JP2024012962A - Automatic driving method, automatic driving system, and automatic driving program - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide an automatic driving method, automatic driving system, and automatic driving program that enable a work vehicle to automatically drive safely and efficiently between multiple areas. [Solution] The automatic driving system 1 is a system that automatically drives a work vehicle 10 along a pre-set inter-field route R12 on a road R0 connecting fields F1 and F2. A driving processing unit 111 stops the work vehicle 10 at a route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12. A notification processing unit 112 notifies, in the field F1, driving information related to driving on the inter-field route R12. [Selected Figure] Figure 16

Description

The present invention relates to an automatic driving method, an automatic driving system, and an automatic driving program for automatically driving a work vehicle.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, work vehicles are known that can perform work while automatically traveling within a field or automatically travel between a plurality of fields. For example, a technique is known in which a route through which a working vehicle can travel from one field to another is determined and displayed on an operator's operating terminal (for example, see Patent Document 1).

JP 2021-29218 Publication

When having a work vehicle automatically travel on a connecting road (road, etc.) that connects one field to another, pay attention to the safety of the connecting road to avoid the work vehicle coming into contact with other vehicles. need to pay.

An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic driving method, an automatic driving system, and an automatic driving program that allow a work vehicle to automatically travel between a plurality of areas safely and efficiently.

The automatic driving method according to the present invention is an automatic driving method that causes a work vehicle to automatically travel according to an inter-area route that is preset for a connecting road connecting a plurality of areas. The automatic driving method executes the following steps: stopping the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route; and reporting travel information regarding travel on the inter-area route in the area.

The automatic driving system according to the present invention is an automatic driving system that causes a work vehicle to automatically travel according to an inter-area route that is preset for a connecting road connecting a plurality of areas. The automatic driving system includes a driving processing section and a notification processing section. The travel processing unit stops the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route. The notification processing unit reports travel information regarding travel on the inter-area route in the area.

The automatic driving program according to the present invention is an automatic driving program that causes a work vehicle to automatically travel according to an inter-area route that is preset for a connecting road connecting a plurality of areas. The automatic driving program causes one or more processors to stop the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route and to notify travel information regarding travel on the inter-area route in the area. This is an automatic driving program.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an automatic driving method, an automatic driving system, and an automatic driving program that allow a work vehicle to automatically travel between a plurality of areas safely and efficiently.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an automatic driving system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an external view showing an example of a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a route between fields for a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4A is a diagram illustrating an example of a target route of a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4B is a diagram illustrating an example of a target route of the work vehicle according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5A is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5B is a diagram showing an example of a teaching operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5C is a diagram showing an example of a teaching operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6A is a diagram showing an example of a teaching operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6B is a diagram showing an example of a teaching operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6C is a diagram showing an example of a teaching operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a route between fields for a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an inter-field route information table according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the procedure of automatic driving processing executed by the automatic driving system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the procedure of a teaching process executed by the automatic driving system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12A is a diagram illustrating an example of an interpolated route of a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12B is a diagram showing an example of an interpolated route of the work vehicle according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a route between fields for a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a route between fields for a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of an inter-region route of the work vehicle according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of notification of a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a running screen of the operating terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of notification of a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of arrangement of a plurality of operation terminals according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a running screen of the operating terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of a running screen of the operating terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 22 is a diagram showing an example of a running screen of the operating terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an example of arrangement of a plurality of operating terminals according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the procedure of automatic driving processing (driving information notification processing) executed by the automatic driving system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 25 is a diagram showing an example of a running screen of the operating terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 26 is a diagram showing an example of a running screen of the operating terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 27 is a diagram showing an example of a running screen of the operating terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 28 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the procedure of the automatic driving process (driving process of the drive source) executed by the automatic driving system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 29 is a block diagram showing another configuration of the automatic driving system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

The following embodiment is an example embodying the present invention, and does not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, an automatic driving system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a work vehicle 10 and an operation terminal 20. Work vehicle 10 and operation terminal 20 can communicate via communication network N1. For example, the work vehicle 10 and the operating terminal 20 can communicate via a mobile phone network, a packet network, or a wireless LAN.

The present embodiment will be described using an example in which the work vehicle 10 is a tractor. Note that in other embodiments, the work vehicle 10 may be a rice transplanter, a combine harvester, a construction machine, a snowplow, or the like. The work vehicle 10 is configured to be able to automatically travel (autonomously) within a field, which is a work area, according to a preset target route. Further, the work vehicle 10 can perform predetermined work while automatically traveling in the field. Further, the work vehicle 10 is configured to be able to automatically travel along roads (connecting roads) connecting a plurality of fields along preset inter-field routes. The work vehicle 10 automatically travels within the field and outside the field (road) according to a preset target route and an inter-field route based on position information of the current position of the work vehicle 10 calculated by the positioning device 16.

For example, the work vehicle 10 performs a predetermined work while automatically traveling along a preset target route R1 (work route) in the field F1 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4A. When the work in the field F1 is completed, the work vehicle 10 automatically travels on the road R0 along a preset inter-field route R12 (travel route) to move to the field F2. For example, the work vehicle 10 automatically travels along an inter-field route R12 that connects the entrance H1 of the field F1 and the entrance H2 of the field F2. When the work vehicle 10 arrives at the field F2, it performs a predetermined work while automatically traveling along a preset target route R2 (work route) in the field F2 (see FIGS. 3 and 4B). The target route R1 in the farm field F1 and the target route R2 in the farm field F2 are appropriately set according to the content of each work. Further, the inter-field route R12 of the road R0 is set according to an operation (teaching operation) by an operator (user). In this embodiment, the inter-field route R12 on the road R0 along which the work vehicle 10 travels from the field F1 to the field F2 is taken as an example, but the inter-field route R12 is the road along which the work vehicle 10 travels from the field F2 to the field F1. It may be a route on R0. Further, when the work vehicle 10 sequentially moves through three or more fields, the inter-field route may be set between the respective fields. The inter-field route R12 is an example of the inter-area route of the present invention. Note that the inter-region route of the present invention is not a route for moving from one field to another (an inter-field route), but a route for simply moving from a first point to a second point on the road R0 (an inter-field route). route). Further, the first point and the second point may be positions specified by a user on a map.

Note that the connecting road of the present invention may be a road exclusively for working vehicles, such as a farm road, forest road, public road, private road, or motorway, or may be a road through which general vehicles (such as passenger cars) can pass.

[Work vehicle 10]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the work vehicle 10 includes a vehicle control device 11, a storage section 12, a traveling device 13, a working machine 14, a communication section 15, a positioning device 16, and the like. The vehicle control device 11 is electrically connected to a storage unit 12, a traveling device 13, a working machine 14, a positioning device 16, and the like. Note that the vehicle control device 11 and the positioning device 16 may be able to communicate wirelessly.

The communication unit 15 connects the work vehicle 10 to the communication network N1 by wire or wirelessly, and executes data communication according to a predetermined communication protocol with an external device such as the operating terminal 20 via the communication network N1. communication interface. Work vehicle 10 can perform wireless communication with operating terminal 20 via communication unit 15 .

The storage unit 12 is a nonvolatile storage unit such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive) that stores various information. The storage unit 12 stores control programs such as an automatic driving program for causing the vehicle control device 11 to execute an automatic driving process (see FIGS. 10, 11, 24, and 28), which will be described later. For example, the automatic driving program is recorded non-temporarily on a computer-readable recording medium such as a flash ROM, EEPROM, CD, or DVD, and is read by a predetermined reading device (not shown) and stored in the storage unit 12. is memorized. Note that the automatic driving program may be downloaded from a server (not shown) to the work vehicle 10 via the communication network N1 and stored in the storage unit 12. Further, the storage unit 12 may store route data of the target route and the inter-field route generated by the operation terminal 20.

The traveling device 13 is a drive unit that causes the work vehicle 10 to travel. As shown in FIG. 2, the traveling device 13 includes an engine 131 (drive source), front wheels 132, rear wheels 133, a transmission 134, a front axle 135, a rear axle 136, a handle 137, and the like. Note that the front wheels 132 and the rear wheels 133 are provided on the left and right sides of the work vehicle 10, respectively. Further, the traveling device 13 is not limited to a wheel type including front wheels 132 and rear wheels 133, but may be a crawler type including crawlers provided on the left and right sides of the work vehicle 10.

The engine 131 is a driving source such as a diesel engine or a gasoline engine that is driven using fuel supplied to a fuel tank (not shown). The traveling device 13 may include an electric motor as a drive source together with or in place of the engine 131. Note that a generator (not shown) is connected to the engine 131, and power is supplied from the generator to electrical components such as the vehicle control device 11 provided in the work vehicle 10, a battery, and the like. Note that the battery is charged by power supplied from the generator. Electrical components such as the vehicle control device 11 and the positioning device 16 provided in the work vehicle 10 can be driven by the electric power supplied from the battery even after the engine 131 is stopped.

The driving force of engine 131 is transmitted to front wheels 132 via transmission 134 and front axle 135, and then transmitted to rear wheels 133 via transmission 134 and rear axle 136. Further, the driving force of the engine 131 is also transmitted to the working machine 14 via a PTO shaft (not shown). When the work vehicle 10 performs automatic travel, the travel device 13 performs a travel operation according to commands from the vehicle control device 11.

The work machine 14 is, for example, a mower, a tiller, a plow, a fertilizer applicator, a seeding machine, a spreader, etc., and is detachable from the work vehicle 10. Thereby, the work vehicle 10 can perform various works using each of the work machines 14. In this embodiment, a case will be described in which the working machine 14 is a lawn mower as an example.

For example, the work vehicle 10 is equipped with a directly mounted work implement 14 (grass mower) and performs grass cutting work while traveling within the field F1 and the field F2. Note that the work machine 14 is not limited to a directly mounted type work machine fixed to the work vehicle 10, but may be a towed type work machine towed by the work vehicle 10.

Further, when the work vehicle 10 travels on the road R0 (see FIG. 3), the work vehicle 10 may travel with the work implement 14 attached thereto, or may travel with the work implement 14 removed. For example, when the work vehicle 10 performs grass cutting work in each of the field F1 and the field F2, after the work vehicle 10 finishes mowing the grass in the field F1, the work vehicle 10 runs on the road R0 with the mower attached and moves to the field F2. , and perform grass cutting work in field F2. In addition, when the work vehicle 10 is equipped with a lifting function for the work machine 14, it travels on the road R0 with the work machine 14 raised. For example, when performing different tasks in each of the fields F1 and F2, the work vehicle 10, after completing the work in the field F1, travels on the road R0 with the work equipment 14 removed and moves to the field F2. , the work equipment 14 is attached and the work is carried out in the field F2.

The handle 137 is an operating section operated by the operator or the vehicle control device 11. For example, in the traveling device 13, the angle of the front wheels 132 is changed by an unillustrated hydraulic power steering mechanism or the like in response to the operation of the handle 137 by the vehicle control device 11, and the traveling direction of the work vehicle 10 is changed. When the operator performs a teaching operation (details will be described later), the operator operates the handle 137 to manually drive the work vehicle 10.

In addition to the handle 137, the traveling device 13 includes a shift lever, an accelerator, a brake, etc. (not shown) that are operated by the vehicle control device 11. In the traveling device 13, the gear of the transmission 134 is switched to a forward gear or a reverse gear in response to the operation of the shift lever by the vehicle control device 11, and the traveling mode of the work vehicle 10 is switched to forward or reverse. . The vehicle control device 11 also controls the rotation speed of the engine 131 by operating the accelerator. Further, the vehicle control device 11 operates the brake to brake rotation of the front wheels 132 and the rear wheels 133 using electromagnetic brakes.

The positioning device 16 is a communication device that includes a positioning control section 161, a storage section 162, a communication section 163, a positioning antenna 164, and the like. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the positioning device 16 is provided in the upper part of a cabin 138 in which an operator rides. Further, the installation location of the positioning device 16 is not limited to the cabin 138. Further, the positioning control unit 161, the storage unit 162, the communication unit 163, and the positioning antenna 164 of the positioning device 16 may be distributed and arranged at different positions in the work vehicle 10. Note that, as described above, the battery is connected to the positioning device 16, and the positioning device 16 can operate even when the engine 131 is stopped. Further, as the positioning device 16, for example, a mobile phone terminal, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or the like may be used instead.

