WO2019198615A1

WO2019198615A1 - Information provision device for automatic drive vehicle

Info

Publication number: WO2019198615A1
Application number: PCT/JP2019/014987
Authority: WO
Inventors: 晋吾山下; 神谷　玲朗; 真紀子杉浦; 政治河合; 山本　博之
Original assignee: 株式会社デンソー
Priority date: 2018-04-13
Filing date: 2019-04-04
Publication date: 2019-10-17
Also published as: JP6848927B2; JP2019185496A

Abstract

An information provision device that comprises: an information presentation unit (700) that is for presenting information to a driver that is inside a vehicle; and an information provision control unit (230) that uses the information presentation unit to present information to the driver. When the vehicle is in an automatic drive state, the information provision control unit increases blockage of information presented by the information provision unit as compared to when the vehicle is in a manual drive state. When the vehicle is switched from the automatic drive state to the manual drive state, the information provision control unit performs switching preparation processing that includes reducing the blockage of information before the switch to the manual drive state and thereby makes the driver aware that a switch from the automatic drive state to the manual drive state is occurring.

Description

Information providing device for autonomous vehicles

Cross-reference of related applications

This application claims priority based on the Japanese patent application filed on Apr. 13, 2018, filed on Apr. 13, 2018, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

The present invention relates to information providing technology at the time of switching from automatic driving to manual driving of a vehicle.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-199299 discloses a technique for getting used to driving operation by stopping a part of the automatic driving function and allowing the driver to practice switching when the vehicle switches from automatic driving to manual driving. Is disclosed.

However, in the prior art, there has been a fact that sufficient measures have not been taken to provide information in consideration of the psychological or physiological state when switching from automatic driving to manual driving.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an information providing device provided in an automatically drivable vehicle includes an information providing unit (700) for presenting information to a driver in the vehicle. And an information provision control unit (230) for presenting information to the driver using the information presentation unit,
Is provided. When the vehicle is in an automatic driving state, the information provision control unit sets a higher degree of blocking of information provided by the information presentation unit than when the vehicle is in a manual driving state. When the automatic operation state is switched to the manual operation state, the automatic operation state is transmitted to the driver by executing a switch preparation process including reducing the degree of blocking of the information before switching to the manual operation state. It is configured to recognize that switching from the operation state to the manual operation state is performed.

According to this information providing device, since the degree of interruption of information provided to the driver before switching from automatic driving to manual driving is reduced, the driver is sufficiently psychologically or physiologically to switch the driving state. It is possible to prepare.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an automatic operation control system as a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of in-vehicle equipment in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an automatic operation section and a manual operation section, FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an in-vehicle environment during automatic driving in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a preparation process for switching to manual operation in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a procedure of operation switching processing in the first embodiment. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an automatic driving control system as a second embodiment. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of in-vehicle equipment in the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing an in-vehicle environment at the time of automatic driving in the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a preparation process for switching to manual operation in the second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a procedure of operation switching processing in the second embodiment.

A. First embodiment:
As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 50 according to the first embodiment includes an automatic driving control system 100. The automatic driving control system 100 includes an automatic driving ECU 200 (Electronic Control Unit), a vehicle control unit 300, a front detection device 410, a rear detection device 420, a support information acquisition unit 500, a driver state monitoring unit 600, And an information presentation unit 700. These devices are connected to each other via an in-vehicle network such as a CAN (Controller Area Network). In the present specification, the vehicle 50 is also referred to as “own vehicle 50”.

The automatic driving ECU 200 implements the functions of the automatic driving control unit 210, the situation recognition unit 220, and the information provision control unit 230 by executing a computer program stored in a storage unit (not shown). A part of the function of the automatic driving ECU 200 may be realized by a hardware circuit.

