JP2020040587A - Vehicle control device - Google Patents

Abstract

To obtain a vehicle control device that can ensure accuracy for determining whether a driver can manually drive a vehicle during automatic driving.SOLUTION: A control device 12 includes a liquid crystal monitor 18 and a control unit 20. The control device instructs a driver 24 to take a contact action to a steering wheel 14 within a specified time through the liquid crystal monitor 18 when the driver 24 does not change a gripping position in a gripping part 28 even after elapse of a predetermined time.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle control device.

  Patent Document 1 listed below discloses an invention relating to a vehicle device. In this vehicle device, before the automatic driving is released, an index is projected on a position to be checked for safety, for example, a front window or the like according to the traveling environment of the vehicle. Then, the automatic driving is released after the driver confirms the pointing at the index.

JP 2015-184975 A

  However, in the prior art described in Patent Document 1, it is determined whether or not the driver is pointing and confirming by analyzing the movement of the driver's finger using a camera or the like. For this reason, depending on the accuracy of the camera or the like, it is conceivable that a finger movement other than the pointing confirmation is detected as the pointing confirmation. That is, in the prior art described in Patent Literature 1, there is a possibility that the determination as to whether or not the driver can perform the manual driving during the automatic driving of the vehicle is not directly related to the consciousness state of the driver. Is performed based on a certain input. Therefore, the prior art described in Patent Literature 1 has room for improvement from the viewpoint of ensuring the accuracy of determining whether or not the driver can manually drive during automatic driving of the vehicle.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a vehicle control device that can ensure the accuracy of determining whether or not a driver can manually drive during automatic driving of a vehicle.

  The vehicle control device according to the first aspect of the present invention forms a part of a steering wheel and is provided on a grip portion that can be gripped by a driver, and can detect a grip position of the grip portion by the driver. A detection unit, an instruction unit that instructs the driver to perform a contact operation on the steering wheel within a designated time when the gripping position does not change even after a predetermined time has elapsed, and the contact operation is the designated operation. And a control unit that enables the automatic driving state of the vehicle to be continued when the operation is performed within the time.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the detection unit is provided in the grip unit which forms a part of the steering wheel and can be gripped by the driver, and the grip position of the grip unit by the driver by the detection unit. Is detected.

  Incidentally, even when the vehicle is in the automatic driving state, it is preferable that the driver can immediately cope with the manual driving of the vehicle. However, even in a state where the driver is holding the grip portion of the steering wheel, if the grip position of the grip portion by the driver is constant, it is determined whether the driver is ready for manual driving. Is difficult to determine.

  Here, the present invention includes an instruction unit and a control unit. If the gripping position of the gripper by the driver does not change even after a predetermined time has elapsed, the instruction unit instructs the driver to perform a contact operation with the steering wheel within the specified time.

  On the other hand, in the control unit, if the driver performs the contact operation of the steering wheel within the designated time, the continuation of the automatic driving of the vehicle is permitted. For this reason, in the present invention, the automatic driving state of the vehicle is maintained in a state where the driver can cope with the manual driving by the input directly related to the driver's consciousness state. Becomes

  As described above, the vehicle control device according to the first aspect of the present invention is excellent in that it is possible to ensure the accuracy of determining whether or not the driver can manually drive during automatic driving of the vehicle. Has the effect.

FIG. 2 is a front view schematically showing a configuration of the steering wheel as viewed from an occupant in a driver seat in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. It is a block diagram showing composition of a vehicle control device concerning a 1st embodiment. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process performed by the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a front view showing a state of a monitor provided on a steering wheel in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment, where (A) shows an image displayed on the monitor in a normal state, and (B) shows driving. 2 shows an image displayed on a monitor when an instruction is given to a user. In the vehicle control device according to the second embodiment, it is a front view showing a state of a monitor provided on a steering wheel, (A) shows an image displayed on the monitor in a normal time, (B) driving 2 shows an image displayed on a monitor when an instruction is given to a user. FIG. 13 is a front view showing an image displayed on a monitor when instructing a driver in the vehicle control device according to the third embodiment. FIG. 14 is a side view illustrating a relationship between a driver and a vehicle control device when instructing the driver in the vehicle control device according to the third embodiment, as viewed from a vehicle width direction.