The positioning control unit 161 is a computer system including one or more processors and storage memories such as nonvolatile memory and RAM. The storage unit 162 is a nonvolatile memory that stores a program for causing the positioning control unit 161 to execute positioning processing, and data such as positioning information and movement information. For example, the program is recorded non-temporarily on a computer-readable recording medium such as a flash ROM, EEPROM, CD, or DVD, and is read by a predetermined reading device (not shown) and stored in the storage unit 162. be done. Note that the program may be downloaded from a server (not shown) to the positioning device 16 via the communication network N1 and stored in the storage unit 162.

The communication unit 163 connects the positioning device 16 to the communication network N1 by wire or wirelessly, and performs data communication according to a predetermined communication protocol with an external device such as a base station (not shown) via the communication network N1. It is a communication interface for execution.

The positioning antenna 164 is an antenna that receives radio waves (GNSS signals) transmitted from a satellite.

The positioning control unit 161 calculates the current position of the work vehicle 10 based on the GNSS signal that the positioning antenna 164 receives from a satellite. For example, when the work vehicle 10 automatically travels on a field F1, a field F2, a road R0, etc., when the positioning antenna 164 receives radio waves (transmission time, orbit information, etc.) transmitted from each of a plurality of satellites, the positioning The control unit 161 calculates the distance between the positioning antenna 164 and each satellite, and calculates the current position (latitude and longitude) of the work vehicle 10 based on the calculated distance. Furthermore, the positioning control unit 161 uses a real-time kinematic method (RTK-GPS positioning method (RTK method) to calculate the current position of the work vehicle 10 using correction information corresponding to a base station (reference station) close to the work vehicle 10. )) positioning may be performed. In this way, the work vehicle 10 automatically travels using positioning information based on the RTK method. Note that the current position of the work vehicle 10 may be the same as the positioning position (for example, the position of the positioning antenna 164), or may be a position shifted from the positioning position.

The vehicle control device 11 includes control devices such as a CPU, ROM, and RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various types of arithmetic processing. The ROM is a non-volatile storage unit that stores in advance control programs such as a BIOS and an OS for causing the CPU to execute various arithmetic processes. The RAM is a volatile or nonvolatile storage unit that stores various information, and is used as a temporary storage memory (work area) for various processes executed by the CPU. The vehicle control device 11 controls the work vehicle 10 by causing the CPU to execute various control programs stored in advance in the ROM or the storage unit 12.

The vehicle control device 11 controls the operation of the work vehicle 10 in response to various user operations on the work vehicle 10 . Furthermore, the vehicle control device 11 executes automatic travel processing for the work vehicle 10 based on the current position of the work vehicle 10 calculated by the positioning device 16 and the preset target route and inter-field route.

As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle control device 11 includes various processing units such as a travel processing unit 111, a notification processing unit 112, and a drive processing unit 113. The vehicle control device 11 functions as the various processing units by causing the CPU to execute various processes according to the automatic driving program. Further, a part or all of the processing section may be constituted by an electronic circuit. Note that the automatic driving program may be a program for causing a plurality of processors to function as the processing units.

The travel processing unit 111 controls the travel of the work vehicle 10 . Specifically, when the travel processing unit 111 acquires a travel start instruction from the operating terminal 20, it causes the work vehicle 10 to start automatic travel. For example, when the operator presses a start button on the operation screen of the operation terminal 20, the operation terminal 20 outputs a travel start instruction to the work vehicle 10. When the travel processing unit 111 receives a travel start instruction from the operating terminal 20, it causes the work vehicle 10 to start automatic travel. As a result, the work vehicle 10 starts automatically traveling along the target route R1 (see FIG. 4A) within the field F1, for example, and starts the work using the work machine 14. Further, the work vehicle 10 starts automatically traveling along the target route R2 (see FIG. 4B) within the field F2, for example, and starts working with the work machine 14. Further, the work vehicle 10 automatically travels, for example, on the road R0 following the inter-field route R12 (see FIG. 3). That is, the travel processing unit 111 can automatically cause the work vehicle 10 to travel along the inter-field route R12 on the road R0 outside the field. For example, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel on the road R0 connecting the farm fields F1 and F2, following the inter-field route R12 set on the road R0. Note that the target route and the inter-field route along which the work vehicle 10 automatically travels are generated, for example, at the operating terminal 20. The work vehicle 10 acquires route data corresponding to the target route and the inter-field route from the operating terminal 20, and automatically travels according to the target route and the inter-field route.

Furthermore, when the travel processing unit 111 receives a travel stop instruction from the operating terminal 20, it stops the automatic travel of the work vehicle 10. For example, when the operator presses a stop button on the operation screen of the operation terminal 20, the operation terminal 20 outputs a traveling stop instruction to the work vehicle 10.

Further, the travel processing unit 111 stops automatic travel of the work vehicle 10 when the work vehicle 10 detects an obstacle. For example, when an obstacle detection device (not shown) mounted on the work vehicle 10 detects an obstacle within a range of 3 m to 8 m in front of the work vehicle 10, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to travel at a reduced speed. . Further, when the obstacle detection device detects an obstacle within a range of up to 3 m in front of the work vehicle 10, the travel processing unit 111 stops the work vehicle 10.

The notification processing unit 112 reports travel information regarding traveling on the inter-field route in the fields. Further, the travel processing unit 111 controls automatic travel of the work vehicle 10 according to the operator's operation after the notification processing. Specific notification processing by the notification processing unit 112 will be described later.

The drive processing unit 113 controls the drive (stopping, starting, etc.) of a drive source (for example, the engine 131) that drives the working machine 14. Specific drive processing by the drive processing unit 113 will be described later.

[Operation terminal 20]
As shown in FIG. 1, the operation terminal 20 is an information processing device that includes an operation control section 21, a storage section 22, an operation display section 23, a communication section 24, and the like. The operation terminal 20 may be configured with a mobile terminal such as a tablet terminal or a smartphone.

The communication unit 24 connects the operation terminal 20 to the communication network N1 by wire or wirelessly, and performs data communication with external devices such as one or more work vehicles 10 via the communication network N1 according to a predetermined communication protocol. It is a communication interface for executing.

The operation display unit 23 is a user interface that includes a display unit such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display that displays various information, and an operation unit such as a touch panel, mouse, or keyboard that receives operations. The operator can register various information (work vehicle information, field information, work information, etc. to be described later) by operating the operation section on the operation screen displayed on the display section.

The operator also performs an operation (teaching operation) on the operation unit to set an inter-field route R12 for automatically driving the work vehicle 10 on the road R0 (connection road) connecting the fields F1 and F2.

Further, the operator can instruct the work vehicle 10 to start traveling, stop traveling, etc. by operating the operation section. Furthermore, at a location away from the work vehicle 10, the operator determines the driving state of the work vehicle 10, which automatically travels through the fields F1, F2, and the road R0 according to the target route and the route between fields, based on the travel trajectory displayed on the operating terminal 20. It is possible to understand the

The storage unit 22 is a nonvolatile storage unit such as an HDD or an SSD that stores various information. The storage unit 22 stores control programs such as an automatic driving program for causing the operation control unit 21 to execute an automatic driving process (see FIGS. 10, 11, 24, and 28), which will be described later. For example, the automatic driving program is recorded non-temporarily on a computer-readable recording medium such as a flash ROM, EEPROM, CD, or DVD, and is read by a predetermined reading device (not shown) and stored in the storage unit 22. is memorized. Note that the automatic driving program may be downloaded from a server (not shown) to the operating terminal 20 via the communication network N1 and stored in the storage unit 22.

Furthermore, a dedicated application for automatically driving the work vehicle 10 is installed in the storage unit 22 . The operation control unit 21 activates the dedicated application and performs processing for setting various information regarding the work vehicle 10, processing for generating a target route and inter-field route for the work vehicle 10, instructing the work vehicle 10 to travel automatically, and the like.

Further, the storage unit 22 stores data such as work vehicle information, which is information regarding the work vehicle 10, and target route information, which is information regarding the target route. The work vehicle information includes information such as a vehicle number and model for each work vehicle 10. The vehicle number is identification information of the work vehicle 10. The model is the model of the work vehicle 10. Note that the work vehicle information regarding one work vehicle 10 may be stored in the storage unit 22, or the work vehicle information regarding a plurality of work vehicles 10 may be stored. For example, when a specific operator owns a plurality of work vehicles 10, the work vehicle information regarding each work vehicle 10 is stored in the storage unit 22.

The target route information includes information such as route name, field name, address, field area, and working time for each target route. The route name is the route name of the target route generated on the operation terminal 20. The field name is the name of the field to be worked on, where the target route is set. The address is the address of the field, and the field area is the area of the field. The working time is the time required for working the field by the working vehicle 10.

When the target route is a route corresponding to road R0 (inter-field route), the target route information includes information such as route name, address, travel distance, and travel time. The route name is the name of the road R0, and the address is the address of the road R0. The travel distance is the distance that the work vehicle 10 travels on the road R0, for example, the distance from the field F1 to the field F2. The traveling time is the time during which the work vehicle 10 travels on the road R0, and is, for example, the time required to travel from the field F1 to the field F2.

Note that the storage unit 22 may store the target route information regarding one target route, or may store the target route information regarding a plurality of target routes. For example, when a specific operator generates a plurality of target routes for one or more fields that he or she owns, the target route information regarding each target route is stored in the storage unit 22. Note that one target route or a plurality of target routes may be set for one field. Further, one inter-field route may be set for one set of fields, or a plurality of inter-field routes may be set. In the present embodiment, the storage unit 22 stores target route information corresponding to the target route R1 (see FIG. 4A) traveling through the field F1 and target route information corresponding to the target route R2 (see FIG. 4B) traveling through the field F2. and target route information corresponding to the inter-field route R12 (see FIG. 3) traveling on the road R0 are stored.

As another embodiment, part or all of the information such as the work vehicle information and the target route information may be stored in a server that can be accessed from the operation terminal 20. The operator may perform an operation to register the work vehicle information and the target route information on the server (for example, a personal computer, a cloud server, etc.). In this case, the operation control unit 21 may acquire the information from the server and execute various processes such as an automatic driving process (see FIGS. 10, 11, 24, and 28) described later.

The operation control unit 21 includes control devices such as a CPU, ROM, and RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various types of arithmetic processing. The ROM is a non-volatile storage unit that stores in advance control programs such as a BIOS and an OS for causing the CPU to execute various arithmetic processes. The RAM is a volatile or nonvolatile storage unit that stores various types of information, and is used as a temporary storage memory for various processes executed by the CPU. The operation control unit 21 controls the operation terminal 20 by executing various control programs stored in advance in the ROM or storage unit 22 on the CPU.

As shown in FIG. 1, the operation control unit 21 includes various processing units such as a setting processing unit 211, a reception processing unit 212, an acquisition processing unit 213, a generation processing unit 214, and an output processing unit 215. Note that the operation control unit 21 functions as the various processing units by causing the CPU to execute various processes according to the control program. Further, a part or all of the processing section may be constituted by an electronic circuit. Note that the control program may be a program for causing a plurality of processors to function as the processing units.

The setting processing unit 211 stores information regarding the work vehicle 10 (hereinafter referred to as work vehicle information), information regarding the field (hereinafter referred to as field information), and information regarding how to specifically perform the work (hereinafter referred to as work information). ). The setting processing unit 211 receives an operator's setting operation on the setting screen D1 shown in FIG. 5A, for example, and registers each setting information.

Specifically, the setting processing unit 211 determines the model of the work vehicle 10 , the position where the positioning antenna 164 is attached on the work vehicle 10 , the type of work machine 14 , the size and shape of the work machine 14 , and the size and shape of the work machine 14 . Information such as the position relative to the work vehicle 10, the vehicle speed and engine rotation speed of the work vehicle 10 during work, the vehicle speed and engine rotation speed of the work vehicle 10 while turning, etc., can be registered by the operator on the operating terminal 20. Set information.

Further, the setting processing unit 211 sends information such as the position and shape of the field, the work start position (traveling start position) to start the work, the work end position (travel end position) to end the work, and the work direction to the operating terminal 20. The information is set by performing the registration operation in .

The information on the position and shape of the field can be obtained by, for example, an operator boarding the work vehicle 10 and driving it around the outer circumference of the field, and recording the transition of the position information of the positioning antenna 164 at that time. can be obtained automatically. In addition, the position and shape of the field are obtained based on a polygon obtained by the operator specifying multiple points on the map by operating the operating terminal 20 with the map displayed on the operating terminal 20. You can also. The area specified by the acquired position and shape of the field is an area (driving area) in which the work vehicle 10 can travel.