The automatic driving control unit 210 executes automatic driving control of the host vehicle 50 using various situations recognized by the situation recognition unit 220. Specifically, the automatic operation control unit 210 transmits a drive instruction value indicating the operation state of the drive unit (engine or motor) to the drive unit control device 310, and brake-controls the brake instruction value indicating the operation state of the brake mechanism. A steering angle instruction value indicating the steering angle of the wheel is transmitted to the device 320 and transmitted to the steering angle control device 330. Each

control device

310, 320, 330 executes control of each control target mechanism in accordance with a given instruction value. Note that various functions of the automatic operation control unit 210 can be realized by artificial intelligence using machine learning such as deep learning.

In this specification, “automatic operation” means an operation in which a driver (driver) automatically performs all of drive unit control, brake control, and steering angle control without performing a driving operation. Therefore, in the automatic operation, the operation state of the drive unit, the operation state of the brake mechanism, and the steering angle of the wheel are automatically determined. “Manual operation” means operations for controlling the drive unit (depressing the accelerator pedal), operations for controlling the brake (depressing the brake pedal), and operations for controlling the steering angle (rotating the steering wheel). , Meaning the driving performed by the driver.

In this embodiment, automatic operation at SAE level 4 is assumed as automatic operation. That is, the automatic operation control system 100 performs all the operation tasks in the automatic operation section set in advance, and when the automatic operation section ends, the operation is switched to manual operation.

The situation recognition unit 220 uses the various information and detection values provided from the front detection device 410, the rear detection device 420, the support information acquisition unit 500, and the general sensors 340 to detect the host vehicle 50 and other vehicles. Recognize 60 driving conditions and surrounding environment.

The information provision control unit 230 uses the information presentation unit 700 to execute control for presenting information suitable for the driving state such as the automatic driving state and the manual driving state to the driver. In the present embodiment, the information presentation unit 700 includes a meter panel 710, a navigation panel 720, and an audio device 730. The navigation panel 720 is a part of the navigation device 520, but also functions as a part of the information presentation unit 700 in this embodiment. The contents of the operations of the information provision control unit 230 and the information presentation unit 700 will be described later.

The vehicle control unit 300 is a part that executes various controls for driving the vehicle 50, and is used in both cases of automatic driving and manual driving. The vehicle control unit 300 includes a drive unit control device 310, a brake control device 320, a steering angle control device 330, and general sensors 340. The drive unit control device 310 has a function of controlling a drive unit (not shown) that drives the wheels of the vehicle 50. One or more prime movers of an internal combustion engine and an electric motor can be used as the wheel drive unit. The brake control device 320 performs brake control of the vehicle 50. The brake control device 320 is configured as an electronically controlled brake system (ECB), for example. The steering angle control device 330 controls the steering angle of the wheels of the vehicle 50. “Steering angle” means the average steering angle of the two front wheels of the vehicle 50. The steering angle control device 330 is configured as an electric power steering system (EPS), for example. The general sensors 340 include a vehicle speed sensor 342, a steering angle sensor 344, and a yaw rate sensor 346, and are general sensors necessary for driving the vehicle 50. The general sensors 340 include sensors that are used for both automatic operation and manual operation.

The front detection device 410 uses an in-vehicle sensor to acquire information on various objects such as an object existing in front of the host vehicle 50 and road facilities (lanes, intersections, traffic lights, etc.). In the present embodiment, the front detection device 410 includes a camera 412 and a radar device 414. As the camera 412, a stereo camera or a monocular camera can be used. Further, the camera 412 is preferably a color camera in order to distinguish the color of the object (for example, a white line track line and a yellow line track line). As the radar device 414, various radars that emit electromagnetic waves, such as LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) that emits light and radars that emit radio waves (for example, millimeter wave radar) can be used. The rear detection device 420 acquires information on various objects such as an object and road equipment existing behind the host vehicle 50. The rear detection device 420 can also be configured to include a vehicle-mounted sensor similar to the front detection device 410.

