Automatic driving proposal device and automatic driving proposal method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11597410-B2
Application number	US-202016817294-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 12, 2020
Priority date	Oct 13, 2017
Publication date	Mar 7, 2023
Grant date	Mar 7, 2023

Abstract

An automatic driving proposal device or an automatic driving proposal method is used for a vehicle that selects either a state of an automatic driving or a state of a manual driving by an occupant. The automatic driving proposal device or the automatic driving proposal method performs a driving change request to the occupant in the state of the automatic driving, determines whether the automatic driving is possible in the state of the manual driving, calculates a calculation value corresponding to a distance or a prediction time or calculates a change index, and proposes the automatic driving to the occupant on a necessary condition of determining that the automatic driving is possible and also determining that the calculation value is higher than a threshold value or determining that the change index is lower than a threshold value.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An automatic driving proposal device for a vehicle configured to select either a state of an automatic driving or a state of a manual driving by an occupant, the automatic driving proposal device comprising:
a request unit configured to perform a driving change request to the occupant when, in the state of the automatic driving, the vehicle has arrived at a change point set in advance on a route of the automatic driving;
an automatic driving determination unit configured to determine whether the automatic driving is possible in the state of the manual driving;
a calculation unit configured to calculate a calculation value corresponding to a distance from a current position of the vehicle to the change point or a prediction time until the vehicle arrives at the change point;
a calculation value determination unit configured to determine whether the calculation value is higher than a threshold value set in advance;
a specific state setting unit configured to set a specific state in accordance with an operation of the occupant;
a specific proposal unit configured to propose the automatic driving to the occupant when the specific state has been set and when the automatic driving determination unit determines that the automatic driving is possible without (i) calculating the calculation value corresponding to the distance from the current position of the vehicle to the change point or the prediction time until the vehicle arrives at the change point and (ii) determining whether the calculation value is higher than the threshold value set in advance; and
a proposal unit configured to propose the automatic driving to the occupant on a necessary condition that (i) the automatic driving determination unit determines that the automatic driving is possible (ii) the calculation value determination unit determines that the calculation value is higher than the threshold value, and (iii) the specific state is not set by the specific state setting unit.

2. An automatic driving proposal device for a vehicle configured to select either a state of an automatic driving or a state of a manual driving by an occupant, the automatic driving proposal device comprising:
a continuation determination unit configured to determine whether continuation of the automatic driving is possible;
a request unit configured to perform a driving change request when the continuation determination unit determines that the continuation of the automatic driving is not possible to change from the state of automatic driving to the state of manual driving by the occupant;
an automatic driving determination unit configured to determine whether the automatic driving is possible in the state of the manual driving;
an index calculation unit configured to calculate a change index that indicates a probability that the request unit can perform the driving change request and change from the state of automatic driving to the state of manual driving by the occupant within a time period before the vehicle, while in the state of the automatic driving, arrives at a point that is a predetermined distance in front of a current position of the vehicle, the index calculation unit acquiring a factor that affects the change index and calculates the change index based on the acquired factor;
an index determination unit configured to determine whether the change index is lower than a threshold value set in advance;
a proposal unit configured to propose the automatic driving to the occupant on a necessary condition that the automatic driving determination unit determines that the automatic driving is possible and also the index determination unit determines that the change index is lower than the threshold value;
a specific state setting unit configured to set a specific state in accordance with an operation of the occupant; and
a specific proposal unit configured to propose the automatic driving to the occupant when the specific state has been set and when the automatic driving determination unit determines that the automatic driving is possible without (i) calculating the change index indicating the probability that the request unit can perform the driving change request and change from the state of automatic driving to the state of manual driving by the occupant within the time period before the vehicle, while in the state of the automatic driving, arrives at the point that is the predetermined distance in front of the current position of the vehicle and (ii) determining whether the change index is lower than the threshold value set in advance.

3. An automatic driving proposal method for a vehicle configured to select either a state of an automatic driving or a state of a manual driving by an occupant, the automatic driving proposal method comprising:
performing a driving change request to the occupant when, in the state of the automatic driving, the vehicle has arrived at a change point set in advance on a route of the automatic driving;
determining whether the automatic driving is possible in the state of the manual driving;
calculating a calculation value corresponding to a distance from a current position of the vehicle to the change point or a prediction time until the vehicle arrives at the change point;
determining whether the calculation value is higher than a threshold value set in advance;
proposing the automatic driving to the occupant on a necessary condition of determining that the automatic driving is possible and also determining that the calculation value is higher than the threshold value;
setting a specific state in accordance with an operation of the occupant; and
proposing the automatic driving to the occupant when having set the specific state and when also having determined that the automatic driving is possible without (i) calculating the calculation value corresponding to the distance from the current position of the vehicle to the change point or the prediction time until the vehicle arrives at the change point and (ii) determining whether the calculation value is higher than the threshold value set in advance.

4. An automatic driving proposal method for a vehicle configured to select either a state of an automatic driving or a state of a manual driving by an occupant, the automatic driving proposal method comprising:
determining whether continuation of the automatic driving is possible in the state of the automatic driving;
performing a driving change request to change from the state of the automatic driving to the state of the manual driving by the occupant when determining that the continuation of the automatic driving is not possible;
determining whether the automatic driving is possible in the state of the manual driving;
calculating a change index that indicates a probability that the driving change request and the change from the state of automatic driving to the state of manual driving by the occupant can be performed within a time period before the vehicle, while in the state of the automatic driving, arrives at a point that is a predetermined distance in front of a current position of the vehicle, wherein calculating the change index includes acquiring a factor that affects the change index and calculating the change index based on the acquired factor;
determining whether the change index is lower than a threshold value set in advance;
proposing the automatic driving to the occupant on a necessary condition of determining that the automatic driving is possible and also determining that the change index is lower than the threshold value;
setting a specific state in accordance with an operation of the occupant; and
proposing the automatic driving to the occupant when having set the specific state and also having determined that the automatic driving is possible without (i) calculating the change index indicating the pro

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Kitagawa Nozomi
• Iguchi Sei
• Yamamoto Norio
• Taguchi Kiyotaka
• Ota Yuji
• Isaji Kazuyoshi

Classifications

• B60W60/0051

  from occupants to vehicle · CPC title

• B60W50/10

  Interpretation of driver requests or demands · CPC title

• G08G1/00

  Traffic control systems for road vehicles (arrangement of road signs or traffic signals E01F9/00 {; automatic vehicle control B62D}) · CPC title

• G05D1/0061

  for transition from automatic pilot to manual pilot and vice versa · CPC title

• B60W2050/007

  Switching between manual and automatic parameter input, and vice versa · CPC title