 122 determines a position safety degree indicating the degree of safety according to the position detection accuracy indicated by the position detection accuracy information. Specifically, the determination part 122 determines a position safety degree sc that becomes higher as the position detection accuracy is higher. The determination part 122 determines the position safety degree sc within a range between 0 and 1. It should be noted that the order in which the determination part 122 determines the ground safety degree r, the weather safety degree w, the communication safety degree c, and the position safety degree sc is not limited to the above, and may be determined from any safety degree, or these safety degrees may be determined in parallel.
The determination part 122 determines, as the second safety parameter, a sum of the ground safety degree r, the weather safety degree w, the communication safety degree c, and the position safety degree sc. Specifically, the determination part 122 determines, as the second safety parameter, a sum of values obtained by multiplying i) each of the degrees of safety by ii) a weight of each of the degrees of safety. More specifically, the determination part 122 determines the second safety parameter sp2 using the following Equation (7).
The determination part 122 determines the second safety parameter sp2 to be between 0 and 1. For example, the determination part 122 sets the weight of each degree of safety so that a sum of values obtained by multiplying i) the maximum value of each of the degrees of safety by ii) the weight of each of the degrees of safety becomes 1. The weight of each of the degrees of safety is appropriately set by experiment or the like.
The determination part 122 may determine at least any one of the first safety parameter sp1 and the second safety parameter sp2, or may determine both the first safety parameter sp1 and the second safety parameter sp2. In the following description, the first safety parameter sp1 and the second safety parameter sp2 are referred to as the “safety parameters” if there is no need to distinguish them from each other.
The range setting part 123 sets a setting range of at least one of the target speed (kilometers per hour) and the target steering angle of the autonomous driving vehicle M every time the safety parameter is determined. For example, if the safety parameter is less than a determination threshold value, the range setting part 123 narrows the setting range according to the safety parameter. The determination threshold value is a threshold value for determining whether or not to restrict the setting range. A specific value of the determination threshold value is 0.8, for example. If at least one of the determined first safety parameter sp1 and second safety parameter sp2 is less than the determination threshold value, the range setting part 123 narrows the setting range according to the safety parameter that is less than the determination threshold value.
The range setting part 123 may narrow the setting range according to a parameter range, including a value of the determined safety parameter, among a plurality of parameter ranges obtained by dividing a range of possible values for the safety parameter into a plurality of segments. In this case, each of the plurality of parameter ranges may be associated with a restriction range for narrowing the setting range.
The range setting part 123 sets the restriction range, associated with the parameter range including the safety parameter that is less than the determination threshold value, as the setting range. As a specific example, if the first safety parameter sp1 is [0.7], the range setting part 123 sets the restriction range [maximum speed 30 km] associated with the parameter range [0.6 to less than 0.8] the setting range (see
The range setting part 123 sets a setting range to be whichever range is narrower among i) a range narrowed from the setting range in accordance with the first safety parameter sp1 and ii) a range narrowed from the setting range in accordance with the second safety parameter sp2. Specifically, the range setting part 123 first determines a first restriction range associated with a parameter range including the first safety parameter sp1. The range setting part 123 subsequently determines a second restriction range associated with a parameter range including the second safety parameter sp2. It should be noted that the range setting part 123 may determine the second restriction range before determining the first restriction range, or may determine the first restriction range and the second restriction range in parallel.
The range setting part 123 then determines whether or not the first restriction range is equal to or less than the second restriction range. If the first restriction range is equal to or less than the second restriction range, the range setting part 123 sets the first restriction range as the setting range. If the second restriction range is narrower than the first restriction range, the range setting part 123 sets the second restriction range as the setting range. As a specific example, the range setting part 123 sets the second restriction range as the setting range if the first restriction range is a restriction range of a maximum speed of 30 km and the second restriction range is a restriction range of a maximum speed of 20 km and a maximum steering angle of 20 degrees.
Further, the range setting part 123 may narrow the range according to whichever value is lower among the first safety parameter sp1 and the second safety parameter sp2. Specifically, the range setting part 123 sets the restriction range associated with the parameter range including whichever safety parameter has a smaller value among the first safety parameter sp1 and the second safety parameter sp2, as the setting range. In one example, if the first safety parameter is [0.7] and the second safety parameter is [0.5], the range setting part 123 sets the restriction range associated with the parameter range including [0.5] as the setting range.
First, the range setting part 123 determines whether or not the determined safety parameter is 0.8, which is the determination threshold value, or more (step S1). If the safety parameter is 0.8 or more (YES in step S1), the range setting part 123 does not narrow the setting range (step S2).
