JP7578037B2 - Driver identification device and driver identification method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a driver identification device and a driver identification method.

Patent Document 1 discloses a driving diagnosis management system that counts the number of times a driver's driving deviates from at least one of safe driving and fuel-efficient driving as the number of violations, and transmits the number of violations to a management terminal when the number of violations reaches or exceeds a threshold.

JP 2014-071621 A

However, in a configuration for diagnosing drivers' driving, such as the driving diagnosis management system described in Patent Document 1, when multiple drivers use one vehicle, it is necessary to identify the drivers in order to perform driving evaluation for each driver. However, installing a dedicated authentication device increases costs and weight.

The present invention aims to provide a driver identification device and a driver identification method that can identify a driver while suppressing increases in cost and weight.

A driver identification device according to claim 1 includes an acquisition unit that acquires driving information detected by sensors mounted on a vehicle while driving, a score calculation unit that calculates a score for each predetermined driving evaluation item based on the acquired driving information, a driving information accumulation unit that accumulates in a memory area a maximum score, a minimum score and an average score for each driver for the calculated scores for each driving evaluation item, and a driver identification unit that identifies a driver by comparing the acquired scores with the scores accumulated in the memory area, and if the driver cannot be identified, identifies the driver by comparing the scores for the acquired scores for the driving evaluation items, including sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sudden steering and inter-vehicle distance, with the scores accumulated in the memory area. This driver identification device.

In the driver identification device according to claim 1, the acquisition unit acquires driving information detected by sensors mounted on the vehicle while driving. The score calculation unit calculates a score for each of the preset driving evaluation items based on the acquired driving information. Furthermore, the driving information accumulation unit accumulates in a memory area the maximum score, minimum score, and average score for each driver for the calculated scores for each driving evaluation item. The driver identification unit then compares the acquired score with the score accumulated in the memory area to identify the driver. This makes it possible to identify the driver without installing a dedicated authentication device such as a camera that captures an image of the driver or a biosensor.

In addition , drivers with similar scores in multiple driving evaluation items are identified as the same driver. This allows the driver to be identified more accurately as the accumulated score increases. In addition, by notifying the driver of the accumulated score, it is possible to improve the driver's driving technique.

Furthermore, if the driver cannot be identified, the driver is identified by comparing the scores of the acquired driving evaluation items, including the items of speeding and number of reverse drives, with the scores accumulated in the memory area. In this way , the driver can be quickly identified by comparing the acquired scores of some driving evaluation items with the accumulated scores. In addition, if the driver cannot be identified, the remaining driving evaluation items are compared to identify the driver, so the processing load when identifying the driver can be reduced compared to a configuration in which all driving evaluation items are compared each time.

A driver identification method according to claim 5 includes a computer executing a process in which driving information detected by sensors mounted on a vehicle while driving is acquired, a score is calculated for each of predetermined driving evaluation items based on the acquired driving information, a maximum score, a minimum score and an average score for each driver for the calculated scores for each driving evaluation item are stored in a memory area, the driver is identified by comparing the scores for sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sudden steering and vehicle distance among the acquired scores for the driving evaluation items with the scores stored in the memory area, and if the driver cannot be identified, the driver is identified by comparing the scores for the acquired scores for the driving evaluation items including speeding and number of times reversing with the scores stored in the memory area.

As described above, the driver identification device and driver identification method according to the present invention can identify the driver while suppressing increases in cost and weight.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration of a driving diagnosis system according to an embodiment; 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a driver identification device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a server according to the embodiment. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a driver identification device according to an embodiment. FIG. 11 is a table illustrating an example of accumulated information in the embodiment. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of a driver identification process in the embodiment.

A driving diagnosis system S including a driver identification device 10 according to an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the driving diagnosis system S of this embodiment includes a driver identification device 10, a server 12, and a vehicle V. The driver identification device 10, the server 12, and the vehicle V are connected to a network N. Note that although multiple vehicles V are connected to the network N, only one vehicle V is shown in FIG. 1 for ease of explanation.