<First embodiment>
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of a vehicle control device according to the present invention will be described mainly with reference to FIGS. Arrows FR, UP, and RH, which are appropriately shown in the drawings, indicate the vehicle front side, the vehicle upper side, and the vehicle width right side of the “vehicle 10” according to the present embodiment, respectively.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the “control device 12” according to the present embodiment includes a “piezoelectric sensor 16” as a detection unit provided on the “steering wheel 14 (handle)” and a “piezoelectric sensor 16” as an instruction unit. It has a “liquid crystal monitor 18” and a “control unit 20”.

  First, the configuration of the steering wheel 14 will be described. The steering wheel 14 constitutes a part of the steering section 22 of the vehicle 10, and as shown in FIG. 7, is disposed so as to face a seat 26 (driver seat) on which a driver 24 is seated. , The “grip 28”, the boss 30 and the spokes 32, 34, 36.

  The grip portion 28 is formed in an annular shape when viewed from the seat 26 side, and can be gripped by the driver 24. The boss portion 30 is located at the center of the grip portion 28 when viewed from the seat 26 side, and is fixed to a tip portion of a steering shaft (not shown). The boss 30 is connected to the grip 28 via the spokes 32, 34, 36.

  The spoke portion 32 is bridged between the right side portion of the boss portion 30 in the vehicle width direction and the grip portion 28, and a turn signal switch 38 is provided on the grip portion 28 side. On the other hand, the spoke portion 34 is bridged between the left side portion of the boss portion 30 in the vehicle width direction and the grip portion 28, and a turn signal switch 40 is provided on the grip portion 28 side. The spoke portion 36 is bridged between the lower portion of the boss portion 30 on the vehicle side and the grip portion 28, and has an automatic operation changeover switch 42 (hereinafter referred to as a changeover switch 42) described later on the grip portion 28 side. ) Is provided.

  The steering wheel 14 configured as described above can be rotated around the steering shaft in the axial direction of the grip portion 28. In each of the drawings, the steering wheel 14 is shown in a state where the vehicle is in a straight-ahead state (a straight-ahead steering position).

  Next, the configuration of the control device 12 will be described. The control unit 20 includes an unillustrated in-vehicle ECU (Electronic Control Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory). The control unit 20 is capable of switching the operation state of the vehicle 10 between manual operation and automatic operation, and performs various controls on the vehicle 10 during automatic operation.

  Specifically, various sensors disposed on the vehicle 10 are electrically connected to the control unit 20, and the control unit 20 can execute various programs stored in the ROM. Then, the control unit 20 controls the driving unit 44 including the power unit, the steering unit 22 and the braking unit 46 including the brake based on the surrounding situation of the vehicle 10 obtained from these sensors, and controls the accelerator amount, the brake amount, The movement of the vehicle 10 can be controlled by adjusting the steering angle.

  The control unit 20 is electrically connected to a changeover switch 42 provided on the steering wheel 14, and by operating the changeover switch 42, it is possible to control the start and end of automatic driving. I have.

  The steering wheel 14 is provided with a rotation sensor 48 that can detect rotation of the steering wheel 14 and output a detection signal, and the rotation sensor 48 is electrically connected to the control unit 20. Then, when the detection signal is output from the rotation sensor 48 during the automatic driving of the vehicle 10, the control unit 20 terminates the automatic driving of the vehicle 10. That is, when the driver 24 operates the steering wheel 14 during automatic driving of the vehicle 10, the vehicle 10 is switched to manual driving.