For example, the setting processing unit 211 registers the field information of the field F1 shown in FIG. 4A and the field information of the field F2 shown in FIG. 4B.

Further, the setting processing unit 211 includes, as work information, the presence or absence of cooperative work between the work vehicle 10 (unmanned tractor) and the manned work vehicle 10, and the number of work routes to be skipped when the work vehicle 10 turns in a headland. It is configured such that the number of skips, the width of headland, the width of non-cultivated land, etc. can be set.

Further, the setting processing unit 211 generates a target route for automatically driving the work vehicle 10 in the field based on each of the setting information. Specifically, the setting processing unit 211 generates a target route within the field based on the travel start position and travel end position registered in the field setting. For example, as shown in FIG. 4A, the setting processing unit 211 determines the travel start position S1, travel end position G1, straight route r1 (solid line part in FIG. 4A), turning route r2 (solid line part in FIG. 4A), based on the operator's setting operation. A target route R1 including the dotted line portion) is generated. Further, as shown in FIG. 4B, for example, the setting processing unit 211 determines, based on the operator's setting operation, a travel start position S2, a travel end position G2, a straight route r1 (the solid line portion in FIG. 4B), a turning route r2 (the solid line portion in FIG. 4B), A target route R2 including the dotted line portion) is generated. The setting processing unit 211 registers the generated target route R1 in association with the farm field F1, and registers the generated target route R2 in association with the farm field F2.

Here, as shown below, the operation control unit 21 generates an inter-field route of the road R0 connecting a plurality of fields based on an operation (teaching operation) by the operator.

Specifically, the reception processing unit 212 receives the operator's travel operation. For example, the reception processing unit 212 receives a driving operation (manual steering) for manually driving the work vehicle 10 from the field F1 to the field F2. The acquisition processing unit 213 acquires position information of the work vehicle 10 traveling on the road R0 connecting the farm fields F1 and F2 from the positioning device 16 based on the travel operation by the operator. The generation processing unit 214 generates an inter-field route R12 that causes the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel between the fields F1 and F2, based on the position information acquired based on the travel operation by the operator.

For example, the reception processing unit 212 displays the teaching operation screen D2 shown in FIG. 5B and receives an operation to select a field from the operator. On the teaching operation screen D2, field information of a plurality of fields registered by the setting processing section 211 is displayed in a list. The operator selects a plurality of fields as targets for the inter-field route on the teaching operation screen D2.

First, the operator selects the field (here, field F1) where the teaching operation is to be started (see FIG. 5B). When the operator selects the field F1, the reception processing unit 212 displays the selected field F1 in an identifiable manner (displays a dotted frame image) on the map of the teaching operation screen D2 (see FIG. 5B).

Next, the operator selects the field (here, field F2) where the teaching operation is to be completed (see FIG. 5C). When the operator selects the farm field F2, the reception processing unit 212 displays the selected farm field F2 in an identifiable manner (displays a dotted line frame image) on the map of the teaching operation screen D2 (see FIG. 5C).

Upon receiving from the operator an operation to select a plurality of fields to be targeted for an inter-field route, the reception processing unit 212 receives an operation to start a teaching drive. For example, when the operator presses the start button on the teaching operation screen D2 shown in FIG. 6A, the reception processing unit 212 accepts the operation to start the teaching run. Upon receiving the start operation, the reception processing unit 212 sets the route start position Ts1 in the field F1. For example, the reception processing unit 212 sets the current position of the work vehicle 10 at the time when the start operation is received as the route start position Ts1.

As another embodiment, when the reception processing unit 212 receives the start operation from the operator while the work vehicle 10 is located in a predetermined area in the field F1, the reception processing unit 212 may set the route start position Ts1 in the field F1. good. For example, on the condition that the work vehicle 10 is located within the area of the entrance H1 (see FIG. 4A) in the field F1, the reception processing unit 212 receives the start operation from the operator and moves the work vehicle 10 to the route start position in the field F1. Set Ts1. On the other hand, when the work vehicle 10 is located outside the area of the entrance H1 in the field F1, the reception processing unit 212 moves the route start position Ts1 to the field F1 even if the operator's start operation is accepted. Not set. In this case, the reception processing unit 212 may notify a message indicating that the route start position Ts1 cannot be set, a message urging the work vehicle 10 to move into the area of the entrance H1, or the like. According to this configuration, the starting position of the inter-field path for moving between fields can be set in a specific area (for example, entrance H1), so it is possible to limit the position from inside the field to outside the field. can.

Upon receiving the start operation from the operator, the reception processing unit 212 displays a route start position image Ms indicating the route start position Ts1 at the entrance H1 of the field F1 on the map of the teaching operation screen D2 (see FIG. 6A). Further, as shown in FIG. 6A, the reception processing unit 212 displays a guide route Mr (dotted line) connecting the fields F1 and F2 as information for supporting the travel operation of the teaching travel. Thereby, the operator can perform manual travel operation (driving) according to the guide route Mr, and therefore can easily perform the teaching travel operation.

For example, the operator brings the operation terminal 20 into the work vehicle 10 and manually drives the vehicle from the field F1 to the field F2 on the road R0 (see FIG. 3) while checking the guide route Mr displayed on the operation terminal 20. The reception processing unit 212 receives the operator's travel operation (manual steering). The reception processing unit 212 displays the current position image Mp at a position on the guide route Mr corresponding to the current position of the work vehicle 10 on the teaching operation screen D2.

The acquisition processing unit 213 acquires position information of the work vehicle 10 while the operator is teaching the work vehicle 10 on the road R0. Furthermore, the acquisition processing unit 213 acquires information on the traveling speed of the work vehicle 10 during teaching traveling. Note that the acquisition processing unit 213 may acquire information regarding the road R0 during the teaching drive (for example, information on obstacles, road surface conditions, road width, stop lines, speed limits, traffic lights, etc.).

The operator drives the work vehicle 10 to the field F2, and when the work vehicle 10 arrives at the field F2, the operator presses the end button on the teaching operation screen D2 (see FIG. 6B). When the operator presses the end button, the reception processing unit 212 accepts an operation to end the teaching run. Upon receiving the end operation, the reception processing unit 212 sets the route end position Te2 in the field F2. For example, the reception processing unit 212 sets the current position of the work vehicle 10 at the time when the end operation is received as the route end position Te2.

As another embodiment, when the reception processing unit 212 receives the end operation from the operator while the work vehicle 10 is located in a predetermined area in the field F2, the reception processing unit 212 may set the route end position Te2 in the field F2. good. For example, on the condition that the work vehicle 10 is located within the area of the entrance/exit H2 (see FIG. 4B) in the field F2, the reception processing unit 212 receives the end operation from the operator and moves the work vehicle 10 to the route end position in the field F2. Set Te2. On the other hand, when the work vehicle 10 is located outside the field F2 or outside the area of the entrance H2 in the field F2, the reception processing unit 212 does not move the work vehicle 10 to the field F2 even if it receives the operator's termination operation. The route end position Te2 is not set. In this case, the reception processing unit 212 may notify a message indicating that the route end position Te2 cannot be set, a message urging the work vehicle 10 to move into the area of the entrance H2, or the like. According to this configuration, the end position of the inter-field route for moving between fields can be set to a specific area (for example, entrance/exit H2), so it is possible to limit the position where one can enter the field from outside the field. can.

Upon receiving the end operation from the operator, the reception processing unit 212 displays a route end position image Me indicating the route end position Te2 at the entrance H2 of the field F2 on the map of the teaching operation screen D2 shown in FIG. 6C.

Further, when the reception processing unit 212 receives the termination operation from the operator, the generation processing unit 214 moves the work vehicle 10 between the fields F1 and F2 based on the position information of the work vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition processing unit 213. An inter-field route R12 for automatically traveling is generated. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, the generation processing unit 214 connects the route start position Ts1 of the entrance H1 of the field F1 and the route end position Te2 of the entrance H2 of the field F2, and generates a field that passes on the road R0. An intermediate route R12 is generated. The generation processing unit 214 displays the generated route image Mt (solid line) of the inter-field route R12 on the map of the teaching operation screen D2 shown in FIG. 6C.

The generation processing unit 214 notifies the operator whether or not to register the generated inter-field route R12 on the teaching operation screen D2 shown in FIG. 6C. When the operator confirms the inter-field route R12 on the teaching operation screen D2 and presses the registration button, the generation processing unit 214 acquires an instruction to register the inter-field route R12. Upon acquiring the registration instruction, the generation processing unit 214 registers the inter-field route R12 in association with the fields F1 and F2.

Specifically, the generation processing unit 214 registers the inter-field route R12 in the inter-field route information table E1. FIG. 8 shows an example of the inter-field route information table E1. The inter-field route information table E1 includes a route ID, a start field, an end field, position information, speed information, and the like. The route ID is identification information of the route between fields. The route ID "R001" indicates the inter-field route R12. The starting field is information indicating a field corresponding to a route start position of the inter-field route, and the ending field is information indicating a field corresponding to a route end position of the inter-field route. The position information is information indicating the position of the route between fields, and is information on coordinate positions acquired at a predetermined period (sampling interval). The speed information is the traveling speed of the work vehicle 10 when teaching traveling along the route between fields, and is information on the traveling speed for each coordinate position. Every time the operator selects a plurality of fields and performs a teaching operation, the generation processing unit 214 associates the generated inter-field routes with the fields and registers them in the inter-field route information table E1.

When causing the work vehicle 10 to start automatically traveling, the operator selects a plurality of fields and selects an inter-field route for automatically traveling between fields from among the inter-field routes registered in the inter-field route information table E1. Choose from. For example, when the operator selects the fields F1 and F2 on the route generation screen D3 shown in FIG. 9, the operation control unit 21 displays a list of inter-field routes registered in the inter-field route information table E1, Accepts operations to select routes between fields. Although not shown, the operation control unit 21 performs an operation for selecting the target route R1 for the field F1 (see FIG. 4A) and the target route R2 for the field F2 (see FIG. 4B) on the route generation screen D3. accept.

Further, the operation control unit 21 determines whether or not the inter-field route connecting the fields F1 and F2 is registered in the inter-field route information table E1, and the inter-field route is registered in the inter-field route information table E1. If so, the inter-field route is displayed on the route generation screen D3.

The operator performs a selection operation of the field F1 and the field F2, a selection operation of the target route R1 in the field F1 and a target route R2 in the field F2, and a selection operation of the inter-field route R12 moving between the field F1 and the field F2. , when the start button (see FIG. 9) is pressed, the output processing unit 215 outputs the route data of the target route and the route between fields to the work vehicle 10. Note that when the operator selects the fields F1 and F2, the operation control unit 21 selects an inter-field route R12 connecting the fields F1 and F2 from among the inter-field routes registered in the inter-field route information table E1. You can also extract and set it. In this case, the operator's operation for selecting the route between fields can be omitted.

Here, the output processing unit 215 outputs a target route R1 (see FIG. 4A) that is a work route in the field F1, a target route R2 (see FIG. 4B) that is a work route in the field F2, and the fields F1 and F2. Route data including an inter-field route R12 (see FIG. 7), which is an inter-field route connecting between the fields, is output to the work vehicle 10.

When the route data generated by the operation terminal 20 is transferred to the work vehicle 10, the work vehicle 10 stores the route data in the storage unit 12. The work vehicle 10 executes automatic travel processing based on the route data while detecting the current position of the work vehicle 10 using the positioning antenna 164. Note that the current position of the work vehicle 10 usually coincides with the position of the positioning antenna 164.

Further, the work vehicle 10 is configured to be able to automatically travel within the field F1 when the current position matches the travel start position S1 within the field F1 (see FIG. 4A), and when the current position matches the travel start position S1 within the field F1 (see FIG. 4A), the work vehicle 10 is configured to automatically travel within the field F1. The vehicle is configured to be able to automatically travel within the field F2 when the vehicle coincides with the travel start position S2 (see FIG. 4B) within the field F2. Further, the work vehicle 10 is configured to automatically travel along the inter-field route R12 when the current position matches the route start position Ts1 (see FIG. 7) of the entrance/exit H1 of the field F1.

