JP2024100701A - Vehicle control device and vehicle control method - Google Patents

Abstract

To make it possible to suppress a burden on a vehicle or an occupant due to continuation of automatic driving for a long time or a long distance.SOLUTION: An automatic operating ECU 10 which can be used in a vehicle performing automatic driving, comprises: a continuation specification part 104 which specifies an automatic driving continuation amount that is a continuous travel time or a continuous travel distance in automatic driving of an own vehicle; and a travel control part 122 which performs travel restriction which is restriction of travel in automatic driving, when the automatic driving continuation amount specified by the continuation specification part 104 exceeds a prescribed threshold.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

This disclosure relates to a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method.

Patent Document 1 discloses an autonomous driving control unit that has autonomous driving functions from level 1 to level 5 in addition to a level 0 manual driving function. Known autonomous vehicles include private cars and passenger transport vehicles. In autonomous driving, the driver's driving operations are reduced or eliminated, reducing the driver's fatigue caused by driving operations.

JP 2019-101453 A

In automated driving, driver fatigue caused by driving operations is reduced, so that driving for longer periods or longer distances is more likely than in manual driving. However, when driving for longer periods or longer distances in automated driving, the load on the vehicle is likely to be greater than in manual driving. For example, frequent braking to travel downhill at a set vehicle speed increases the load on the brakes. Other examples include increased load on the driving source and tires due to frequent acceleration and deceleration to travel at a set vehicle speed. In addition, when driving for longer periods or longer distances in automated driving, the load on the occupants other than fatigue is likely to be greater than in manual driving. For example, being away from driving operations for a long time may make it difficult to quickly respond to a switch to manual driving. In addition, the occupants may feel uneasy about the impact on the vehicle of long periods or long distances of automated driving.

One objective of this disclosure is to provide a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method that can reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by continuous automated driving for long periods of time or long distances.

The above object is achieved by a combination of features recited in the independent claims, and the subclaims define further advantageous embodiments of the disclosure. The reference characters in parentheses in the claims indicate a correspondence with the specific means described in the embodiments described below as one aspect, and do not limit the technical scope of the present disclosure.

In order to achieve the above object, the first vehicle control device of the present disclosure is a vehicle control device that can be used in a vehicle that performs autonomous driving, and includes a continuation determination unit (104) that determines the autonomous driving continuation amount, which is the continuous driving time or continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving, and a driving restriction unit (122, 122c, 122d, 122e, 122f, 122g, 122h, 122i) that imposes a driving restriction, which is a restriction on driving in autonomous driving, when the autonomous driving continuation amount determined by the continuation determination unit exceeds a predetermined threshold.

To achieve the above object, the first vehicle control method disclosed herein is a vehicle control method that can be used in a vehicle that performs autonomous driving, and includes a continuation determination step executed by at least one processor for determining an autonomous driving continuation amount, which is the continuous driving time or continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving, and a driving restriction step for imposing a driving restriction, which is a restriction on driving in autonomous driving, when the autonomous driving continuation amount determined in the continuation determination step exceeds a predetermined threshold.

By limiting autonomous driving, it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants during autonomous driving. Therefore, with the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by the extended continuous autonomous driving time or continuous driving distance. As a result, it is possible to suppress the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by continuing autonomous driving for long periods of time or long distances.

In order to achieve the above object, the second vehicle control device of the present disclosure is a vehicle control device that can be used in a vehicle that performs autonomous driving, and includes a continuation determination unit (104) that determines the autonomous driving continuation amount, which is the continuous driving time or continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving, an abnormality determination unit (108) that determines whether or not there is an abnormality in the autonomous driving of the vehicle, and an in-vehicle notification processing unit (161b) that issues a notification to the vehicle occupants, and when the autonomous driving continuation amount determined by the continuation determination unit exceeds a predetermined threshold and the abnormality determination unit determines that there is no abnormality in the autonomous driving, the in-vehicle notification processing unit issues a notification indicating that there is no problem with the vehicle even if the autonomous driving has a large amount of autonomous driving continuation.

In order to achieve the above object, the second vehicle control method disclosed herein is a vehicle control method that can be used in a vehicle that performs autonomous driving, and includes a continuation identification step executed by at least one processor to identify an autonomous driving continuation amount, which is the continuous driving time or continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving, an abnormality identification step to identify the presence or absence of an abnormality in the autonomous driving of the vehicle, and an in-vehicle notification processing step to issue an alert to the vehicle occupants. In the in-vehicle notification processing step, if the autonomous driving continuation amount identified in the continuation identification step exceeds a predetermined threshold value and if the abnormality identification step identifies that there is no abnormality in the autonomous driving, an alert is issued indicating that there is no problem with the vehicle even if the autonomous driving has a large autonomous driving continuation amount.

Even if the autonomous driving duration is long, which is the continuous driving time or continuous driving distance under autonomous driving, the vehicle can be notified that there is no problem, which reassures the occupants. Therefore, according to the above configuration, even if the autonomous driving duration is long, if there is no abnormality in the autonomous driving, the occupants can be reassured by the notification. As a result, it is possible to reduce the burden on the occupants caused by continuing autonomous driving for long periods of time or long distances.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in the first embodiment. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of a continuation response-related process in an autonomous driving ECU in the first embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in a second embodiment. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of continuous response-related processing during remote autonomous driving in an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 2. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a third embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 3. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of a continuation response-related process in an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 3. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a fourth embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 4. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a fifth embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 5. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a sixth embodiment. A figure showing an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 6. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a seventh embodiment. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 7. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to an eighth embodiment. A figure showing an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 8. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a ninth embodiment. A figure showing an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 9. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle system according to a tenth embodiment. A figure showing an example of a schematic configuration of an autonomous driving ECU in embodiment 10.

Several embodiments for disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. For ease of explanation, parts in several embodiments that have the same functions as parts shown in the drawings used in the previous explanations may be given the same reference numerals and their explanations may be omitted. For parts given the same reference numerals, the explanations in other embodiments may be referred to.

(Embodiment 1)
<General Configuration of Vehicle System 1>
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. A vehicle system 1 shown in FIG. 1 can be used in a vehicle capable of autonomous driving (hereinafter, an autonomous driving vehicle). The autonomous driving vehicle may be a passenger transport vehicle such as a taxi or a bus, or may be a private car. A private car can also be called a POV (Personally Owned Vehicle).

As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle system 1 includes an autonomous driving ECU 10, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map database (hereinafter, map DB) 13, a vehicle state sensor 14, a surroundings monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, an interior camera 18, and an HCU (Human Machine Interface Control Unit) 19. For example, the autonomous driving ECU 10, the communication module 11, the locator 12, the map DB 13, the vehicle state sensor 14, the surroundings monitoring sensor 15, the vehicle control ECU 16, and the HCU 19 may be configured to be connected to an in-vehicle LAN (see LAN in FIG. 1). The vehicle using the vehicle system 1 is not necessarily limited to an automobile, but the following description will be given taking the case of use in an automobile as an example.

There can be multiple levels of autonomous driving for autonomous vehicles (hereafter referred to as "automation levels"), as defined by the SAE, for example. Automation levels are classified into LV0 to 5, for example, as follows:

LV0 is the level at which the driver performs all driving tasks without system intervention. The driving task may be referred to as a dynamic driving task. Driving tasks include, for example, steering, acceleration/deceleration, and surrounding monitoring. LV0 corresponds to so-called manual driving. LV1 is the level at which the system assists with either steering or acceleration/deceleration. LV1 corresponds to so-called driving assistance. LV2 is the level at which the system assists with both steering and acceleration/deceleration. LV2 corresponds to so-called partial driving automation. Note that LV1-2 are also considered to be part of automated driving.

For example, automated driving at LV1-2 is automated driving where the driver has a duty to monitor safe driving (hereinafter, simply referred to as the duty to monitor). In other words, it corresponds to automated driving with a duty to monitor. Driving at LV0-LV2 corresponds to driving with a duty to monitor. The duty to monitor includes visual monitoring of the surroundings. Automated driving at LV1-2 can be said to be automated driving where a second task is not permitted. A second task is an action other than driving that is permitted for the driver, and is a specific action that is specified in advance. A second task can also be said to be a secondary activity, other activity, etc. It is considered that a second task must not prevent the driver from responding to a request from the automated driving system to take over driving operations. As an example, actions such as watching content such as videos, operating a smartphone, reading, and eating are assumed to be second tasks.

LV3 autonomous driving is a level where the system can perform all driving tasks under certain conditions, and the driver performs driving operations in an emergency. In LV3 autonomous driving, the driver is required to be able to respond quickly when the system requests a handover of driving. This handover of driving can also be said to be the transfer of the responsibility of monitoring the surroundings from the vehicle's system to the driver. LV3 corresponds to so-called conditional driving automation. LV4 autonomous driving is a level where the system can perform all driving tasks, except under certain circumstances such as incompatible roads and extreme environments. LV4 corresponds to so-called high-level driving automation. LV5 autonomous driving is a level where the system can perform all driving tasks in any environment. LV5 corresponds to so-called full driving automation. LV4 and LV5 autonomous driving can be performed, for example, on driving sections where high-precision map data is available. High-precision map data will be described later.

For example, autonomous driving at LV3 or higher is autonomous driving where the driver has no obligation to monitor. In other words, it corresponds to autonomous driving without obligation to monitor. Autonomous driving at LV3 or higher can be rephrased as autonomous driving where a second task is permitted. For example, autonomous driving at LV4 or higher is autonomous driving where the driver is permitted to sleep. In other words, it corresponds to sleep-permitted autonomous driving. The autonomous vehicle of this embodiment may be configured, for example, to be able to switch the automation level. The automation level may be configured to be switchable only between some of the levels from LV0 to 5. In this embodiment, an example will be described in which an autonomous vehicle performs autonomous driving without the obligation to monitor the surroundings.

The communication module 11 transmits and receives information via wireless communication with a center outside the vehicle. In other words, it performs wide-area communication. The communication module 11 receives congestion information, etc. from the center via wide-area communication. The communication module 11 may transmit and receive information with other vehicles via wireless communication. In other words, it may perform vehicle-to-vehicle communication. The communication module 11 may transmit and receive information via wireless communication with a roadside device installed on the roadside. In other words, it may perform road-to-vehicle communication. When performing road-to-vehicle communication, the communication module 11 may receive information about surrounding vehicles transmitted from surrounding vehicles of the vehicle via the roadside device. The communication module 11 may also receive information about surrounding vehicles transmitted from surrounding vehicles of the vehicle via the center via wide-area communication.

The locator 12 includes a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver and an inertial sensor. The GNSS receiver receives positioning signals from multiple positioning satellites. The inertial sensor includes, for example, a gyro sensor and an acceleration sensor. The locator 12 sequentially determines the vehicle position of the vehicle (hereinafter, the vehicle position) by combining the positioning signal received by the GNSS receiver with the measurement results of the inertial sensor. The vehicle position may be expressed, for example, in latitude and longitude coordinates. Note that the vehicle position may also be determined using a travel distance calculated from a signal sequentially output from a vehicle speed sensor mounted on the vehicle.

The map DB 13 is a non-volatile memory and stores high-precision map data. The high-precision map data is map data with higher precision than the map data used for route guidance in the navigation function. The high-precision map data includes information that can be used for automated driving, such as three-dimensional shape information of roads, information on the number of lanes, and information indicating the permitted travel direction for each lane. In addition, the high-precision map data may include node point information indicating the positions of both ends of road markings such as dividing lines. The map DB 13 may also store map data used for route guidance. The locator 12 may be configured to use three-dimensional shape information of the road without using a GNSS receiver. For example, the locator 12 may be configured to identify the vehicle position using three-dimensional shape information of the road and the detection result of the surrounding monitoring sensor 15. The three-dimensional shape information of the road may be generated based on a captured image by REM (Road Experience Management).

Map data distributed from an external server may be received by wide area communication via the communication module 11 and stored in the map DB 13. In this case, the map DB 13 may be a volatile memory, and the communication module 11 may be configured to sequentially acquire map data for an area corresponding to the vehicle position.

The vehicle condition sensor 14 is a group of sensors for detecting various conditions of the vehicle. The vehicle condition sensor 14 includes a vehicle speed sensor, a grip sensor, etc. The vehicle speed sensor detects the speed of the vehicle. The grip sensor detects whether the driver is gripping the steering wheel. The vehicle condition sensor 14 outputs the detected sensing information to an in-vehicle LAN. The sensing information detected by the vehicle condition sensor 14 may be configured to be output to the in-vehicle LAN via an ECU installed in the vehicle.

