Control system for vehicle

• US 10,046,763 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2016
• Issued: 08/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Inoue, Takashi, Yee, Sokfan, Taira, Tetsuya, Yamashita, Keiji, Tomatsu, Nobuyuki, Masuda, Takato
• Primary Examiner(s): Whittington, Jess
• Application Number:
  US15/159,290
• Publication Number:
  US 20160347313A1
• Time in Patent Office: 817 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/168 Target or limit values
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/28 characterised by the type of the output information, e.g. video entertainment or vehicle dynamics information; characterised by the purpose of the output information, e.g. for attracting the attention of the driver
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0083 Setting, resetting, calibration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/403 Image sensing, e.g. optical camera
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2555/60 Traffic rules, e.g. speed limits or right of way
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/146 Speed limiting
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/00 Details of control systems for road vehicle drive control not related to the control of a particular sub-unit , e.g. process diagnostic or vehicle driver interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/085 Changing the parameters of the control units, e.g. changing limit values, working points by control input
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/10 Interpretation of driver requests or demands
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention

Abstract

A control system for a vehicle includes an imaging device; a co-ECU to limit the travel speed of the vehicle; and an ECU to set the speed limit, that recognizes the speed limit value on a road while traveling, and sets the recognized speed limit value in the co-ECU. If the elapsed time since the speed limit value has been set reaches a predetermined time, the ECU estimates the speed limit value on the road while traveling, and if receiving a switch command, switches the speed limit value set in the co-ECU to the estimated speed limit value so as to avoid limiting the vehicle speed by a speed limit value that is different from the actual speed limit value on the road.

Claims

1. A control system for a vehicle, the control system comprising:

an imaging device configured to capture an image including a sign that represents a speed limit value on a road on which the vehicle is traveling; and

an electronic control unit (ECU) configured to;

recognize a recognition speed limit value based on the image captured by the imaging device;

set a vehicle speed limit value based on the recognition speed limit value;

limit a vehicle speed of the vehicle based on the set vehicle speed limit value;

measure at least one of an elapsed time and a travel distance, since the set vehicle speed limit value has been set;

estimate an estimation speed limit value on the road on which the vehicle is traveling upon at least one of;

(i) the measured elapsed time reaching a predetermined time, and (ii) the measured travel distance reaching a predetermined distance;

control a display device to display the estimation speed limit value;

determine a reliability of the estimation speed limit value;

determine whether the reliability of the estimation speed limit value is a predetermined reliability in response to a predetermined time passing since the estimation speed limit value has been displayed on the display device; and

upon the estimation speed limit value being displayed on the display device, determine, based on the reliability of the estimation speed limit value, whether a switching command to switch the set vehicle speed value to the estimation speed limit value has been input;

upon determining that the, reliability of the estimation speed limit value is the predetermined reliability, switch the set vehicle speed limit value to the estimation speed limit value.

2. The control system for the vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the ECU is configured to determine that the switching command has been input, upon the determination that the reliability of the estimation speed limit value is the predetermined reliability.

3. The control system for the vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the ECU controls the display device to display the estimation speed limit value by a display aspect depending on the determined reliability.

4. The control system for the vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the ECU controls the display device to display the vehicle speed limit value by a display aspect corresponding to at least one of the elapsed time and the travel distance, until the measured elapsed time reaches the predetermined time, and/or until the measured travel distance reaches the predetermined distance.

5. The control system for the vehicle according to claim 4, wherein:

the ECU is configured to estimate the speed limit value on the road on which the vehicle is traveling, before the measured elapsed time reaches the predetermined time, and/or before the measured travel distance reaches the predetermined distance, and

upon the speed limit value being equivalent to the estimated speed limit value before the measured elapsed time reaches the predetermined time, and/or before the measured travel distance reaches the predetermined distance, the ECU controls the display device to display return to the display aspect of the vehicle speed limit value.