US20220284819A1 - Platooning control apparatus and method - Google Patents

Abstract

A platooning control apparatus may include: a navigation unit configured to guide an ego vehicle to a destination set by a driver; a driving module configured to drive the ego vehicle; and a control unit configured to primarily select platooning groups based on the destination set in the navigation unit, analyze platooning information of the primarily selected platooning groups, finally decide any one of the primarily selected platooning groups, and then control the driving module to join the finally decided platooning group.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
• This application is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/524,209 filed Nov. 11, 2021, which is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/139,675 filed on Sep. 24, 2018, which claims the benefit to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2017-0125517, filed on Sep. 27, 2017, the entire contents of each are hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUNDField
• Exemplary embodiments relate to a platooning control apparatus and method, and more particularly, to a platooning control apparatus and method which can control an ego vehicle to join or leave a platooning group.
• In general, platooning means that a group of vehicles drive on a road while sharing driving information and considering an external environment.
• One group includes a leader vehicle and follower vehicles. The leader vehicle is a vehicle leading the group at the head of the group, and the follower vehicles are vehicles following the leader vehicle.
Discussion of the Background
• The following vehicles of the group may continuously follow the leader vehicle, using driving information of the leader vehicle, transmitted through vehicle-to-vehicle communication. The driving information may include GPS coordinates, velocity, route, direction and brake stepping information. Therefore, drivers of the follower vehicles can freely conduct various behaviors other than driving. For example, the drivers can operate their smart phones or sleep in the vehicles. The platooning technology can increase a driver's convenience, and raise the efficiency of transportation.
• The related art of the present invention is disclosed in Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0957137 registered on May 3, 2010 and entitled “Platooning control system and method”.
• In the conventional platooning control system, however, a group of vehicles must drive together from the beginning of platooning, and another vehicle has difficulties in joining the group in the middle of the platooning. In particular, when the starting point of the vehicle is different from the starting point of the platooning vehicles, the vehicle has difficulties in determining at which point the vehicle should join the group, and the platooning of the vehicles is considered only in the autonomous mode.
• Furthermore, the conventional platooning control system has a limitation in that all of the vehicles within the group must drive in a line. For example, although an empty lane is present on a road, the following vehicles of the group must follow the leader vehicle only in the same lane as the leader vehicle. When another vehicle cuts in the middle of the group, the following vehicle at the rear of the corresponding vehicle may not normally follow the leader vehicle.
• The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and, therefore, it may contain information that does not constitute prior art.
SUMMARY
• Exemplary embodiments of the present invention are directed to a platooning control apparatus and method which can select a platooning group that is the most suitable for the driving state of an ego vehicle, among a plurality of platooning groups, and control the ego vehicle to join or leave the corresponding platooning group.
• In one embodiment, a platooning control apparatus may include: a navigation unit configured to guide an ego vehicle to a destination set by a driver; a driving module configured to drive the ego vehicle; and a control unit configured to primarily select platooning groups based on the destination set in the navigation unit, analyze platooning information of the primarily selected platooning groups, finally decide any one of the primarily selected platooning groups, and then control the driving module to join the finally decided platooning group.
• The primarily selected platooning groups may include a platooning group having the same destination as the destination set in the navigation unit.
• The primarily selected platooning groups may include a platooning group of which the destination is the closest to the destination set in the navigation unit.
• The control unit may finally decide the platooning group according to one or more of vehicle information and an accumulated platooning distance of a leader vehicle within each of the primarily selected platooning groups.
• The control unit may output vehicle information and an accumulated platooning distance of a leader vehicle within each of the primarily selected platooning groups through a user interface unit, and finally decide the platooning group according to a driver's selection.
• The control unit may decide a joining point where the ego vehicle will join the platooning group, according to the location of the ego vehicle and a platooning trajectory of the platooning group.
• When a plurality of joining points are found, the control unit may decide the joining point according to one or more of a distance to each of the joining points from the location of the ego vehicle, traffic condition information of the joining point, an accident risk of the joining point and a fee to the joining point.