The perimeter monitoring sensor 15 monitors the environment around the vehicle. As an example, the perimeter monitoring sensor 15 detects obstacles around the vehicle, such as moving objects such as pedestrians and other vehicles, and stationary objects such as objects that have fallen on the road. In addition, the perimeter monitoring sensor 15 detects road markings around the vehicle, such as lane markings. The perimeter monitoring sensor 15 is, for example, a perimeter monitoring camera that captures an image of a predetermined range around the vehicle, and a search wave sensor that transmits search waves to a predetermined range around the vehicle. Examples of the search wave sensor include millimeter wave radar, sonar, and LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging/Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging). The predetermined range may be a range that at least partially includes the front, rear, left, and right of the vehicle. The perimeter monitoring camera sequentially outputs the captured images as sensing information to the automatic driving ECU 10. The search wave sensor sequentially outputs the scanning results based on the received signal obtained when receiving the reflected wave reflected by an obstacle to the automatic driving ECU 10 as sensing information.

The periphery monitoring sensor 15 may include a rain sensor, a temperature sensor, etc. The rain sensor is a sensor that detects rainfall and snowfall. The temperature sensor is a sensor that detects the outside air temperature. The sensing information detected by the periphery monitoring sensor 15 may be configured to be output to the automatic driving ECU 10 without going through the in-vehicle LAN.

The vehicle control ECU 16 is an electronic control device that controls the driving of the vehicle. Examples of driving control include acceleration/deceleration control and/or steering control. The vehicle control ECU 16 includes a steering ECU that controls steering, a power unit control ECU that controls acceleration/deceleration, and a brake ECU. The vehicle control ECU 16 controls driving by outputting control signals to each driving control device mounted on the vehicle. Examples of driving control devices include an electronically controlled throttle, a brake actuator, and an EPS (Electric Power Steering) motor.

The notification device 17 is installed in the vehicle and issues a notification to the passenger compartment of the vehicle. In other words, the notification device 17 issues a notification to the occupants of the vehicle. The notification device 17 issues a notification according to instructions from the HCU 19. The notification device 17 includes a display device 171 and an audio output device 172.

The display device 171 notifies the driver by displaying information. For example, a meter MID (Multi Information Display), a CID (Center Information Display), a HUD (Head-Up Display), etc. can be used as the display device 171. The meter MID is a display device provided in front of the driver's seat inside the vehicle. As an example, the meter MID may be configured to be provided on a meter panel. The CID is a display device provided in the center of the instrument panel of the vehicle. The HUD is provided, for example, on the instrument panel inside the vehicle. The HUD projects a display image formed by a projector onto a projection area that is set on the front windshield as a projection member. The light of the image reflected by the front windshield into the vehicle interior is perceived by the driver sitting in the driver's seat. This allows the driver to view a virtual image of the display image formed in front of the front windshield, superimposed on a part of the foreground. The HUD may be configured to project a display image onto a combiner provided in front of the driver's seat instead of onto the front windshield. The audio output device 172 issues a notification by outputting audio. Examples of the audio output device 172 include a speaker.

The interior camera 18 is an imaging device that captures an image of a specified range within the cabin of the vehicle. It is preferable that the interior camera 18 captures an image of at least an area including the driver's seat of the vehicle. The interior camera 18 may capture an image of an area including the passenger seat and rear seats in addition to the driver's seat of the vehicle. The interior camera 18 is composed of, for example, a near-infrared light source and a near-infrared camera, and a control unit that controls these. The interior camera 18 captures an image of the occupant of the vehicle irradiated with near-infrared light by the near-infrared light source using the near-infrared camera.

The HCU 19 is mainly composed of a computer equipped with a processor, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, I/O, and a bus connecting these. The HCU 19 executes various processes related to the interaction between the occupant and the vehicle's system by executing a control program stored in the non-volatile memory. The HCU 19 acquires images captured by the interior camera 18. The HCU 19 identifies the state of the occupant of the vehicle from the images captured by the interior camera 18. For example, it can identify whether the occupant is taking a rest from the posture of the occupant of the vehicle and the degree to which their eyelids are open. The HCU 19 causes the alarm device 17 to issue an alarm.

The autonomous driving ECU 10 is mainly composed of a computer equipped with, for example, a processor, a volatile memory, a non-volatile memory, an I/O, and a bus connecting these. The autonomous driving ECU 10 executes processes related to autonomous driving by executing a control program stored in the non-volatile memory. This autonomous driving ECU 10 corresponds to a vehicle control device. The configuration of the autonomous driving ECU 10 will be described in detail below.

<General configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10 will be described with reference to FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the automatic driving ECU 10 includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, an action determination unit 102, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, and an HCU communication unit 106 as functional blocks. The execution of the processing of each functional block of the automatic driving ECU 10 by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method. Note that some or all of the functions executed by the automatic driving ECU 10 may be configured in hardware form using one or more ICs or the like. Also, some or all of the functional blocks included in the automatic driving ECU 10 may be realized by a combination of software execution by a processor and hardware members.

The driving environment recognition unit 101 recognizes the driving environment of the vehicle from the vehicle position, map data, and sensing information acquired from the surrounding monitoring sensor 15. The vehicle position may be acquired from the locator 12. The map data may be acquired from the map DB 13. As an example, the driving environment recognition unit 101 uses these pieces of information to recognize the position, shape, and movement state of objects around the vehicle, and generates a virtual space that reproduces the actual driving environment. The driving environment recognition unit 101 may recognize the presence, relative position, and relative speed of vehicles around the vehicle as the driving environment from the sensing information. The driving environment recognition unit 101 may recognize the vehicle position on the map from the vehicle position and map data. When the driving environment recognition unit 101 can acquire position information, speed information, and the like of surrounding vehicles via the communication module 11, it may also use these pieces of information to recognize the driving environment. The driving environment recognition unit 101 may also recognize the driving environment such as the outside temperature, weather, and road surface condition. The outside air temperature may be recognized from the outside air temperature acquired from a temperature sensor. The weather may be recognized from the results detected by a rain sensor. The road surface condition may be recognized from an image of the road surface captured by a surrounding camera using machine learning. In this case, a classifier that has machine-learned various road surface conditions, such as sandy road surfaces, may be used. This driving environment recognition unit 101 corresponds to a driving environment identification unit.

The behavior determination unit 102 switches the control entity of the driving operation between the driver and the system of the vehicle. When the control authority of the driving operation is on the system side, the behavior determination unit 102 determines a driving plan for driving the vehicle based on the recognition result of the driving environment by the driving environment recognition unit 101. The behavior determination unit 102 has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks.

The driving plan unit 121 determines a driving plan for driving the vehicle in an autonomous driving mode. The driving plan unit 121 determines a long-term to mid-term driving plan and a short-term driving plan as driving plans. In the long-term to mid-term driving plan, a planned route for driving the vehicle to a set destination is determined. The driving plan unit 121 may determine this planned route in a manner similar to route search of the navigation function. The driving plan unit 121 may also determine a set vehicle speed when driving the planned route. The set vehicle speed may be determined according to the speed limit of each driving section. The set vehicle speed may be, for example, the speed limit of each driving section. The driving plan unit 121 determines a short-term driving plan for realizing driving according to the long-term to mid-term driving plan using the virtual space around the vehicle generated by the driving environment recognition unit 101. Specifically, as the short-term driving plan, the execution of steering for lane changes, acceleration/deceleration for speed adjustment, steering and braking for obstacle avoidance, etc. is determined. Other processing in the driving plan unit 121, processing in the driving restriction unit 122, and processing in the threshold change unit 123 will be described later.

When the control authority of the driving operation is in the system of the own vehicle, the control execution unit 103 executes driving control in cooperation with the vehicle control ECU 16. The control execution unit 103 executes driving control such as acceleration/deceleration control and steering control of the own vehicle according to the driving plan determined by the action determination unit 102.

The continuation determination unit 104 determines the amount of continued autonomous driving, which is the continuous driving time or continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving. The amount of continued autonomous driving may be the amount of driving that the vehicle continues in autonomous driving without stopping. The continuation determination unit 104 may determine the amount of continued autonomous driving from the driving time or driving distance during which autonomous driving is continued by the control execution unit 103. The processing in the continuation determination unit 104 corresponds to the continuation determination process.

When determining a driving plan in which the amount of continued autonomous driving of the vehicle is scheduled to reach a specified amount, the driving plan unit 121 preferably does the following. The driving plan unit 121 preferably determines a driving plan to drive a route that passes through points where maintenance of the vehicle can be performed. This makes it easier to perform maintenance when maintenance of the vehicle becomes necessary. The specified amount may be a value that can be set arbitrarily. The specified amount may be the same value as the continuation threshold value described below, or may be a different value. Examples of points where maintenance can be performed include points where vehicles can be changed, such as service areas, and dealerships. Examples of driving plans in which the amount of continued autonomous driving is scheduled to reach a specified amount include long-distance travel on a highway without stopping.

When the amount of autonomous driving identified by the continuation identification unit 104 exceeds a predetermined threshold, the driving restriction unit 122 restricts autonomous driving (hereinafter, driving restriction). The predetermined threshold (hereinafter, continuation threshold) may be a value that can be set arbitrarily. The continuation threshold may be an amount of autonomous driving that is estimated to impose a burden on the vehicle or the occupant due to continued autonomous driving without stopping. The load on the occupant here excludes fatigue. By restricting autonomous driving, it is possible to reduce the load on the vehicle side or the occupant side during autonomous driving. Therefore, according to the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the load on the vehicle side or the occupant side due to the continuous autonomous driving time or continuous driving distance becoming longer. As a result, it is possible to suppress the load on the vehicle or the occupant due to the continuation of autonomous driving for a long time or long distance. The processing by the driving restriction unit 122 corresponds to the driving restriction process.

The driving restriction by the driving restriction unit 122 may be driving at a low speed. Driving at a low speed here means driving at a speed that is lower than the set vehicle speed for autonomous driving. This makes it possible to reduce the load on the vehicle or occupants by the amount that the vehicle speed is reduced, even in a situation where the vehicle cannot be stopped. As a result, it becomes possible to reduce the load on the vehicle or occupants caused by continuing autonomous driving for a long period of time or long distances.

The driving restriction by the driving restriction unit 122 may be a temporary stop. In other words, driving may be suspended. In this way, since the vehicle is stopped, it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or the occupants to a greater extent. As a result, it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by continuing automatic driving for a long period of time or long distances.

The driving restriction by the driving restriction unit 122 may be to prohibit automatic driving. In other words, it may be to switch to manual driving. In this way, the automatic driving of the vehicle is terminated, so it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by automatic driving. As a result, it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by continuing automatic driving for a long time or long distance.

The driving restriction by the driving restriction unit 122 may alternate between a full mode in which the vehicle is driven at the set vehicle speed for autonomous driving, and a recovery mode in which the vehicle is driven at a speed lower than the set vehicle speed for autonomous driving. For example, the full mode may be 100 km/h, and the recovery mode may be 60 km/h. The repetition period may be set to any value. This makes it possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants by periodically reducing the speed of the vehicle. As a result, it becomes possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by continued autonomous driving for long periods of time or long distances.

When restricting driving, the driving restriction unit 122 may be configured to select and enforce driving restrictions according to the situation of the vehicle. The situation of the vehicle may be identified from the recognition result by the driving environment recognition unit 101. For example, in a situation where the vehicle cannot stop, low-speed driving may be selected. In a situation where the vehicle can stop, temporary stopping may be selected. In a situation where it is easy to take over driving, prohibition of automatic driving may be selected. An example of a situation where it is easy to take over driving is when driving on a highway. Expressways may include expressways. With the above configuration, it becomes possible to enforce a more effective type of driving restriction that can be implemented in the situation in which the vehicle is placed.

