CONTROL APPARATUS FOR VEHICLE

• US 20160272205A1
• Filed: 11/12/2014
• Published: 09/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: KATO, Hirokazu
• Granted Patent: US 9,701,310 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2201/022 Collision avoidance systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/12 for automatic initiation; for initiation not subject to will of driver or passenger limiting speed of vehicles other than rail vehicles B60K31/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/122 for locking of reverse movement
• 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 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/16 Control of distance between vehicles, e.g. keeping a distance to preceding vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/17 with provision for special action when the preceding vehicle comes to a halt, e.g. stop and go
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18018 Start-stop drive, e.g. in a traffic jam
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18118 Hill holding

Abstract

A control apparatus for a vehicle includes: ah inter-vehicle distance control unit that performs inter-vehicle distance control with respect to a preceding vehicle; a stop-restart unit that stops an engine if the host vehicle is stopped and an engine stop condition is satisfied and that restarts the engine if a restart condition is satisfied; a braking force maintenance unit that maintains a braking force which stops the vehicle in idle state; and a braking force increase unit that increases the braking force maintained by the braking force maintenance unit if the vehicle is stopped by the inter-vehicle distance control unit.

Claims

1-7. -7. (canceled)

8. A control apparatus for a vehicle, comprising:

an inter-vehicle distance control unit that performs inter-vehicle distance control with respect to a preceding vehicle;

a stop-restart unit that stops an engine if a host vehicle is stopped and an engine stop condition is satisfied and that restarts the engine if a restart condition is satisfied;

a braking force maintenance unit that maintains a braking force which stops the vehicle in idle state; and

a braking force increase unit that increases the braking force maintained by the braking force maintenance unit if the vehicle is stopped by the inter-vehicle distance control unit,

wherein the braking force increase unit increases the braking force before the engine is stopped by the stop-restart unit, maintains the increased braking force if the engine is stopped by the stop-restart unit, and reduces the increased braking force if the engine is not stopped by the stop-restart unit.

9. The control apparatus according to claim 8, wherein

the braking force increase unit increases the braking force before the engine is restarted by the stop-restart unit.

10. The control apparatus according to claim 8, wherein

the braking force increase unit reduces the increased braking force if it is determined that other restart conditions among the restart conditions than such a condition that an operation to start the vehicle is detected are not satisfied.

11. A control apparatus for a vehicle, which communicates with an inter-vehicle distance control unit that performs inter-vehicle distance control with respect to a preceding vehicle, a stop-restart unit that stops an engine if a host vehicle is stopped and an engine stop condition is satisfied and that restarts the engine if a restart condition is satisfied, and a braking force maintenance unit that maintains a braking force which stops the vehicle in idle state,

the control apparatus comprising:

a braking force increase unit that increases the braking force maintained by the braking force maintenance unit if the vehicle is stopped by the inter-vehicle distance control unit,

wherein the braking force increase unit increases the braking force before the engine is stopped by the stop-restart unit, maintains the increased braking force if the engine is stopped by the stop-restart unit, and reduces the increased braking force if the engine is not stopped by the stop-restart unit.

12. A control apparatus for a vehicle, comprising:

an inter-vehicle distance control unit that performs inter-vehicle distance control with respect to a preceding vehicle;

a stop-restart unit that stops an engine if a host vehicle is stopped and an engine stop condition is satisfied and that restarts the engine if a restart condition is satisfied;

a braking force maintenance unit that maintains a braking force which stops the vehicle in idle state; and

a braking force increase unit that increases the braking force maintained by the braking force maintenance unit if the vehicle is stopped by the inter-vehicle distance control unit,

wherein the braking force increase unit increases the braking force only if the engine is stopped by the stop-restart unit, and if the engine is not stopped by the stop-restart unit, the braking force is not increased by the braking force increase unit and is maintained by the braking force maintenance unit.

13. The control apparatus according to claim 12, wherein

if the engine is stopped by the stop-restart unit, the braking force increase unit increases the braking force only if it is determined that another restart condition among the restart conditions than such a condition that an operation to start the vehicle is detected is satisfied.