Control information output device

• US 20080071472A1
• Filed: 07/31/2007
• Published: 03/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Yamada, Kazunao
• Granted Patent: US 7,835,860 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/209
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3484 Personalized, e.g. from learned user behaviour or user-defined profiles

Abstract

A control information output device assumes not only a destination but also a travel route based on accumulated travel route information. Moreover, after a travel is started, if it is found that an assumed travel route is incorrect, assumption of the destination and assumption of the travel route are performed again. Therefore, accuracy of the control information outputted to a driving force control unit is high, and accordingly, it is possible for the driving force control unit to perform control of charging/discharging with an improved energy utilization factor.

Claims

1. A control information output device comprising:

a travel route accumulating unit for accumulating as travel route information a place of departure, a destination, information able to specify a travel route, and a travel frequency of the specified travel route;

a destination assuming unit for assuming a destination when a driving start position is considered as the place of departure based on the accumulated travel route information;

a route assuming unit for assuming an expectable travel route from the driving start position to the assumed destination, based on the accumulated travel route information;

a road characteristic storing unit for storing road characteristic information for each predetermined road unit; and

a control information outputting unit for reading road characteristic information corresponding to the assumed travel route from the road characteristic storing unit and for outputting the read road characteristic information to predetermined equipment as control information.

2. The control information output device of claim 1, wherein

the road characteristic storing unit stores at least one of a distance and an average gradient corresponding to each predetermined road unit as the road characteristic information.

3. The control information output device of claim 1, wherein:

when the route assuming unit determines that the assumed travel route is incorrect after driving is started, it is determined whether a travel route passing through a current position is accumulated in the travel route accumulating unit as the travel route information;

when it is determined that the travel road passing through the current position is accumulated, the route assuming unit assumes again a travel route corresponding to any one of the accumulated travel route information as an expectable travel route; and

wherein the control information outputting unit reads road characteristic information corresponding to the travel route assumed again from the road characteristic storing unit and outputs the read road characteristic information to the predetermined equipment as control information.

4. The control information output device of claim 1, wherein

when the destination assuming unit or the route assuming unit fails in assuming the destination or the travel route, the control information outputting unit outputs a fact of assumption failure or predetermined road characteristic information to the predetermined equipment as control information.

5. The control information output device of claim 1, further comprising:

an additional road characteristic acquiring unit for acquiring at least one of a consumed electric energy and an average vehicle speed as road characteristic additional information for each predetermined road unit; and

an additional road characteristic storing unit for storing road characteristic additional information acquired by the additional road characteristic acquiring unit for each predetermined road unit, wherein

the control information outputting unit further reads the road characteristic additional information corresponding to the travel route assumed by the route assuming unit from the additional road characteristic storing unit and outputs the read road characteristic additional information to the predetermined equipment as the control information.

6. The control information output device of claim 1, further comprising:

a driving characteristic acquiring unit for acquiring a driver'"'"'s driving characteristic as driving characteristic information for each predetermined road unit; and

a driving characteristic storing unit for storing the driving characteristic information acquired by the driving characteristic acquiring unit for each predetermined road unit, wherein

the control information outputting unit further reads the driving characteristic information corresponding to the travel route assumed by the route assuming unit from the driving characteristic storing unit, and outputs the read driving characteristic information to the predetermined equipment as the control information.

7. The control information output device of claim 2, wherein

the road characteristic storing unit stores a gradient of a line segment connecting complementary gradient points, each complementary gradient point corresponding to a location whose variation in road gradient is equal to or more than a predetermined value.

8. A method for outputting control information, the method comprising:

storing road characteristic information for each predetermined road unit;

accumulating as travel route information a place of departure, a destination, information able to specify a travel route, and a travel frequency of the specified travel route;

assuming a destination when a driving start position is considered as the place of departure based on the accumulated travel route information;

assuming an expectable travel route from the driving start position to the assumed destination, based on the accumulated travel route information;

reading road characteristic information corresponding to the assumed travel route from the stored road characteristic information; and

outputting the read road characteristic information to predetermined equipment as control information.