When the amount of autonomous driving continuation identified by the continuation identification unit 104 exceeds the continuation threshold, it is preferable that the driving restriction unit 122 restricts driving at a timing when the behavior of the vehicle is low. If the driving restriction is implemented at a timing when the behavior of the vehicle is high, the behavior of the vehicle is likely to become erratic, and the comfort of the occupants is likely to be impaired. In contrast, according to the above configuration, the behavior of the vehicle is less likely to be disturbed by the driving restriction, and the comfort of the occupants is less likely to be impaired. An example of a timing when the behavior of the vehicle is low is driving other than at an intersection. Whether or not the vehicle is driving at an intersection may be determined from the recognition result by the driving environment recognition unit 101. An example of a timing when the behavior of the vehicle is low is driving on a straight road. Whether or not the vehicle is driving on a straight road may be determined from the recognition result by the driving environment recognition unit 101. An example of a timing when the behavior of the vehicle is low is when the vehicle reaches the next scheduled stop point. The arrival at the next scheduled stop point may be determined from the driving plan determined by the driving plan unit 121 and the vehicle position.

It is preferable that the threshold change unit 123 changes the continuation threshold value to a smaller value as the driving environment identified by the driving environment recognition unit 101 becomes worse for the driving of the vehicle. This makes it possible to impose driving restrictions at an earlier timing as the conditions for driving of the vehicle become worse. It is considered that the load on the vehicle side due to continued automatic driving becomes greater as the conditions for driving of the vehicle become worse. In contrast, with the above configuration, it becomes possible to impose driving restrictions according to the driving environment of the vehicle so that the load on the vehicle side does not become too large. Examples of bad conditions include an environment where the temperature is too high and an environment where the temperature is too low. Examples of bad conditions include an environment where the weather is rainy and snowy. Examples of bad conditions include an environment where the driving road is sandy. The degree of bad conditions may be two levels, a level of not being bad and a level of being bad, or may be more than two levels.

The maintenance identification unit 105 identifies whether or not maintenance of the vehicle is required. The maintenance identification unit 105 may identify whether or not maintenance of the vehicle is required from sensing information from the vehicle condition sensor 14. For example, when the value detected by the vehicle condition sensor 14 is outside the normal value range, it may identify that maintenance of the vehicle is required.

The HCU communication unit 106 outputs information to the HCU 18 and acquires information from the HCU 18. The HCU communication unit 106 acquires information such as images captured by the interior camera 18. The HCU communication unit 106 includes an in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 as a sub-functional block. The in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 indirectly controls notifications from the notification device 17 by sending instructions to the HCU 18. In other words, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 issues notifications to the occupants of the vehicle.

The in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 sequentially calculates the difference between the autonomous driving continuation amount identified by the continuation identification unit 104 and the continuation threshold. This difference is hereinafter referred to as the surplus value. The surplus value may be calculated by the behavior determination unit 102. When the surplus value becomes less than a set value, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 preferably causes the notification device 17 to issue a rest suggestion notification and a driving restriction notification. The set value may be a small value that can be said to be such that the autonomous driving continuation amount identified by the continuation identification unit 104 is likely to exceed the continuation threshold. The set value may be arbitrarily set. The rest suggestion notification issued by the notification device 17 is a notification that suggests a break to the occupant of the vehicle. This rest suggestion notification may be made by display on the display device 171 or by audio output from the audio output device 172. The driving restriction notification issued by the notification device 17 is a notification about the driving restriction that will be issued if the occupant does not take a break. The driving restriction notification may include, for example, notification of the details of the driving restriction. This driving restriction notification may be performed by display on the display device 171 or by audio output from the audio output device 172. With the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the load on the occupant other than fatigue without restricting driving. In addition, the occupant can select whether to reduce the load on the occupant other than fatigue by taking a break or by restricting driving. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the load on the occupant other than fatigue caused by continued automatic driving by a means that is more comfortable for the occupant.

It is preferable that the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 issues an inspection promotion notification when the surplus value falls below a set value. This set value may be the same as the above-mentioned set value, or may be a different value. In the following, an example will be described in which this set value is the same as the above-mentioned set value. The inspection promotion notification is a notification that prompts the occupants of the vehicle to inspect the vehicle. The inspection promotion notification may be issued by displaying on the display device 171, or by audio output from the audio output device 172. The inspection promotion notification may, for example, display a location that is recommended to be inspected. With the above configuration, even abnormalities for which the need for maintenance cannot be identified from the sensing information of the vehicle condition sensor 14 can be confirmed by inspection by the occupants. This makes it easier to alleviate the occupants' anxiety about the continuation of autonomous driving.

During the autonomous driving of the vehicle, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 preferably causes the notification device 17 to periodically issue a notification of necessity based on the result of the determination by the maintenance determination unit 105. The notification of necessity is a notification that notifies the vehicle owner whether maintenance is necessary. According to the above configuration, the passenger receives the notification of necessity, which makes it easier to alleviate the passenger's anxiety about the continuation of autonomous driving. The in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 may determine the period for issuing the notification of necessity using a timer circuit or the like. This period may be arbitrarily set. As an example, the starting point for periodically issuing the notification of necessity may be the start of driving in autonomous driving. Note that the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 may be configured to periodically issue a notification of necessity from the notification device 17 when the autonomous driving continuation amount determined by the continuation determination unit 104 exceeds the continuation threshold. According to this, during a period when the possibility of maintenance being required is lower, notification of necessity that is less necessary is suppressed, thereby reducing annoyance. In this case, the starting point for periodic notification of necessity will be the point at which the amount of continued autonomous driving exceeds the continuation threshold.

<Continuation response related processing in the autonomous driving ECU 10>
Here, an example of the flow of processing related to the response when the autonomous driving is continued in the autonomous driving ECU 10 (hereinafter, continuation response related processing) will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 3. The flowchart of Fig. 3 may be configured to be started when the host vehicle starts traveling by autonomous driving.

First, in step S1, the in-vehicle notification processor 161 determines whether it is time to issue a periodic notification. If it is time to issue a notification (YES in S1), the process proceeds to step S2. On the other hand, if it is not time to issue a notification (NO in S1), the process proceeds to step S3.

In step S2, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 issues a notification as to whether or not the autonomous driving is required. In step S3, the continuation determination unit 104 determines the amount of autonomous driving to continue. Note that the process of S3 may be configured to be performed before the process of S1.

In step S4, the in-vehicle notification processor 161 calculates a surplus value, which is the difference between the autonomous driving continuation amount identified in S3 and the continuation threshold. If the surplus value is less than the set value (YES in S4), the process proceeds to step S6. On the other hand, if the surplus value is equal to or greater than the set value (NO in S4), the process proceeds to step S5.

In step S5, if it is time to end the continuous response-related processing (YES in S5), the continuous response-related processing is terminated. On the other hand, if it is not time to end the continuous response-related processing (NO in S5), the process returns to S1 and is repeated. Examples of timings to end the continuous response-related processing include the end of autonomous driving, stopping the vehicle, etc.

In step S6, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 causes the notification device 17 to issue a rest suggestion notification, a driving restriction notification, and an inspection promotion notification. Note that in S6, the configuration may be such that only one of the rest suggestion notification, the driving restriction notification, and the inspection promotion notification is issued.

In step S7, it is determined whether the occupant has taken a rest. The determination of whether the occupant has taken a rest may be made by the behavior determination unit 102 or the HCU communication unit 106. For example, whether the occupant has taken a rest may be determined based on whether the occupant of the vehicle identified by the HCU 19 has taken a rest. Alternatively, whether the occupant has taken a rest may be determined based on whether the vehicle has stopped. Then, if it is determined that the occupant has taken a rest (YES in S7), the process proceeds to step S10. On the other hand, if it is determined that the occupant has not taken a rest (NO in S7), the process proceeds to step S8.

In step S8, the continuation determination unit 104 determines the amount of continued autonomous driving. In step S9, the driving restriction unit 122 determines whether the amount of continued autonomous driving determined in S8 exceeds the continuation threshold. If the amount of continued autonomous driving exceeds the continuation threshold (YES in S9), the process proceeds to step S10. On the other hand, if the amount of continued autonomous driving does not exceed the continuation threshold (NO in S9), the process proceeds to step S10.

In step S10, if it is time to end the continuation-related processing (YES in S10), the continuation-related processing ends. On the other hand, if it is not time to end the continuation-related processing (NO in S10), the process returns to S8 and is repeated.

In step S11, the driving restriction unit 122 determines whether or not it is a timing when the vehicle's behavior is low (hereinafter, "restriction timing"). If it is a restriction timing (YES in S11), the process proceeds to step S12. On the other hand, if it is not a restriction timing (NO in S11), the process of S11 is repeated. In step S12, the driving restriction unit 122 imposes a driving restriction. The driving restriction here is to drive the vehicle at a low speed or to stop the vehicle.

In step S13, if it is time to end the continuation-related processing (YES in S13), the continuation-related processing ends. On the other hand, if it is not time to end the continuation-related processing (NO in S13), the process returns to S1 and is repeated.

(Embodiment 2)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 2. An example of the configuration of embodiment 2 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<General Configuration of Vehicle System 1a>
The vehicle system 1a shown in FIG. 4 can be used in a vehicle capable of automatic driving by remote control (hereinafter, remotely controlled vehicle). The remotely controlled vehicle can realize automatic driving by remote control by controlling the vehicle according to remote control command values transmitted from a monitoring center. Automatic driving by remote control is hereinafter referred to as remote automatic driving. In remote automatic driving, automatic driving at an automation level of LV2 or higher, for example, may be performed. In the following, remote automatic driving is described as performing automatic driving at an automation level of LV2 or LV3.

As shown in FIG. 4, the vehicle system 1a includes an autonomous driving ECU 10a, a communication module 11a, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, an interior camera 18, and an HCU 19. The vehicle system 1a includes an autonomous driving ECU 10a instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10. The vehicle system 1a includes a communication module 11a instead of the communication module 11. Except for these points, the vehicle system 1a is similar to the vehicle system 1 of embodiment 1.

The communication module 11a is similar to the communication module 11 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The differences are described below. When a remote operation command value is transmitted from the monitoring center, the communication module 11a receives this remote operation command value. The monitoring center is a center for remotely operating an autonomous vehicle. The monitoring center transmits a remote operation command value corresponding to the driving operation inputted into the operation system by the remote operator. The remote operator remotely operates the remotely operated vehicle from outside the vehicle. The communication module 11a may receive the remote operation command value from the monitoring center via wide area communication.

<General configuration of the autonomous driving ECU 10a>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10a will be described with reference to FIG. 5. The automatic driving ECU 10a is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10a includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, a behavior determination unit 102a, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, an HCU communication unit 106, and a center communication unit 107 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10a includes the behavior determination unit 102a instead of the behavior determination unit 102. The automatic driving ECU 10a includes the center communication unit 107. The automatic driving ECU 10a is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for these points. This automatic driving ECU 10a also corresponds to a vehicle control device. In addition, the execution of processing of each functional block of the automatic driving ECU 10a by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The behavior determination unit 102a is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102a has a driving plan unit 121a, a driving restriction unit 122, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102a is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that the behavior determination unit 102a has a driving plan unit 121a instead of the driving plan unit 121.

The driving planner 121a is similar to the driving planner 121 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The following describes these differences. The driving planner 121a determines a driving plan according to the remote control command values received from the monitoring center. As a result, the remote-controlled vehicle performs automatic driving according to the remote control command values. The driving planner 121a may obtain the remote control command values via the communication module 11a. The behavior determination unit 102a may determine whether or not remote automatic driving can be continued. For example, the behavior determination unit 102a may determine that automatic driving cannot be continued when the communication conditions with the monitoring center deteriorate. When the behavior determination unit 102a determines that automatic driving cannot be continued, the automatic driving ECU 10a switches driving to driving operation by the occupant of the remote-controlled vehicle.

The center communication unit 107 outputs information to the monitoring center and acquires information from the monitoring center via the communication module 11a. The center communication unit 107 acquires remote operation command values sent from the monitoring center. The center communication unit 107 includes a center notification processing unit 1071 as a sub-functional block. The center notification processing unit 1071 indirectly controls notifications from the notification device of the monitoring center by sending instructions to the monitoring center. In other words, the center notification processing unit 1071 causes a notification to be issued to the remote operator at the monitoring center.

When the vehicle is in remote automatic driving and the surplus value is less than the set value, the center notification processing unit 1071 causes the monitoring center to issue a break suggestion notification and a driving restriction notification. The surplus value is the difference between the amount of automatic driving continuation identified by the continuation identification unit 104 and the continuation threshold. The surplus value may be calculated by the center notification processing unit 1071 or may be calculated by the action determination unit 102. The continuation threshold and the set value may be the same as those described in the first embodiment. The break suggestion notification issued by the monitoring center is a notification to the remote operator suggesting a break. This break suggestion notification may be made by display or by audio output. The driving restriction notification issued by the monitoring center is a notification about the driving restriction that will be imposed if the remote operator does not take a break. The driving restriction notification may include, for example, a notification of the content of the driving restriction. The driving restriction notification may be made by display or by audio output. With the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the load on the remote operator without restricting driving. In addition, the remote operator can select whether to reduce the load on the remote operator by taking a break or by restricting driving. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the load on the remote operator caused by continuing automatic driving by a more comfortable means for the remote operator.

