VEHICLE CONTROL DEVICE

• US 20130013164A1
• Filed: 02/16/2010
• Published: 01/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Taguchi, Koji
• Granted Patent: US 9,085,301 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/96
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2031/0025 Detecting position of target vehicle, e.g. vehicle driving ahead from host vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2030/1809 Without torque flow between driveshaft and engine, e.g. with clutch disengaged or transmission in neutral
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2555/60 Traffic rules, e.g. speed limits or right of way
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/103 Speed profile
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/143 Speed control B60W30/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18154 Approaching an intersection
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/40 Engine management systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/60 Other road transportation technologies with climate change mitigation effect
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/84 Data processing systems or methods, management, administration

Abstract

A vehicle control device generates a speed pattern alternately repeating an acceleration travel pattern having a section accelerating a host vehicle and an inertia travel pattern having a section with an acceleration driving force of zero and a deceleration braking force of zero with respect to the wheels of the host vehicle. The speed pattern is generated by reducing speed of the host vehicle in front of any one position of an intersection of the road on which the host vehicle travels and an exit leading to the road. The intersection and the exit may encounter another vehicle, and may include a traffic flow of other vehicles on a road with a host vehicle. Matching a proved speed by reducing vehicle speed of a speed pattern with a position of an intersection or an exit, the host vehicle may cooperate with traffic flow to improve fuel efficiency.

Claims

1-10. -10. (canceled)

11. A vehicle control device comprising:

a speed pattern generating unit that generates a speed pattern alternately repeating an acceleration travel pattern having a section accelerating a host vehicle by applying a driving force in an acceleration direction with respect to the wheels of the host vehicle and an inertia travel pattern having a section with a driving force of zero in an acceleration direction and a braking force of zero in a deceleration direction with respect to wheels of the host vehicle,

wherein the speed pattern generating unit generates the speed pattern such that speed of the host vehicle is reduced in front of any one position of an intersection of a road on which the host vehicle travels and an exit leading to the road on which the host vehicle travels, and generates the travel pattern such that speed of a host vehicle is more reduced in front of any one position of the intersection and the exit in the case of higher possibility of the host vehicle encountering with another vehicle in any one of the intersection and the exit.

12. The vehicle control device according to claim 11, wherein the speed pattern generating unit generates the speed pattern in which the speed of the host vehicle becomes a local minimum value in front of any one position of the intersection and the exit.

13. The vehicle control device according to claim 11, wherein when there is no leading vehicle, the speed pattern generating unit sets deceleration in the speed pattern according to average deceleration by an operation of a driver of the host vehicle at a stop signal, and

when there is the leading vehicle, the speed pattern generating unit sets deceleration in the speed pattern according to the smaller of average deceleration of the leading vehicle and average deceleration by the operation of the driver of the host vehicle at the stop signal.

14. The vehicle control device according to claim 11, wherein the speed pattern generating unit generates the speed pattern such that the speed of the host vehicle is reduced in a position that a signal displayed on any of traffic signals of the intersection and the exit becomes known.

15. The vehicle control device according to claim 11, wherein the speed pattern generating unit generates a speed pattern in which the speed of the host vehicle becomes a local minimum value in a position that a signal displayed on any of traffic signals of the intersection and the exit becomes known.

16. The vehicle control device according to claim 14, wherein the speed pattern generating unit sets an average position in which deceleration starts by an operation of a driver of the host vehicle in front of the traffic signal as the position that a signal displayed on the traffic signal of the road on which the host vehicle travels becomes known.

17. The vehicle control device according to claim 14, wherein when there is the leading vehicle, the speed pattern generating unit sets a position separated from an average position in which deceleration of the leading vehicle starts by a distance between the leading vehicle and the host vehicle in front of a traffic signal as a position that a signal displayed on the traffic signal of the road on which the host vehicle travels becomes known.

18. The vehicle control device according to claim 14, wherein the speed pattern generating unit sets a position that a signal displayed on the traffic signal of the road on which the host vehicle travels becomes known according to a situation of whether information about the signal displayed on the traffic signal is obtained by wireless communication.

19. The vehicle control device according to claim 11, wherein the speed pattern generating unit does not execute the speed pattern in the host vehicle when the density of other vehicles existing around the host vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value.