• The control unit may apply weights to the distance to each of the joining points from the location of the ego vehicle, the traffic condition information of the joining point, the accident risk of the joining point and the fee to the joining point, in order to decide the joining point.
• The control unit may output one or more of the distance to each of the joining points from the location of the ego vehicle, the traffic condition information of the joining point, the accident risk of the joining point and the fee to the joining point through a user interface unit, and finally decide the joining point according to the driver's selection.
• When the ego vehicle is an autonomous vehicle, the control unit may control the ego vehicle to autonomously join the tail of the leader vehicle within the platooning group.
• In another embodiment, a platooning control method may include: primarily selecting, by a control unit, platooning groups based on a destination set in a navigation unit; analyzing, by the control unit, platooning information of the primarily selected platooning groups, and finally deciding any one of the primarily selected platooning groups; and controlling, by the control unit, a driving module to drive an ego vehicle, such that the ego vehicle joins the finally decided platooning group.
• The primarily selected platooning groups may include a platooning group having the same destination as the destination set in the navigation unit.
• The primarily selected platooning groups may include a platooning group of which the destination is the closest to the destination set in the navigation unit.
• In the deciding of any one of the primarily selected platooning groups, the control unit may finally decide the platooning group according to one or more of vehicle information and an accumulated platooning distance of a leader vehicle within each of the primarily selected platooning groups.
• In the deciding of any one of the primarily selected platooning groups, the control unit may output one or more of vehicle information and an accumulated platooning distance of a leader vehicle within each of the primarily selected platooning groups through a user interface unit, and finally decide the platooning group according to a driver's selection.
• In the controlling of the driving module to drive the ego vehicle, the control unit may decide a joining point to join the platooning group, according to the location of the ego vehicle and a platooning trajectory of the platooning group.
• When a plurality of joining points are found, the control unit may decide the joining point according to one or more of a distance to each of the joining points from the location of the ego vehicle, traffic condition information of the joining point, an accident risk of the joining point and a fee to the joining point.
• The control unit may apply weights to the distance to each of the joining points from the location of the ego vehicle, the traffic condition information of the joining point, the accident risk of the joining point and the fee to the joining point, in order to decide the joining point.
• The control unit may output one or more of the distance to each of the joining points from the location of the ego vehicle, the traffic condition information of the joining point, the accident risk of the joining point and the fee to the joining point through a user interface unit, and finally decide the joining point according to the driver's selection.
• In the controlling of the driving module to drive the ego vehicle, the control unit may control the ego vehicle to autonomously join the tail of the leader vehicle within the platooning group, when the vehicle is an autonomous vehicle.
• The platooning control method may further include informing, by the control unit, the driver of a leaving point through the user interface unit before the ego vehicle arrives at the leaving point.
• The leaving point may be set according to an accident risk.
• It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention.
• FIG. 1 is a conceptual view illustrating an operation of a platooning control apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the platooning control apparatus in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a driving module in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a platooning control method in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a platooning group joining method in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention.
DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS
• The invention is described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure is thorough, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.
• As customary in the field, some exemplary embodiments are described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in terms of functional blocks, units, and/or modules. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that these blocks, units, and/or modules are physically implemented by electronic (or optical) circuits, such as logic circuits, discrete components, microprocessors, hard-wired circuits, memory elements, wiring connections, and the like, which may be formed using semiconductor-based fabrication techniques or other manufacturing technologies. In the case of the blocks, units, and/or modules being implemented by microprocessors or other similar hardware, they may be programmed and controlled using software (e.g., microcode) to perform various functions discussed herein and may optionally be driven by firmware and/or software. It is also contemplated that each block, unit, and/or module may be implemented by dedicated hardware, or as a combination of dedicated hardware to perform some functions and a processor (e.g., one or more programmed microprocessors and associated circuitry) to perform other functions. Also, each block, unit, and/or module of some exemplary embodiments may be physically separated into two or more interacting and discrete blocks, units, and/or modules without departing from the scope of the inventive concepts. Further, the blocks, units, and/or modules of some exemplary embodiments may be physically combined into more complex blocks, units, and/or modules without departing from the scope of the inventive concepts.