When the vehicle is in remote automatic driving mode and the surplus value falls below a set value, the center notification processing unit 1071 may issue a changeover proposal notification to the remote operator at the monitoring center. The changeover proposal notification is a notification that suggests a change in remote operation. With the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the burden on the remote operator by changing the remote operator.

<Continuation response related processing in the autonomous driving ECU 10a>
Here, an example of the flow of the continuous response related process during remote automatic driving in the automatic driving ECU 10a will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 6. The flowchart of Fig. 6 may be configured to be started when the host vehicle starts traveling by remote automatic driving.

First, in step S21, the continuation determination unit 104 determines the amount of autonomous driving to continue. In step S22, the center notification processing unit 1071 calculates a surplus value, which is the difference between the amount of autonomous driving to continue determined in S1 and the continuation threshold. If the surplus value is less than the set value (YES in S22), the process proceeds to step S24. On the other hand, if the surplus value is equal to or greater than the set value (NO in S22), the process proceeds to step S23.

In step S23, if it is time to end the continuous response-related processing (YES in S23), the continuous response-related processing is terminated. On the other hand, if it is not time to end the continuous response-related processing (NO in S23), the process returns to S1 and is repeated. Examples of timings to end the continuous response-related processing include the end of remote automated driving, stopping the vehicle, etc.

In step S24, the center notification processing unit 1071 causes the monitoring center to issue a rest suggestion notification, a driving restriction notification, and a change suggestion notification. Note that in S24, the configuration may be such that only one of the rest suggestion notification, driving restriction notification, and change suggestion notification is issued.

In step S25, it is determined whether the remote operator at the monitoring center has taken a break. Whether the remote operator has taken a break may be determined by the behavior determination unit 102a or the center communication unit 107. For example, whether the remote operator has taken a break may be determined from information that can identify whether the remote operator has taken a break, obtained from the monitoring center via the communication module 11a. Alternatively, whether the remote operator has taken a break may be determined from whether the vehicle has stopped. Note that if a change of remote operator is made, it may be determined that the remote operator has taken a break. Then, if it is determined that the remote operator has taken a break (YES in S25), the process proceeds to step S28. On the other hand, if it is determined that the remote operator has not taken a break (NO in S25), the process proceeds to step S26.

In step S26, the continuation determination unit 104 determines the amount of continued autonomous driving. In step S27, the driving restriction unit 122 determines whether the amount of continued autonomous driving determined in S27 exceeds the continuation threshold. If the amount of continued autonomous driving exceeds the continuation threshold (YES in S27), the process proceeds to step S29. On the other hand, if the amount of continued autonomous driving does not exceed the continuation threshold (NO in S27), the process proceeds to step S28.

In step S28, if it is time to end the continuation-related processing (YES in S28), the continuation-related processing ends. On the other hand, if it is not time to end the continuation-related processing (NO in S28), the process returns to S25 and is repeated.

In step S29, the driving restriction unit 122 determines whether or not it is a time when the vehicle's behavior is low (i.e., a restriction timing). If it is a restriction timing (YES in S29), the process proceeds to step S30. On the other hand, if it is not a restriction timing (NO in S29), the process of S29 is repeated. In step S30, the driving restriction unit 122 imposes a driving restriction.

In step S31, if it is time to end the continuation-related processing (YES in S31), the continuation-related processing ends. On the other hand, if it is not time to end the continuation-related processing (NO in S31), the process returns to S21 and is repeated.

Note that, if the vehicle can switch between remote-controlled autonomous driving and autonomous driving not based on remote control, the configuration may be a combination of embodiment 1 and embodiment 2. In this case, when the vehicle is being remotely controlled, the configuration of embodiment 2 may be applied. When the vehicle is being autonomously driven not based on remote control, the configuration of embodiment 1 may be applied.

(Embodiment 3)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 3. An example of the configuration of embodiment 3 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Overall configuration of vehicle system 1b>
The vehicle system 1b shown in Fig. 7 can be used in an autonomous vehicle. As shown in Fig. 7, the vehicle system 1b includes an autonomous driving ECU 10b, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19. The vehicle system 1b includes the autonomous driving ECU 10b instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10. The vehicle system 1b does not include an interior camera 18. Except for these points, the vehicle system 1b is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment.

<General configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10b>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10b will be described with reference to FIG. 8. The automatic driving ECU 10b is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10b includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, an action determination unit 102b, a control execution unit 103, a continuation identification unit 104, a maintenance identification unit 105, an HCU communication unit 106b, an abnormality identification unit 108, and a maintenance information acquisition unit 109 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10b includes an action determination unit 102b instead of the action determination unit 102. The automatic driving ECU 10b includes an HCU communication unit 106b instead of the HCU communication unit 106. The automatic driving ECU 10b includes an abnormality identification unit 108 and a maintenance information acquisition unit 109. The automatic driving ECU 10b is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for these points. The autonomous driving ECU 10b also corresponds to a vehicle control device. The execution of the processing of each functional block of the autonomous driving ECU 10b by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The behavior determination unit 102b is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The behavior determination unit 102b includes a driving plan unit 121 as a sub-functional block. The behavior determination unit 102b is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except for the fact that the behavior determination unit 102b does not include a driving restriction unit 122 and a threshold change unit 123.

The abnormality identification unit 108 identifies whether or not there is an abnormality in the autonomous driving of the vehicle. For example, the abnormality identification unit 108 may identify whether or not there is an abnormality in the autonomous driving from the degree of deviation between the driving plan and the driving control results according to the driving plan. As an example, if the degree of deviation is equal to or greater than a specified value, it may identify that there is an abnormality in the autonomous driving. For example, it is assumed that the degree of deviation increases as a result of load being placed on vehicle components due to continued autonomous driving. The processing by the abnormality identification unit 108 corresponds to the abnormality identification process.

The maintenance information acquisition unit 109 acquires information about past maintenance of the vehicle (hereinafter, maintenance information). For example, the maintenance information may be the cumulative number of maintenance operations that have been performed on the vehicle in the past. The maintenance information may be stored in the ECU of the vehicle each time maintenance is performed. The maintenance information acquisition unit 109 may be configured to acquire the maintenance information stored in this ECU.

The HCU communication unit 106b is similar to the HCU communication unit 106 of embodiment 1, except for some different processing. The HCU communication unit 106b has an in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b as a sub-functional block. The in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b is similar to the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 of embodiment 1, except for some different processing. The differences are described below.

The in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b issues a normal notification when the amount of autonomous driving continuation exceeds the continuation threshold and the abnormality identification unit 108 identifies that there is no abnormality in the autonomous driving. The normal notification is issued by the notification device 17. The amount of autonomous driving continuation is identified by the continuation identification unit 104. The continuation threshold may be the same as that described in the first embodiment. The normal notification is a notification indicating that there is no problem with the vehicle even if the autonomous driving has a large amount of autonomous driving continuation. This normal notification may be issued by displaying on the display device 171 or by audio output from the audio output device 172. Even in the case of autonomous driving with a large amount of autonomous driving continuation, it is possible to reassure the occupants by issuing a normal notification. Therefore, even if the amount of autonomous driving continuation is large, if there is no abnormality in the autonomous driving, it is possible to reassure the occupants by issuing a normal notification. As a result, it is possible to reduce the burden on the occupants due to the continuation of autonomous driving for a long time or long distance. The processing in the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b corresponds to the in-vehicle notification processing process.

During the autonomous driving of the vehicle, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b preferably causes the notification device 17 to periodically issue a notification of necessity based on the result of identification by the maintenance identification unit 105. The notification of necessity may be the same as that described in the first embodiment. The in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b preferably shortens the interval between notifications after the first notification, compared to the interval between the start of autonomous driving and the first notification. For example, the first notification of necessity may be issued after 500 km of continuous driving from the start of autonomous driving, and the second and subsequent notifications of necessity may be issued every 100 km of continuous driving. This makes it possible to issue a notification of necessity while suppressing the annoyance of the notification during a period when the possibility of maintenance being required is low. Note that the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161 of the first embodiment may also periodically issue a notification of necessity by shortening the interval between notifications after the first notification, compared to the interval until the first notification.

It is preferable that the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b changes the interval between notifications of necessity depending on the degree of maintenance being performed, based on the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit 109. This interval between notifications of necessity is the interval between notifications that are made periodically. As an example, the interval between notifications of necessity is shortened as the degree of maintenance being performed increases. With the above configuration, it becomes possible to change the interval between notifications of necessity depending on the degree of necessity of maintenance.

<Continuation response related processing in the autonomous driving ECU 10b>
Here, an example of the flow of the continuation response-related processing in the autonomous driving ECU 10b will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 9. The flowchart of Fig. 9 may be configured to be started when the host vehicle starts traveling by autonomous driving.

First, in step S41, the maintenance information acquisition unit 109 acquires maintenance information. In step S42, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b sets the interval for notification of the necessity of maintenance based on the maintenance information acquired in S41 and in accordance with the degree to which maintenance has been performed.

In step S43, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b determines whether it is time to issue a periodic notification of necessity. If it is time to issue a notification of necessity (YES in S43), the process proceeds to step S44. On the other hand, if it is not time to issue a notification of necessity (NO in S43), the process proceeds to step S45. In step S44, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b issues a notification of necessity.

In step S45, the continuation determination unit 104 determines the amount of autonomous driving to continue. In step S46, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b calculates a surplus value, which is the difference between the amount of autonomous driving to continue determined in S45 and the continuation threshold. If the surplus value is less than the set value (YES in S46), the process proceeds to step S47. On the other hand, if the surplus value is equal to or greater than the set value (NO in S46), the process proceeds to step S50.

In step S47, the anomaly identification unit 108 identifies whether or not there is an anomaly in the autonomous driving of the vehicle. If it is identified that there is an anomaly in the autonomous driving (YES in S47), the process proceeds to step S48. On the other hand, if it is identified that there is no anomaly in the autonomous driving (NO in S47), the process proceeds to step S49.

In step S48, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b causes the notification device 17 to issue an abnormality notification, and the process proceeds to step S50. The abnormality notification is a notification indicating that there is a problem with the autonomous driving of the vehicle. Note that the process of S48 may be omitted, and an abnormality notification may not be issued. In this case, the fact that there is a problem with the autonomous driving of the vehicle may be recorded as diagnosing information, but an abnormality notification may not be issued. In step S49, the in-vehicle notification processing unit 161b causes the notification device 17 to issue an abnormality notification, and the process proceeds to step S50.

In step S50, if it is time to end the continuous response-related processing (YES in S50), the continuous response-related processing is ended. On the other hand, if it is not time to end the continuous response-related processing (NO in S50), the process returns to S43 and is repeated. Examples of timings to end the continuous response-related processing include the end of automatic driving, stopping the vehicle, etc.

The configuration of embodiment 3 may be combined with the configurations of embodiments 1 and 2. Furthermore, the configurations of embodiments 1 to 3 are preferably applied to autonomous vehicles that perform autonomous driving at level 2 or higher. It is even more preferable to apply the configurations of embodiments 1 to 3 to autonomous vehicles that perform autonomous driving without a supervisory obligation at level 3 or higher. This is because the higher the level of automation of autonomous driving, the less the occupants need to be involved in driving, making it easier for autonomous driving to continue over long distances and for long periods of time.

(Embodiment 4)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 4. An example of the configuration of embodiment 4 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<General Configuration of Vehicle System 1c>
The vehicle system 1c shown in Fig. 10 can be used in an autonomous vehicle. As shown in Fig. 10, the vehicle system 1c includes an autonomous driving ECU 10c, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19c. The vehicle system 1c includes the autonomous driving ECU 10c instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10. The vehicle system 1c includes an HCU 19c instead of the HCU 19. Except for these points, the vehicle system 1c is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment.

