CONTROL DEVICE AND CONTROL METHOD FOR VEHICLE

• US 20130131949A1
• Filed: 08/05/2011
• Published: 05/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Shida, Mitsuhisa
• Granted Patent: US 8,924,122 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/96
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2310/26 Distance setting methods, e.g. determining target distance to target vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2310/28 Following time setting methods, e.g. elapsed delay between preceding and host vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/00 Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator fittings acting on two or more sub-units B60W30/14; speedometers G01P; systems or devices for controlling speed in general G05D13/00 ; in traffic anti-collision system for road vehicles G08G1/16
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/00 Brake-action initiating means
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/22 initiated by contact of vehicle, e.g. bumper, with an external object, e.g. another vehicle , or by means of contactless obstacle detectors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0075 Automatic parameter input, automatic initialising or calibrating means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/65 Data transmitted between vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2754/30 Longitudinal distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/16 Control of distance between vehicles, e.g. keeping a distance to preceding vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/163 involving continuous checking
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/22 Platooning, i.e. convoy of communicating vehicles

Abstract

In control over a vehicle, inter-vehicle communication information of a preceding vehicle that runs ahead of the vehicle is acquired, follow-up running control for causing the vehicle to follow the preceding vehicle is executed on the basis of the inter-vehicle communication information, and, during the follow-up running control, a parameter used in the follow-up running control is determined on the basis of a condition in which the inter-vehicle communication information is acquired.

Claims

1. A control device for a vehicle, comprising:

an acquisition unit that acquires inter-vehicle communication information of a preceding vehicle that runs ahead of the vehicle;

a running control unit that executes follow-up running control for causing the vehicle to follow the preceding vehicle on the basis of the inter-vehicle communication information; and

a determining unit that, during the follow-up running control, determines a parameter used in the follow-up running control on the basis of a condition in which the inter-vehicle communication information is acquired.

2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein

the condition in which the inter-vehicle communication information is acquired is a delay time from a timing at which the vehicle is supposed to acquire the inter-vehicle communication information of the preceding vehicle.

3. The control device according to claim 2, wherein

the parameter is an inter-vehicle time or inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle, and

the determining unit determines the inter-vehicle time or the inter-vehicle distance to be longer as the delay time extends.

4. The control device according to claim 1, wherein

the condition in which the inter-vehicle communication information is acquired is a communication breakdown determination time for determining a breakdown of the inter-vehicle communication.

5. The control device according to claim 4, wherein

the parameter is an inter-vehicle time or inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle, and

the determining unit determines the inter-vehicle time or the inter-vehicle distance to be longer as the communication breakdown determination time extends.

6. The control device according to claim 1, wherein

the condition in which the inter-vehicle communication information is acquired is a target value of a rate of occurrence of a breakdown of the inter-vehicle communication.

7. The control device according to claim 6, wherein

the parameter is an inter-vehicle time or inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle, and

the determining unit determines the inter-vehicle time or the inter-vehicle distance to be longer as the target value decreases.

8. The control device according to claim 1, wherein

the condition in which the inter-vehicle communication information is acquired is a packet arrival rate in the inter-vehicle communication.

9. The control device according to claim 8, wherein

the parameter is an inter-vehicle time or inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle, and

the determining unit determines the inter-vehicle time or the inter-vehicle distance to be longer as the packet arrival rate decreases.

10. The control device according to any one of claims 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8, wherein

the parameter is an inter-vehicle time or inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle.

11. A control method for a vehicle, comprising:

acquiring inter-vehicle communication information of a preceding vehicle that runs ahead of the vehicle;

executing follow-up running control for causing the vehicle to follow the preceding vehicle on the basis of the inter-vehicle communication information; and

during the follow-up running control, determining a parameter used in the follow-up running control on the basis of a condition in which the inter-vehicle communication information is acquired.