For example, when the current position of the work vehicle 10 matches the travel start position S1 of the field F1, when the operator presses a start button on the operation screen (not shown) to give a travel start instruction, the work vehicle 10 The travel processing unit 111 of No. 10 starts automatic travel along the target route R1.

The travel processing unit 111 automatically travels the work vehicle 10 from the travel start position S1 to the travel end position G1 according to the target route R1 in the field F1 (see FIG. 4A). When the work vehicle 10 reaches the travel end position G1, the operator moves the work vehicle 10 from the travel end position G1 to the route start position Ts1. Note that, as shown in the embodiment described later (see FIG. 12A), the operation control unit 21 may generate a route (interpolated route r31) for automatically traveling the work vehicle 10 from the travel end position G1 to the route start position Ts1. good. In this case, when the work vehicle 10 reaches the travel end position G1, it automatically travels from the travel end position G1 to the route start position Ts1 according to the interpolated route r31.

When the current position of the work vehicle 10 matches the route start position Ts1, the travel processing unit 111 automatically travels the work vehicle 10 from the route start position Ts1 to the route end position Te2 of the field F2 according to the inter-field route R12 (FIG. 7 reference). Note that the vehicle control device 11 temporarily stops the working vehicle 10 when it exits the field F1 onto the road R0, and requests safety confirmation by the operator (notification process described later).

The travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to travel automatically based on position information, speed information, etc. (see FIG. 8) associated with the inter-field route R12. For example, the travel processing unit 111 sets the travel speed corresponding to the speed information (the travel speed during teaching travel) to the upper limit speed, and causes the work vehicle 10 to travel automatically while controlling the travel speed. Note that, when the work vehicle 10 detects an obstacle while automatically traveling on the road R0, the traveling processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel along the inter-field route R12 while avoiding the obstacle.

Further, the traveling processing unit 111 temporarily stops the working vehicle 10 when the working vehicle 10 enters the field F2 from the road R0. When the work vehicle 10 reaches the route end position Te2, the operator moves the work vehicle 10 from the route end position Te2 to the travel start position S2 in the field F2. Note that, as shown in the embodiment described later (see FIG. 12B), the operation control unit 21 may generate a route (interpolated route r32) for automatically driving the work vehicle 10 from the route end position Te2 to the travel start position S2. good. In this case, when the work vehicle 10 reaches the route end position Te2, it automatically travels from the route end position Te2 to the travel start position S2 according to the interpolated route r32.

When the current position of the work vehicle 10 matches the travel start position S2, the travel processing unit 111 automatically travels the work vehicle 10 from the travel start position S2 to the travel end position G2 according to the target route R2 (see FIG. 4B). When the work vehicle 10 reaches the travel end position G2, the travel processing unit 111 ends automatic travel. In this way, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel within the field F1, then automatically travel the inter-field route R12 from the field F1 to the field F2, and then automatically travel within the field F2.

While the work vehicle 10 is automatically traveling, the operator uses the operating terminal 20 to grasp the traveling state within the field F1, the traveling state on the road R0 connecting the fields F1 and F2, and the traveling state within the field F2. Is possible.

Note that the operating terminal 20 may be able to access a website (agricultural support site) of an agricultural support service provided by a server (not shown) via the communication network N1. In this case, the operation terminal 20 can function as an operation terminal for the server by executing a browser program by the operation control unit 21. The server includes each of the above-mentioned processing units and executes each process.

[Automatic driving processing]
Hereinafter, an example of the automatic driving process executed by the automatic driving system 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11.

Note that the present invention can be regarded as an invention of an automatic driving method that executes one or more steps included in the automatic driving process. Furthermore, one or more steps included in the automatic driving process described here may be omitted as appropriate. Note that the steps in the automatic driving process may be executed in a different order as long as similar effects are produced. Further, here, an example will be explained in which the operation control unit 21 executes each step in the automatic driving process, but an automatic driving in which one or more processors execute each step in the automatic driving process in a distributed manner Other embodiments of the method are also contemplated.

Moreover, the route generation method of the present invention is included in the automatic driving method. For example, the teaching process shown in FIG. 11 is an example of a route generation process, and the present invention is an example of a route generation method as a teaching method for executing each step in the teaching process.

In step S1, the operation control unit 21 of the operation terminal 20 determines whether or not a field selection operation has been received from the operator. When the operation control unit 21 receives the field selection operation (S1: Yes), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S2. The operation control unit 21 waits until it receives a field selection operation (S1: No). Here, the operator selects the field F1.

In step S2, the operation control unit 21 determines whether or not a work route selection operation has been received from the operator. When the operation control unit 21 receives the work route selection operation (S2: Yes), the operation control unit 21 shifts the process to step S3. When the operation control unit 21 does not accept the work route selection operation (S2: No), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S1. Here, the operator selects the target route R1 (see FIG. 4A) as the work route corresponding to the field F1.

In step S3, the operation control unit 21 determines whether the field selection operation is completed. For example, when the operator selects the field F1 and the target route R1 and performs a completion operation (S3: Yes), the operation control unit 21 shifts the process to step S4. If the field selection operation is not completed (S3: No), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S1.

Returning to step S1, the operation control unit 21 determines whether or not a field selection operation has been received from the operator. Here, the operation control unit 21 receives an operation to select the field F2 from the operator. Further, in the subsequent step S2, the operation control unit 21 receives an operation from the operator to select the target route R2 (see FIG. 4B) as the work route corresponding to the field F2.

In step S4, the operation control unit 21 determines whether the number of fields selected by the operator is plural. If the number of fields selected by the operator is plural (S4: Yes), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S5. On the other hand, if the number of fields selected by the operator is one (S4: No), the operation control unit 21 shifts the process to step S7.

In step S5, the operation control unit 21 determines whether the inter-field route connecting the plurality of fields selected by the operator has been registered in the inter-field route information table E1 (see FIG. 8). If the inter-field route has been registered (S5: Yes), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S6. On the other hand, if the inter-field route has not been registered (S5: No), the operation control unit 21 shifts the process to step S51 (teaching process to be described later). When proceeding to step S51, the operation control unit 21 executes processing to generate the inter-field route (S51), and converts the generated inter-field route into an inter-field route connecting a plurality of fields selected by the operator. Set (S52). Here, the operation control unit 21 sets the inter-field route R12 generated by the teaching process as the inter-field route connecting the fields F1 and F2 (S52). After step S52, the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S7.

In step S6, the operation control unit 21 selects the inter-field route selected by the operator or the automatically extracted inter-field route from among the inter-field routes registered in the inter-field route information table E1 (see FIG. 8). Set the inter-field route to connect the multiple fields selected by . After that, the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S7.

In step S7, the operation control unit 21 determines whether or not an operation to instruct the vehicle to start traveling is received from the operator. When the operation control unit 21 receives an operation for instructing the start of travel from the operator (S7: Yes), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S8. The operation control unit 21 waits until it receives an operation for instructing the start of travel from the operator (S7: No).

In step S8, the operation control unit 21 outputs the route data to the work vehicle 10. Here, the operation control unit 21 selects a target route R1 (see FIG. 4A) that is a work route in the field F1, a target route R2 (see FIG. 4B) that is a work route in the field F2, and the fields F1 and F2. Route data including an inter-field route R12 (see FIG. 7), which is an inter-field route connecting between the fields, is output to the work vehicle 10.

When the work vehicle 10 acquires the route data, it starts automatic travel in response to an operator's operation. As a result, when the work vehicle 10 automatically travels in the field F1 (see FIG. 4A) from the travel start position S1 to the travel end position G1 according to the target route R1 and finishes the work in the field F1, the work vehicle 10 moves to the route start position Ts1 in the field F1. The vehicle automatically travels on the road R0 (see FIG. 7) from to the route end position Te2 in the field F2. Further, when the work vehicle 10 reaches the route end position Te2, it automatically travels from the travel start position S2 to the travel end position G2 in the field F2 (see FIG. 4B), and finishes the work in the field F2.

In step S9, the operation control unit 21 determines whether the work vehicle 10 has reached the travel end position. Here, the travel end position is the travel end position G2 (see FIG. 4B) in the field F2. When the work vehicle 10 reaches the travel end position (S9: Yes), the operation control unit 21 ends the process. The operation control unit 21 waits until the work vehicle 10 reaches the travel end position (S9: No).

[Teaching process]
FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the teaching process (step S51 in FIG. 10). Here, it is assumed that the operator has selected the fields F1 and F2 as the fields targeted for the inter-field route.

In the teaching process, first in step S21, the operation control unit 21 determines whether or not an instruction to start a teaching operation has been obtained from the operator. When the operation control unit 21 receives a teaching operation start instruction from the operator (S21: Yes), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S22. The operation control unit 21 waits until an instruction to start a teaching operation is obtained from the operator (S21: No).

In step S22, the operation control unit 21 determines whether the current position of the work vehicle 10 is located at the entrance/exit of the field. Here, the operation control unit 21 determines whether the work vehicle 10 is located at the entrance H1 (see FIG. 4A) of the field F1. If the current position of the work vehicle 10 is located at the entrance/exit of the field (S22: Yes), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S23. The operation control unit 21 waits until the current position of the work vehicle 10 is located at the entrance/exit of the field (S22: No).

In step S23, the operation control unit 21 receives an operation to start teaching travel. For example, when the operator presses the start button on the teaching operation screen D2 shown in FIG. 6A, the operation control unit 21 receives an operation to start teaching travel.

Next, in step S24, the operation control unit 21 sets the start position of the inter-field route (route start position). Here, upon receiving the start operation, the operation control unit 21 sets the current position of the work vehicle 10 located at the entrance H1 of the field F1 as the route start position Ts1 (see FIG. 6A). This allows the operator to operate the teaching travel.

For example, the operator brings the operation terminal 20 into the work vehicle 10 and manually navigates the road R0 (see FIG. 3) from the field F1 to the field F2 while checking the guide route Mr (see FIG. 6A) displayed on the operation terminal 20. Let it run.

Next, in step S25, the operation control unit 21 acquires travel information (position information, travel speed information, road information, etc.) of the work vehicle 10 while the operator is teaching the work vehicle 10.

Next, in step S26, the operation control unit 21 determines whether or not an operation to end the teaching run has been received from the operator. When the operation control unit 21 receives an operation to end the teaching run from the operator (S26: Yes), the operation control unit 21 moves the process to step S27. The operation control unit 21 continues the process of acquiring the travel information according to the teaching travel by the operator until it receives an operation to end the teaching travel from the operator (S26: No). For example, when the work vehicle 10 reaches the entrance H2 of the field F2, the operator performs an operation to end the teaching operation (see FIG. 6B).

In step S27, the operation control unit 21 sets the end position of the inter-field route (route end position). Here, upon receiving the end operation, the operation control unit 21 sets the current position of the work vehicle 10 located at the entrance H2 of the field F2 as the route end position Te2 (see FIG. 6C).

Next, in step S28, the operation control unit 21 generates an inter-field route. Specifically, the operation control unit 21 generates an inter-field route R12 for automatically driving the working vehicle 10 between the fields F1 and F2 based on the position information of the working vehicle 10. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the operation control unit 21 connects the route start position Ts1 of the entrance H1 of the field F1 and the route end position Te2 of the entrance H2 of the field F2, and creates an inter-field route R12 that passes on the road R0. generate.

The operation control unit 21 notifies the operator whether or not to register the generated inter-field route R12 on the teaching operation screen D2 shown in FIG. 6C. When the operator confirms the inter-field route R12 on the teaching operation screen D2 and presses the registration button, the operation control unit 21 acquires an instruction to register the inter-field route R12 and connects the inter-field route R12 to the fields F1 and F2. Register in association (see Figure 8).

The operation control unit 21 executes the teaching process as described above, and sets the inter-field route R12 generated in the teaching process as the inter-field route between the farm fields F1 and F2 in step S52 (see FIG. 10).

As described above, the operation control unit 21 executes the automatic driving process. The work vehicle 10 performs predetermined work while automatically traveling in each of a plurality of fields based on the route data transferred from the operation control unit 21, and automatically travels between the fields. Note that the teaching process shown in FIG. 11 may be executed when the work vehicle 10 starts the work, or may be executed when the work vehicle 10 is not allowed to perform the work.

