Vehicle control device and vehicle control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12037015-B2
Application number	US-202117385168-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 26, 2021
Priority date	Jul 28, 2020
Publication date	Jul 16, 2024
Grant date	Jul 16, 2024

Abstract

An automatic drive device includes a fusion unit recognizing travel environment of a vehicle based on an output signal of a surrounding monitoring sensor and a control planning unit generating a control plan based on a recognition result of the fusion unit. A diagnostic device includes an abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality of a field recognition system from the surrounding monitoring sensor to the fusion unit by monitoring the output signal of the surrounding monitoring sensor and the recognition result of the fusion unit over time. The diagnostic device requests the control planning unit to perform MRM based on a detection of the abnormality of the recognition system by the abnormality detection unit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A vehicle control device used in a vehicle having a control planning unit that generates a control plan for autonomous travel of the vehicle and a safety evaluation unit that evaluates safety regarding the control plan generated by the control planning unit, the vehicle control device comprising:
an abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality of a field recognition system including at least one surrounding monitoring sensor and a recognition unit, based at least on one of (a) an output signal of the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor detecting objects within a predetermined detection range and (b) a recognition result of the recognition unit recognizing objects near the vehicle based on the output signal of the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor; and
a vehicle stop processing unit that performs a process for stopping the vehicle based on a detection of the abnormality of the field recognition system by the abnormality detection unit, wherein
the abnormality detection unit compares a first process used by the control planning unit and a second process used by the safety evaluation unit, and determines that an abnormality is occurring when the first process and the second process are different from each other, and
the vehicle stop processing unit causes the safety evaluation unit to control a travel control actuator of the vehicle to decelerate the vehicle based on the process for stopping the vehicle.

2. The vehicle control device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a recognition result acquisition unit that repeatedly and/or intermittently acquires the recognition result of the recognition unit; and
a recognition result holding unit that temporarily holds the recognition result acquired by the recognition result acquisition unit at a plurality of time points in association with a time of association, wherein
the abnormality detection unit
determines whether or not the recognition result is stable by referring to time-series data of the recognition result of the recognition unit for any one of the objects detected by the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor held by the recognition result holding unit, and
determines that the abnormality has occurred in the field recognition system based on the object for which the recognition result is determined as unstable.

3. The vehicle control device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor comprises a plurality of the surrounding monitoring sensors,
each of the plurality of the surrounding monitoring sensors outputs a signal indicating the recognition result regarding a position and type of the detected object as the output signal, and
the abnormality detection unit diagnoses an operation situation of each of the plurality of surrounding monitoring sensors based on the output signal of the plurality of surrounding monitoring sensors.

4. The vehicle control device of claim 3 , wherein
the recognition unit identifies the type of the detected object by weighting and integrating the recognition results of the plurality of surrounding monitoring sensors, and
the vehicle stop processing unit performs a process for stopping the vehicle based on the weight of the respective surrounding monitoring sensor that is determined to have the abnormality by the abnormality detection unit being equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value.

5. The vehicle control device of claim 1 further comprising:
at least one first surrounding monitoring sensor corresponding to the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor; and
at least one second surrounding monitoring sensor mounted at a position different from the first surrounding monitoring sensor and, wherein
as the recognition unit, a first recognition unit that performs a travel environment recognition process based on the output signal of the first surrounding monitoring sensor and a second recognition unit that performs the travel environment recognition process based on the output signal of the second surrounding monitoring sensor are provided, and
the abnormality detection unit determines that the abnormality has occurred in the field recognition system based on un-matching between the recognition result of the first recognition unit and the recognition result of the second recognition unit.

6. The vehicle control device of claim 5 , wherein
the first surrounding monitoring sensor is a surrounding monitoring sensor mounted on the vehicle body, and
the second surrounding monitoring sensor is a removable surrounding monitoring sensor retrofitted to the vehicle.

7. The vehicle control device of claim 1 , wherein
the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor is provided as and includes at least one of a camera, a millimeter-wave radar, a laser radar, and a sonar.

8. A vehicle control device comprising:
an abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality of a field recognition system including at least one surrounding monitoring sensor and a recognition unit, based at least on one of (a) an output signal of the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor detecting objects within a predetermined detection range and (b) a recognition result of the recognition unit recognizing objects near the vehicle based on the output signal of the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor; and
a vehicle stop processing unit that performs a process for stopping the vehicle based on a detection of the abnormality of the field recognition system by the abnormality detection unit, wherein
the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor comprises a plurality of the surrounding monitoring sensors,
each of the plurality of the surrounding monitoring sensors outputs a signal indicating the recognition result regarding a position and type of the detected object as the output signal, and
the abnormality detection unit diagnoses an operation situation of each of the plurality of surrounding monitoring sensors based on the output signal of the plurality of surrounding monitoring sensors,
the recognition unit identifies the type of the detected object by weighting and integrating the recognition results of the plurality of surrounding monitoring sensors, a risk determination unit is provided for determining a risk level according to the weight f the respective surrounding monitoring sensor that is determined to have the abnormality by the abnormality detection unit,
the vehicle stop processing unit performs a process for stopping the vehicle based on the risk level being equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value, and
the vehicle stop processing unit causes a safety evaluation unit to control a travel control actuator of the vehicle to decelerate the vehicle based on the process for stopping the vehicle.

9. A vehicle control device comprising:
an abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality of a field recognition system including at least one surrounding monitoring sensor and a recognition unit, based at least on one of (a) an output signal of the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor detecting objects within a predetermined detection range and (b) a recognition result of the recognition unit recognizing objects near the vehicle based on the output signal of the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor; and
a vehicle stop processing unit that performs a process for stopping the vehicle based on a detection of the abnormality of the field recognition system by the abnormality detection unit, wherein
the at least one surrounding monitoring sensor comprises a plurality of the surrounding monitoring sensors, each of the plurality of the surrounding monitoring sensors outputs a signal indicating the recognition result regarding a position and typ

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Xiang Jingyu
• Matsue Takenori
• Motegi Yotaro
• Shimomura Osamu
• Osawa Hiroyuki

Classifications

• B60W2420/408

  Radar; Laser, e.g. lidar · CPC title

• B60W2420/403

  Image sensing, e.g. optical camera · CPC title

• G06V20/56

  exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle · CPC title

• G08G1/16

  Anti-collision systems (road vehicle drive control systems for predicting or avoiding probable or impending collision otherwise than by control of a particular sub-unit B60W30/08) · CPC title

• B60W2554/4041

  Position · CPC title