The HCU 19c is similar to the HCU 19 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The following describes the differences. The HCU 19c may also identify the physical condition of the occupant as the occupant's state. The physical condition of the occupant may be, for example, determined by distinguishing between poor physical condition and good physical condition. The physical condition of the occupant may be determined, for example, by using a learning device that has learned the relationship between the facial expression, posture, etc. of the occupant and the physical condition. The HCU 19c may identify whether the occupant is asleep or awake as the occupant's state. The HCU 19c may identify whether the occupant is asleep or awake, for example, from the degree of opening of the occupant's eyelids. The HCU 19c may identify whether the occupant is in a state of monitoring the surroundings as the occupant's state. Hereinafter, the state in which the occupant is monitoring the surroundings is referred to as a surrounding monitoring state. The HCU 19c may identify whether the occupant is in a state of monitoring the surroundings, for example, from the direction of the occupant's line of sight. The HCU 19c may determine, as the occupant state, whether or not the driver is performing a second task. The HCU 19c may determine, as the occupant state, whether or not an occupant other than the driver is performing an action corresponding to the second task. Hereinafter, a state in which an occupant is performing a second task or an action corresponding to the second task is referred to as a second task state. The second task state corresponds to a state in which a specific action is being performed. The HCU 19c may determine, for example, whether or not the driver is in a second task state based on the driver's facial direction, line of sight, posture, etc.

<General configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10c>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10c will be described with reference to FIG. 11. The automatic driving ECU 10c is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10c includes a driving environment recognition unit 101c, a behavior determination unit 102c, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, an HCU communication unit 106, and an occupant state specification unit 110 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10c includes the driving environment recognition unit 101c instead of the driving environment recognition unit 101. The automatic driving ECU 10c includes the behavior determination unit 102c instead of the behavior determination unit 102. The automatic driving ECU 10c includes the occupant state specification unit 110. The automatic driving ECU 10c is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for these points. This automatic driving ECU 10c also corresponds to a vehicle control device. Furthermore, the execution of the processing of each functional block of the autonomous driving ECU 10c by the computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The driving environment recognition unit 101c is similar to the autonomous driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The following describes these differences. It is preferable that the driving environment recognition unit 101c recognizes the lane in which the vehicle is traveling, including distinguishing which lane of a road with multiple lanes on each side.

The occupant state identification unit 110 identifies the state of the occupant of the vehicle. The occupant state identification unit 110 may identify the state of the occupant acquired from the HCU 19c via the HCU communication unit 106 as the state of the occupant. In this embodiment, the configuration in which the occupant state is identified by the HCU 19c is shown, but this is not necessarily limited to this. For example, the occupant state identification unit 110 may identify the state of the occupant from an image captured by the interior camera 18 acquired via the HCU communication unit 106. The occupant state identification unit 110 may identify the state of the occupant from something other than the image captured by the interior camera 18. For example, the occupant state identification unit 110 may estimate whether the occupant is performing a second task or an action equivalent to the second task from an input received by an operation device of the vehicle. As an example, the occupant may be identified as performing a second task or an action equivalent to the second task from receiving an input by a touch switch integrated with the CID.

The behavior determination unit 102c is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102c has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122c, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102a is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that it has a driving restriction unit 122c instead of the driving restriction unit 122.

The driving restriction unit 122c is the same as the driving restriction unit 122 in the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The following describes these differences. The driving restriction unit 122c sets the following driving restriction when the autonomous driving continuation amount specified by the continuation specification unit 104 exceeds the above-mentioned predetermined threshold. The driving restriction unit 122c switches between a timing driving restriction and an immediate driving restriction depending on at least one of the driving environment of the vehicle and the state of the driver of the vehicle. The timing driving restriction is a driving restriction that is executed after waiting for a predetermined timing. Hereinafter, this predetermined timing is referred to as the restriction timing. The immediate driving restriction is a driving restriction that is executed without waiting for the restriction timing. The driving environment of the vehicle may be recognized by the driving environment recognition unit 101c. The driver's state may be acquired by the occupant state specification unit 110.

Even if the amount of continued autonomous driving exceeds a predetermined threshold, depending on the vehicle's driving environment and the driver's state, it may be better to immediately impose driving restrictions or to wait until a predetermined timing. In contrast, with the above configuration, it becomes possible to start driving restrictions at a preferred timing depending on the vehicle's driving environment and the driver's state.

As a timing driving restriction, it is preferable that the driving restriction unit 122c restricts driving after the vehicle moves from an overtaking lane of a road with multiple lanes on one side to a lane that is not an overtaking lane. In this case, the restriction timing is the timing when the vehicle moves from an overtaking lane of a road with multiple lanes on one side to a lane that is not an overtaking lane. A lane that is not an overtaking lane is a lane for driving at a slower speed than the overtaking lane. The driving environment recognition unit 101c may recognize which lane the vehicle is traveling on and on which lane of the road with how many lanes on one side. When the vehicle is traveling on an overtaking lane, the driving restriction unit 122c may restrict driving after moving from the overtaking lane to a lane that is not an overtaking lane. On the other hand, when the vehicle is traveling on a lane other than the overtaking lane of the road, the driving restriction unit 122c may immediately restrict driving. In other words, the driving restriction may be performed when the amount of continuous automatic driving exceeds the above-mentioned predetermined threshold.

In an overtaking lane, where the speed of the following vehicle is higher than in a non-overtaking lane, restricting the driving of the own vehicle is likely to impede the smooth driving of the following vehicle. In contrast, with the above configuration, it is possible to restrict the driving of the own vehicle only after the situation is such that it is unlikely to impede the smooth driving of the following vehicle. As a result, it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by continuing automatic driving for long periods of time or long distances, while making it unlikely to impede the smooth driving of the following vehicle.

Next, an example in which the driving restriction unit 122c changes the timing driving restriction and the real-time driving restriction depending on the state of the occupant of the vehicle will be described below. The driving restriction unit 122c may use the state of the occupant identified by the occupant state identification unit 110.

When the occupant is asleep or in poor health, the driving restriction unit 122c preferably uses a timing driving restriction that waits for the occupant's condition to improve before implementing the driving restriction. When the occupant is asleep, the occupant's condition can be considered to have improved when the occupant becomes awake. When the occupant is in poor health, the occupant's condition can be considered to have improved when the occupant no longer feels unwell. When the driving restriction of the vehicle is implemented, there may be a significant change in the vehicle's behavior or a need for a change of driver. It is easier to respond to these changes after the occupant's condition has improved from the asleep or poor health state. Therefore, with the above configuration, it is possible to implement the driving restriction after the occupant is in a state where they can easily respond to the driving restriction.

It is preferable that the driving restriction unit 122c uses a timing driving restriction that waits until the occupant enters a peripheral monitoring state when the occupant is not in the peripheral monitoring state before implementing the driving restriction. It is easier for the occupant to respond to the changes that occur when the driving restriction described above is implemented when the occupant is in the peripheral monitoring state than when the occupant is not in the peripheral monitoring state. Therefore, with the above configuration, it is possible to implement the driving restriction after the occupant enters a state where it is easy to respond to the driving restriction.

It is preferable that the driving restriction unit 122c uses a timing driving restriction that waits until the occupant is in a state where the second task and actions corresponding to the second task are not being performed before imposing a driving restriction when the occupant is in the second task state. It is easier for the occupant to respond to the changes that occur when the driving restriction described above is imposed when the occupant is in a state where the second task and actions corresponding to the second task are not being performed than when the occupant is in the second task state. Therefore, with the above configuration, it is possible to impose a driving restriction after the occupant is in a state where it is easy to respond to the driving restriction.

As a timing driving restriction, it is preferable that the driving restriction unit 122c restricts driving after the following vehicle is no longer present within a specified range behind the vehicle. In this case, the restriction timing is the timing when the following vehicle is no longer present within a specified range behind the vehicle. The specified range referred to here may be set arbitrarily. The specified range may be, for example, the sensing range of the periphery monitoring sensor 15. When a following vehicle is present within the specified range, the driving restriction unit 122c may restrict driving after the following vehicle is no longer present within the specified range. On the other hand, when a following vehicle is not present within the specified range, the driving restriction unit 122c may immediately restrict driving. In other words, when the amount of continuous autonomous driving exceeds the above-mentioned specified threshold and there is no following vehicle within the specified range, the driving restriction unit 122c may immediately restrict driving.

When a following vehicle is present within a specified range behind the vehicle, restrictions on the vehicle's travel are likely to impede the smooth travel of the following vehicle. On the other hand, when there is no following vehicle within a specified range behind the vehicle, restrictions on the vehicle's travel are less likely to impede the smooth travel of the following vehicle than when there is a following vehicle within the specified range behind the vehicle. In contrast, the above configuration makes it possible to impose restrictions on the vehicle's travel only after the vehicle is in a situation where it is unlikely to impede the smooth travel of the following vehicle. As a result, it is possible to reduce the burden on the vehicle or occupants caused by continued automated driving for long periods of time or long distances, while making it less likely to impede the smooth travel of the following vehicle.

The behavior determination unit 102c may determine evacuation behavior, such as evacuation to a service area, depending on the physical condition of the occupant. For example, evacuation behavior may be determined when the occupant condition identification unit 110 identifies that the occupant is in poor physical condition. When the behavior determination unit 102c determines evacuation behavior, the driving plan unit 121 may determine a driving plan for evacuation from the current position to an evacuation location such as a service area.

(Embodiment 5)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 5. An example of the configuration of embodiment 5 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<General Configuration of Vehicle System 1d>
The vehicle system 1d shown in Fig. 12 can be used in an autonomous vehicle. As shown in Fig. 12, the vehicle system 1d includes an autonomous driving ECU 10d, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14d, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19. The vehicle system 1d includes the autonomous driving ECU 10d instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10. The vehicle system 1d includes a vehicle state sensor 14d instead of the vehicle state sensor 14. Except for these points, the vehicle system 1d is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment.

The vehicle condition sensor 14d is similar to the vehicle condition sensor 14 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The differences will be described below. The vehicle condition sensor 14d preferably also includes a sensor capable of detecting information related to the load on the vehicle. Information related to the load on the vehicle is hereinafter referred to as load-related information. Examples of sensors capable of detecting load-related information include a temperature sensor and an acoustic sensor. If the vehicle is driven by an engine, the temperature sensor detects the engine temperature as the load-related information. The temperature sensor detects the temperature of vehicle parts other than the engine as the load-related information. For example, the temperature of the vehicle body may be detected. The load on the vehicle is considered to be greater the further the engine temperature and the temperature of the vehicle parts are from the center value of the appropriate temperature range. The acoustic sensor detects abnormal noise from the tires as the load-related information. The wear sensor detects wear of the brake pads as the load-related information. The acoustic sensor may also function as a wear sensor.

<General configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10d>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10d will be described with reference to FIG. 13. The automatic driving ECU 10d is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10d includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, an action determination unit 102d, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, and an HCU communication unit 106 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10d is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for the action determination unit 102d instead of the action determination unit 102. This automatic driving ECU 10d also corresponds to a vehicle control device. In addition, the execution of processing of each functional block of the automatic driving ECU 10d by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The behavior determination unit 102d is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102d has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122d, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102d is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that the behavior determination unit 102d has a driving restriction unit 122d instead of the driving restriction unit 122.

The driving restriction unit 122d is similar to the driving restriction unit 122 of embodiment 1, except for some differences in processing. The differences are described below. The driving restriction unit 122d preferably acquires load-related information detected by the vehicle state sensor 14d. The driving restriction unit 122d preferably changes the ratio of the period of each mode when repeating full mode and recovery mode, according to the load-related information. Hereinafter, the period during which full mode continues is referred to as the normal period. Hereinafter, the period during which recovery mode continues is referred to as the recovery period.

Depending on the load on the vehicle, it may be necessary to determine which mode should have a higher proportion of time when repeating full mode and recovery mode. In contrast, with the above configuration, it is possible to set a more preferable proportion of time for each mode when repeating full mode and recovery mode depending on the load on the vehicle.