As explained above, the automatic driving system 1 according to the present embodiment accepts the driving operation of the operator, and based on the driving operation, the road R0 (an example of the connecting road of the present invention) connects the field F1 and the field F2. An inter-field route R12 (an example of an inter-field route of the present invention) in which the working vehicle 10 is automatically driven between the fields F1 and F2 based on the position information. generate.

According to the above configuration, a route for automatically traveling between a plurality of fields can be generated according to the operator's travel operation (manual travel operation). Thereby, the work vehicle 10 can reliably travel automatically between a plurality of fields. Furthermore, by storing the inter-field route traveled between fields by manual travel, it is possible to automatically travel between a plurality of fields in the next work, thereby improving work efficiency. Therefore, the work vehicle 10 can automatically work on a plurality of fields in succession.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and may include the following embodiments.

For example, as shown in FIG. 12A, the operation control unit 21 may generate a route (interpolated route r31) that causes the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel from the travel end position G1 to the route start position Ts1. Specifically, when the route start position Ts1 is set in the field F1 (see FIG. 6A), the operation control unit 21 connects the travel end position G1 of the target route R1 in the field F1 and the route start position Ts1. An interpolated route r31 is generated.

Further, as shown in FIG. 12B, the operation control unit 21 may generate a route (interpolated route r32) on which the work vehicle 10 automatically travels from the route end position Te2 to the travel start position S2. Specifically, when the route end position Te2 is set in the field F2 (see FIG. 6C), the operation control unit 21 connects the route end position Te2 and the travel start position S2 of the target route R1 in the field F2. An interpolated route r32 is generated.

The operation control unit 21 registers the generated interpolated routes r31 and r32 in association with the inter-field route R12 between the fields F1 and F2. This allows the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel the entire route from the travel start position S1 in the field F1 to the travel end position G2 in the field F2.

Note that when the work vehicle 10 moves to the farm field F1 to perform work after working in the farm field F2, the operation control unit 21 determines the travel end position G2 and the route start position (route end position) of the target route R2 in the field F2. In the field F1, an interpolated route is generated that connects the route end position (the same position as the route start position Ts1) and the travel start position S1 of the target route R1. That is, in the present invention, when a first target route for automatically driving the work vehicle 10 to the first field is set and a second target route for automatically driving the work vehicle 10 to the second field, The operation control unit 21 controls a first interpolation route that connects the start position or end position of the first target route and a first end position (route start position or route end position), and the start position of the second target route. Alternatively, a second interpolation route connecting the end position and the second end position (route start position or route end position) is generated.

As another embodiment of the present invention, the operation control unit 21 may generate an inter-field route connecting a plurality of other fields by using at least a part of the already registered inter-field route. . For example, if an inter-field route R12 (see FIG. 7) that connects the fields F1 and F2 and an inter-field route R34 (see FIG. 13) that connects the fields F3 and F4 are registered (see FIG. 8), the operation control unit 21 generates an inter-field route between other fields by using at least a part of the inter-field route R12 and the inter-field route R34. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 14, the operation control unit 21 uses a partial route R12a of the inter-field route R12 and a partial route R34a of the inter-field route R34 to and generates an inter-field route R13 between the field F3.

In the example shown in FIG. 14, the operation control unit 21 can generate a plurality of inter-field routes interconnecting each of the fields F1 to F4 using the registered inter-field routes R12 and R34. can.

In the embodiment described above, the field F1 was cited as an example of the first region of the present invention, and the field F2 was cited as an example of the second region, but the first region and the second region of the present invention are not limited to a field. For example, as shown in FIG. 15, the first area may be a field F1, and the second area may be a replenishment area AR1 for replenishing supplies (fuel, seedlings, fertilizer, spray materials, etc.) to the work vehicle 10. good. The operation control unit 21 generates a route R11 (an example of an inter-area route of the present invention) connecting the field F1 and the supply area AR1 in accordance with the teaching operation by the operator.

For example, the work vehicle 10 automatically travels along the route R11 from the route start position Ts1 during work in the field F1, and upon reaching the route end position Ter, executes the replenishment process in the replenishment area AR1. When the replenishment process is completed, the work vehicle 10 automatically travels along the route R11, returns to the field F1, and resumes work. According to the above configuration, the work vehicle 10 can automatically travel to the replenishment area AR1 during work, and can automatically travel from the replenishment area AR1 to the field F1, so that work efficiency can be improved.

Further, in the above configuration, the work vehicle 10 may automatically travel from the field F1 to the replenishment area AR1, and may automatically travel from the replenishment area AR1 to the field F2. In this case, the operation control unit 21 generates a route R11 that connects the field F1 and the replenishment area AR1, and a route that connects the replenishment area AR1 and the field F2. In this way, when the work vehicle 10 moves from one field to another field via a relay point, the operation control unit 21 controls the route connecting the first field and the relay point, and the route between the relay point and the other field. A route connecting the farm and the farm may be generated in accordance with the teaching operation by the operator. Note that the first area and the second area of the present invention may be a discharge area for discharging waste materials (harvested materials, etc.) from the work vehicle 10, or may be a storage area (such as a barn) for the work vehicle 10. Good too. That is, the first area and the second area of the present invention are a field, a replenishment area for replenishing supplies to the working vehicle 10, a discharge area for discharging waste from the working vehicle 10, or a storage area for the working vehicle 10. .

Further, as another embodiment of the present invention, the inter-field route R12 generated by teaching travel from the field F1 to the field F2, for example, may be used as a route for the work vehicle 10 to move from the field F1 to the field F2. , may be used as a route for the work vehicle 10 to move from the field F2 to the field F1.

In the embodiment described above, the operation control unit 21 generates the inter-field route of the road R0 connecting a plurality of fields based on the teaching operation by the operator, but the present invention is not limited thereto. As another embodiment, the operation control unit 21 may generate the inter-field route based on a travel trajectory traveled by the work vehicle 10 in the past. For example, when the work vehicle 10 performs work in the fields F1 and F2, when the work in the field F1 is completed, the operator manually drives the work vehicle 10 from the field F1 to the field F2 and performs the work in the field F2. The operation control unit 21 generates a route between the field F1 and the field F2 based on the trajectory traveled by the work vehicle 10 during the work. In this way, the operation control unit 21 may generate the inter-field route based on the trajectory of the operator manually driving the work vehicle 10 during normal work.

[Traveling information notification processing]
Here, when making the work vehicle 10 automatically travel on an inter-field route (inter-area route) connecting one farm field and another farm field, in order to avoid the work vehicle 10 coming into contact with other vehicles, etc. It is necessary to pay attention to the safety of the route. The automatic driving system 1 according to the present embodiment has a configuration that allows the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel between a plurality of areas safely and efficiently, as described below.

Specifically, the travel processing unit 111 stops (temporarily stops) the work vehicle 10 at the end point of the route between fields. Furthermore, the notification processing unit 112 notifies the traveling information regarding the traveling of the inter-field route in the fields.

FIG. 16 shows an example in which the work vehicle 10 travels along the inter-field route R12 and moves to the field F2 after completing work in the field F1. As shown in FIG. 12A, when the work vehicle 10 completes the work according to the target route R1 in the field F1, the travel processing unit 111 moves the work vehicle 10 on an interpolated route from the travel end position G1 to the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12. Make r31 run automatically. The route start position Ts1 is set, for example, at the entrance/exit H1 of the field F1, as shown in FIG. 16. When the work vehicle 10 reaches the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12, the travel processing unit 111 temporarily stops the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1.

After the travel processing unit 111 stops the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1, the notification processing unit 112 causes the work vehicle 10 and the operating terminal 20 to report the travel information. The travel information includes at least one of stop information indicating that the work vehicle 10 has stopped, and inquiry information inquiring whether or not to restart the travel of the work vehicle 10. Note that the operation terminal 20 to be notified may be an operation terminal operated by an operator of the work vehicle 10, or may be an operation terminal operated by a supervisor who monitors the work vehicle 10. That is, users of the present invention include operators, supervisors, workers, and the like.

For example, as shown in FIG. 16, the notification processing unit 112 causes the work vehicle 10 to output the stop information (a message of "temporarily stopped"). In this manner, the notification processing unit 112 outputs a message regarding the stoppage information as a voice in order to draw attention to the surroundings of the work vehicle 10. Note that the notification processing unit 112 may turn on or blink an indicator light mounted on the work vehicle 10.

Further, the notification processing unit 112 causes the operation terminal 20 to display the stop information and the inquiry information. For example, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the notification processing unit 112 displays the stop information (“Tractor is stopped. Please check the safety of the surrounding area and resume running." message) and the above inquiry information ("Resume running" button, "Hold" button) are displayed. Thereby, the operator A can understand that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped at the entrance H1 of the field F1.

Operator A can issue an instruction to cancel the temporary stop state of work vehicle 10 and resume automatic travel on travel screen D4 (see FIG. 17). For example, the operator A moves to the stop position of the work vehicle 10 and visually confirms the safety of the surroundings of the work vehicle 10 and the road R0, and then presses the "resume travel" button on the travel screen D4 shown in FIG. 17. When operator A presses the "resume running" button, operation control unit 21 of operating terminal 20 receives operator A's operation and outputs an instruction to resume running to work vehicle 10 .

When the traveling processing unit 111 obtains the traveling restart instruction from the operating terminal 20, the traveling processing unit 111 cancels the paused state at the route start position Ts1 and causes the work vehicle 10 to resume automatic traveling. That is, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to start automatic travel from the route start position Ts1 to the inter-field route R12.

Furthermore, when the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to resume automatic travel, the notification processing unit 112 notifies the work vehicle 10 of restart information indicating that the work vehicle 10 will resume travel. For example, as shown in FIG. 18, the notification processing unit 112 causes the work vehicle 10 to output the resumption information (message “resume running”) as a voice. In this manner, the notification processing unit 112 outputs a message regarding the restart information in voice in order to alert those around the work vehicle 10. Furthermore, the notification processing unit 112 may display the restart information on the operating terminal 20.

Furthermore, the notification processing unit 112 may display an image P1 taken by a camera mounted on the work vehicle 10 on the traveling screen D4 (see FIG. 17). Further, when the operating terminal 20 is located within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10, the operator of the operating terminal 20 can move close to the working vehicle 10 and visually check it. Therefore, the notification processing unit 112 displays the image P1 when the operation terminal 20 is located at a location exceeding a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10, and when the operation terminal 20 is located within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10. A configuration may also be adopted in which the image P1 is not displayed. Note that the image P1 may include captured images of the front, left and right, and rear of the work vehicle 10.

Here, the vehicle control device 11 may cancel the temporary stop state of the work vehicle 10 and resume automatic travel on the condition that the operator visually confirms safety. Specifically, the notification processing unit 112 displays the stop information on the operation terminal 20 when the work vehicle 10 stops at the route start position Ts1, and when the operation terminal 20 comes within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10. display the inquiry information. For example, when the travel processing unit 111 stops the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1, the notification processing unit 112 causes the travel screen D4 of the operation terminal 20 to display that the work vehicle 10 is stopped, and displays the message “Traveling”. Do not display the "Resume" button. When operator A approaches the work vehicle 10 and comes within a predetermined distance in order to restart the automatic travel of the work vehicle 10, the notification processing unit 112 displays a "resume travel" button on the travel screen D4. This allows operator A to press the "resume running" button when the operator A approaches the work vehicle 10 to a position where the surroundings can be visually confirmed. That is, when operator A is at a position exceeding a predetermined distance from work vehicle 10, operator A cannot restart automatic travel of work vehicle 10. According to this configuration, the operator A can reliably check the surroundings of the work vehicle 10 before the work vehicle 10 automatically travels on the road R0.

As another embodiment, the vehicle control device 11 may cause a plurality of operating terminals 20 to notify the traveling information. For example, FIG. 19 shows a field F1 and a field F2 where the work vehicle 10 (tractor X) works, and a field F3 where another work vehicle works. The work vehicle 10 automatically travels along the inter-field route R12 and moves from the field F1 to the field F2. Operator A manages the work in the fields F1 and F2, and operator B manages the work in the field F3.

In this case, the notification processing unit 112 displays the stop information and the inquiry information as the traveling information on the operating terminal 20a of the operator A in the field F1, and the operator B in the field F3 who is not connected to the inter-field route R12. The operating terminal 20b displays only the stop information as the travel information. In this way, the notification processing unit 112 displays information indicating that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped on each of the plurality of operation terminals 20, and also displays information indicating that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped, and also displays information indicating that the work vehicle 10 has stopped automatically on the inter-field route R12. Inquiry information is displayed on the operation terminal 20a of A to inquire whether or not to restart automatic driving.