In the present embodiment, the driver identification device 10 is, as an example, an on-board device mounted on the vehicle V, but is not limited thereto. For example, the driver identification device 10 may be a control device provided outside the vehicle V.

The server 12 is owned by an administrator of multiple vehicles V. That is, the administrator who manages multiple vehicles V owns the server 12, and in this embodiment, as an example, the vehicles V are used as taxis that carry users. The server 12 is also owned by a taxi company.

Here, the driver identification device 10 of this embodiment identifies the driver who drives each vehicle V. The driver identification device 10 also performs driving diagnosis on the driver.

(Hardware Configuration of Driver Identification Device 10)
Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the driver identification device 10. As shown in Fig. 2, the driver identification device 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit: processor) 20, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 22, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 24, a storage 26, a communication I/F (communication interface) 28, and an input/output I/F (input/output interface) 30. Each component is connected to each other via a bus 32 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

The CPU 20 is a central processing unit that executes various programs and controls each part. That is, the CPU 20 reads the programs from the ROM 22 or the storage 26, and executes the programs using the RAM 24 as a working area. The CPU 20 controls each of the above components and performs various calculation processes according to the programs recorded in the ROM 22 or the storage 26.

The ROM 22 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 24 temporarily stores programs or data as a working area. The storage 26 is configured with a HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive) and stores various programs including an operating system and various data. In this embodiment, the ROM 22 or the storage 26 stores programs and various data for performing driver identification processing.

The communication I/F 28 is an interface that allows the driver identification device 10 to communicate with the server 12 and other devices, and uses standards such as CAN (Controller Area Network), Ethernet (registered trademark), LTE (Long Term Evolution), FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface), and Wi-Fi (registered trademark).

The input/output I/F 30 is electrically connected to a forward camera 42, an acceleration sensor 44, a steering angle sensor 46, a center display 48, and a speaker 50.

The forward camera 42 is provided at the front of the vehicle and captures images of the area ahead of the vehicle. Images captured by the forward camera 42 are used, for example, to recognize the distance to the vehicle ahead, lanes, traffic lights, etc.

The acceleration sensor 44 detects the acceleration of the vehicle. The steering angle sensor 46 detects the steering angle of the vehicle. The acceleration data detected by the acceleration sensor 44 is used, for example, to determine whether or not the vehicle V has suddenly accelerated or decelerated. The steering angle data detected by the steering angle sensor 46 is used, for example, to determine whether or not the vehicle V has suddenly accelerated or decelerated.

The center display 48 is provided, for example, at a position in the front of the vehicle cabin where it can be seen by the driver, and displays various information. Various information is also displayed on the center display 48. The speaker 50 is provided in the vehicle cabin, and outputs audio to the driver.

(Hardware configuration of server 12)
Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the server 12. As shown in Fig. 3, the server 12 includes a CPU 52, a ROM 54, a RAM 56, a storage 58, a communication I/F (communication interface) 60, and an input/output I/F (input/output interface) 62. Each component is connected to each other via a bus 64 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

The CPU 52 is a central processing unit that executes various programs and controls each part. That is, the CPU 52 reads a program from the ROM 54 or storage 58, and executes the program using the RAM 56 as a working area. The CPU 52 controls each of the above components and performs various calculation processes according to the program recorded in the ROM 54 or storage 58.

The ROM 54 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 56 temporarily stores programs or data as a working area. The storage 58 is configured with an HDD or SSD, and stores various programs including an operating system, and various data. In this embodiment, the ROM 54 or the storage 58 stores programs for managing multiple vehicles V, various data, and the like.

The communication I/F 60 is an interface that allows the server 12 to communicate with devices such as the driver identification device 10.

A display device 66 and an input device 68 are electrically connected to the input/output I/F 62. The display device 66 is a monitor for displaying various information acquired by the server 12. The input device 68 is a device for inputting instructions to the server 12 in order for the administrator to acquire the necessary information, such as a keyboard and mouse.