The driving restriction unit 122d may change the proportion of the recovery period to be higher than the normal period as the load of the vehicle estimated from the load-related information increases. The recovery mode is suppressed to a lower vehicle speed than the full mode, so the load on the vehicle is smaller. Therefore, according to the above configuration, it is possible to change the proportion of the recovery period to be higher than the normal period as the load of the vehicle increases, thereby suppressing the load on the vehicle. When changing the proportion of the recovery period to be higher than the normal period, the proportion of the recovery period may be set to 100%. When the proportion of the recovery period is set to 100%, the repetition of the full mode and the recovery mode may be stopped. The load of the vehicle estimated from the load-related information may be divided into two stages, high load and low load. The load of the vehicle may be estimated from the load-related information by, for example, the driving restriction unit 122d. For example, the driving restriction unit 122d may estimate the load as low when the temperature of the engine, vehicle body, etc. is within a threshold range, and estimate the load as high when it is outside the threshold range. For example, the travel restriction unit 122d may estimate a low load when the tire noise is below a threshold, and may estimate a high load when the tire noise is equal to or greater than the threshold. For example, the travel restriction unit 122d may estimate a low load when the brake pad wear is below a threshold, and may estimate a high load when the brake pad wear is equal to or greater than the threshold. The threshold may be a value that can be arbitrarily set for each piece of load-related information.

(Embodiment 6)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 6. An example of the configuration of embodiment 6 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Overall Configuration of Vehicle System 1e>
The vehicle system 1e shown in Fig. 14 can be used in an autonomous vehicle. As shown in Fig. 14, the vehicle system 1e includes an autonomous driving ECU 10e, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19c. The vehicle system 1e includes the autonomous driving ECU 10e instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10. The vehicle system 1e includes an HCU 19c instead of the HCU 19. Except for these points, the vehicle system 1e is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment. The HCU 19c is similar to the HCU 19c of the fourth embodiment.

<Overall configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10e>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10e will be described with reference to FIG. 15. The automatic driving ECU 10e is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10e includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, a behavior determination unit 102e, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, an HCU communication unit 106, and an occupant state specification unit 110 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10e includes the behavior determination unit 102e instead of the behavior determination unit 102. The automatic driving ECU 10e includes the occupant state specification unit 110. The occupant state specification unit 110 is the same as that described in the fourth embodiment. The automatic driving ECU 10e is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for these points. This automatic driving ECU 10e also corresponds to a vehicle control device. Furthermore, the execution of processing of each functional block of the autonomous driving ECU 10e by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The behavior determination unit 102e is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102e has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122e, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102e is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except that the behavior determination unit 102e has a driving restriction unit 122e instead of the driving restriction unit 122.

The driving restriction unit 122e is similar to the driving restriction unit 122 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. It is preferable that the driving restriction unit 122e changes the ratio of the normal period to the recovery period when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode according to the state of the occupant of the vehicle. The driving restriction unit 122e may use the state of the occupant identified by the occupant state identification unit 110.

Depending on the condition of the occupant, it may be necessary to determine which mode should have a higher proportion of time when repeating full mode and recovery mode. In contrast, with the above configuration, it is possible to set the proportion of time for each mode when repeating full mode and recovery mode to a more preferable proportion depending on the condition of the occupant.

Examples of changing the ratio of the normal period to the recovery period according to the occupant's state include the following. When the occupant is asleep or in poor health, the driving restriction unit 122e may increase the ratio of the recovery period to the normal period. Compared to full mode, the recovery mode limits the vehicle speed to a lower level, and therefore reduces vehicle vibration. Thus, with the above configuration, it is possible to reduce vehicle vibration to prevent sleep from being disturbed when the occupant is asleep, or prevent the occupant's health from worsening when the occupant is in poor health. Note that when changing the ratio of the recovery period to be higher than the normal period, the ratio of the recovery period may be set to 100%.

In addition, when the occupant's state is the surroundings monitoring state, the driving restriction unit 122e may increase the proportion of the normal period compared to the recovery period. When the occupant's state is the surroundings monitoring state, the occupant is more likely to accept the behavior of larger vehicles. Therefore, with the above configuration, it is possible to increase the proportion of the normal period by limiting the behavior of larger vehicles in the normal mode to situations that are more likely to be accepted by the occupant.

In addition, when the occupant's state is the second task state, the driving restriction unit 122e may increase the ratio of the normal period to the recovery period. On the other hand, when the occupant's state is the second task state, the driving restriction unit 122e may increase the ratio of the recovery period to the normal period when the occupant's state is a state in which the second task and an action corresponding to the second task are not being performed or the occupant is in a resting posture. In the second task state, the occupant's attention is inclined to the second task or an action corresponding to the second task, so the occupant is more likely to accept the behavior of a larger vehicle. On the other hand, when the occupant is in a state in which the second task and an action corresponding to the second task are not being performed or the occupant is in a resting posture, it is preferable that the vehicle behavior is small. Therefore, according to the above configuration, when the occupant is in a situation in which the occupant is more likely to accept the behavior of a large vehicle, the ratio of the normal period is increased, while when the occupant is in a situation in which the occupant is less likely to accept the behavior of a large vehicle, the ratio of the recovery period can be increased. When the ratio of the recovery period is changed to be higher than the normal period, the ratio of the recovery period may be set to 100%.

(Embodiment 7)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 7. An example of the configuration of embodiment 7 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Overall configuration of vehicle system 1f>
The vehicle system 1f shown in Fig. 16 can be used in an autonomous driving vehicle. As shown in Fig. 16, the vehicle system 1f includes an autonomous driving ECU 10f, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19. The vehicle system 1f is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment, except that the vehicle system 1f includes the autonomous driving ECU 10f instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10.

<Overall configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10f>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10f will be described with reference to FIG. 17. The automatic driving ECU 10f is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10f includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, a behavior determination unit 102f, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, and an HCU communication unit 106 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10f is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for the fact that the automatic driving ECU 10f includes the behavior determination unit 102f instead of the behavior determination unit 102. This automatic driving ECU 10f also corresponds to a vehicle control device. In addition, the execution of processing of each functional block of the automatic driving ECU 10f by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The behavior determination unit 102f is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102f has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122f, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102f is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that the behavior determination unit 102f has a driving restriction unit 122f instead of the driving restriction unit 122.

The driving restriction unit 122f is the same as the driving restriction unit 122 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. When the vehicle starts driving again within a first specified period after driving a specified distance or more, the driving restriction unit 122f restricts the vehicle to start driving in recovery mode. Driving a specified distance or more means driving a specified distance or more without turning off the vehicle power. Driving a specified distance or more is hereinafter referred to as long-distance driving. The specified distance here is a distance estimated to be a large load on the vehicle, and is a value that can be set arbitrarily. The specified distance may be, for example, several hundred km. The first specified period is a period estimated to be a period during which the temperature of vehicle parts such as the engine and the body, which has risen due to driving, returns to the temperature before driving, and is a value that can be set arbitrarily. Hereinafter, the first specified period is referred to as a short period. The first specified period may be, for example, one day, or about 30 minutes.

When the vehicle starts traveling again in a short period of time after traveling a long distance, the load on the vehicle increases. With the above configuration, in such a case, the load on the vehicle can be further reduced by restricting the vehicle from starting traveling in recovery mode.

(Embodiment 8)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 8. An example of the configuration of embodiment 8 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Overall configuration of vehicle system 1g>
The vehicle system 1g shown in Fig. 18 can be used in an autonomous vehicle. As shown in Fig. 18, the vehicle system 1g includes an autonomous driving ECU 10g, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14g, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19. The vehicle system 1g includes the autonomous driving ECU 10g instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10. The vehicle system 1g includes a vehicle state sensor 14g instead of the vehicle state sensor 14. Except for these points, the vehicle system 1g is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment.

Vehicle condition sensor 14g is similar to vehicle condition sensor 14 in embodiment 1, except for some differences in processing. The differences are described below. Vehicle condition sensor 14g also includes a weight sensor that can detect the weight of the cargo bed of the vehicle.

<Overall configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10g>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10g will be described with reference to FIG. 19. The automatic driving ECU 10g is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10g includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, a behavior determination unit 102g, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, and an HCU communication unit 106 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10g is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for the fact that the automatic driving ECU 10g includes the behavior determination unit 102g instead of the behavior determination unit 102. This automatic driving ECU 10g also corresponds to a vehicle control device. In addition, the execution of processing of each functional block of the automatic driving ECU 10g by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The behavior determination unit 102g is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102g has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122g, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102g is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except that the behavior determination unit 102g has a driving restriction unit 122g instead of the driving restriction unit 122.

The travel limiting unit 122g is similar to the travel limiting unit 122 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The travel limiting unit 122g changes the ratio of the normal period to the recovery period when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode according to the weight of the cargo bed of the vehicle. The travel limiting unit 122g may use the weight of the cargo bed acquired from the weight sensor of the vehicle state sensor 14g. When the weight of the cargo bed is equal to or greater than a first threshold, the travel limiting unit 122g may increase the ratio of the normal period to the recovery period. On the other hand, when the weight of the cargo bed is less than a second threshold, the travel limiting unit 122g may increase the ratio of the recovery period to the normal period.

The first threshold may be a weight that is estimated to be a high load on the vehicle, and may be a value that can be set arbitrarily. The second threshold is equal to or less than the first threshold. The second threshold may be the same value as the first threshold, or may be a different value. The second threshold may be a value that distinguishes whether or not there is luggage on the loading platform, and may be a value that can be set arbitrarily. With the above configuration, when the weight of the loading platform is heavy and more power is required for driving, the proportion of the normal period can be increased to make driving easier. On the other hand, when the weight of the loading platform is light and less power is required for driving, the proportion of the recovery period can be increased to reduce the load on the vehicle. When the vehicle unloads the luggage and the weight of the loading platform becomes small, the proportion of the recovery period can be increased to make it easier to recover from the load caused by the weight of the luggage.

(Embodiment 9)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 9. An example of the configuration of embodiment 9 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Overall configuration of vehicle system 1h>
The vehicle system 1h shown in Fig. 20 can be used in an autonomous driving vehicle. As shown in Fig. 20, the vehicle system 1h includes an autonomous driving ECU 10h, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19. The vehicle system 1h is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment, except that the vehicle system 1h includes the autonomous driving ECU 10h instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10.

<General configuration of the autonomous driving ECU 10h>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10h will be described with reference to FIG. 21. The automatic driving ECU 10h is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10h includes a driving environment recognition unit 101h, a behavior determination unit 102h, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, and an HCU communication unit 106 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10h includes a driving environment recognition unit 101h instead of the driving environment recognition unit 101. The automatic driving ECU 10h includes a behavior determination unit 102h instead of the behavior determination unit 102. The automatic driving ECU 10h is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for these points. This automatic driving ECU 10h also corresponds to a vehicle control device. In addition, the execution of processing of each functional block of the automatic driving ECU 10h by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The driving environment recognition unit 101h is similar to the autonomous driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The following describes these differences. The driving environment recognition unit 101h recognizes the gradient of the road on which the vehicle is traveling. The gradient of the road on which the vehicle is traveling is the gradient of the road section in the direction in which the vehicle is traveling among the road sections on which the vehicle is traveling. The driving environment recognition unit 101h only needs to recognize whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is an uphill or downhill slope. If the longitudinal gradient is less than a specified value, it may be determined that there is no gradient. The specified value may be any value that can be set.

The behavior determination unit 102h is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102h has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122h, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102h is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of the first embodiment, except that the behavior determination unit 102h has a driving restriction unit 122h instead of the driving restriction unit 122.

The driving restriction unit 122h is similar to the driving restriction unit 122 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The driving restriction unit 122h changes the ratio of the normal period to the recovery period when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode according to the gradient of the road on which the vehicle is traveling. The driving restriction unit 122h may use the gradient of the road recognized by the traveling environment recognition unit 101d. When the road is on a downward slope, the driving restriction unit 122h may increase the ratio of the recovery period compared to the normal period. On the other hand, when the road is on an upward slope, the driving restriction unit 122h may increase the ratio of the normal period compared to the recovery period.

According to the above configuration, when the road on which the vehicle is traveling is an upward slope and more power is required for traveling, the proportion of the normal period can be increased to make traveling easier. On the other hand, when the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a downward slope and less power is required for traveling, the proportion of the recovery period can be increased to reduce the load on the vehicle. When the vehicle is traveling on a downward slope after an upward slope, the proportion of the recovery period can be increased to make it easier to recover from the load caused by traveling on an upward slope. Note that when there is no slope, for example, the proportion of the normal period and the recovery period can be left at the default. In addition, for example, even when there is no slope, the proportion of the recovery period may be made greater than the normal period.