That is, the vehicle control device 11 notifies operators around the work vehicle 10 that the work vehicle 10 is about to travel on the road R0, and also has the authority (authority) to instruct (permit) the work vehicle 10 to travel on the road R0. The authority to resume traveling is granted only to the operator A who manages the work vehicle 10. As a result, in the example shown in FIG. 19, operator B in the field F3 can also recognize that the work vehicle 10 in the field F1 is about to travel on the road R0, so he can visually confirm the safety of the road R0. can do.

As another embodiment, the vehicle control device 11 may notify other operators of the inquiry information when the operator A does not instruct the temporarily stopped work vehicle 10 to resume automatic travel (travel restart instruction). good. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 19, when the notification processing unit 112 causes the operating terminal 20a to display a "resume running" button as the inquiry information, operator A does not notice the notification and does not press the "resume running" button. There are cases. In this case, the notification processing unit 112 causes the inquiry information (the "resume running" button) to be displayed on the operating terminal 20b of the operator B. Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the notification processing unit 112 may display on the operating terminal 20a that the operator B has been notified of the inquiry information (granted the authority to resume traveling).

FIG. 21 shows an example of the running screen D4 of the operating terminal 20b. When the operator B in the field F3 confirms the inquiry information, he moves to the stopping position of the work vehicle 10 in the field F1, visually confirms the safety of the surroundings of the work vehicle 10 and the road R0, and displays " Press the "Resume driving" button. When operator B presses the "resume running" button (see FIG. 21), the operation control unit 21 of the operating terminal 20b accepts the operation by operator B and outputs an instruction to resume running to the work vehicle 10.

Note that, when the notification processing unit 112 does not obtain the driving restart instruction within a predetermined period of time after the driving information (the inquiry information) is notified in the operating terminal 20a, The travel information (the inquiry information) may be notified. Specifically, the notification processing unit 112 may display the inquiry information on the operating terminal 20b when the running restart instruction is not obtained from the operating terminal 20a within a predetermined time after notifying the operator A. That is, if the operator of the work vehicle 10 does not issue the travel restart instruction within the predetermined time, the vehicle control device 11 grants (delegates) the authority to issue the travel restart instruction to another operator.

Further, the notification processing unit 112 causes the operation terminal 20a to notify the travel information (the inquiry information), and then performs an operation in which the operator A delegates the authority to issue the travel restart instruction to another operator (for example, the operator B). It's okay. For example, when operator A is working and cannot move to the position of work vehicle 10 because he cannot take his hands off, operator A delegates the authority to instruct operator B to resume traveling at the operation terminal 20a as shown in FIG. 22. (for example, pressing the "Delegate to another operator" button). The notification processing unit 112 causes the operation terminal 20b to display the inquiry information in response to the operator A's operation.

According to this configuration, even if the operator A in the field F1 is unable to give the above-mentioned travel restart instruction, the other operator B moves to the stop position of the work vehicle 10 and moves around the work vehicle 10 to the road R0. It is possible to visually confirm the safety of vehicles and resume automatic driving.

As another embodiment, the vehicle control device 11 notifies a plurality of other operators of the inquiry information when the operator A does not instruct the temporarily stopped work vehicle 10 to restart automatic travel (travel restart instruction). It's okay. For example, the example shown in FIG. 23 shows fields F1 and F2 where the work vehicle 10 (tractor X) works, and fields F3 to F5 where the other work vehicles 10 work. The work vehicle 10 automatically travels along the inter-field route R12 and moves from the field F1 to the field F2. Operator A manages the work in the fields F1 and F2, operator B manages the work in the field F3, operator C manages the work in the field F4, and operator D manages the work in the field F5.

In this case, the notification processing unit 112 displays the stop information and the inquiry information as the traveling information on the operating terminal 20a of the operator A who is in the field F1, and who is in the fields F3 to F5 not connected to the inter-field route R12. The stop information is displayed as the running information on the operation terminals 20b to 20d of operators B to D. Furthermore, the notification processing unit 112 causes the inquiry information to be displayed on the operating terminal 20 determined based on the priority among the plural operating terminals 20b to 20d. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 23, the notification processing unit 112 causes the inquiry information (the "resume running" button) to be displayed on the operating terminal 20d closest to the work vehicle 10 among the operating terminals 20b to 20d. In this way, by giving the operator D of the operating terminal 20d closest to the work vehicle 10 the authority to issue the travel restart instruction, safety confirmation can be quickly performed when the work vehicle 10 travels on the road R0. In this way, the notification processing unit 112 determines whether operator A has not given the travel restart instruction within the predetermined time, or if operator A has performed an operation to delegate the authority to issue the travel restart instruction to another operator. In this case, the authority to issue the travel restart instruction is granted (delegated) to an operator according to the priority order.

Note that the vehicle control device 11 may set the priority order in order of proximity to the work vehicle 10. In this case, for example, when the notification processing unit 112 does not obtain the travel start instruction from the operator D of the operation terminal 20d having the first priority closest to the work vehicle 10, the notification processing unit 112 The inquiry information is displayed on the second-place operation terminal 20b. Specifically, the notification processing unit 112 determines that if the operator D does not issue the travel restart instruction within the predetermined time, or if the operator D performs an operation to delegate the authority to issue the travel restart instruction to another operator. In this case, the operator B is given (delegated) the authority to issue the travel restart instruction.

Further, the vehicle control device 11 may display the inquiry information on the operating terminal 20 of an operator who is not working on the work vehicle to be managed, among the plurality of operating terminals 20b to 20d. For example, if a work vehicle in field F3 and a work vehicle in field F5 are working, and a work vehicle in field F4 is not working, operator C in field F4 is in a situation where the work load is light. In this case, the notification processing unit 112 may display the inquiry information on the operator C's operating terminal 20c. In this manner, the notification processing unit 112 may delegate the authority to issue the driving restart instruction based on the priority order according to the work situation.

In another embodiment, the notification processing unit 112 may notify the travel information before reaching the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12. Specifically, while the work vehicle 10 is automatically traveling along the interpolated route r31 from the travel end position G1 to the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12 (see FIG. 12A), the notification processing unit 112 controls the work vehicle 10 and the operation terminal. In step 20, the traveling information may be notified.

In another embodiment, the vehicle control device 11 may maintain the work vehicle 10 in a stopped state when the operator presses a "hold" button on the travel screen D4. For example, when the work vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped and the operator A is working and cannot take his hand off, he presses the "Hold" button (see FIG. 17, etc.) on the travel screen D4. In this case, the notification processing unit 112 waits for an instruction from operator A without delegating the authority to issue the travel start instruction to another operator. Thereafter, when the operator A moves close to the work vehicle 10 and presses the "resume running" button after confirming safety (see FIG. 17), the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to resume automatic travel. In this way, if the operator A intends to perform an operation to restart the automatic traveling of the work vehicle 10, the stopped state of the work vehicle 10 can be maintained by pressing the "Hold" button.

In another embodiment, the vehicle control device 11 may temporarily stop the work vehicle 10 at the route end position Te2 of the inter-field route R12 and notify the travel information. Specifically, after stopping the work vehicle 10 at the route end position Te2, the vehicle control device 11 controls the work vehicle 10 and the operating terminal 20 located in the field that can communicate with the work vehicle 10 to Make information public.

As described above, the vehicle control device 11 stops the work vehicle 10 at the end point (the route start position Ts1 or the route end position Te2) of the inter-field route R12, and reports the travel information regarding the travel on the inter-field route R12. In another embodiment, the vehicle control device 11 may cause the work vehicle 10 automatically traveling on the inter-field route R12 to temporarily stop at an intersection of the road R0 and notify the travel information.

In another embodiment, the vehicle control device 11 may notify an operator at a remote location of the travel information when the work vehicle 10 is stopped at an end point of the inter-field route R12. For example, when the work vehicle 10 temporarily stops in the field F1, the notification processing unit 112 causes the stop information and the inquiry information to be displayed on the operating terminal 20 of an operator located at a remote location. Furthermore, in this case, the notification processing unit 112 displays the image P1 taken by the camera mounted on the work vehicle 10 on the driving screen D4 to notify the operator of the situation around the work vehicle 10 and the road R0. Note that the vehicle control device 11 may prohibit a remote operator from instructing the work vehicle 10 to resume automatic travel. Further, when the vehicle control device 11 receives an instruction to resume automatic travel of the work vehicle 10 from an operator in a remote location, the vehicle control device 11 automatically restarts the work vehicle 10 on the condition that there is another operator near the work vehicle 10. A configuration may be adopted in which resumption of running is permitted.

[Automatic driving processing]
FIG. 24 shows an example of an automatic driving process (driving information reporting process) executed by the vehicle control device 11. Here, it is assumed that the work vehicle 10 automatically travels in order through the field F1, the inter-field route R12, and the field F2 (see FIG. 23).

First, in step S31, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work machine 14 to perform work within the field F1 while automatically driving the work vehicle 10 along the target route R1 (see FIG. 4A).

Next, in step S32, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether the work vehicle 10 has reached the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12. When the vehicle control device 11 determines that the work vehicle 10 has reached the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12 (S32: Yes), the process proceeds to step S33. On the other hand, when the vehicle control device 11 determines that the work vehicle 10 has not reached the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12 (S32: No), the process proceeds to step S31.

In step S33, the vehicle control device 11 temporarily stops the work vehicle 10. For example, the vehicle control device 11 temporarily stops the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1 of the entrance H1 (see FIG. 23).

Next, in step S34, the vehicle control device 11 notifies the operator A in the field F1 that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped. Specifically, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work vehicle 10 to output the stop information (message "temporarily stopped") (see FIG. 16), and displays the stop information and the above to the operation terminal 20a of the operator A. Inquiry information ("resume running" button, "hold" button) is displayed (see FIG. 17).

Next, in step S35, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether or not the travel start instruction has been obtained from the operating terminal 20. When the vehicle control device 11 acquires the travel start instruction from the operating terminal 20a of the operator A (S35: Yes), the vehicle control device 11 moves the process to step S36. On the other hand, when the vehicle control device 11 does not obtain the travel start instruction from the operating terminal 20a of the operator A (S35: No), the vehicle control device 11 shifts the process to step S351.

In step S351, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether a predetermined time has elapsed. Specifically, the vehicle control device 11 controls the vehicle control device 11 for a predetermined period of time (for example, 5 minutes) from the time when the work vehicle 10 and the operation terminal 20 notify that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped (or from the time when the work vehicle 10 has stopped). It is determined whether or not the period has elapsed. When the vehicle control device 11 determines that the predetermined time has elapsed (S351: Yes), the process proceeds to step S352. On the other hand, if the vehicle control device 11 determines that the predetermined time has not elapsed (S351: No), the process proceeds to step S35.

In other words, the vehicle control device 11 causes the operation terminal 20a (operator A) to initiate the travel start from the operation terminal 20a (operator A) until a predetermined period of time elapses from the time when the work vehicle 10 and the operation terminal 20 notify that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped. If the instruction is obtained, the process proceeds to step S35, and if the travel start instruction is not obtained from the operation terminal 20a (operator A) before the predetermined time period elapses, the process proceeds to step S352. Migrate.

In step S352, the vehicle control device 11 notifies other operators that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 23, the vehicle control device 11 causes the inquiry information (the "resume running" button and the "hold" button) to be displayed on the operation terminal 20d of the operator D closest to the work vehicle 10.

Next, in step S353, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether or not the travel start instruction has been obtained from the operating terminal 20d. When the vehicle control device 11 acquires the travel start instruction from the operating terminal 20d of the operator D (S353: Yes), the vehicle control device 11 moves the process to step S36. On the other hand, when the vehicle control device 11 does not acquire the travel start instruction from the operation terminal 20d of the operator D (S352: No), the process proceeds to step S352. Here, if the operator D does not give the travel start instruction (S352: No), the vehicle control device 11 causes the work vehicle 10 to temporarily stop at the operator B who is next to the work vehicle 10 after the operator D in step S352. Report what has happened.

In this way, the vehicle control device 11 repeats the process of step S352 until it obtains the travel start instruction from any operator near the work vehicle 10.

In step S36, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work vehicle 10 to resume automatic travel on the inter-field route R12. That is, the vehicle control device 11 cancels the temporary stop state at the route start position Ts1, and causes the work vehicle 10 to start automatic traveling from the route start position Ts1 along the inter-field route R12.

