Apparatus and method for cruise control

• US 5,749,426 A
• Filed: 12/12/1995
• Issued: 05/12/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Lucas Industries Limited (Zeppelin - Stiftung der Stadt Friedrichshafen)
• Original Assignee: Lucas Industries Limited (Zeppelin - Stiftung der Stadt Friedrichshafen)
• Inventors: Gilling, Simon Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): Johnson, Brian L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): VANAMAN, FRANK BENNETT
• Application Number:
  US08/571,302
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• Field of Search: 180/167, 180/169, 180/170, 364/426.044
• US Class Current: 180/167
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/0008 including means for detecting potential obstacles in vehicle path
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/801 Lateral distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/106 Longitudinal acceleration
• 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: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93185 Controlling the brakes
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9319 Controlling the accelerator
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/932 using own vehicle data, e.g. ground speed, steering wheel direction
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9321 Velocity regulation, e.g. cruise control
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9322 using additional data, e.g. driver condition, road state or weather data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9325 for inter-vehicle distance regulation, e.g. navigating in platoons
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93271 in the front of the vehicles

Abstract

An AICC cruise control system which operates in accordance with a driver'"'"'s headway request given in terms of a desired time interval between the controlled vehicle and the preceding (target) vehicle, wherein, upon slowing of the target vehicle towards zero velocity, the calculated station of the controlled vehicle behind the target is changed from being a pure time-based interval into a time interval which is calculated to include a proportion of a desired residual range at standstill, the proportion being dependent upon the velocity of the controlled vehicle.

Claims

1. A cruise control system for controlling the speed of a controlled vehicle in relation to a target vehicle which is running ahead of said controlled vehicle with no other vehicles therebetween, comprising:

DESIRED HEADWAY means having a desired headway request manually input by a driver of the controlled vehicle in order to establish a driver'"'"'s DESIRED HEADWAY values defined in terms of a desired time interval between said controlled vehicle and said target vehicle;

means for measuring the velocity of said controlled vehicle;

means for multiplying together said driver'"'"'s DESIRED HEADWAY value and said measured velocity of said controlled vehicle to establish a HEADWAY DESIRED RANGE (HD Range) value;

RESIDUAL RANGE FACTOR means which receives said DESIRED HEADWAY value and which provides at its output a RESIDUAL RANGE factor which increases in proportion to said DESIRED HEADWAY value, but wherein said proportion reduces as said DESIRED HEADWAY value increases;

means for multiplying together said driver'"'"'s DESIRED HEADWAY value and said RESIDUAL RANGE factor to establish a RESIDUAL DESIRED RANGE (RD Range) value;

means for comparing said HEADWAY DESIRED RANGE value with a value equal to approximately twice the value of said RESIDUAL DESIRED RANGE; and

means for establishing a DESIRED RANGE to be targeted by the system wherein said DESIRED RANGE is selected to be equal to said HEADWAY DESIRED RANGE (HD Range) value, unless said HEADWAY DESIRED RANGE value falls below approximately two times said RESIDUAL DESIRED RANGE value, in which case the DESIRED RANGE targeted by the system is selected to be calculated from the expression;

DESIRED RANGE=(2×

RD Range-HD Range)+HD Range. ##EQU3##