If the safety parameter is less than 0.8 (NO in step S1), the range setting part 123 determines whether the safety parameter is 0.6 or more (step S3). If the safety parameter is 0.6 or more (YES in step S3), the range setting part 123 restricts the setting range of the target speed to a maximum speed of 30 km (step S4). Specifically, the range setting part 123 sets a restriction range [maximum speed 30 km] (kilometers per hour) associated with a parameter range [0.6 to less than 0.8] including the safety parameter, as the setting range (see
If the safety parameter is less than 0.6 (NO in step S3), the range setting part 123 determines whether the safety parameter is 0.4 or more (step S5). If the safety parameter is 0.4 or more (YES in step S5), the range setting part 123 restricts the setting range of the target speed to a maximum speed of 20 km and restricts the setting range of the target steering angle to a maximum steering angle of 20 degrees (step S6).
If the safety parameter is less than 0.4 (NO in step S5), the range setting part 123 determines whether the safety parameter is 0.2 or more (step S7). If the safety parameter is 0.2 or more (YES in step S7), the range setting part 123 restricts the setting range of the target speed to a maximum speed of 10 km and restricts the setting range of the target steering angle to a maximum steering angle of 10 degrees (step S8). If the safety parameter is less than 0.2 (NO in step S7), the range setting part 123 notifies the autonomous driving device 6 of an instruction to stop the autonomous driving vehicle M (step S9).
From a time T0 to a time T1, the autonomous driving device 6 drives the autonomous driving vehicle M at a speed of 50 km/h. The time T1 is a time at which the safety parameter s becomes less than 0.8. At the time T1, the range setting apparatus 1 sets the restriction range [maximum speed 30 km] associated with the parameter range [0.6 to less than 0.8] to be the set range (see
The time T2 is a time when the safety parameter becomes 0.8 or more. At the time T2, the range setting apparatus 1 widens the setting range that has been narrowed in accordance with the safety parameter. In other words, when the safety parameter becomes 0.8 or more, the range setting apparatus 1 removes the restriction on the setting range. The autonomous driving device 6 sets the target speed to 50 km/h, for example, and accelerates the autonomous driving vehicle M so that the speed becomes the set target speed. In this manner, the range setting apparatus 1 can appropriately limit the target values of the speed control and the steering angle control according to the condition of the autonomous driving vehicle M, the condition of the mounted device, and the condition of the surrounding environment. As a result, the autonomous driving device 6 can prevent the autonomous driving vehicle M that does not necessitate a halt from stopping, thereby preventing the autonomous driving vehicle M from obstructing the driving of other vehicles.
It should be noted that if a plurality of malfunctions occur in the autonomous driving vehicle M such that the degree of threat t becomes 1 or more, the range setting part 123 notifies the autonomous driving device 6 of the instruction to stop the autonomous driving vehicle M without determining the restriction range. In this manner, the range setting apparatus 1 can stop the autonomous driving vehicle M in a situation where the safety of the moving autonomous driving vehicle M is compromised, and thus the safety of the autonomous driving vehicle M can be improved.
On a road on which the autonomous driving vehicle M is driving, the upper limit of the driving speed sometimes can be regulated according to the road condition or the weather. In this case, the information acquisition part 121 acquires speed regulation information indicating an upper limit of the driving speed on the road on which the autonomous driving vehicle M is driving via the communication device 5.
As described above, the range setting apparatus 1 determines at least any safety parameter among i) the first safety parameter sp1 indicating the degree of safety of the autonomous driving vehicle M while driving on the basis of the condition of the autonomous driving vehicle M and the condition of the device mounted on the autonomous driving vehicle M and ii) the second safety parameter sp2 indicating the degree of safety on the basis of the condition of the surrounding environment of the autonomous driving vehicle M and the condition of the device. If the safety parameter is below the determination threshold value, the range setting apparatus 1 narrows the setting range in which at least one of the target value of the speed control and the target value of the steering angle control can be set, according to the safety parameter.
In this manner, the range setting apparatus 1 can appropriately limit the target values of the speed control and the steering angle control according to i) at least any of the condition of the autonomous driving vehicle M and the condition of the surrounding environment, and ii) the condition of the mounted device. As a result, the autonomous driving device 6 can drive the autonomous driving vehicle M at a speed and a steering angle within ranges that do not compromise the safety, without stopping the autonomous driving vehicle M. Therefore, the autonomous driving device 6 can prevent the autonomous driving vehicle M that does not necessitate a halt from stopping, thereby preventing the autonomous driving vehicle M from obstructing the driving of other vehicles.
The present disclosure is explained on the basis of the exemplary embodiments. The technical scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the scope explained in the above embodiments and it is possible to make various changes and modifications within the scope of the disclosure. For example, all or part of the apparatus can be configured with any unit which is functionally or physically dispersed or integrated. Further, new exemplary embodiments generated by arbitrary combinations of them are included in the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. Further, effects of the new exemplary embodiments brought by the combinations also have the effects of the original exemplary embodiments.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-005106 | Jan 2022 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2022/045819 | 12/13/2022 | WO |