(Functional configuration of the driver identification device 10)
The driver identification device 10 uses the above hardware resources to realize various functions. The functional configuration realized by the driver identification device 10 will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, the driver identification device 10 includes, as its functional components, an acquisition unit 70, a score calculation unit 72, a driving information accumulation unit 74, and a driver identification unit 76. Each functional component is realized by the CPU 20 reading and executing a program stored in the ROM 22 or storage 26.

The acquisition unit 70 acquires driving information detected by sensors mounted on the vehicle while driving. Specifically, the acquisition unit 70 acquires the acceleration and steering angle of the vehicle V detected by the acceleration sensor 44 and steering angle sensor 46. The acquisition unit 70 also acquires the distance to the preceding vehicle and the driving position relative to the lane based on an image captured by the front camera 42. Furthermore, the acquisition unit 70 acquires shift range information (not shown). For example, the shift range information acquired by the acquisition unit 70 indicates that the range has been switched to reverse range (R range).

The score calculation unit 72 calculates a score for each pre-set driving evaluation item based on the acquired driving information. In this embodiment, as an example, the score calculation unit 72 measures the number of times the conditions for each driving evaluation item are met, and calculates a score based on the measured number of times.

Now, an example of driving evaluation items will be described with reference to FIG. 5. In FIG. 5, the following items are listed as some of the driving evaluation items: sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sudden steering, vehicle distance, speeding, and backing up. In addition, for each driving evaluation item, a maximum score (max), a minimum score (min), and an average score (ave) are calculated for each driver, and these scores are stored in the storage 58 of the server 12. In this embodiment, as an example, the scores of five drivers with IDs 1 to 5 are stored.

Here, each score is calculated so that the more times a driving evaluation item is met, the lower the score. The score is calculated as a number between 0 and 100. For example, if no sudden acceleration is detected within a specified period of time, the sudden acceleration score will be 100. Below, an overview of each driving evaluation item is explained.

Sudden acceleration and sudden braking are counted based on a signal from the acceleration sensor 44. For example, the score calculation unit 72 counts it as sudden acceleration when the acceleration sensor 44 detects an acceleration equal to or greater than a predetermined value. The score calculation unit 72 may also count it as sudden acceleration when the speed sensor detects a change in speed per unit time equal to or greater than a predetermined value. Sudden steering is counted based on a signal from the steering angle sensor 46. For example, the score calculation unit 72 counts it as sudden steering when the change in steering angle per unit time equals or greater than a predetermined value.

The distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle is counted when the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle becomes equal to or less than a predetermined distance based on a signal from the front camera 42 or a sensor (not shown). For example, the score calculation unit 72 counts this as a violation of the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle when the state in which the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle is narrow continues for a predetermined period of time or more.

Speeding is counted when the speed limit is exceeded. For example, the score calculation unit 72 counts it as speeding when the vehicle speed is greater than the speed limit of the road on which the vehicle is traveling based on information from the navigation system.

Backing up is counted when the shift range is in the reverse range. For example, the score calculation unit 72 counts backing up when the shift range is in the reverse range and the vehicle is reversed a predetermined distance or more. By setting the predetermined distance to a distance greater than that when the vehicle is parked, it is possible to count the number of times the vehicle has been reversed in situations other than when the vehicle is parked.

In addition, scores may be calculated for other driving evaluation items such as lane departure, stop violations, and inattentive driving.

As shown in FIG. 4, the driving information accumulation unit 74 accumulates the acquired driving information in a storage area. Specifically, the driving information accumulation unit 74 stores the scores of multiple driving evaluation items calculated from the driving information in the storage 58 of the server 12. In addition, the driving information accumulation unit 74 of this embodiment updates the accumulated information at predetermined time intervals based on the scores calculated by the score calculation unit 72.

The driver identification unit 76 identifies the driver by comparing the driving information acquired by the acquisition unit 70 with the accumulated information accumulated in the memory area. Specifically, the driver identification unit 76 identifies the driver by comparing the acquired score calculated from the driving information with the accumulated score accumulated in the server 12.