The support information acquisition unit 500 acquires various support information for automatic driving. The support information acquisition unit 500 includes a GNSS receiver 510, a navigation device 520, and a wireless communication device 530. The GNSS receiver 510 measures the current position (longitude / latitude) of the host vehicle 50 based on navigation signals received from artificial satellites constituting a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System). The navigation device 520 has a function of determining a planned route in automatic driving based on the destination and the vehicle position detected by the GNSS receiver 510. In addition to the GNSS receiver 510, another sensor such as a gyro may be used to determine or correct the scheduled route. The wireless communication device 530 can exchange the situation information regarding the situation of the host vehicle 50 and the surrounding situation by wireless communication with the intelligent road transport system 70 (Intelligent Transport System), and can communicate with other vehicles 60. It is also possible to exchange situation information by performing inter-vehicle communication or road-to-vehicle communication with a roadside radio installed in road equipment. The support information acquisition unit 500 may acquire a part of the information related to the traveling state of the own vehicle using the state information obtained through such wireless communication. Various types of support information acquired by the support information acquisition unit 500 is transmitted to the automatic driving ECU 200.

The driver state monitoring unit 600 has a function of detecting the state of the driver using a sensor such as a camera or a pulse sensor. For example, the driver state monitoring unit 600 monitors whether the driver is sufficiently awake by monitoring the movement of the driver's eyes, the opening of the heel, the movement of the head, and the like. It is possible to estimate a plurality of items such as whether or not the vehicle 50 is concentrated in front. Further, the driver state monitoring unit 600 is configured to estimate a driver state including a sleep rhythm by using a biological sensor that detects biological information such as a driver's heart rate, body temperature, and respiratory rate. May be.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the first embodiment, as in-vehicle equipment of the vehicle 50, the dashboard 10, the air outlet 14 of the air conditioner, the meter panel 710, the navigation panel 720, and the driver state monitoring unit 600 are provided. , Is provided. The driver state monitoring unit 600 includes a camera that can monitor the movement of the driver's eyes and head. A rearview mirror 460 is provided above the front window 40. The left and right doors 20 are each provided with a speaker as an acoustic device 730. FIG. 2 shows a state during manual operation, in which the meter panel 710 and the navigation panel 720 are displayed.

As shown in FIG. 3, it is assumed that the vehicle 50 is traveling in the automatic driving section ADA and enters the manual driving section MAD when the automatic driving section ADA ends. In the automatic operation section ADA, retreat places such as a parking area and a service area are provided. The in-vehicle environment as the operating state of the in-vehicle equipment is set to a different state during automatic driving and during manual driving.

As shown in FIG. 4, the information provision control unit 230 stops the display of the meter panel 710 and the navigation panel 720 during automatic driving, masks a part of the display screen, or displays the brightness, saturation, The “screening degree” of the display screen is controlled by reducing the contrast. For example, in the state of manual operation shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle speed is displayed on the meter panel 710, but the display of information including the vehicle speed is stopped during automatic operation. The information provision control unit 230 may further stop issuing navigation voice using the acoustic device 730 or reduce the volume. Stopping the display of the meter panel 710 and the navigation panel 720 can be considered as increasing the degree of shielding of visual information. Further, it is possible to consider that the control of the operation of the acoustic device 730 to be stopped or the volume to be reduced is to increase the “shielding degree” of the auditory information.

In the example of FIG. 4, all the information whose shielding degree is increased during automatic driving is information transmitted to the driver via the device in the vehicle 50. Information transmitted to the driver through the devices in the vehicle 50 is referred to as “vehicle internal information”. The vehicle internal information includes visual information such as vehicle speed and auditory information such as navigation sound. In the first embodiment, it can be considered that the degree of shielding of the vehicle internal information is higher during automatic driving than during manual driving. In the present specification, the term “driver” means a person who does not perform a driving operation during automatic driving but performs a driving operation during manual driving.

Thus, the information provision control unit 230 sets the degree of blocking of the information provided by the information presentation unit 700 higher when the vehicle 50 is in the automatic driving state than when the vehicle 50 is in the manual driving state. ing. By doing so, the driver can take a rest in a more relaxed state during automatic driving.