Next, in step S37, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether the work vehicle 10 has reached the route end position Te2 of the inter-field route R12. When the vehicle control device 11 determines that the work vehicle 10 has reached the route end position T2e of the inter-field route R12 (S37: Yes), the process proceeds to step S38. On the other hand, the vehicle control device 11 continues the automatic traveling of the inter-field route R12 until the work vehicle 10 reaches the route end position Te2 of the inter-field route R12 (S37: No).

In step S38, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work machine 14 to perform work within the field F2 while automatically driving the work vehicle 10 along the target route R2 (see FIG. 4B). The vehicle control device 11 ends the travel control process when the work vehicle 10 finishes working in the field F2. As described above, the vehicle control device 11 executes the automatic driving process (driving information reporting process).

As described above, the automatic driving system 1 according to the present embodiment allows the work vehicle 10 to follow an inter-area route (inter-field route) that is preset for a connecting road (road) connecting a plurality of areas (farms). run automatically. Further, the automatic driving system 1 stops the work vehicle 10 at an end point (start point or end point) of the inter-area route, and reports travel information regarding traveling on the inter-area route in the area. Specifically, after stopping the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12, the automatic driving system 1 stops the work vehicle 10 and an operation terminal 20 located in the field that can communicate with the work vehicle 10. In this case, stop information indicating that the work vehicle 10 has stopped and inquiry information asking whether or not to restart the travel of the work vehicle 10 are notified.

Thereby, the operator can move to the stop position of the work vehicle 10 and visually confirm the safety of the surroundings of the work vehicle 10 and the road R0. Further, the operator can resume automatic driving of the work vehicle 10 on the road R0 after confirming safety. Therefore, it becomes possible to cause the work vehicle 10 to automatically travel between a plurality of fields safely and efficiently.

[Drive processing of drive source]
By the way, if none of the operators instructs the work vehicle 10 to start traveling while the work vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped, a problem arises in that the work vehicle 10 remains stopped and automatic travel on the road R0 is not started. The automatic driving system 1 according to the present embodiment has a configuration that allows the work vehicle 10 to efficiently travel automatically between a plurality of areas, as described below.

For example, the automatic driving system 1 causes the working vehicle 10 to start automatic driving on the road R0 (inter-field route R12) if a predetermined condition is satisfied after the working vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped.

Specifically, when the operator is within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10 in the field F1 corresponding to the stop position of the work vehicle 10, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to start automatically traveling along the inter-field route R12. let

For example, when the vehicle control device 11 detects that the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to start automatically traveling on the inter-field route R12. The vehicle control device 11 may determine whether the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10 using a sensor provided in the driver's seat of the work vehicle 10. Further, the vehicle control device 11 may acquire position information of the operation terminal 20 and determine whether the operator who owns the operation terminal 20 has boarded the work vehicle 10 based on the position information.

In this way, even if the work vehicle 10 temporarily stops at the route start position Ts1 in the field F1 and the operator does not give an instruction to resume traveling, the travel processing unit 111 can detect that the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10. If detected, the automatic running of the work vehicle 10 is restarted. Thereby, when the operator boards the work vehicle 10, automatic travel can be quickly restarted. Note that the vehicle control device 11 may be capable of switching to manual travel mode when an operator gets on the work vehicle 10. In the manual driving mode, the operator may be able to manually steer the vehicle, or may only be able to perform a vehicle speed change operation.

Further, the travel processing unit 111 may cause the work vehicle 10 to start automatically traveling on the inter-field route R12 after a predetermined period of time has passed since the vehicle control device 11 detects the operator within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10. For example, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to start automatic travel 30 seconds after the vehicle control device 11 detects the operator. Further, as shown in FIG. 25, the notification processing unit 112 notifies the operator A that the vehicle control device 11 has detected the operator and that the work vehicle 10 is to start automatic travel after a predetermined period of time (for example, 30 seconds) has passed. The operation terminal 20 may also be notified. Note that the operator within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10 and the operator boarding the work vehicle 10 may be the operator A of the field F1, or may be another operator, a supervisor, a worker, or the like.

Further, in the travel screen D4 shown in FIG. 25, when the operator A presses the "Hold" button, the travel processing unit 111 causes the work vehicle 10 to continue the paused state without starting automatic travel. For example, if the operator A wishes to check the safety of the work vehicle 10, the operator A presses the "Hold" button on the travel screen D4 shown in FIG. 25. In this case, even if the travel processing unit 111 detects an operator on the work vehicle 10, it does not restart automatic travel and maintains the stopped state.

As another embodiment, the travel processing unit 111 may cause the work vehicle 10 to start automatically traveling on the inter-field route R12 when the operating terminal 20 is located within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10. For example, when the operating terminal 20 is located within several meters (for example, 3 meters) from the work vehicle 10, the operator can visually confirm the safety of the road R0, so the travel processing unit 111 10 is released from the temporary stop state, and the work vehicle 10 is caused to resume automatic travel from the route start position Ts1 along the inter-field route R12. That is, in the present invention, the travel processing unit 111 allows resumption of automatic travel when the operator boards the work vehicle 10 or when the operator is within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10.

In another embodiment, when the vehicle control device 11 detects an operator within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10 after the work vehicle 10 stops until a predetermined time elapses, the travel processing unit 111 may cause the work vehicle 10 to start automatically traveling on the inter-field route R12. Further, if the vehicle control device 11 does not detect an operator within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10 after the work vehicle 10 stops until a predetermined time elapses, the drive processing unit 113 The drive source of the work vehicle 10 may be stopped.

For example, if no operator gives the instruction to start traveling while the work vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped, and if there is no operator near the work vehicle 10 (or if no operator is on the work vehicle 10), the engine 131 remains in operation, and fuel is wasted. Therefore, the drive processing unit 113 stops the engine 131 when the work vehicle 10 remains in a paused state for a predetermined period of time (for example, 10 minutes). Thereby, wasteful consumption of fuel can be suppressed.

Note that if the engine 131 is stopped while the work vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped at the entrance H1, it will obstruct the entry and exit of other vehicles. Furthermore, if the entrance/exit H1 is inclined, the work vehicle 10 will stop in an inclined position. Therefore, the drive processing unit 113 may stop the engine 131 after moving the work vehicle 10 from the route start position Ts1 (stop position) of the entrance H1 to a predetermined position in the field F1. For example, the drive processing unit 113 stops the engine 131 after moving the work vehicle 10 to a flat area in the field F1 near the entrance H1.

When stopping the engine 131 of the work vehicle 10, the notification processing unit 112 displays a message to the effect that the engine 131 is to be stopped on the driving screen D4, as shown in FIG. Note that in the travel screen D4 shown in FIG. 26, when the operator A presses the "Hold" button, the drive processing unit 113 continues the operating state without stopping the engine 131. For example, when operator A can head to the stop position of work vehicle 10, he presses the "hold" button on travel screen D4 shown in FIG. 26.

Further, when the drive processing unit 113 stops the engine 131, the notification processing unit 112 displays a message indicating that the engine 131 has stopped and a “start” button to start the engine 131 on the driving screen D4, as shown in FIG. ” button is displayed. This allows the operator to understand that the engine 131 has stopped. Further, the operator can restart the engine 131 using the operating terminal 20. The drive processing unit 113 restarts the operation of the engine 131 when receiving an operation to restart the operation of the engine 131 from the operation terminal 20 that can communicate with the work vehicle 10 after stopping the engine 131 of the work vehicle 10. .

Note that the notification processing unit 112 may display a "start" button on the driving screen D4 when the operating terminal 20 is located within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10. Thereby, restart of the operation of the engine 131 can be permitted on the condition that the operator can visually confirm the safety of the work vehicle 10. Additionally, when starting the engine 131, the notification processing unit 112 may cause the work vehicle 10 to output a voice message indicating that the engine 131 will be started (for example, "Start the engine").

Here, if the work machine 14 is a work machine that needs to be continuously operated by a drive source (engine 131), such as a sprayer that sprays chemicals, the drive processing unit 113 determines whether the work vehicle 10 has stopped or not. The drive source continues to be driven even while the user is away. Thereby, for example, work (spraying work) can be performed immediately after the work vehicle 10 moves from the field F1 to the field F2. In this way, the drive processing unit 113 may determine whether to stop the engine 131 after the work vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped, depending on the content of the work.

As another embodiment, when the vehicle control device 11 detects an operator located within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10 after temporarily stopping the work vehicle 10 at the route end position Te2 of the inter-field route R12, the vehicle control device 11 10 may resume automatic travel into the field F2.

Note that the drive source of the present invention is not limited to the engine 131, but may be a drive motor that drives the working machine 14, or the like.

[Automatic driving processing]
FIG. 28 shows an example of automatic travel processing (drive processing of the drive source) executed by the vehicle control device 11. Here, it is assumed that the work vehicle 10 automatically travels in order through the field F1, the inter-field route R12, and the field F2 (see FIG. 23).

First, in step S41, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work machine 14 to perform work within the field F1 while automatically driving the work vehicle 10 along the target route R1 (see FIG. 4A).

Next, in step S42, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether the work vehicle 10 has reached the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12. When the vehicle control device 11 determines that the work vehicle 10 has reached the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12 (S42: Yes), the process proceeds to step S43. On the other hand, if the vehicle control device 11 determines that the work vehicle 10 has not reached the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12 (S42: No), the process proceeds to step S41.

In step S43, the vehicle control device 11 temporarily stops the work vehicle 10. For example, the vehicle control device 11 temporarily stops the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1 of the entrance H1 (see FIG. 23).

Next, in step S44, the vehicle control device 11 notifies the operator A in the field F1 that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped. Specifically, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work vehicle 10 to output the stop information (message "temporarily stopped") (see FIG. 16), and displays the stop information and the above to the operation terminal 20a of the operator A. Inquiry information ("resume running" button, "hold" button) is displayed (see FIG. 17).

Next, in step S45, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether or not the travel start instruction has been obtained from the operating terminal 20. When the vehicle control device 11 acquires the travel start instruction from the operating terminal 20a of the operator A (S45: Yes), the vehicle control device 11 moves the process to step S46. On the other hand, when the vehicle control device 11 does not acquire the travel start instruction from the operation terminal 20a of the operator A (S45: No), the vehicle control device 11 moves the process to step S451.

In step S451, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether a predetermined time has elapsed. Specifically, the vehicle control device 11 controls the vehicle control device 11 for a predetermined period of time (for example, 10 minutes) from the time when the work vehicle 10 and the operation terminal 20 notify that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped (or from the time when the work vehicle 10 has stopped). It is determined whether or not the period has elapsed. When the vehicle control device 11 determines that the predetermined time has elapsed (S451: Yes), the process proceeds to step S452. On the other hand, if the vehicle control device 11 determines that the predetermined time has not elapsed (S451: No), the process proceeds to step S461.

In step S461, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10. When the vehicle control device 11 detects that the operator has boarded the temporarily stopped work vehicle 10 (S461: Yes), the process proceeds to step S462. On the other hand, if the vehicle control device 11 does not detect that the operator has boarded the temporarily stopped work vehicle 10 (S461: No), the process proceeds to step S451.

That is, the vehicle control device 11 detects that the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10 during a predetermined period of time from the time when the work vehicle 10 and the operation terminal 20 notify that the work vehicle 10 has temporarily stopped. If the predetermined period of time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S462, and if it is not detected that the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10, the process proceeds to step S452.

In step S462, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether a predetermined time has elapsed. Specifically, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether a predetermined period of time (for example, 30 seconds) has elapsed since it was detected that the operator boarded the work vehicle 10. When the vehicle control device 11 determines that the predetermined time has elapsed (S462: Yes), the process proceeds to step S46. The vehicle control device 11 waits until a predetermined time has elapsed (S462: No).

In addition, when the vehicle control device 11 detects that the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10, the vehicle control device 11 displays the detection of the operator's boarding on the travel screen D4, and automatically controls the work vehicle 10 after a predetermined period of time (for example, 30 seconds) has elapsed. A message indicating that the vehicle will start traveling is displayed (see FIG. 25).