• Hereafter, a platooning control apparatus and method in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the drawings are not to precise scale and may be exaggerated in thickness of lines or sizes of components for descriptive convenience and clarity only. Furthermore, the terms as used herein are defined by taking functions of the invention into account and can be changed according to the custom or intention of users or operators. Therefore, definition of the terms should be made according to the overall disclosures set forth herein.
• FIG. 1 is a conceptual view illustrating an operation of a platooning control apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
• Referring toFIG. 1, the platooningcontrol apparatus100 in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention may be installed in anego vehicle10, and connected to aleader vehicle20 of a platooning group through a communication network. As illustrated inFIG. 1, a plurality of platooning groups may be present. Thus, the platooningcontrol apparatus100 may transmit/receive various pieces of information to/from one or more of theleader vehicles20 of the respective platooning groups.
• The platooningcontrol apparatus100 may be connected to a server which controls and manages platooning through the communication network, and transmit/receive various pieces of information to/from the server. Such a server may include various devices or systems and databases, which manage and engage in the platooning. Examples of the server may include a route guidance server for guiding theleader vehicle20 andfollower vehicles30 in the platooning group to their destination and a fee management server for calculating and managing a platooning-related fee.
• The information which the platooningcontrol apparatus100 transmits/receives to/from theleader vehicle20 or the server will be described later.
• FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the platooning control apparatus in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a driving module in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention.
• Referring toFIG. 2, the platooningcontrol apparatus100 in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention may include acommunication unit110, auser interface unit120, anavigation unit130, adriving module140, anapproval handling unit150 and acontrol unit160.
• Thecommunication unit110 may transmit/receive information to/from theleader vehicle20 or the server through the communication network. Thecommunication unit110 may communicate with theleader vehicle20 or the server through one or more of WLAN (Wireless LAN), Wi-Fi (Wireless-Fidelity), Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) Direct, DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance), WiBro (Wireless Broadband), WiMAX (World Interoperability for Microwave Access), HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access), HSUPA (High Speed Uplink Packet Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution) and LTE-A (Long Term Evolution-Advanced).
• Thecommunication unit110 may perform short range communication with theleader vehicle20. That is, when theego vehicle10 joins the platooning group, theego vehicle10 may be positioned at a short distance from theleader vehicle20. Therefore, thecommunication unit110 may transmit/receive various pieces of information to/from theleader vehicle20 within the platooning group through short range communication, such that theego vehicle10 can participate in the platooning.
• In this case, thecommunication unit110 may communicate with theleader vehicle20 through Bluetooth, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), IrDA (Infrared Data Association), UWB (Ultra Wideband), ZigBee, NFC (Near Field Communication), Wi-Fi (Wireless-Fidelity), Wi-Fi Direct or Wireless USB (Wireless Universal Serial Bus).
• Thecommunication unit110 may perform short range communication with the mobile terminal of a driver, receive a setting command of the driver, and transmit the setting command to thecontrol unit160.
• Theuser interface unit120 may provide a user interface to the driver.
• Theuser interface unit120 may receive information from the driver, and input the information to thecontrol unit160 or output an operation result.
• For example, theuser interface unit120 may receive a destination from the driver or output a route to the destination based on an operation of thenavigation unit130. In this case, theuser interface unit120 may provide information on a point of interest (POI) set in thenavigation unit130, or output various menus of the navigation system.
• Theuser interface unit120 may output vehicle information of theleader vehicles20 and accumulated platooning distances of theleader vehicles20 in platooning groups which are primarily selected according to the destination, and receive a driver′ selection to finally decide a platooning group. Here, the primarily selected platooning groups and the finally selected platooning group will be described.
• Theuser interface unit120 may display information on joining points where theego vehicle10 can join the platooning group, receive a joining point selected by the driver, and input the joining point to thecontrol unit160. The information on the joining point may include the location information of the joining point, the distance from the location of theego vehicle10 to the joining point, the traffic condition information of the joining point, the traffic accident risk of the joining point and the fee to the joining point. The information on the joining point will be described later.