As shown in FIG. 5, the information provision control unit 230 starts displaying the meter panel 710 and the navigation panel 720 as a switching preparation process when switching from automatic operation to manual operation. In the switching preparation process, the operation of the acoustic device 730 may be further started. These switching preparation processes are executed while automatic operation is performed before switching to manual operation. In other words, the information provision control unit 230 reduces the degree of information blocking before switching to the manual operation state. In this way, the driver can recognize that the switching from the automatic driving state to the manual driving state is performed, so that the driver is sufficiently prepared psychologically or physiologically for the switching of the driving state. Is possible.

In addition, as the switching preparation process before the operation state is switched from the automatic operation to the manual operation, other processes may be executed in addition to the decrease in the information blocking degree. A specific example will be described in the second embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 6, in the operation switching process from automatic operation to manual operation, in step S110, the driver state monitoring unit 600 detects the state of the driver, and in step S120, the automatic operation control unit 210 reads the travel plan. . The travel plan is a plan for how far to travel in the automatic operation section ADA, and is determined in advance before starting travel in the automatic operation section ADA and stored in a storage device (not shown) in the automatic operation ECU 200. In step S130, the automatic operation ECU 200 determines whether or not switching from automatic operation to manual operation is necessary. This determination is performed, for example, by determining whether or not a predetermined time (for example, 30 minutes) has been reached from the time when the travel path switches from the automatic operation section ADA to the manual operation section MDA. You may determine using a distance instead of time. If switching of operation is not necessary, the process returns to steps S110 and S120, and if switching of operation is necessary, the process proceeds to step S140.

In step S140, the driver state monitoring unit 600 determines whether or not the driver state is in a state where the information provided by the information presenting unit 700 can be received. For example, the determination may be performed by the driver state monitoring unit 600 estimating the driver's fitness level and determining whether the fitness level has reached a predetermined fitness level threshold. The “driver's fitness” is a value indicating the degree to which the driver can receive the information provided by the information presentation unit 700. The driver's fitness is, for example, whether the driver is sufficiently awake by monitoring the movement of the driver's eyes, the opening of the heel, the movement of the head, etc., and It is possible to estimate a plurality of items such as whether or not the vehicle 50 is concentrated in front of the vehicle 50 and determine the fitness from these estimation results. If the fitness level of the driving vehicle has reached a predetermined fitness level threshold value, it is determined that the driver is in a state of receiving information provided by the information presentation unit 700, while the fitness level is determined to be the fitness level threshold value. If not reached, it is determined that there is no such state.

If the driver is not ready to receive the information provided by the information presentation unit 700, the process proceeds to step S180, where it is determined whether there is sufficient room in the automatic driving section ADA. Whether there is a sufficient margin can be determined, for example, based on whether the predicted time from the current time to the end point of the automatic driving section ADA is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold. If there is a sufficient margin, the process returns to step S140 described above. If there is not enough room, the process proceeds to step S190, and the automatic operation ECU 200 guides the vehicle 50 to a retreating place such as a service area or a parking area and parks it.

In step S150, it is determined whether or not the timing for switching the driving environment has been reached. This timing means the timing for changing from the in-vehicle environment at the time of automatic driving as shown in FIG. 4 to the in-vehicle environment as shown in FIG. This switching timing is determined in advance in consideration of the time before the driver reaches the end point of the automatic driving section ADA and can sufficiently make psychological / physiological preparations for manual driving. If the operating environment switching timing has not been reached, the process returns from step S150 to step S140. On the other hand, when the switching timing of the driving environment is reached, the process proceeds to step S160, and as described with reference to FIG. 5, the degree of shielding of information provided by the information presentation unit 700 is lowered and more information is driven. Present it to the person.

Thereafter, when the automatic operation section ADA ends and the manual operation section MDA starts, switching from automatic operation to manual operation is executed in step S170.

As described above, in the first embodiment, when the vehicle 50 is switched from the automatic driving state to the manual driving state, the switching preparation process including reducing the degree of information cutoff before switching to the manual driving state is executed. By doing so, the driver is made aware that switching from the automatic operation state to the manual operation state is performed. In this way, the degree of interruption of information provided to the driver before switching from automatic driving to manual driving is reduced, so that the driver can sufficiently prepare psychologically or physiologically for switching the driving state. Is possible.