  A plurality (eight as an example) of the piezoelectric sensors 16 are arranged at equal intervals along the extending direction of the grip portion 28, and each of the piezoelectric sensors 16 is electrically connected to the control unit 20. Then, when the driver 24 grips the grip portion 28, the piezoelectric sensor 16 located at the position gripped by the driver 24 is pressed, and a detection signal is output from the piezoelectric sensor 16 to the RAM of the control unit 20. It has become. In other words, the RAM of the control unit 20 temporarily stores the portion of the grip unit 28 that the driver 24 is gripping. The state where the detection signal is not input from the piezoelectric sensor 16 to the control unit 20, that is, the state where the driver 24 is not gripping the grip unit 28 has continued for a predetermined period of time (for example, 65 [seconds]). In such a case, the vehicle 10 stops at a safe position under the control of the control unit 20.

  The liquid crystal monitor 18 is provided on the boss portion 30 so as to be visible from the driver 24 in a seated state. As shown in FIG. 50, a holding time display section 52, and a designated time display section 54 are displayed.

  The grip position display section 50 is formed in an annular shape simulating the grip section 28, and although the whole is basically displayed by a dotted line, a portion corresponding to the grip position of the grip section 28 by the driver 24 is provided. It is displayed by the solid line portion 50A. More specifically, the liquid crystal monitor 18 is electrically connected to the control unit 20 and is held by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) of the liquid crystal monitor 18 based on a signal input from the RAM based on a detection result of the piezoelectric sensor 16. The solid line part 50A in the position display part 50 is determined.

  The RAM of the control unit 20 stores the gripping position of the gripping unit 28 by the driver 24 at every predetermined time (for example, every 0.5 [second]). When the gripping position is in a constant state, the gripping time display section 52 displays the time (grip time) in which the gripping position is constant in minutes.

  Here, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4B, the driver 24 is instructed by the liquid crystal monitor 18 to perform a contact operation with the steering wheel 14 in a state where the following conditions are satisfied. ing.

  The first condition is a case where the gripping position of the gripper 28 by the driver 24 does not change for a predetermined time (for example, 10 [minutes]) as a first condition. Further, as a second condition, when the gripping position of the gripper 28 by the driver 24 has changed within a predetermined time, the automatic operation continues for a predetermined time (for example, 30 [minutes]) or more. If you do.

  When the above condition is satisfied, the display of the holding time display section 52 disappears, and the specified time (for example, 30 [seconds]) is displayed on the specified time display section 54. In the grip position display unit 50, a part different from the actual grip position is displayed by a solid line part 50B, and a grip position designation display unit 56 (for example, an arrow) is displayed around the part. It has become.

  When the driver 24 grips a portion corresponding to the grip position (solid line portion 50A) indicated by the grip position display portion 50 in the grip portion 28 within the specified time displayed on the specified time display portion 54 The automatic driving state of the vehicle 10 is maintained. That is, when the driver 24 grips the portion corresponding to the solid line portion 50A in the gripper 28 within the designated time, the control unit 20 allows the vehicle 10 to continue the automatic driving. It should be noted that the number displayed on the designated time display section 54 is reduced by one (counted down) every time one second elapses.

  On the other hand, if the driver 24 does not hold the grip position indicated by the grip position display unit 50 in the grip unit 28 within the specified time displayed on the specified time display unit 54, the driver 24 is placed in the passenger compartment 58. An alarm prompting the operation (steering wheel operation) of the steering wheel 14 is issued from the speaker 60 (see FIG. 7).

  This warning is issued even when the driver 24 is not instructed to perform a contact operation on the steering wheel 14 or when the automatic driving is completed within a predetermined time (for example, 10 [minutes]). It can be emitted.

  Then, if the steering wheel operation is performed within a predetermined time (for example, 10 [seconds]) predetermined from the alarm, the vehicle 10 is switched to the manual operation, and the steering wheel operation is performed within the predetermined time from the alarm. If not, the vehicle 10 stops at a safe position under the control of the control unit 20.

(Operation and effect of the present embodiment)
Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the piezoelectric sensor 16 is provided on a grip portion 28 which forms a part of the steering wheel 14 and can be gripped by the driver 24. The gripping position of the gripper 28 is detected.