• Theuser interface unit120 may guide a leaving point before theego vehicle10 arrives at the destination after joining the platooning group.
• In addition, theuser interface unit120 may provide a platooning-related user interface to the driver while theego vehicle10 joins and leaves the platooning group. For example, theuser interface unit120 may provide various pieces of information to the driver, and receive various control commands from the driver.
• Thenavigation unit130 may display the location of theego vehicle10 on the map, and guide a route to the destination. Furthermore, thenavigation unit130 may sense the location of theego vehicle10, and input the sensed location to thecontrol unit160.
• Thedriving module140 may drive theego vehicle10 based on a driver's manipulation or an autonomous function.
• Referring toFIG. 3, thedriving module140 may include amanipulation unit141, asensing unit142 and adriving unit143. Themanipulation unit141 may receive a manipulation of the driver, thesensing unit142 may sense the driving state and surrounding situation of theego vehicle10, and thedriving unit143 may drive theego vehicle10.
• Themanipulation unit141 may receive the driver's manipulation to drive theego vehicle10.
• Themanipulation unit141 may include a steering wheel which receives a steering command from the driver to steer theego vehicle10, a gear input unit which receives a gear manipulation of theego vehicle10, an accelerator pedal which receives an acceleration command from the driver, and a brake pedal which receives a deceleration command from the driver.
• Thesensing unit142 may sense the driving state and surrounding situation of theego vehicle10. Examples of thesensing unit142 for sensing the driving state of theego vehicle10 may include a collision sensor, a steering sensor, a velocity sensor, a gradient sensor, a weight sensor, a yaw sensor, a gyro sensor, a position module sensor, a vehicle forward/reverse sensor, a battery sensor, a fuel sensor, a tire sensor, a steering sensor by rotation of a steering wheel, an internal temperature sensor, an internal humidity sensor and the like. Thesensing unit142 may acquire vehicle collision information, vehicle direction information, vehicle angle information, vehicle velocity information, vehicle acceleration information, vehicle tilt information, vehicle forward/reverse information, battery information, fuel information, tire information, vehicle lamp information, internal temperature information, internal humidity information, steering wheel rotation angle and the like, through the sensors.
• Examples of thesensing unit142 for sensing the surrounding situation of theego vehicle10 may include one or more of a camera, an ultrasonic sensor, an infrared light sensor, a radar and a lidar. Thesensing unit142 may acquire surrounding situation information related to various objects or obstacles positioned around theego vehicle10 in operation through the sensors. For example, the surrounding situation information may include the locations of the obstacles, the number of obstacles, the distances to the obstacles, the types of the obstacles, neighboring vehicles, surrounding facilities, traffic signs and the like.
• In particular, the camera may film areas around theego vehicle10, and acquire information on one or more of a traffic light, traffic sign, pedestrian, neighboring vehicles and a road condition.
• The drivingunit143 may control operations of various devices in the vehicle. The drivingunit143 may include a driving part such as an engine or transmission to drive theego vehicle10, a steering part to steer theego vehicle10, a brake part to stop theego vehicle10, and a lamp driving part to guide the driving state or driving direction of theego vehicle10.
• Thedriving module140 is only an example, and may further include various systems and devices in addition to themanipulation unit141, thesensing unit142 and thedriving unit143, as long as they are related to the driving of theego vehicle10.
• Theapproval handling unit150 may process a fee required for theego vehicle10 to join the platooning group, and request theleader vehicle20 of the platooning group to approve the joining of theego vehicle10.
• Thecontrol unit160 may control thecommunication unit110 to request the destinations of the platooning groups from the server or theleader vehicles20 of the platooning groups through the communication network.
• When the destinations of the platooning groups are received through the communication network, thecontrol unit160 may compare the destination of theego vehicle10, sensed through thenavigation unit130, to the destinations of the platooning groups, determine whether there is a platooning group having the same destination as the destination of theego vehicle10, and primarily select the corresponding platooning group according to the determination result.
• On the other hand, wherein the determination result indicates that there is no platooning group having the same destination as the destination of theego vehicle10, thecontrol unit160 may primarily select a platooning group of which the destination is the closest to the destination of theego vehicle10.
• In this case, a plurality of platooning groups may be primarily selected.
• When the platooning groups are primarily selected based on the destination of theego vehicle10 and the destinations of the platooning groups, thecontrol unit160 may request platooning information on theleader vehicles20 of the primarily selected platooning groups from the server or theleader vehicles20 of the corresponding platooning groups through thecommunication unit110.