B. Second embodiment:
As shown in FIG. 7, the automatic driving control system 100a of the second embodiment adds a preparation promoting unit 800 and a motivation promoting unit 900 to the automatic driving control system 100 of the first embodiment, and also an information presenting unit 700. As an apparatus included in the above, an electronic mirror 740, a head-up display 750, and a transmittance changing glass 760 are added, and other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment. In addition, although the structure of the front detection apparatus 410 and the assistance information acquisition part 500 is the same as 1st Embodiment, the internal structure is abbreviate | omitted in FIG.

Preparation promotion unit 800 includes a warning generation unit 810 and a seat vibration unit 820. The warning generation unit 810 generates a warning to switch to manual operation by voice. The seat vibration unit 820 vibrates the seat. The warning generation unit 810 and the seat vibration unit 820 have a function of accelerating the driver's preparation so that the driver can receive information provided by the information presentation unit 700 when switching from automatic driving to manual driving. Have. That is, the warning generation unit 810 can promote the driver's preparation by generating a warning to switch to manual operation before switching to manual operation. In addition, the seat vibration unit 820 can promote the driver's preparation by vibrating the driver's seat before switching to manual operation.

The motivation promoting unit 900 includes an interior display 910 and a sound effect unit 920, and has a function of promoting the driver's motivation for manual driving when switching from automatic driving to manual driving. The interior display 910 corresponds to an interior state changing unit that visually changes the interior of the vehicle. The sound effect unit 920 corresponds to an audio information transmission unit that transmits audio information suitable for the manual driving state to the driver. The operation and function of the motivation promoting unit 900 will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 8, the in-vehicle equipment of the vehicle 50 of the second embodiment differs from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2 in the following points.
(A) The rearview mirror 46 is replaced with an electronic mirror 740.
(B) A head-up display 750 is added.
(C) The glass of the front window (wind shield) is changed to the transmittance changing glass 760. You may make it change the shielding degree of the visual information of an external field using a blind or a curtain instead of the transmittance | permeability change glass 760. FIG.
(D) An interior display 910 is used as the interior of the dashboard 10 and the door 20. The interior display 910 is, for example, a sheet-like display device that can display various images. Or you may implement | achieve the display similar to the interior display 910 using a projection apparatus.

As shown in FIG. 9, in the second embodiment, the following control is executed during automatic operation.
<Increasing the degree of information shielding by the control of the information provision control unit 230>
(A1) The display on the meter panel 710 is stopped, or a part of the display is masked, or the display brightness, saturation, and contrast are lowered.
(A2) The display of the navigation panel 720 is stopped, or a part of the display is masked, or the display brightness, saturation, and contrast are lowered.
(A3) The display of the electronic mirror 740 is stopped, or a part of the display is masked, or the display brightness, saturation, and contrast are lowered.
(A4) The display of the head-up display 750 is stopped, or a part thereof is masked, or the display brightness, saturation, and contrast are lowered.
(A5) The issuance of navigation voice using the acoustic device 730 is stopped or the volume is lowered.
(A6) The transmittance of the transmittance changing glass 760 is reduced.
(A7) The acoustic device 730 is caused to execute an active noise canceling operation to reduce noise from outside the vehicle and road vibration noise.
<Operation by Control of Motivation Promoting Unit 900>
(A8) The display on the interior display 910 is changed to automatic operation.

Since the information for stopping the operation in the above items (A1) to (A5) is information transmitted to the driver via the devices in the vehicle, it corresponds to “internal information of the vehicle”. On the other hand, the scenery of the outside world visually recognized by the driver through the transmittance changing glass 760 in the item (A6) is visual information transmitted to the driver without using the equipment in the vehicle. Further, noise outside the vehicle and road surface vibration noise that are reduced in the item (A7) are also auditory information transmitted to the driver without passing through the devices in the vehicle. Information transmitted to the driver without going through the devices in the vehicle is called “vehicle external information”. In the second embodiment, at the time of automatic driving, not only the information inside the vehicle but also the information outside the vehicle has a higher degree of information shielding than at the time of manual driving.