After the driver is identified, the driving information acquired by the acquisition unit 70 is accumulated as accumulated information of the identified driver. That is, a score is calculated by the score calculation unit 72 based on the driving information acquired by the acquisition unit 70, and the accumulated accumulated score is updated to reflect this calculated score.

The accumulated score stored in the server 12 is notified to the driver at a predetermined timing. For example, the driver's score may be notified when a predetermined time has elapsed. In this case, the accumulated score may be displayed on the center display 48. The driver may also be notified by voice from the speaker 50.

(An example of driving diagnosis processing)
An example of a driver identification process for identifying a driver will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in Fig. 6. This driving diagnosis process is executed by the CPU 20 reading a program from the ROM 22 or the storage 26 and loading the program in the RAM 24.

As shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 20 acquires driving information in step S102. That is, the CPU 20 acquires driving information detected by sensors mounted on the vehicle while driving using the function of the acquisition unit 70.

The CPU 20 acquires the accumulated information in step S104. Specifically, the CPU 20 acquires the accumulated information from the storage 58 of the server 12. The accumulated information is the score information for each driver shown in FIG. 5.

The CPU 20 compares the acquired score based on the driving information acquired by the acquisition unit 70 in step S106 with the accumulated score. Here, the acquired score is compared with the accumulated score for some driving evaluation items. Specifically, the acquired score is compared with the accumulated score for four driving evaluation items: sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sudden steering, and following distance.

In step S108, the CPU 20 determines whether there is an accumulated score close to the obtained score. At this time, it is determined that the accumulated scores are close not only when the scores of the four driving evaluation items are close, but also when the trends of the scores of the four driving evaluation items are close. For example, looking at the average score for ID 5 in Figure 5, it can be seen that among the four driving evaluation items, the accumulated score for sudden acceleration is the highest, and the accumulated score for sudden steering is significantly low. Therefore, if the obtained score for sudden acceleration is high and the obtained score for sudden steering is significantly low, it is determined that the trends of the scores are close.

If the CPU 20 determines in step S108 that there is an accumulated score close to the acquired score, the CPU 20 proceeds to processing in step S110. If the CPU 20 determines in step S108 that there is no accumulated score close to the acquired score, the CPU 20 proceeds to processing in step S112.

The CPU 20 identifies the driver in step S110. Specifically, the CPU 20 uses the function of the driver identification unit 76 to identify the ID of the driver whose accumulated score is close to the obtained score. The CPU 20 then ends the driver identification process.

On the other hand, if the CPU 20 determines in step S108 that there is no accumulated score close to the obtained score, it proceeds to step S112 and compares the obtained score and the accumulated score including the remaining driving evaluation items. Here, the scores may be compared including some of the remaining driving evaluation items, or all of the scores of the remaining driving evaluation items may be compared.

In step S114, the CPU 20 determines whether there is an accumulated score close to the acquired score. If it is determined in step S114 that there is an accumulated score close to the acquired score, the CPU 20 proceeds to processing in step S116. If it is determined in step S114 that there is no accumulated score close to the acquired score, the CPU 20 returns to processing in step S102. In other words, if the CPU 20 cannot find an accumulated score close to the acquired score, it returns to processing in step S102, thereby identifying the driver by comparing driving information acquired over a longer period of time with the accumulated information.

The CPU 20 identifies the driver in step S116. Specifically, the CPU 20 uses the function of the driver identification unit 76 to identify the ID of the driver whose accumulated score is close to the obtained score. The CPU 20 then ends the driver identification process.

(Action)
Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

In this embodiment, the driver identification unit 76 identifies the driver by comparing the acquired driving information with the accumulated information accumulated in the memory area. This makes it possible to identify the driver without installing a dedicated authentication device such as a camera that captures an image of the driver or a biosensor. In other words, the driver can be identified while suppressing increases in cost and weight.