• The platooning information may include the vehicle information of theleader vehicles20 of the platooning groups and the accumulated platooning distances of theleader vehicles20, and serve as basic information for securing the reliability of theleader vehicles20 of the corresponding platooning groups.
• The vehicle information of theleader vehicle20 may include a vehicle model, sensor model, camera model, the number of sensors, the number of cameras, main mounted functions and the like.
• The accumulated platooning distance of theleader vehicle20 may correspond to the total platooning distance that theleader vehicle20 has driven so far.
• When the platooning information is received, thecontrol unit160 may analyze the platooning information, and finally decide a platooning group.
• At this time, when one platooning group is primarily selected based on the destination of theego vehicle10 and the destinations of the platooning groups, thecontrol unit160 may output the platooning information of the corresponding platooning group through theuser interface unit120, and set the platooning group to the final platooning group which theego vehicle10 will join.
• In this case, the driver may recognize the platooning information, and agree with the decision of thecontrol unit160 for the final platooning group, or give up joining the corresponding platooning group.
• On the other hand, when a plurality of platooning groups are primarily selected based on the destination of theego vehicle10 and the destinations of the platooning groups, thecontrol unit160 may output the platooning information of the respective platooning groups through theuser interface unit120, analyze the platooning information of the platooning groups, and decide any one platooning group based on the analysis result.
• In this case, the driver may recognize the platooning information of the respective platooning groups, and agree with the decision of thecontrol unit160 for the final platooning group or arbitrarily select any one of the other platooning groups. In this way, thecontrol unit160 may finally decide the platooning group according to the driver's selection.
• When the platooning group is decided as described above, thecontrol unit160 may decide a joining point where the ego vehicle will join the corresponding platooning group, based on the location of theego vehicle10.
• For this operation, thecontrol unit160 may detect the location of theego vehicle10 through thenavigation unit130, receive a platooning driving trajectory from theleader vehicle20 of the corresponding platooning group, and decide a joining point where the ego vehicle will join the platooning group, according to the location of theego vehicle10 and the platooning driving trajectory of the platooning group.
• In this case, a plurality of joining points may be found depending on the location of theego vehicle10 and the platooning driving trajectory of the platooning group.
• When the plurality of joining points are found, thecontrol unit160 may decide a joining point according to one or more of distances to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, traffic condition information of the joining points, accident risks of the joining points, and fees to the joining points.
• That is, when the plurality of joining points are found, thecontrol unit160 may control thenavigation unit130 to detect the distances to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, the traffic condition information of the joining points, the accident risks of the joining points, and the fees to the joining points, and finally decide a joining point according to one or more of them.
• In this case, thecontrol unit160 may apply weights to the distances to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, the traffic condition information of the joining points, the accident risks of the joining points, and the fees to the joining points, and decide any one joining point according to the weights of the joining points.
• Then, thecontrol unit160 may output the distance to the joining point from the location of theego vehicle10, the traffic condition information of the joining point, the accident risk of the joining point, and the fee to the joining point through theuser interface unit120, and output the joining point.
• At this time, the driver may agree with the decision of thecontrol unit160 for the joining point. However, the driver may not agree with the decision, but directly decide a joining point by referring to the distances to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, the traffic condition information of the joining points, the accident risks of the joining points and the fees to the joining points. In this case, thecontrol unit160 may finally decide the joining point according to the driver's selection.
• The weights applied to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, the traffic condition information of the joining points, the accident risks of the joining points, and the fees to the joining points may be previously set according to the preference of the driver.
• When the joining point is decided, thecontrol unit160 may control thedriving module140 to drive theego vehicle10 to the joining point.
• In this case, thedriving module140 may drive theego vehicle10 to the joining point according to the user's manipulation. When theego vehicle10 is an autonomous vehicle with an autonomous driving function, theego vehicle10 may autonomously drive to the joining point.