It should be noted that at least one of vehicle internal information and vehicle external information can be selected as information for changing the shielding degree between automatic driving and manual driving. For example, the type of information for changing the degree of shielding may be registered in the information provision control unit 230 in advance according to the driver's preference. In this way, it is possible to appropriately switch the environment between automatic driving and manual driving according to the driver's preference.

In the above item (A8), the image displayed on the interior display 910 is not directly related to the driving of the vehicle, and shows a preferable in-vehicle environment according to the driving state (automatic driving or manual driving) for the driver. Used as a means to provide. For example, during automatic driving, the display of the interior display 910 can be set so as to create an in-car environment like being in the living room at home.

As shown in FIG. 10, in the second embodiment, when switching from automatic operation to manual operation, a switch preparation process including the following various processes is executed.
<Decrease in information shielding degree by control of the information provision control unit 230>
(B1) Start display on the meter panel 710, stop masking, increase display brightness, and contrast again.
(B2) Start the display of the navigation panel 720, stop the mask, increase the display brightness, and the contrast again.
(B3) The display of the electronic mirror 740 is started, the mask is stopped, the display brightness and the contrast are increased again.
(B4) The display of the head-up display 750 is started, the mask is stopped, the display brightness and the contrast are increased again.
(B5) Start issuing navigation voice using the acoustic device 730, or increase the volume.
(B6) The transmittance of the transmittance changing glass 760 is increased.
(B7) The active noise canceling operation is stopped in the acoustic device 730, or the noise canceling effect is reduced.
<Preparation promotion operation by control of the preparation promotion unit 800>
(B8) The warning generation unit 810 is used to generate a warning to switch to manual operation.
(B9) The seat is vibrated using the seat vibration unit 820.
<Motivation promotion operation by control of the motivation promotion unit 900>
(B10) The display on the interior display 910 is changed to a specific display content or image indicating switching to manual operation, and the driver's motivation for manual operation is improved.
(B11) Using the acoustic effect unit 920, auditory information such as specific music indicating switching to manual driving is provided from the acoustic device 730, and the driver's motivation for manual driving is improved.

The operations of the above items (B1) to (B7) are operations in which the information provision control unit 230 lowers the information blocking degree before switching to the manual operation state. In this way, the driver can recognize that the switching from the automatic driving state to the manual driving state is performed, so that the driver is sufficiently prepared psychologically or physiologically for the switching of the driving state. Is possible.

The operations of the above items (B8) and (B9) are operations that promote the driver's preparation state so that the driver's fitness level reaches a predetermined fitness level threshold. As described in the first embodiment, the driver's fitness is a value indicating the degree to which the driver can receive the information provided by the information presentation unit 700.

The operations of the above items (B10) and (B11) are operations that promote the motivation of the driver for manual driving. As in these examples, as the motivation promoting operation, an operation of visually changing the interior of the vehicle and an operation of transmitting auditory information suitable for switching to the manual driving state to the driver can be used. If such a motivation promoting operation is performed, the driver's motivation for manual driving can be promoted before switching from automatic driving to manual driving, so the driver is sufficiently prepared psychologically or physiologically for switching the driving state. It becomes possible to do.

As shown in FIG. 11, in the operation switching process in the second embodiment, steps S310 and S320 are added between steps S130 and S140 in FIG. 6, and step S330 is added between steps S160 and S170. Other steps are the same as those in the first embodiment.

If it is determined in step S130 that switching from automatic operation to manual operation is necessary, in step S310, the preparation promotion unit 800 determines the operation timing of the preparation promotion operation. The operation timing of the preparation promoting operation may be determined only by the time or distance until switching to the manual operation section MDA, for example, but is preferably changed according to the state of the driver. For example, when the driver is sleeping during automatic driving, the driver state monitoring unit 600 estimates the driver's sleep state and determines that the preparation promotion operation is started according to the sleep rhythm. May be. For example, it may be determined that the preparation promoting operation is started at a timing estimated to be a state of REM sleep that is easy to wake up. Note that the driver's sleep rhythm may vary depending on the driver's personality. In consideration of such a case, a condition for determining the operation timing of the preparation promoting operation is registered in advance for each driver, and the operation timing of the preparation promoting operation is determined according to the registered condition. Good.