In addition, in this embodiment, drivers with similar scores in multiple driving evaluation items are identified as the same driver. This allows the driver to be identified more accurately as the accumulated score increases. Furthermore, notifying the driver of the accumulated score can lead to improvements in the driver's driving technique.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the driver can be identified quickly by comparing the acquired scores and accumulated scores for some driving evaluation items. Also, if the driver cannot be identified, the remaining driving evaluation items are compared to identify the driver, so the processing load when identifying the driver can be reduced compared to a configuration in which all driving evaluation items are compared each time.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the driver is identified using driving information acquired within a specified time, and if the driver cannot be identified, the driver is identified based on driving information acquired over a longer period of time. This makes it possible to identify the driver using the minimum amount of information necessary, thereby shortening the time required to identify the driver.

The above describes the driving diagnosis system S and the driver identification device 10 according to the embodiment, but it goes without saying that they can be implemented in various ways without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the driving information accumulation unit 74 is configured to accumulate the scores of the driving evaluation items calculated by the score calculation unit 72 as accumulated information, but this is not limited to this. That is, the driving information accumulation unit 74 may accumulate information on the number of times the driving evaluation items are met as accumulated information. In this case, the driver identification unit 76 may identify the driver by comparing the number of times the conditions of each driving evaluation item are met with the information on the number of times accumulated in the server 12, etc.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the acquired score and accumulated score are compared first for the four driving evaluation items of sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sudden steering, and following distance, but this is not limited to the above. For example, the acquired score and accumulated score may be compared first for the two driving evaluation items of sudden acceleration and sudden braking, and if the driver is not identified, the acquired score and accumulated score may be compared for the four driving evaluation items including sudden steering and following distance.

Furthermore, the driver identification process that the CPU 20 reads and executes the program in the above embodiment may be executed by various processors other than the CPU 20. Examples of processors in this case include a PLD (Programmable Logic Device) such as an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) whose circuit configuration can be changed after manufacture, and a dedicated electric circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) which is a processor having a circuit configuration designed specifically to execute a specific process. The driver identification process may be executed by one of these various processors, or may be executed by a combination of two or more processors of the same or different types, for example, by multiple FPGAs, or a combination of a CPU and an FPGA. The hardware structure of these various processors is, more specifically, an electric circuit that combines circuit elements such as semiconductor elements.

In addition, in the above embodiment, various data are stored in storage 26 and storage 58, but this is not limited to the above. For example, non-transitory recording media such as CDs (Compact Disks), DVDs (Digital Versatile Disks), and USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory may be used as the storage unit. In this case, various programs and data are stored in these recording media.

10 Driver identification device 42 Front camera (sensors)
44 Acceleration sensor (sensors)
46 Steering angle sensor (sensors)
70 Acquisition unit 74 Driving information storage unit 76 Driver identification unit V Vehicle

Claims (2)

An acquisition unit that acquires driving information detected by sensors mounted on the vehicle while driving;
a score calculation unit that calculates a score for each of preset driving evaluation items based on the acquired driving information;
A driving information storage unit that stores a maximum score, a minimum score, and an average score for each driver for the calculated scores for each driving evaluation item in a storage area;
a driver identification unit that identifies a driver by comparing the acquired score with the score stored in the storage area;
having
the driver identification unit identifies the driver by comparing the scores of the sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sudden steering, and vehicle distance among the acquired scores of the driving evaluation items with the scores accumulated in the storage area;
If the driver cannot be identified, the driver identification device identifies the driver by comparing the scores of the driving evaluation items obtained, including the items of speeding and number of times reversing, with the scores stored in the memory area . Acquire driving information detected by sensors installed in the vehicle while driving,
Calculate a score for each preset driving evaluation item based on the acquired driving information,
The maximum score, the minimum score and the average score for each driver are stored in a memory area for the calculated scores for each driving evaluation item .
Identifying the driver by comparing the scores of sudden acceleration, sudden braking, sudden steering, and vehicle distance among the obtained scores of the driving evaluation items with the scores stored in the memory area;
If the driver cannot be identified, the driver is identified by comparing the scores of the driving evaluation items obtained, including the items of speeding and number of reverse drives, with the scores stored in the storage area.
A driver identification method in which processing is performed by a computer .