• When theego vehicle10 reaches a location within a range in which theego vehicle10 can perform short range communication with theleader vehicle20 of the platooning group after arriving at the joining point, thecontrol unit160 may control theapproval handling unit150 to pay for the fee to the platooning, and request theleader vehicle20 of the corresponding platooning group to approve the joining of the platooning.
• Then, theego vehicle10 may autonomously join the tail of the corresponding platooning group when theego vehicle10 is an autonomous vehicle, or thecontrol unit160 may control theego vehicle10 to join a location within the platooning group according to the driver's selection.
• On the other hand, when theego vehicle10 is not an autonomous vehicle, thecontrol unit160 may control theuser interface unit120 to select any one of a manual joining method and an automatic joining method.
• At this time, when the manual joining method is selected, thedriving module140 may be driven to join the platooning group according to the driver's intention. Then, thecontrol unit160 may turn on a driving support function, for example, SCC (Smart cruise control), LKA (Lane Keeping Assistance) or ACC (Auto cruise control).
• On the other hand, when the automatic joining method is selected, thecontrol unit160 may control thedriving module140 to turn on the driving support function, and drive a semi-autonomous function to join the tail of the platooning group.
• When theego vehicle10 joins the platooning group, thecontrol unit160 may detect a leaving point.
• The leaving point may indicate a point where theego vehicle10 will leave the platooning group. When a plurality of leaving points are detected depending on a geographic location or road structure, thecontrol unit160 may control thenavigation unit130 to select a leaving point which has a relatively low accident risk, among the leaving points.
• Thecontrol unit160 may control thenavigation unit130 to check whether theego vehicle10 has reached a point within a preset distance from the leaving point or an estimated time of arrival at the leaving point falls within a preset time.
• In this case, when theego vehicle10 reaches a point within the preset distance from the leaving point or the estimated time of arrival at the leaving point falls within the preset time, thecontrol unit160 may control theuser interface unit120 to inform the driver that theego vehicle10 will soon arrive at the leaving point. Then, theego vehicle10 can leave the platooning group at the leaving point.
• When theego vehicle10 joins or leave the platooning group during the above-described process, thecontrol unit160 may restrict the joining or leaving of theego vehicle10 in the case where an over-speeding vehicle or obstacle is present.
• Hereafter, a platooning control method in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference toFIGS. 4 and 5.
• FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a platooning control method in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a platooning group joining method in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention.
• Referring toFIG. 4, thecontrol unit160 may collect the destinations of platooning groups by requesting the destinations of the platooning groups from the server or theleader vehicles20 of the platooning groups through thecommunication unit110, at step S100.
• When the destinations of the platooning groups are collected, thecontrol unit160 may compare the destination of theego vehicle10, set in thenavigation unit130, to the destinations of the platooning groups, and determine whether there is a platooning group having the same destination as the destination of theego vehicle10, at step S200, in order to primarily select platooning groups having the same destination as the destination of theego vehicle10.
• On the other hand, when the determination result of step S200 indicates that there is no platooning group having the same destination as the destination of theego vehicle10, thecontrol unit160 may primarily select platooning groups of which the destinations are relatively close to the destination of theego vehicle10, at step S300.
• When the platooning groups are primarily selected as described above, thecontrol unit160 may request platooning information of theleader vehicles20 of the primarily selected platooning groups from the server or the corresponding platooning groups through thecommunication unit110. The platooning information may include vehicle information of theleader vehicles20 of the platooning groups and the accumulated platooning distances of theleader vehicles20.
• When the platooning information is received, thecontrol unit160 may analyze the platooning information, and finally decide a platooning group, at steps S400 and S500.
• For example, when one platooning group is primarily selected based on the destination of theego vehicle10 and the destinations of the platooning groups, thecontrol unit160 may output the platooning information of the corresponding platooning group through theuser interface unit120, and set the platooning group to the final platooning group which theego vehicle10 will join. In this case, the driver may recognize the platooning information, and finally decide whether to join the corresponding platooning group.
• On the other hand, when a plurality of platooning groups are primarily selected based on the destination of theego vehicle10 and the destinations of the platooning groups, thecontrol unit160 may output the platooning information of the platooning groups through theuser interface unit120, analyze the platooning information of the platooning groups, and decide any one platooning group based on the analysis result.
• In this case, the driver may recognize the platooning information of the platooning groups, and agree with the decision of thecontrol unit160 for the platooning group or arbitrarily select any one of the other platooning groups. Therefore, thecontrol unit160 may finally decide the platooning group according to the driver's selection.