In step S320, at the timing determined in step S310, the preparation promoting unit 800 executes a preparation promoting operation for promoting the driver's preparation. As described above, as this preparation promoting operation, generation of a warning, vibration of the seat, and the like are executed.

After step S320, the process proceeds to step S140, where it is determined whether the driver is in a state where the information provided by the information presentation unit 700 can be received. Similar to the first embodiment, this determination can be made based on whether or not the driver's fitness estimated by the driver state monitoring unit 600 has reached a predetermined threshold value. If the driver is not ready to receive the information provided by the information presentation unit 700, the process proceeds to step S180, and if there is a margin in the automatic driving section ADA, the process returns to step S320 and the preparation promoting operation is continued. . Note that the preparation promotion operation in step S320 may increase the operation intensity as it approaches the end point of the automatic operation section ADA. For example, the vibration of the driver's seat may be increased as it approaches the end point of the automatic driving section ADA.

In this way, when the driver is in a state of psychological and physiological preparation, and the driving environment switching timing is reached in step S150, the operation for reducing the degree of shielding of information described in FIG. 10 is executed in step S160. Is done. In step S330, the motivation promoting unit 900 promotes the driver's motivation for manual driving, and in step S170, switching to manual driving is executed.

As described above, in the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment, when the vehicle 50 is switched from the automatic operation state to the manual operation state, the degree of information interruption is reduced before switching to the manual operation state. By executing the switching preparation process including the operation, the driver is made aware that the switching from the automatic driving state to the manual driving state is performed. It is possible to prepare enough.

Further, in the second embodiment, in the switching preparation process, the preparation promoting operation by the preparation promoting unit 800 so that the fitness level of the driver for manual driving estimated by the driver state monitoring unit 600 reaches a predetermined fitness level threshold. , And after the fitness level reaches the fitness level threshold, the information blocking level is lowered, so that the driver's status can be prepared psychologically or physiologically enough for switching the driving status. It is.

Furthermore, in the second embodiment, in the switching preparation process, motivation for manual driving of the driver is promoted by operating the motivation promoting unit 900, so that the driver psychologically or physiologically switches the driving state. It is possible to prepare enough.

C. Other embodiments:
In the first embodiment described above, the shielding degree of the vehicle internal information is changed in the automatic driving and the manual driving, and in the second embodiment, the shielding degree of both the vehicle internal information and the vehicle external information is changed. As information for changing the shielding degree between automatic driving and manual driving, at least one of vehicle internal information and vehicle external information may be selected. For example, the type of information for changing the degree of shielding may be registered in the information provision control unit 230 in advance according to the driver's preference. This is the same for the operation of the preparation promoting unit 800 and the operation of the motivation promoting unit 900 in the switching preparation process. In this way, it is possible to appropriately switch the environment between automatic driving and manual driving according to the driver's preference.

Further, in the switching preparation process, the timings for reducing the degree of information shielding may be set to be the same or may be set to different timings according to the information. Setting at different timings according to information has the advantage that the driver is more likely to be better prepared psychologically or physiologically. Furthermore, the timing for lowering the degree of shielding of information may be changed according to the state of the driver detected by the driver state monitoring unit 600. In this case as well, it is expected that the possibility that the driver can better prepare psychologically or physiologically is increased.

In the second embodiment, as the preparation promotion operation by the preparation promotion unit 800, the generation of a warning and the vibration of the driver's seat are illustrated, but other preparation promotion operations may be performed. For example, the driver's preparation may be promoted by blowing a strong wind from the air outlet 14. In addition, the driver's preparation may be promoted by generating a specific odor.

