INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD AND INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS

• US 20180299896A1
• Filed: 03/19/2018
• Published: 10/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: FUJIMURA, RYOTA, FUCHIKAMI, TETSUJI, URABE, HIROAKI
• Granted Patent: US 10,838,422 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/403 Image sensing, e.g. optical camera
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/408 Radar; Laser, e.g. lidar
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/54 Audio sensitive means, e.g. ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2530/20 Tyre data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/10 Accelerator pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/12 Brake pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/18 Steering angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/80 Spatial relation or speed relative to objects
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/00 Purposes of road vehicle drive control systems not related to the control of a particular sub-unit, e.g. of systems using conjoint control of vehicle sub-units
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/082 Selecting or switching between different modes of propelling
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/0059 Estimation of the risk associated with autonomous or manual driving, e.g. situation too complex, sensor failure or driver incapacity
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/32 Structuring or formatting of map data
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3461 Preferred or disfavoured areas, e.g. dangerous zones, toll or emission zones, intersections, manoeuvre types, segments such as motorways, toll roads, ferries
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3602 Input other than that of destination using image analysis, e.g. detection of road signs, lanes, buildings, real preceding vehicles using a camera
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0246 using a video camera in combination with image processing means

Abstract

An information processing method includes acquiring, from a device mounted on a vehicle, manual driving information indicating vehicle control for manual driving through a driving route section of the vehicle, acquiring from a device mounted on a vehicle, sensor information acquired via sensing on the vehicle through the driving route section. The information processing method further includes generating automated driving information indicating vehicle control for automated driving through the driving route section, based on the sensor information, and generating automated driving possibility information indicating a possibility of the automated driving through the driving route section, based on the manual driving information and the automated driving information.

Claims

1. An information processing method comprising:

acquiring, from a device mounted on a vehicle, manual driving information indicating vehicle control for manual driving through a driving route section of the vehicle;

acquiring, from the device mounted on the vehicle, sensor information acquired via sensing on the vehicle through the driving route section;

generating automated driving information indicating vehicle control for automated driving through the driving route section, based on the sensor information; and

generating automated driving possibility information indicating whether the automated driving through the driving route section is possible or not, based on the manual driving information and the automated driving information.

2. The information processing method according to claim 1, wherein the generating of the automated driving information comprises generating the automated driving information indicating the vehicle control for the automated driving responsive to a specification of the automated driving.

3. The information processing method according to claim 2, further comprising acquiring, from an external apparatus including the device mounted on the vehicle or a memory in a computer, automated driving specification information indicating the specification of the automated driving of the vehicle,

wherein the generating of the automated driving information includes generating the automated driving information indicating the vehicle control for the automated driving responsive to the specification of the automated driving indicated by the automated driving specification information.

4. The information processing method according to claim 2, wherein the generating of the automated driving information comprises generating a plurality of pieces of automated driving information respectively indicating the vehicle control for the automated driving on each of a plurality of specifications of the automated driving, and

wherein the generating of the automated driving possibility information comprises generating a plurality of pieces of the automated driving possibility information on each of the specifications of the automated driving, based on the manual driving information and the pieces of the automated driving information.

5. The information processing method according to claim 2, wherein the specification of the automated driving comprises an algorithm for the automated driving.

6. The information processing method according to claim 2, wherein the specification of the automated driving comprise a processing rate of the automated driving.

7. The information processing method according to claim 2, wherein the specification of the automated driving comprises a type of a sensor for use in the automated driving.

8. The information processing method according to claim 2, wherein the specification of the automated driving comprises a level or contents of the automated driving.

9. The information processing method according to claim 2, further comprising acquiring, from an external apparatus including the device mounted on the vehicle or a memory in a computer, computational performance information indicating computational performance of the vehicle,

wherein the generating of the automated driving possibility information includes generating the automated driving possibility information, based on results of a determination that is performed in accordance with the computational performance indicated by the computational performance information and that indicates whether the automated driving is possible on the vehicle, and based on the manual driving information, and the automated driving information.

10. The information processing method according to claim 1, wherein the generating of the automated driving information comprises generating the automated driving information, based on comparison results of the manual driving information with the automated driving information.

11. The information processing method according to claim 10, wherein each piece of the manual driving information and the automated driving information comprises a degree of the vehicle control, and

wherein the generating of the automated driving possibility information includes (i) generating the automated driving possibility information which indicates the automated driving through the driving route section is possible when a value of a correlation between the degree of the vehicle control indicated by the manual driving information and the degree of the vehicle control indicated by the automated driving information is larger than or equal to a predetermined value, and (ii) generating the automated driving possibility information which indicates the automated driving through the driving route section is not possible when the value of the correlation is smaller than the predetermined value.

12. The information processing method according to claim 10, wherein the generating of the automated driving possibility information comprises (i) generating the automated driving possibility information which indicates the automated driving through the driving route section is possible when a value of a difference between a state of the vehicle responsive to the vehicle control indicated by the manual driving information and a state of the vehicle responsive to the vehicle control indicated by the automated driving information is smaller than a predetermined value and (ii) generating the automated driving possibility information which indicates the automated driving through the driving route section is not possible when the value of the difference is larger than or equal to the predetermined value.

13. The information processing method according to claim 12, wherein the state of the vehicle comprises at least one of a position and a posture of the vehicle.

14. The information processing method according to claim 1, further comprising:

acquiring, from a device mounted on at least another vehicle different from the vehicle, at least a piece of manual driving information different from the manual driving information; and

based on the manual driving information and the at least the piece of the manual driving information, determining whether the manual driving information is valid,

wherein the generating of the automated driving possibility information includes generating the automated driving possibility information if the manual driving information is determined to be valid.

15. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

a memory storing thereon a computer program, which when executed by the processor, causes the processor to perform operations including;

acquiring, from a device mounted on a vehicle, manual driving information indicating vehicle control for manual driving through a driving route section of the vehicle;

acquiring, from a device mounted on a vehicle, sensor information acquired via sensing on the vehicle through the driving route section;

generating automated driving information indicating vehicle control for automated driving through the driving route section, based on the sensor information; and

generating automated driving possibility information indicating whether the automated driving through the driving route section is possible or not, based on the manual driving information and the automated driving information.