• When the platooning group is decided as described above, thecontrol unit160 may decide a joining point where theego vehicle10 will join the corresponding platooning group, based on the location of theego vehicle10, at step S600.
• That is, thecontrol unit160 may detect the location of theego vehicle10 through thenavigation unit130, receive a platooning driving trajectory from theleader vehicle20 of the corresponding platooning group, and decide a joining point where the ego vehicle will join the platooning group, according to the location of theego vehicle10 and the platooning driving trajectory of the platooning group.
• At this time, when a plurality of joining points are decided, thecontrol unit160 may decide a joining point according to one or more of distances to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, traffic condition information of the joining points, accident risks of the joining points and fees to the joining points. Then, thecontrol unit160 may finally decide a joining point according to weights applied to the distances to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, the traffic condition information of the joining points, the accident risks of the joining points and the fees to the joining points.
• Furthermore, thecontrol unit160 may output the distances to the joining points from the location of theego vehicle10, the traffic condition information of the joining points, the accident risks of the joining points and the fees to the joining points through theuser interface unit120, and output the joining points. At this time, thecontrol unit160 may finally decide a joining point according to the driver's selection, instead of the joining point decided based on the weights.
• When the joining point is decided, thecontrol unit160 may control thedriving module140 to drive theego vehicle10 to the joining point. When theego vehicle10 reaches a location within a range in which theego vehicle10 can perform short range communication with theleader vehicle20 of the platooning group after arriving at the joining point, thecontrol unit160 may control theapproval handling unit150 to pay for the fee to the platooning, and request theleader vehicle20 of the corresponding platooning group to approve the joining of the platooning group.
• Thecontrol unit160 may decide the location of theego vehicle10 within the platooning group, such that theego vehicle10 can join the platooning group at the corresponding location, at step S700. This process will be described with reference toFIG. 5.
• First, thecontrol unit160 may determine whether theego vehicle10 is an autonomous vehicle, at step S710. When the determination of step S710 indicates that theego vehicle10 is an autonomous vehicle, theego vehicle10 may autonomously join the tail of the corresponding platooning group, or thecontrol unit160 may control theego vehicle10 to join the platooning group at a location selected by the driver, at step S720.
• On the other hand, when the determination of step S710 indicates that theego vehicle10 is not an autonomous vehicle, thecontrol unit160 may control theuser interface unit120 to select any one of the manual joining method and the automatic joining method at step S730.
• At this time, when the manual joining method is selected, thecontrol unit160 may drive the drivingmodule140 to join the platooning group at the location according to the driver's intention at step S740, and turn on the driving assist function at step S750.
• On the other hand, when the automatic joining method is selected, thecontrol unit160 may control thedriving module140 to turn on the driving assist function at step S760, and drive the semi-autonomous function to join the tail of the platooning group at step S770.
• When theego vehicle10 joins the platooning group as described above, thecontrol unit160 may detect a point where theego vehicle10 will leave the platooning group, and determine whether theego vehicle10 has reached a location within a preset distance from the leaving point or an estimated time of arrival at the leaving time falls within a preset time, at step S800.
• When the determination result indicates that theego vehicle10 has reached a location within the preset distance from the leaving point or the estimated time of arrival at the leaving point falls within the preset time, thecontrol unit160 may control theuser interface unit120 to inform the driver that theego vehicle10 will soon arrive at the leaving point, at step S900. Then, theego vehicle10 can leave the platooning group at the leaving point.
• As such, the platooning control apparatus and method in accordance with the embodiments of the present invention can select the platooning group which is most suitable for the driving state of theego vehicle10, among the plurality of platooning groups, and control theego vehicle10 to join or leave the corresponding platooning group.
• Furthermore, the platooning control apparatus and method can propose various options to the driver using a navigation system, smart phone or V2X when platooning is selected, and consider various driving situations when the ego vehicle joins or leaves the platooning group, thereby securing the safety and convenience of theego vehicle10.
• Furthermore, the platooning control apparatus and method can control theego vehicle10 to follow theleader vehicle20 of the platooning group in a different lane, and thus minimize the distance between theego vehicle10 and theleader vehicle20. Therefore, the efficiency of the road can be improved while the following performance for the leader vehicle is improved.
• Although preferred embodiments of the invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as defined in the accompanying claims.