On the other hand, in step S452, the vehicle control device 11 stops the engine 131 of the work vehicle 10. The vehicle control device 11 may stop the engine 131 at the route start position Ts1 where the work vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped, or may stop the engine 131 after moving to a flat area in the field F1 near the entrance/exit H1. Good too. Note that the vehicle control device 11 displays on the driving screen D4 that the engine 131 is to be stopped (see FIG. 26).

Next, in step S453, the vehicle control device 11 notifies the operator that the engine 131 has stopped. For example, as shown in FIG. 27, the vehicle control device 11 displays on the driving screen D4 that the engine 131 has stopped and a "start" button for starting the engine 131.

Next, in step S454, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether an instruction to start the engine 131 has been obtained from the operating terminal 20. When the operator presses the "start" button on the driving screen D4, the vehicle control device 11 obtains an instruction to start the engine 131. When the vehicle control device 11 obtains the instruction to start the engine 131 (S454: Yes), the process proceeds to step S455. The vehicle control device 11 waits until an instruction to start the engine 131 is obtained (S454: No). Note that the operator may start the engine 131 on the driving screen D4, or may board the work vehicle 10 and operate the engine key to start the engine 131.

In step S455, the vehicle control device 11 starts the engine 131, and then shifts the process to step S44. In step S44, the vehicle control device 11 once again notifies the operator that the work vehicle 10 is temporarily stopped, and upon receiving an instruction to resume traveling from the operator (S45: Yes), moves the process to step S46.

In this way, the vehicle control device 11 repeats the above-described process until it obtains the travel restart instruction from the operator.

In step S46, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work vehicle 10 to resume automatic travel on the inter-field route R12. That is, the vehicle control device 11 cancels the paused state at the route start position Ts1, and causes the work vehicle 10 to resume automatic travel from the route start position Ts1 along the inter-field route R12.

Next, in step S47, the vehicle control device 11 determines whether the work vehicle 10 has reached the route end position Te2 of the inter-field route R12. When the vehicle control device 11 determines that the work vehicle 10 has reached the route end position T2e of the inter-field route R12 (S47: Yes), the process proceeds to step S48. On the other hand, the vehicle control device 11 continues the automatic traveling of the inter-field route R12 until the work vehicle 10 reaches the route end position Te2 of the inter-field route R12 (S47: No).

In step S48, the vehicle control device 11 causes the work machine 14 to perform work within the field F2 while automatically driving the work vehicle 10 along the target route R2 (see FIG. 4B). The vehicle control device 11 ends the travel control process when the work vehicle 10 finishes working in the field F2. As described above, the vehicle control device 11 executes the automatic driving process (driving process of the drive source).

As described above, the automatic driving system 1 according to the present embodiment allows the work vehicle 10 to follow an inter-area route (inter-field route) that is preset for a connecting road (road) connecting a plurality of areas (farms). run automatically. Further, the automatic driving system 1 stops the work vehicle 10 at an end point (start point or end point) of the inter-area route, and allows the user to move within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle 10 in the area corresponding to the stop position of the work vehicle 10. When there is a worker, the work vehicle 10 is made to restart automatic travel. Specifically, when the automatic driving system 1 detects that the operator has boarded the work vehicle 10 after stopping the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12, the automatic driving system 1 stops the work vehicle 10 at the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12. Start automatic driving.

Thereby, for example, when the work vehicle 10 attempts to automatically travel on the road R0 following the inter-field route R12, it is possible to avoid a situation where the work vehicle 10 stops at the entrance H1 of the field F1 and does not start automatic travel. Moreover, according to the configuration in which automatic travel is resumed on the condition that an operator is on board, the safety of the work vehicle 10 and the road R0 can be reliably confirmed. Therefore, it becomes possible to cause the work vehicle 10 to travel efficiently and automatically between a plurality of fields.

Note that when the work vehicle 10 is working in the field, the vehicle control device 11 does not perform the process of stopping the engine 131 even if the work vehicle 10 has stopped, The process of stopping the engine 131 is permitted when the work is finished and the engine 131 is stopped at the route start position Ts1.

The automatic driving system 1 according to the present embodiment may include both the above-described notifying process of the traveling information and the driving process of the drive source, or may include only one of them.

In the embodiment described above, one work vehicle 10 is configured to be able to communicate with a plurality of operation terminals 20, and the work vehicle 10 transmits stop information (the travel information) of the work vehicle 10 and the operator to a predetermined operation terminal 20. This is a configuration that notifies the detection information of. The present invention is not limited to the above configuration, and for example, as shown in FIG. May be controlled. For example, when the server 30 identifies the work vehicle 10 that has stopped at the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12, the server 30 connects the operating terminal 20 that manages the work vehicle 10 and one or more of the work vehicles 10 located near the work vehicle 10. The operating terminal 20 is specified and the travel information is notified (FIGS. 20 to 22). In addition, the server 30 identifies the work vehicle 10 that has stopped at the route start position Ts1 of the inter-field route R12, and detects that an operator has boarded the work vehicle 10 or that the engine 131 of the work vehicle 10 has stopped. When this is detected, the operation terminal 20 that manages the work vehicle 10 is notified of the detection information (FIGS. 25 to 27).

As described above, in the embodiment described above, the work vehicle 10 corresponds to the automatic driving system according to the present invention, but the automatic driving system according to the present invention may be configured by the server 30 alone. Further, the automatic driving system according to the present invention may be configured to include the work vehicle 10 and the operation terminal 20, or may be configured to include the work vehicle 10, the operation terminal 20, and the server 30.
[Additional notes to the first invention]
Hereinafter, a summary of the invention extracted from each embodiment related to the above-mentioned notification processing will be added. Note that each configuration and each processing function described in the following supplementary notes can be selected and combined as desired.

<Additional note 1>
An automatic driving method for automatically driving a work vehicle according to an inter-area route set in advance for a connecting road connecting a plurality of areas, the method comprising:
stopping the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route;
reporting travel information regarding travel on the inter-area route in the area;
Automated driving method to perform.

<Additional note 2>
After stopping the work vehicle at a starting point of the inter-area route, the work vehicle and an operating terminal located within the area that can communicate with the work vehicle notify the traveling information;
Automatic driving method described in Appendix 1.

<Additional note 3>
The traveling information includes at least one of stop information indicating that the work vehicle has stopped, and inquiry information inquiring whether to restart traveling of the work vehicle,
causing the work vehicle to audio output the stop information;
displaying the stop information and the inquiry information on the operating terminal;
The automatic driving method described in Supplementary note 1 or 2.

<Additional note 4>
displaying the stop information on the operating terminal when the work vehicle stops;
displaying the inquiry information when the operating terminal is within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle;
Automatic driving method described in Appendix 3.

<Additional note 5>
causing the work vehicle to start automatic travel on the inter-area route when a travel restart instruction is obtained from the operation terminal in response to the inquiry information;
The automatic driving method described in Appendix 3 or 4.

<Additional note 6>
displaying the stop information and the inquiry information on a first operation terminal located in an area connected to the inter-area route;
displaying the stop information on a second operation terminal located in an area not connected to the inter-area route;
The automatic driving method described in any of Supplementary Notes 3 to 5.

<Additional note 7>
further displaying the inquiry information on the second operating terminal when the running restart instruction is not obtained from the first operating terminal;
Automatic driving method described in Appendix 6.

<Additional note 8>
displaying the inquiry information on the second operating terminal determined based on priority among the plurality of second operating terminals;
The automatic driving method described in Appendix 6 or 7.

<Additional note 9>
displaying the inquiry information on the second operating terminal closest to the work vehicle among the plurality of second operating terminals;
The automatic driving method described in any of Supplementary Notes 6 to 8.

[Additional notes to the second invention]
Hereinafter, a summary of the invention extracted from each embodiment related to the above-mentioned drive processing will be added. Note that each configuration and each processing function described in the following supplementary notes can be selected and combined as desired.

<Additional note 1>
An automatic driving method for automatically driving a work vehicle according to an inter-area route set in advance for a connecting road connecting a plurality of areas, the method comprising:
stopping the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route;
When a user is within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle in the area corresponding to the stop position of the work vehicle, causing the work vehicle to resume automatic driving;
Automated driving method to perform.

<Additional note 2>
When detecting that the user has boarded the work vehicle, causing the work vehicle to start automatically traveling the inter-area route;
Automatic driving method described in Appendix 1.

<Additional note 3>
causing the work vehicle to resume automatic driving if a user within the predetermined distance from the work vehicle is detected before a predetermined time elapses after the work vehicle stops;
The automatic driving method described in Supplementary note 1 or 2.

<Additional note 4>
stopping the drive source of the work vehicle if a user within the predetermined distance from the work vehicle is not detected until a predetermined time elapses after the work vehicle stops;
The automatic driving method described in any of Supplementary Notes 1 to 3.

<Additional note 5>
If a user within the predetermined distance from the work vehicle is not detected during a predetermined period of time after the work vehicle stops, the work vehicle is moved from the stopped position to a predetermined position within the area. stopping the drive source of the work vehicle after moving the work vehicle to
The automatic driving method described in any of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4.

<Additional note 6>
The predetermined position is a flat area near an entrance to the area,
Automatic driving method described in Appendix 5.

<Additional note 7>
When the work machine installed on the work vehicle is a work machine that needs to be continuously operated by the drive source, continuously driving the drive source while the work vehicle is stopped;
The automatic driving method described in any of Supplementary Notes 4 to 6.

<Additional note 8>
restarting the operation of the drive source when an operation for restarting the drive source of the work vehicle is received from an operation terminal capable of communicating with the work vehicle after stopping the drive source of the work vehicle;
The automatic driving method described in any of Supplementary Notes 4 to 7.

1: Automatic driving system 10: Work vehicle 11: Vehicle control device 14: Work equipment 20: Operation terminal 30: Server 111: Travel processing section 112: Notification processing section 113: Drive processing section 211: Setting processing section 212: Reception processing section 213: Acquisition processing unit 214: Generation processing unit 215: Output processing unit F1: Field F2: Field G1: Travel end position G2: Travel end position H1: Entrance/exit H2: Entrance/exit R0: Road (connection road)
R1: Target route R2: Target route R12: Inter-field route (inter-area route)
S1: Travel start position S2: Travel start position Ts1: Route start position (starting point)
Te2: Route end position (end point)
r31: Interpolation route r32: Interpolation route

Claims (11)

An automatic driving method for automatically driving a work vehicle according to an inter-area route set in advance for a connecting road connecting a plurality of areas, the method comprising:
stopping the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route;
reporting travel information regarding travel on the inter-area route in the area;
Automated driving method to perform. After stopping the work vehicle at a starting point of the inter-area route, the work vehicle and an operating terminal located within the area that can communicate with the work vehicle notify the traveling information;
The automatic driving method according to claim 1. The traveling information includes at least one of stop information indicating that the work vehicle has stopped, and inquiry information inquiring whether to restart traveling of the work vehicle,
causing the work vehicle to audio output the stop information;
displaying the stop information and the inquiry information on the operating terminal;
The automatic driving method according to claim 2. displaying the stop information on the operating terminal when the work vehicle stops;
displaying the inquiry information when the operating terminal is within a predetermined distance from the work vehicle;
The automatic driving method according to claim 3. causing the work vehicle to start automatic travel on the inter-area route when a travel restart instruction is obtained from the operation terminal in response to the inquiry information;
The automatic driving method according to claim 3 or 4. displaying the stop information and the inquiry information on a first operation terminal located in an area connected to the inter-area route;
displaying the stop information on a second operation terminal located in an area not connected to the inter-area route;
The automatic driving method according to claim 5. further displaying the inquiry information on the second operating terminal when the running restart instruction is not obtained from the first operating terminal;
The automatic driving method according to claim 6. displaying the inquiry information on the second operating terminal determined based on priority among the plurality of second operating terminals;
The automatic driving method according to claim 7. displaying the inquiry information on the second operating terminal closest to the work vehicle among the plurality of second operating terminals;
The automatic driving method according to claim 8. An automatic driving system that automatically travels a work vehicle according to an inter-area route set in advance for a connection road connecting multiple areas,
a travel processing unit that stops the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route;
a notification processing unit that reports travel information regarding travel on the inter-area route in the area;
An automated driving system equipped with An automatic driving program that causes a work vehicle to automatically travel according to an inter-area route set in advance for a connection road connecting multiple areas,
stopping the work vehicle at an end point of the inter-area route;
reporting travel information regarding travel on the inter-area route in the area;
An automatic driving program that causes one or more processors to execute.