(Embodiment 10)
The configuration is not limited to that of the above-described embodiment, and may be that of the following embodiment 10. An example of the configuration of embodiment 10 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<General Configuration of Vehicle System 1i>
The vehicle system 1i shown in Fig. 22 can be used in an autonomous driving vehicle. As shown in Fig. 22, the vehicle system 1i includes an autonomous driving ECU 10i, a communication module 11, a locator 12, a map DB 13, a vehicle state sensor 14i, a surrounding monitoring sensor 15, a vehicle control ECU 16, an alarm device 17, and an HCU 19. The vehicle system 1i is similar to the vehicle system 1 of the first embodiment, except that the vehicle system 1i includes an autonomous driving ECU 10i instead of the autonomous driving ECU 10.

The vehicle condition sensor 14i is similar to the vehicle condition sensor 14 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. The differences are described below. The vehicle condition sensor 14i also includes a battery sensor that detects battery information of the vehicle's battery. The battery sensor may detect the battery voltage, current, temperature, etc.

<General configuration of autonomous driving ECU 10i>
Next, the schematic configuration of the automatic driving ECU 10i will be described with reference to FIG. 23. The automatic driving ECU 10i is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for some different processing. The automatic driving ECU 10i includes a driving environment recognition unit 101, a behavior determination unit 102i, a control execution unit 103, a continuation specification unit 104, a maintenance specification unit 105, an HCU communication unit 106, and a battery state determination unit 111 as functional blocks. The automatic driving ECU 10i includes a behavior determination unit 102i instead of the behavior determination unit 102. The automatic driving ECU 10i includes a battery state determination unit 111. The automatic driving ECU 10i is similar to the automatic driving ECU 10 of the first embodiment, except for these points. This automatic driving ECU 10i also corresponds to a vehicle control device. In addition, the execution of processing of each functional block of the automatic driving ECU 10i by a computer corresponds to the execution of a vehicle control method.

The battery state determination unit 111 determines the state of the battery of the vehicle. The battery state determination unit 111 identifies the deterioration state of the battery from battery information detected by a battery sensor of the vehicle state sensor 14i. For example, the battery state determination unit 111 identifies the SOH (State of Health) as this deterioration state. Then, the battery state determination unit 111 determines whether the battery is in a healthy state or not from the identified deterioration state. For example, the battery state determination unit 111 may determine whether the battery is in a healthy state or not depending on whether the SOH (State of Health) of the battery is equal to or greater than a specified value. The specified value is a value that distinguishes whether the battery is healthy or not, and may be arbitrarily set. The specified value may be, for example, 70% to 80%.

The behavior determination unit 102i is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that some processing is different. The behavior determination unit 102i has a driving plan unit 121, a driving restriction unit 122i, and a threshold change unit 123 as sub-functional blocks. The behavior determination unit 102i is similar to the behavior determination unit 102 of embodiment 1, except that the behavior determination unit 102i has a driving restriction unit 122i instead of the driving restriction unit 122.

The driving restriction unit 122i is similar to the driving restriction unit 122 of the first embodiment, except for some differences in processing. When driving is resumed after driving has been suspended continuously for more than a second specified period, the driving restriction unit 122i restricts the vehicle to start driving in recovery mode or manual driving. The second specified period here is a period during which the load on the vehicle is estimated to be large when driving is resumed. Hereinafter, a period longer than the second specified period is referred to as a long period. The second specified period may be, for example, one month. For example, the restriction to start driving from recovery mode may be set to automatically start driving from recovery mode when driving starts. For example, the restriction to start driving from manual driving may be set to not start driving unless the vehicle is switched to manual driving.

When the vehicle is restarted after a long period of inactivity, the load on the vehicle may be large. With the above configuration, in such a case, the load on the vehicle can be further reduced by restricting the vehicle from starting in recovery mode or manual driving.

After starting driving by restricting the vehicle to start driving in recovery mode or manual driving, the driving restriction unit 122i preferably performs the following: When it is determined that the battery of the vehicle is in a healthy state, the driving restriction unit 122i preferably switches to full mode. Whether the battery is in a healthy state can be determined by using the determination result of the battery state determination unit 111.

When the battery is not in a healthy state, it is preferable to reduce the load on the vehicle in order to continue driving. On the other hand, when the battery is in a healthy state, it is easier to prioritize ease of driving over reducing the load on the vehicle. In contrast, with the above configuration, when the state of the vehicle is such that it is easier to prioritize ease of driving over reducing the load on the vehicle, it is possible to switch to full mode and make driving easier.

(Embodiment 11)
In the above embodiment, the autonomous driving ECUs 10, 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d, 10e, 10f, 10g, 10h, and 10i are shown as being equivalent to the vehicle control device, but this is not necessarily limited to this. For example, an ECU other than the autonomous driving ECUs 10, 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d, 10e, 10f, 10g, 10h, and 10i may be shown as being equivalent to the vehicle control device.

(Disclosed technical idea)
This specification discloses multiple technical ideas described in the following multiple dependent claims. Some of the claims may be described in a multiple dependent form, in which the subsequent claim alternatively refers to the preceding claim. Furthermore, some of the claims may be described in a multiple dependent form, in which the subsequent claim alternatively refers to the preceding claim. The claims described in these multiple dependent forms define multiple technical ideas.

(Technical Concept 1)
A vehicle control device that can be used in a vehicle that performs automatic driving,
A continuation determination unit (104) that determines an amount of continuation of autonomous driving, which is a continuous driving time or a continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving;
A vehicle control device comprising: a driving restriction unit (122) that imposes a driving restriction, which is a restriction on driving in autonomous driving, when the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation identification unit exceeds a predetermined threshold.

(Technical Concept 2)
A vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 1,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that performs the driving restriction at a timing when the behavior of the vehicle is low.

(Technical Concept 3)
The vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 1 or 2,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that switches between a timing driving restriction, in which the driving restriction is implemented after waiting for a predetermined timing, and an immediate driving restriction, in which the driving restriction is implemented without waiting for the timing, as the driving restriction when the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation identification unit exceeds a predetermined threshold, depending on at least one of the driving environment of the vehicle and the state of the driver of the vehicle.

(Technical Concept 4)
A vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 3,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that uses the immediate driving restriction when the vehicle is driving in a lane other than an overtaking lane on a road with multiple lanes in each direction, and uses the timed driving restriction when the vehicle is driving in the overtaking lane on a road with multiple lanes in each direction, thereby implementing the driving restriction after the vehicle moves from the overtaking lane to a lane that is not an overtaking lane.

(Technical Concept 5)
The vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 3 or 4,
The travel restriction unit is
The timing travel restriction and the real-time travel restriction are changed according to a state of an occupant of the vehicle,
A vehicle control device using the timing driving restriction, which, when the occupant is asleep or in poor physical condition, waits for the occupant's condition to improve before implementing the driving restriction.

(Technical Concept 6)
The vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 3 or 4,
The timing travel restriction and the real-time travel restriction are changed according to a state of an occupant of the vehicle,
The vehicle control device uses the timing driving restriction to wait until the occupant is in a state where the occupant is not monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle before implementing the driving restriction when the occupant is in a state where the occupant is monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle.

(Technical Concept 7)
The vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 3 or 4,
The timing travel restriction and the real-time travel restriction are changed according to a state of an occupant of the vehicle,
A vehicle control device that uses a timing driving restriction to wait until the occupant is no longer performing a specific action, which is either a second task, an action other than driving, or an action equivalent to the second task, and is in a state where the occupant is performing the specific action during autonomous driving without the obligation to monitor the surroundings, before implementing the driving restriction.

(Technical Concept 8)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 3 to 7,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that uses the immediate driving restriction when there is no following vehicle within a specified range behind the vehicle, and uses the timed driving restriction when a following vehicle is present within the specified range, thereby implementing the driving restriction only after the following vehicle is no longer present within the specified range.

(Technical Concept 9)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 1 to 8,
A vehicle control device that, when the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation identification unit exceeds the threshold value, performs the driving restriction by repeatedly switching between a full mode in which the vehicle is driven at a set vehicle speed for autonomous driving and a recovery mode in which the vehicle is driven at a speed lower than the set vehicle speed for autonomous driving.

(Technical Concept 10)
A vehicle control device according to any one of technical concepts 1 to 9,
An in-vehicle notification processing unit (161) that issues a notification to an occupant of the vehicle,
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, when the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value, issues a notification to the vehicle occupants suggesting that they take a break, and a notification regarding the driving restrictions that will be implemented if the break is not taken.

(Technical Concept 11)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 1 to 10,
An in-vehicle notification processing unit (161) that issues a notification to an occupant of the vehicle,
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that issues a notification to occupants of the vehicle urging them to inspect the vehicle when the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value.

(Technical Concept 12)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 1 to 11,
an in-vehicle notification processing unit (161) that issues a notification to an occupant of the vehicle;
a maintenance specification unit (105) that specifies whether or not the vehicle requires maintenance;
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that periodically issues a necessity notification to inform the driver whether or not maintenance is required for the vehicle based on the results of the identification by the maintenance identification unit during automatic driving of the vehicle.

(Technical Concept 13)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 1 to 12,
A driving plan unit (121) that determines a driving plan for automatic driving of the vehicle,
The driving plan unit is a vehicle control device that determines a driving plan in which the vehicle's continued autonomous driving amount is expected to reach a specified amount, so as to drive the vehicle along a route that passes through locations where maintenance can be performed.

(Technical Concept 14)
A vehicle control device according to any one of technical concepts 1 to 13,
The vehicle is a remote-controlled vehicle that can be automatically driven by remote control,
a center notification processing unit (1071) for making a notification to a remote operator of a monitoring center who remotely operates the vehicle;
The center notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, when the vehicle is being driven autonomously by remote operation and the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value, issues a notification to the remote operator suggesting that the remote operator take a break, and a notification regarding the driving restrictions that will be imposed if the break is not taken.

(Technical Concept 15)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 1 to 14,
The vehicle is a remote-controlled vehicle that can be automatically driven by remote control,
a center notification processing unit (1071) for making a notification to a remote operator of a monitoring center who remotely operates the vehicle;
The center notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, when the vehicle is being driven autonomously by remote control and the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value, issues a notification to the remote operator suggesting a change in remote control.

(Technical Concept 16)
A vehicle control device according to any one of technical concepts 1 to 15,
A driving environment identification unit (101) that identifies a driving environment of the vehicle;
and a threshold value changing unit (123) that changes the threshold value to a smaller value as the driving environment identified by the driving environment identifying unit becomes a worse condition for driving the vehicle.

(Technical Concept 17)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 1 to 16,
A vehicle control device that, when the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit exceeds the threshold value, performs the driving restriction to limit the vehicle speed to a speed lower than the set vehicle speed for autonomous driving.

(Technical Concept 18)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 9 to 17,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that changes the ratio of a normal period, which is a period during which the full mode continues, to a recovery period, which is a period during which the recovery mode continues, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, in accordance with load-related information, which is information regarding the load on the vehicle.

(Technical Concept 19)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 9 to 18,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that changes the ratio between a normal period, which is the period during which the full mode continues, and a recovery period, which is the period during which the recovery mode continues, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, depending on the state of the occupants of the vehicle.

(Technical Concept 20)
A vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 19,
The vehicle control device, wherein the driving restriction unit increases the proportion of the recovery period compared to the normal period when an occupant of the vehicle is asleep or in poor physical condition.

(Technical Concept 21)
A vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 19,
The vehicle control device, wherein the driving restriction unit increases the proportion of the normal period relative to the recovery period when the state of the vehicle occupant is a state in which the surroundings of the vehicle are being monitored.

(Technical Concept 22)
A vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 19,
The driving restriction unit increases the ratio of the normal period to the recovery period when the state of the vehicle occupant is a state in which the driver of the vehicle is performing a specific action that is either a second task, which is an action other than driving, and an action equivalent to the second task, which is permitted during autonomous driving without a surrounding monitoring obligation, and increases the ratio of the recovery period to the normal period when the driver is not performing the specific action or is in a resting position.

(Technical Concept 23)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 9 to 22,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that restricts the vehicle to start driving in the recovery mode when the vehicle starts driving again within a short period of time within a first specified period after driving a long distance that is greater than or equal to a specified distance.

(Technical Concept 24)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 9 to 23,
The vehicle control device, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, the driving restriction unit increases the ratio of the normal period, which is the period during which the full mode continues, to the recovery period, which is the period during which the recovery mode continues, when the weight of the vehicle's cargo bed is equal to or greater than a first threshold, while increasing the ratio of the recovery period to the normal period when the weight of the vehicle's cargo bed is less than a second threshold that is equal to or less than the first threshold.