Claims (10)

What is claimed is:

1. A method for controlling a potential following vehicle in a platooning group, the method comprising:

transmitting a join request to the leading vehicle included in the platooning group, wherein the platooning group includes a leading vehicle and at least one following vehicle, wherein the leading vehicle is a first vehicle in the platooning group, and the at least one following vehicle is one or more vehicle operating in the platooning group behind the leading vehicle and connected using a V2V (vehicle-to-vehicle) communication;

receiving vehicle information from the leading vehicle included in the platooning group, wherein the vehicle information comprises vehicle type information of the leading vehicle as well as information about main mounted functions; and

beginning a cruising operation after a join process is completed.

2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the potential following vehicle joins the last following vehicle in the platooning group.

3. The method ofclaim 2, wherein the join process fails based on a planned route of the leading vehicle.

4. The method ofclaim 3, wherein the potential following vehicle drives manually or automatically.

5. The method ofclaim 4, wherein the potential following vehicle comprises at least one truck.

6. A potential following vehicle in a platooning group, the potential following vehicle comprising:

a transceiver configured to transmit a join request to the leading vehicle included in the platooning group and receive vehicle information from the leading vehicle included in the platooning group,

wherein the platooning group includes a leading vehicle and at least one following vehicle,

wherein the leading vehicle is a first vehicle in the platooning group, and the at least one following vehicle is one or more vehicle operating in the platooning group behind the leading vehicle and connected using a V2V (vehicle-to-vehicle) communication,

wherein the vehicle information comprises vehicle type information of the leading vehicle as well as information about main mounted functions; and

a controller configured to begin a cruising operation after a join process is completed.

7. The potential following vehicle ofclaim 6, wherein the potential following vehicle joins the last following vehicle in the platooning group.

8. The potential following vehicle ofclaim 7, wherein the join process fails based on a planned route of the leading vehicle.

9. The potential following vehicle ofclaim 8, wherein the potential following vehicle drives manually or automatically.

10. The potential following vehicle ofclaim 9, wherein the potential following vehicle comprises at least one truck.

Images