  By the way, it is preferable that the driver 24 can immediately cope with the manual driving of the vehicle 10 even when the vehicle 10 is in the automatic driving state. However, even when the driver 24 is gripping the grip portion 28 of the steering wheel 14, the driver 24 can cope with manual driving in a state where the grip position of the grip portion 28 by the driver 24 is constant. It is difficult to determine whether or not it is in a proper state.

  Here, in the present embodiment, a liquid crystal monitor 18 and a control unit 20 are provided. When the gripping position of the gripper 28 by the driver 24 does not change even after a predetermined time has elapsed, the liquid crystal monitor 18 allows the driver 24 to contact the steering wheel 14 within the specified time. Be instructed.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4A, if the grip position does not change even if the grip time displayed on the grip time display unit 52 reaches 10 [minutes], the grip time display unit The display of 52 disappears. Then, as shown in FIG. 4 (B), 30 [seconds] is displayed on the designated time display section 54 as the designated time. Further, a solid line portion 50B is displayed on the grip position display portion 50 instead of the solid line portion 50A, and a grip position designation display portion 56 is displayed on the liquid crystal monitor 18 to instruct the driver 24 on the grip position of the grip portion 28. Is done.

  On the other hand, in the control unit 20, when the contact operation of the steering wheel 14 by the driver 24 is performed within the designated time, the continuation of the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 is permitted.

  Hereinafter, an example of a control flow performed by the control unit 20 will be described with reference to a flowchart illustrated in FIG.

  When the control flow is started during the automatic driving of the vehicle 10, in step S <b> 100, the gripping state of the steering wheel 14, that is, the gripping of the gripping portion 28 by the driver 24 every predetermined time (0.5 [sec]) The position is detected.

  Next, in step S102, it is determined whether or not the gripping position of the gripper 28 by the driver 24 has changed within a predetermined time (10 [minutes]). When it is determined that the gripping position of the gripper 28 by the driver 24 has not changed within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S104, and it is determined that the gripping position has changed within the predetermined time. In this case, the process proceeds to step S108.

  In step S104, as shown in FIG. 4B, the driver 24 is instructed by the liquid crystal monitor 18 to perform a contact operation on the steering wheel 14.

  Next, in step S106, it is determined whether or not the driver 24 has completed the contact operation on the steering wheel 14 within the designated time (30 [sec]). When it is determined that the contact operation of the driver 24 with the steering wheel 14 has been completed within the designated time, the process returns to step S100, and the contact operation of the driver 24 with the steering wheel 14 has been completed within the designated time. If it is determined that there is not, the process proceeds to step S112.

  On the other hand, in step S108, it is determined whether or not the automatic operation of the vehicle 10 has continued for a predetermined time (30 [minutes]). If it is determined that the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 has continued for a predetermined time or more, the process proceeds to step S104 described above. If it is determined that the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 has not continued for a predetermined time or more, The process proceeds to step S110.

  In step S110, it is determined whether the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 is completed within a predetermined time (10 [minutes]). When it is determined that the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 is completed within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S112. When it is determined that the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 is not completed within the predetermined time, the process returns to step S100. .

  In step S112, a warning is issued from the speaker 60 to prompt the driver 24 to operate the steering wheel 14 with the steering wheel.

  Next, in step S114, it is determined whether or not the steering operation has been performed within a predetermined time (10 [seconds]). When it is determined that the steering operation has been performed within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S116, the vehicle 10 is switched to the manual operation, and the control flow ends.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the steering operation has not been performed within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S118, where the vehicle 10 stops at a safe position under the control of the control unit 20, and the control flow ends.

  As described above, according to the control device 12 according to the present embodiment, a state in which the driver 24 can cope with the manual driving is ensured by an input directly related to the consciousness state of the driver 24. In this state, the automatic driving state of the vehicle 10 is maintained. As a result, it is possible to ensure the accuracy of determining whether or not the driver 24 can perform the manual driving during the automatic driving of the vehicle 10.

