DRIVING ASSISTANCE APPARATUS

• US 20110137488A1
• Filed: 04/21/2009
• Published: 06/09/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Sakugawa, Jun
• Granted Patent: US 8,682,500 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/18 Steering angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/30 Road curve radius
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/0956 the prediction being responsive to traffic or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/12 Lane keeping
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/025 Active steering aids, e.g. helping the driver by actively influencing the steering system after environment evaluation B62D1/28 takes precedence

Abstract

A driving assistance apparatus is a lane keeping apparatus that performs a vehicle driving assistance so that a vehicle runs along a set target course, and includes a vehicle control ECU; a camera; an image ECU; a steering torque sensor; and a steering torque applying unit. The vehicle control ECU includes a parallel running vehicle trajectory estimating unit which estimates the trajectory of the parallel running vehicle running on the adjacent lane and a target course correcting unit which corrects the target course of the own vehicle on the basis of the estimation trajectory of the parallel running vehicle. Since the target course of the own vehicle is corrected on the basis of the estimated trajectory of the parallel running vehicle, it is possible to sufficiently reduce the driver'"'"'s anxiety with respect to the parallel running vehicle.

Claims

1. A driving assistance apparatus that controls a vehicle so that the vehicle runs along a set target course, the driving assistance apparatus comprising:

an estimation means for estimating a trajectory of a parallel running vehicle running on an adjacent lane; and

a correction means for correcting a target course of an own vehicle on the basis of the trajectory of the parallel running vehicle estimated by the estimation means,

wherein the correction means corrects the target course of the own vehicle on the basis of the running load of the parallel running vehicle.

2. The driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction means corrects the target course of the own vehicle on the basis of the lateral speed of the parallel running vehicle.

4. The driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the running load is obtained on the basis of a direction and a magnitude of the road curvature in front of the parallel running vehicle.

5. The driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction means corrects the target course of the own vehicle on the basis of the movement energy of the parallel running vehicle.

6. The driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction means corrects the target course of the own vehicle on the basis of a driver'"'"'s steering input of the own vehicle when the parallel running vehicle is not present.

3. (canceled)