(Technical Concept 25)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 9 to 24,
The vehicle control device, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, wherein the driving restriction unit increases the ratio of the normal period, which is the period during which the full mode continues, to the recovery period, which is the period during which the recovery mode continues, when the road on which the vehicle is traveling is downwardly sloping, and increases the ratio of the normal period compared to the recovery period when the road on which the vehicle is traveling is upwardly sloping.

(Technical Concept 26)
A vehicle control device according to any one of Technical Ideas 9 to 25,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that restricts the vehicle to start driving in the recovery mode or manual driving when driving is started again after driving has been suspended continuously for a long period of time that is equal to or longer than a second specified period.

(Technical Concept 27)
A vehicle control device according to Technical Concept 26,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that switches to the full mode when it is determined that the battery of the vehicle is in a healthy state after starting driving by restricting the vehicle to start driving from the recovery mode or manual driving.

Note that the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. The technical scope of the present disclosure also includes embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments. The control unit and the method described in the present disclosure may be realized by a dedicated computer that constitutes a processor programmed to execute one or more functions embodied in a computer program. Alternatively, the device and the method described in the present disclosure may be realized by a dedicated hardware logic circuit. Alternatively, the device and the method described in the present disclosure may be realized by one or more dedicated computers that are configured by combining a processor that executes a computer program with one or more hardware logic circuits. Furthermore, the computer program may be stored in a computer-readable non-transient tangible recording medium as instructions executed by the computer.

1, 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e, 1f, 1g, 1h, 1i Vehicle system, 10, 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d, 10e, 10f, 10g, 10h, 10i Autonomous driving ECU (vehicle control device), 101 Driving environment recognition unit (driving environment identification unit), 104 Persistence identification unit, 105 Maintenance identification unit, 108 Abnormality identification unit, 109 Maintenance information acquisition unit, 121 Driving plan unit, 122, 122c, 122d, 122e, 122f, 122g, 122h, 122i Driving restriction unit, 123 Threshold change unit, 161, 161b Vehicle interior notification processing unit, 1071 Center notification processing unit

Claims (32)

A vehicle control device that can be used in a vehicle that performs automatic driving,
A continuation determination unit (104) that determines an amount of continuation of autonomous driving, which is a continuous driving time or a continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving;
A vehicle control device comprising: a driving restriction unit (122, 122c, 122d, 122e, 122f, 122g, 122h, 122i) that imposes driving restrictions, which are restrictions on driving in autonomous driving, when the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation identification unit exceeds a predetermined threshold. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that performs the driving restriction at a timing when the behavior of the vehicle is low. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
The driving restriction unit (122c) is a vehicle control device that switches between a timing driving restriction in which the driving restriction is implemented after waiting for a predetermined timing to occur and an instantaneous driving restriction in which the driving restriction is implemented without waiting for the timing to occur, as the driving restriction when the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation identification unit exceeds a predetermined threshold, depending on at least one of the driving environment of the vehicle and the state of the driver of the vehicle. The vehicle control device according to claim 3,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that uses the immediate driving restriction when the vehicle is driving in a lane other than an overtaking lane on a road with multiple lanes in each direction, and uses the timed driving restriction when the vehicle is driving in the overtaking lane on a road with multiple lanes in each direction, thereby implementing the driving restriction after the vehicle moves from the overtaking lane to a lane that is not an overtaking lane. The vehicle control device according to claim 3,
The travel restriction unit is
The timing travel restriction and the real-time travel restriction are changed according to a state of an occupant of the vehicle,
A vehicle control device using the timing driving restriction, which, when the occupant is asleep or in poor physical condition, waits for the occupant's condition to improve before implementing the driving restriction. The vehicle control device according to claim 3,
The timing travel restriction and the real-time travel restriction are changed according to a state of an occupant of the vehicle,
The vehicle control device uses the timing driving restriction to wait until the occupant is in a state where the occupant is not monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle before implementing the driving restriction when the occupant is in a state where the occupant is monitoring the surroundings of the vehicle. The vehicle control device according to claim 3,
The timing travel restriction and the real-time travel restriction are changed according to a state of an occupant of the vehicle,
A vehicle control device that uses a timing driving restriction to wait until the occupant is no longer performing a specific action, which is either a second task, an action other than driving, or an action equivalent to the second task, and is in a state where the occupant is performing the specific action during autonomous driving without the obligation to monitor the surroundings, before implementing the driving restriction. The vehicle control device according to claim 3,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that uses the immediate driving restriction when there is no following vehicle within a specified range behind the vehicle, and uses the timed driving restriction when a following vehicle is present within the specified range, thereby implementing the driving restriction only after the following vehicle is no longer present within the specified range. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that, when the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit exceeds the threshold value, performs the driving restriction by repeatedly switching between a full mode in which the vehicle is driven at a set vehicle speed for autonomous driving and a recovery mode in which the vehicle is driven at a speed lower than the set vehicle speed for autonomous driving. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
An in-vehicle notification processing unit (161) that issues a notification to an occupant of the vehicle,
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, when the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value, issues a notification to the vehicle occupants suggesting that they take a break, and a notification regarding the driving restrictions that will be implemented if the break is not taken. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
An in-vehicle notification processing unit (161) that issues a notification to an occupant of the vehicle,
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that issues a notification to occupants of the vehicle urging them to inspect the vehicle when the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
an in-vehicle notification processing unit (161) that issues a notification to an occupant of the vehicle;
a maintenance specification unit (105) that specifies whether or not the vehicle requires maintenance;
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that periodically issues a necessity notification to inform the driver whether or not maintenance is required for the vehicle based on the results of the identification by the maintenance identification unit during automatic driving of the vehicle. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
A driving plan unit (121) that determines a driving plan for automatic driving of the vehicle,
The driving plan unit is a vehicle control device that determines a driving plan in which the vehicle's continued autonomous driving amount is expected to reach a specified amount, so as to drive the vehicle along a route that passes through locations where maintenance can be performed. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
The vehicle is a remote-controlled vehicle that can be automatically driven by remote control,
a center notification processing unit (1071) for making a notification to a remote operator of a monitoring center who remotely operates the vehicle;
The center notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, when the vehicle is being driven autonomously by remote operation and the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value, issues a notification to the remote operator suggesting that the remote operator take a break, and a notification regarding the driving restrictions that will be imposed if the break is not taken. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
The vehicle is a remote-controlled vehicle that can be automatically driven by remote control,
a center notification processing unit (1071) for making a notification to a remote operator of a monitoring center who remotely operates the vehicle;
The center notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, when the vehicle is being driven autonomously by remote control and the difference between the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit and the threshold value becomes less than a set value, issues a notification to the remote operator suggesting a change in remote control. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
A driving environment identification unit (101) that identifies a driving environment of the vehicle;
and a threshold value changing unit (123) that changes the threshold value to a smaller value as the driving environment identified by the driving environment identifying unit becomes a worse condition for driving the vehicle. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1,
A vehicle control device that, when the amount of continued autonomous driving determined by the continuation determination unit exceeds the threshold value, performs the driving restriction to limit the vehicle speed to a speed lower than the set vehicle speed for autonomous driving. The vehicle control device according to claim 9,
The driving restriction unit (122d) is a vehicle control device that changes the ratio between a normal period, which is a period during which the full mode continues, and a recovery period, which is a period during which the recovery mode continues, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, in accordance with load-related information, which is information regarding the load on the vehicle. The vehicle control device according to claim 9,
The driving restriction unit (122e) is a vehicle control device that changes the ratio between a normal period, which is a period during which the full mode continues, and a recovery period, which is a period during which the recovery mode continues, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, depending on the state of the vehicle occupants. 20. The vehicle control device according to claim 19,
The vehicle control device, wherein the driving restriction unit increases the proportion of the recovery period compared to the normal period when an occupant of the vehicle is asleep or in poor physical condition. 20. The vehicle control device according to claim 19,
The vehicle control device, wherein the driving restriction unit increases the proportion of the normal period relative to the recovery period when the state of the vehicle occupant is a state in which the surroundings of the vehicle are being monitored. 20. The vehicle control device according to claim 19,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that increases the proportion of the normal period compared to the recovery period when the state of the vehicle occupant is performing a specific action, which is either a second task, which is an action other than driving, and an action equivalent to the second task, that is permitted to the driver of the vehicle during autonomous driving without the obligation to monitor the surroundings, and on the other hand, increases the proportion of the recovery period compared to the normal period when the occupant is not performing the specific action or is in a resting posture. The vehicle control device according to claim 9,
The driving restriction unit (122f) is a vehicle control device that restricts the vehicle to start driving in the recovery mode when the vehicle starts driving again within a short period of time within a first specified period after driving a long distance that is greater than or equal to a specified distance. The vehicle control device according to claim 9,
The driving restriction unit (122g) is a vehicle control device that, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, increases the ratio of the normal period, which is the period during which the full mode continues, to the recovery period, which is the period during which the recovery mode continues, when the weight of the vehicle's cargo bed is equal to or greater than a first threshold, while increasing the ratio of the recovery period to the normal period when the weight of the vehicle's cargo bed is less than a second threshold that is equal to or less than the first threshold. The vehicle control device according to claim 9,
The driving restriction unit (122h) is a vehicle control device that, when repeating the full mode and the recovery mode, increases the ratio of the normal period, which is the period during which the full mode continues, to the recovery period, which is the period during which the recovery mode continues, so that when the road on which the vehicle is traveling is downwardly sloping, the ratio of the recovery period is greater than the normal period, and when the road on which the vehicle is traveling is upwardly sloping, the ratio of the normal period is greater than the recovery period. The vehicle control device according to claim 9,
The driving restriction unit (122i) is a vehicle control device that restricts the vehicle to start driving in the recovery mode or manual driving when driving is started again after driving has been suspended continuously for a long period of time that is equal to or longer than a second specified period. 27. The vehicle control device according to claim 26,
The driving restriction unit is a vehicle control device that switches to the full mode when it is determined that the battery of the vehicle is in a healthy state after starting driving by restricting the vehicle to start driving in the recovery mode or manual driving. A vehicle control device that can be used in a vehicle that performs automatic driving,
A continuation determination unit (104) that determines an amount of continuation of autonomous driving, which is a continuous driving time or a continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving;
An abnormality identification unit (108) that identifies the presence or absence of an abnormality in the automatic driving of the vehicle;
an in-vehicle notification processing unit (161b) for making a notification to an occupant of the vehicle;
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, when the amount of continued autonomous driving identified by the continuation identification unit exceeds a predetermined threshold and when the abnormality identification unit identifies that there is no abnormality in the autonomous driving, issues a notification indicating that there is no problem with the vehicle even if the amount of continued autonomous driving is large. 29. The vehicle control device according to claim 28,
A maintenance specification unit (105) that specifies whether or not the vehicle requires maintenance,
The in-vehicle notification processing unit is a vehicle control device that, during autonomous driving of the vehicle, periodically issues notifications as to whether or not maintenance is necessary for the vehicle based on the results of the identification by the maintenance identification unit, by shortening the intervals between notifications after the first notification compared to the interval from the start of autonomous driving to the first notification. 30. The vehicle control device according to claim 29,
A maintenance information acquisition unit (109) for acquiring maintenance information regarding past maintenance of the vehicle,
The vehicle control device, wherein the in-vehicle notification processing unit changes an interval of the notification as to whether or not maintenance is required depending on a degree of execution of the maintenance based on the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit. A vehicle control method that can be used in a vehicle that performs automatic driving,
Executed by at least one processor,
A continuation specification step of specifying an amount of continuous autonomous driving, which is a continuous driving time or a continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving;
A vehicle control method including a driving limiting step of imposing a driving restriction on the vehicle, which is a restriction on driving in autonomous driving, when the amount of continued autonomous driving determined in the continuation determination step exceeds a predetermined threshold. A vehicle control method that can be used in a vehicle that performs automatic driving,
Executed by at least one processor,
A continuation specification step of specifying an amount of continuous autonomous driving, which is a continuous driving time or a continuous driving distance of the vehicle in autonomous driving;
An abnormality identification process for identifying whether or not there is an abnormality in the automatic driving of the vehicle;
and an in-vehicle notification processing step of notifying an occupant of the vehicle.
In the in-vehicle notification processing process, if the amount of continued autonomous driving identified in the continuation identification process exceeds a predetermined threshold value and if the abnormality identification process identifies that there is no abnormality in the autonomous driving, a notification is made indicating that there is no problem with the vehicle even if the amount of continued autonomous driving is large.

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