In the second embodiment, the information provided by the information presentation unit 700 is reduced in the degree of blockage of information after reaching the state in which the driver can receive the information. Accordingly, the timing at which the degree of information blocking is reduced may be adjusted. For example, when the driver's fitness level is low, it may take time for the driver to receive the information provided by the information presentation unit 700. You may make it delay the timing which reduces the interruption | blocking degree. Conversely, the lower the driver's fitness level, the earlier the timing at which the degree of information blockage is lowered. Or you may make it adjust the fall speed | rate of the interruption | blocking degree of information according to a driver | operator's adaptability. For example, the lowering rate of the information blocking degree may be reduced as the driver's fitness level is lower, and conversely, the lowering rate of the information blocking degree may be increased as the driver's fitness level is lower. Also good.

In the second embodiment, as the motivation promoting operation by the motivation promoting unit 900, the change of visual information such as the display of the interior and the provision of auditory information such as specific music are exemplified, but other motivation promoting operations are performed. You can go. For example, information (for example, sightseeing information) about the destination of manual driving may be displayed using a display unit such as the head-up display 750. Further, as the motivation promoting operation, a specific odor (aroma) or an odor of outside air may be generated using an odor generating device.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment and its modifications, and can be carried out in various modes without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

An information providing device provided in a vehicle capable of automatic driving,
An information presentation unit (700) for presenting information to a driver in the vehicle;
An information provision control unit (230) for presenting information to the driver using the information presentation unit;
With
The information provision control unit
When the vehicle is in an automatic driving state, the degree of blocking of information provided by the information presentation unit is set higher than when the vehicle is in a manual driving state,
When the vehicle is switched from the automatic driving state to the manual driving state, the driver performs the switching preparation process including reducing the degree of interruption of the information before switching to the manual driving state. An information providing apparatus configured to make the device recognize that switching from the automatic operation state to the manual operation state is performed.
The information providing device according to claim 1,
The information providing apparatus, wherein the information includes vehicle internal information transmitted to the driver via a device in the vehicle, and the vehicle internal information includes a vehicle speed.
The information providing device according to claim 2,
The information providing apparatus, wherein the vehicle internal information further includes auditory information including navigation voice.
The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The information providing apparatus, wherein the information includes vehicle external information transmitted to the driver without using a device in the vehicle, and the vehicle external information includes visual information that arrives from outside the vehicle.
The information providing device according to claim 4,
The information providing apparatus, wherein the vehicle external information further includes auditory information that arrives from outside the vehicle.
The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:
A driver state monitoring unit (600) that monitors the driver and estimates a degree of fitness indicating a state in which the driver can receive the information provided by the information presentation unit;
A preparation promoting unit (800) for promoting the driver's preparation state;
With
In the switching preparation process, the information provision control unit promotes the driver's preparation state by the preparation promoting unit so that the fitness level reaches a predetermined fitness level threshold value, and the fitness level is determined to be the fitness level threshold value. An information providing apparatus that executes a reduction in the degree of blocking of the information after reaching the value.
The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:
A driver state monitoring unit (600) for monitoring the driver and estimating a fitness indicating a degree that the driver can receive the information provided by the information presentation unit;
The said information provision control part is an information provision apparatus which adjusts the timing which reduces the interruption | blocking degree of the said information according to the said adaptability in the said switch preparation process.
The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:
A driver state monitoring unit (600) for monitoring the driver and estimating a fitness indicating a degree that the driver can receive the information provided by the information presentation unit;
The said information provision control part is an information provision apparatus which adjusts the fall rate of the interruption | blocking degree of the said information according to the said adaptability in the said switching preparation process.
The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising:
A motivation promoting part (900) for promoting motivation for manual driving by the driver;
The information provision control unit promotes motivation for manual driving by the driver by operating the motivation promotion unit in the switching preparation process.
The information providing device according to claim 9,
The motivation promoting unit includes at least an interior state changing unit that visually changes the interior of the vehicle, and an auditory information transmitting unit that transmits auditory information suitable for switching to a manual driving state to the driver. An information providing apparatus including one side.