IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,645,224
Granted Patent B2
US 12,645,224 · App. 18/394,467 · Granted Jun 2, 2026

Remote driving system, remote driving terminal, and method for remote driving

Inventors: Hirofumi Momose (Toyota, JP); Junji Kawamuro (Toyota, JP); Shuichi Tamagawa (Kitanagoya, JP); Kosuke Akatsuka (Mishima, JP); Yuki Suehiro (Toyota, JP); Naofumi Kobayashi (Gotemba, JP); Rio Suda (Toyota, JP)
Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
G05D1/225G05D1/243G05D1/617G05D2109/10G05D2111/10
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,645,224
App. No.
18/394,467
Granted
Jun 2, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a remote driving system that performs remote driving of a vehicle based on an operation amount input to a remote driving terminal. The remote driving system includes at least one processor. The at least one processor detects a first situation in which the remote driving of the vehicle is required. The at least one processor acquires an urgency level of the first situation. The at least one processor performs an initial check for checking that the remote driving can be started at the remote driving terminal when the first situation is detected. The at least one processor omits a part of the initial check according to the urgency level.

Claims (55)

1 . A remote driving system that performs remote driving of a vehicle based on an operation amount input into a remote driving terminal, the remote driving system comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program, where the at least one memory and the computer program are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the remote driving system to at least:

detect a first situation in which the remote driving of the vehicle is required;

acquire an urgency level of the first situation;

perform an initial check for checking that the remote driving can be started at the remote driving terminal when the first situation is detected;

omit a part of the initial check according to the urgency level;

after the initial check is completed, transmit remote driving information indicating the operation amount input by a remote operator from the remote driving terminal to the vehicle; and

control the vehicle to travel in accordance with the operation amount.

2 . The remote driving system according to claim 1 , wherein

the at least one memory and the computer program are further configured to cause the remote driving system to increase an omission amount of the initial check as the urgency level increases.

3 . The remote driving system according to claim 2 , wherein

the first situation is a situation in which a deviation amount of the vehicle from a target path exceeds a threshold value, and

the urgency level is higher when the deviation amount is a second amount than when the deviation amount is a first amount smaller than the second amount.

4 . The remote driving system according to claim 2 , wherein

the urgency level in a case where a stop position of the vehicle is in a dangerous area is higher than the urgency level in a case where the stop position is outside the dangerous area, and

the dangerous area includes at least one of an area on a track of a streetcar, an area in a railroad crossing, and a stopping prohibited area.

5 . The remote driving system according to claim 1 , wherein

the initial check at the remote driving terminal includes at least checking communication establishment with the vehicle and steering position alignment between the vehicle and the remote driving terminal, and

the steering position alignment is omitted prior to the checking the communication establishment.

6 . The remote driving system according to claim 1 , wherein

the initial check at the remote driving terminal includes at least checking communication establishment with the vehicle and an operation check for checking that an actuator of the vehicle operates in response to the operation amount transmitted to the vehicle, and

the operation check is omitted prior to the checking the communication establishment.

7 . The remote driving system according to claim 6 , wherein

the operation amount includes an operation amount of a steering and an operation amount of a brake, and

the operation check for the steering is omitted prior to the operation check for the brake.

8 . The remote driving system according to claim 1 , wherein

the initial check at the remote driving terminal includes at least checking communication establishment with the vehicle, position matching of steering of the vehicle and the remote driving terminal, and an operation check for checking that an actuator of the vehicle operates in response to the operation amount transmitted to the vehicle, and

the position matching of the steering is omitted prior to checking the communication establishment and the operation check.

9 . The remote driving system according to claim 1 , wherein

the initial check at the remote driving terminal includes at least a camera check for checking that an in-vehicle camera mounted on the vehicle operates normally,

the in-vehicle camera includes a front camera capturing a forward image as seen from the vehicle and a side camera capturing a lateral image as seen from the vehicle, and

the camera check for the side camera is omitted prior to the camera check for the front camera.

10 . The remote driving system according to claim 1 , wherein

the at least one memory and the computer program are further configured to cause the remote driving system to set an upper limit for a vehicle speed of the vehicle when omitting a part of the initial check.

11 . The remote driving system according to claim 1 , wherein

the at least one memory and the computer program are further configured to cause the remote driving system to:

acquire infrastructure information including an image captured by an infrastructure camera installed in an area where the vehicle travels; and

detect the first situation based on the infrastructure information.

12 . A remote driving terminal that performs remote driving of a vehicle based on an operation amount input by a remote operator, the remote driving terminal comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program, where the at least one memory and the computer program are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the remote driving terminal to at least:

acquire information indicating that a first situation in which the remote driving of the vehicle is required is detected;

acquire an urgency level of the first situation;

perform an initial check for checking that the remote driving terminal can start the remote driving when the first situation is detected;

omit a part of the initial check according to the urgency level;

after the initial check is completed, transmit remote driving information indicating the operation amount input by the remote operator from the remote driving terminal to the vehicle; and

control the vehicle to travel in accordance with the operation amount.

13 . A method for performing remote driving of a vehicle based on an operation amount input into a remote driving terminal, the method comprising:

detecting a first situation in which the remote driving of the vehicle is required;

acquiring an urgency level of the first situation;

performing an initial check for checking that the remote driving can be started at the remote driving terminal when the first situation is detected;

omitting a part of the initial check according to the urgency level;

after the initial check is completed, transmit remote driving information indicating the operation amount input by a remote operator from the remote driving terminal to the vehicle; and

control the vehicle to travel in accordance with the operation amount.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 22, 2023
From: MOMOSE, HIROFUMI; KAWAMURO, JUNJI; TAMAGAWA, SHUICHI; AKATSUKA, KOSUKE; SUEHIRO, YUKI; KOBAYASHI, NAOFUMI; SUDA, RIO
To: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
Reel/Frame 065943/0533 →
Priority Claims (1)
JP 2023-009602 · Jan 25, 2023 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20240248479A1 · Jul 25, 2024
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