Travel control apparatus for vehicles

• US 20040143375A1
• Filed: 11/06/2003
• Published: 07/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Inventors: Sudou, Tsugio
• Granted Patent: US 6,941,201 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/23
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0289 with means for avoiding collisions between vehicles vehicle fittings for automatically controlling speed including means for detecting potential obstacles B60K31/0008; avoiding obstacles by action on the steering system B62D; radar, sonar, lidar systems designed for anti-collision purposes G01S13/93, G01S15/93, G01S17/93
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

This travel control apparatus for vehicles is provided with a fellow vehicle judgement device adapted to judge whether a fellow vehicle coming close to a subject vehicle traveling on a track is present or absent, and a device for shifting a traveling course of the subject vehicle when a judgement that a fellow vehicle coming close to the subject vehicle is present is given by the fellow vehicle judgement device, so as to have the subject vehicle traveling along a solo traveling course set on the track travel along a course set close to a shoulder of the track.

Claims

1. A travel control apparatus for vehicles, adapted to have a subject vehicle traveling in an autonomously induced manner on the basis of position measurement information pass a fellow vehicle on a track provided with adjoining up and down lanes, comprising:

a fellow vehicle judgement device adapted to judge whether the fellow vehicle coming close to the subject vehicle traveling on the track is present or absent, and a device for shifting a traveling course of the subject vehicle when a judgement that the fellow vehicle coming close to the subject vehicle is present is given by the fellow vehicle judgement device, so as to have the subject vehicle traveling along a solo traveling course set on the track travel along a course set close to a shoulder of the track.

2. The travel control apparatus for vehicles according to claim 1, wherein the traveling course shifting device is adapted to shift the traveling course along which the subject vehicle travels to the solo traveling course after the subject vehicle passes the fellow vehicle.