Vehicle driving control system and vehicle traffic control apparatus

A vehicle driving control system comprising:

• first circuitry to be provided in a vehicle, and configured to acquire first road-traffic detection information including an image that captures an external environment of the vehicle;
• a first communicator to be provided in the vehicle;
• a second communicator to be provided in a traffic control apparatus associated with a traffic control area in which the vehicle is traveling;
• second circuitry to be provided in a monitoring apparatus, and configured to acquire second road-traffic detection information including an image that captures an environment of a road that the monitoring apparatus is monitoring, the monitoring apparatus being disposed at a fixed point on a roadside of the road;
• a third communicator to be provided in the monitoring apparatus;
• third circuitry to be provided in the traffic control apparatus that has road map information including road traffic information, and configured to:
• recognize current road traffic information including information on obstacles on a basis of the image included in the first road-traffic detection information received by the second communicator through the first communicator and the image included in the second road-traffic detection information received by the second communicator through the third communicator;
• update the road map information based on the recognized current road traffic information;
• in response to determining, based on the road map information, that there is an obstacle that is present in the traffic control area, calculate a time-to-contact (TTC) between the vehicle and the obstacle in the traffic control area on the basis of the road map information, the TTC being a time required for the vehicle to come into contact with the obstacle;
• determine whether the TTC is less than or equal to a first threshold;
• and
• in response to determining that the TTC is less than or equal to the first threshold, i) calculate a first target deceleration rate and ii) include first information indicating the first target deceleration rate in control information to be transmitted from the second communicator to the vehicle;
• determine that there is another vehicle which is traveling within the traffic control area associated with the traffic control apparatus and which is at risk of colliding with the vehicle due to control of the vehicle based on the first target deceleration rate;
• calculate another TTC between the vehicle and the another vehicle on the basis of the road map information;
• determine whether the another TTC is less than or equal to the first threshold;
• and
• in response to determining that the another TTC is less than or equal to the first threshold, i) calculate another first target deceleration rate and ii) include another first information indicating the another first target deceleration rate in another control information to be transmitted from the second communicator to the another vehicle;
• fourth circuitry to be provided in the vehicle, and configured to perform a driving control on a basis of the control information received by the first communicator, wherein the fourth circuitry is configured to:
• determine whether the control information includes the first information;
• and
• in response to determining that the control information includes the first information, perform the driving control to decelerate the vehicle at the first target deceleration rate;
• and
• another fourth circuitry to be provided in the another vehicle, and configured to perform a driving control on a basis of the another control information received by another first communicator, wherein the another fourth circuitry is configured to:
• determine whether the another control information includes the another first information;
• and
• in response to determining that the another control information includes the another first information, perform the driving control to decelerate the another vehicle at the another first target deceleration rate.