  In the first embodiment described above, the driver 24 is instructed by the liquid crystal monitor 18 to make contact with the steering wheel 14. However, instead of the liquid crystal monitor 18, a display or the like that can be visually recognized by the driver 24 may be used. Good.

<Second embodiment>
Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the vehicle control device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The same components as those in the above-described first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the “control device 60” as the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment displays a pressed position display unit 62 on the liquid crystal monitor 18 instead of the grip position display unit 50. There is a feature in the point.

  More specifically, the pressing position display unit 62 simulates the central portion of the steering wheel 14, that is, the outer shapes of the boss 30, the spokes 32, 34, and 36, the changeover switch 42, and the turn signal switches 38 and 40. ing.

  In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5B, when the designated time is displayed on the designated time display unit 54, the changeover switch 42 and the turn signal switches 38 and 40 in the pressed position display unit 62 are displayed. A pressed position designation display section 64 is displayed near any one of the corresponding portions. Note that the pressed position designation display unit 64 is, for example, a combination of a concentration line, an arrow, and “PUSH”.

  In the present embodiment, any one of the changeover switch 42 and the turn signal switches 38 and 40 specified by the pressed position specification display unit 64 is set to the driver 24 within the specified time displayed on the specified time display unit 54. Is pressed, the automatic driving state of the vehicle 10 is maintained. The changeover switch 42 and the turn signal switches 38 and 40 are in a state where their original functions are stopped when the designated time is displayed on the designated time display unit 54.

  The control device 60 configured as described above has basically the same operation and effect as the first embodiment described above. Further, in the present embodiment, it is possible to determine whether or not the driver 24 can perform the manual driving during the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 by using the existing switch provided on the steering wheel 14.

  Furthermore, the above configuration according to the present embodiment is combined with the above-described first embodiment to provide a backup when the driver 24 cannot grip the portion indicated on the grip position display unit 50 within the designated time. Can be used. In addition, an existing switch other than those described above may be used for determining whether or not the driver 24 can be manually driven, or a dedicated switch may be separately provided.

<Third embodiment>
Hereinafter, a third embodiment of the vehicle control device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. The same components as those in the above-described first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  The “control device 70” as the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment is characterized in that the seat 26 has a built-in pressure sensor 72.

  Specifically, the pressure sensor 72 is provided in a portion of the seat 26 above the seat back 74 of the seat 26, and outputs a detection signal to the control unit 20 when a predetermined pressure is applied. The pressure sensor 72 may be provided on the headrest 76.

  In the present embodiment, when the designated time is displayed on the designated time display unit 54, regardless of the grip position of the grip unit 28 of the driver 24, the grip position 28 on the vehicle upper side of the grip unit 28 in the grip position display unit 50. Two portions corresponding to the portions are displayed as solid line portions 50B.

  In the present embodiment, the driver 24 grips a portion corresponding to the solid line portion 50B in the grip portion 28 within the designated time displayed on the designated time display portion 54, and the detection signal from the pressure sensor 72 is controlled. The control unit 20 permits the continuation of the automatic driving of the vehicle 10 by being input to the unit 20.

  The control device 70 configured as described above has basically the same operation and effect as the first embodiment described above. Further, in the present embodiment, the driver 24 can be refreshed by extending the back of the driver 24 while determining whether or not the driver 24 can perform the manual driving during the automatic driving of the vehicle 10.

10 vehicle 12 control device (vehicle control device)
14 Steering wheel 16 Piezoelectric sensor (detection unit)
18 LCD monitor (indicator)
Reference Signs List 20 control unit 28 gripping unit 60 control device (vehicle control device)
70 control device (vehicle control device)

Claims (1)

A detection unit that forms a part of the steering wheel and is provided on a gripper that can be gripped by a driver, and that can detect a gripping position of the gripper by the driver;
An instruction unit that instructs the driver to perform a contact operation on the steering wheel within a specified time when the gripping position does not change even after a predetermined time has elapsed,
When the contact operation is performed within the specified time, a control unit that can continue the automatic driving state of the vehicle,
The vehicle control device which has a.