System for influencing the speed of a motor vehicle

• US 7,177,750 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2005
• Issued: 02/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lucas Automotive GmbH (Zeppelin - Stiftung der Stadt Friedrichshafen)
• Original Assignee: Lucas Automotive GmbH (Zeppelin - Stiftung der Stadt Friedrichshafen)
• Inventors: Schroder, Marko
• Primary Examiner(s): ARTHUR JEANGLAUDE, GERTRUDE
• Application Number:
  US11/132,912
• Publication Number:
  US 20050216172A1
• Time in Patent Office: 635 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 701/36, 701/93, 701/96, 701117-119, 701/123, 701/91, 701/94, 701/102, 701/110, 340438-439, 340901-905, 340/441, 340/933, 340/936, 732/91, 731/14, 731/23, 180167-170, 180/179
• US Class Current: 701/96
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/0008 including means for detecting potential obstacles in vehicle path
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2201/08 Lane monitoring; Lane Keeping Systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2201/081 using distance control
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/125 Lateral acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/14 Yaw
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/05 Type of road, e.g. motorways, local streets, paved or unpaved roads
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/10 Number of lanes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/00 Input parameters relating to objects
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/4041 Position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/802 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 13/426 Scanning radar, e.g. 3D radar G01S13/66 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/723 by using numerical data
• 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 2013/9323 Alternative operation using light waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9324 : Alternative operation using ultrasonic waves
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 : for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/167 : Driving aids for lane monitoring, lane changing, e.g. blind spot detection

Abstract

System for evaluating the driving environment of a motor vehicle and for influencing the speed of the motor vehicle in its own lane, with an electronic control unit, which is connected to a signal generator generating a signal which is characteristic of the desired speed of the motor vehicle, a signal generator generating a signal which is characteristic of the yaw rate of the motor vehicle about its vertical axis, a signal generator which generates, for objects located in the space lying in front of the motor vehicle in its direction of travel, a signal which is characteristic of the distance and orientation of the objects with respect to the motor vehicle and which reproduces the speed relative to the speed of the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle, and/or the distance relative to the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle, and/or the angular offset or the lateral deviation relative to the vehicle longitudinal axis of the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle, and a signal generator generating a signal which is characteristic of the speed at least of one wheel of the motor vehicle, and which unit is connected to at least one control device influencing the road behavior of the motor vehicle in order to supply this with output signals which are derived from the road behavior of the motor vehicle located in front of the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle, with characteristic values having fluid boundaries being established in the electronic control unit for at least two different road environments (town traffic, country road, motorway) in order to distinguish the type of road on which the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle is traveling, wherein a quantity influencing the respective characteristic value is the “environmental speed” established from the speeds of the objects detected in the space in front of the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle and preferably determined by averaging.

Claims

1. System for evaluating a driving environment of a motor vehicle and for influencing a speed of the motor vehicle in its own lane, comprising:

an electronic control unit (ECU), which is connected to;

a signal generator generating a signal which is characteristic of a desired speed of the motor vehicle,

a signal generator generating a signal which is characteristic of a yaw rate of the motor vehicle about its vertical axis,

a signal generator which generates, for objects located in a space lying in front of the motor vehicle in its direction of travel, a signal which is characteristic of a distance and orientation of the objects with respect to the motor vehicle and which reproduces at least one of;

a speed relative to the speed of the motor vehicle,

a distance relative to the motor vehicle, and

an angular offset or a lateral deviation relative to a vehicle longitudinal axis of the motor vehicle, and

a signal generator generating a signal which is characteristic of a speed at least of one wheel of the motor vehicle;

wherein the electronic control unit (ECU) is connected to at least one control device for influencing road behavior of the motor vehicle in order to supply said at least one control device with output signals which are derived from road behavior of a target motor vehicle located in front of the motor vehicle, whereby characteristic values having fluid boundaries are established in the electronic control unit (ECU) for at least two different road environments (town traffic, country road, highway) in order to distinguish the type of road on which the motor vehicle is traveling, wherein a quantity influencing the respective characteristic value is the “

environmental speed”

established from the speeds of the objects detected in the space in front of the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle.

2. System according to claim 1, wherein the “

environmental speed”

value of an instantaneous magnitude is approximated to a speed at which the motor vehicle is actually traveling via a predetermined function in the electronic control unit (ECU), wherein both an approximation of a value higher than an instantaneous magnitude of the speed at which the motor vehicle is actually traveling with a first speed and an approximation of a value lower than the instantaneous magnitude of the speed at which the motor vehicle is actually traveling with a second speed take place.

3. System according to claim 2, wherein when at least two other objects, substantially traveling side-by-side, are located in front of the motor vehicle and the motor vehicle is traveling at an actual speed which lies in the “

country road”

range, the “

environmental speed”

value is raised with a third speed.

4. System according to claim 3, wherein the “

environmental speed”

value of an instantaneous magnitude is approximated to a lower limit value in steps, in the electronic control unit (ECU), wherein, should a lateral acceleration which exceeds a threshold value result from the “

environmental speed”

value and an instantaneous yaw rate of the driver'"'"'s motor vehicle, the “

environmental speed”

value is reduced to the threshold value with a fourth speed.

5. System according to claim 4, wherein the fourth speed is significantly higher than the third speed.

6. System according to claim 2, wherein the second speed is significantly higher than the first speed.

7. System according to claim 3, wherein the third speed is significantly higher than the second speed.

8. System according to claim 1, wherein the “

environmental speed”

value is limited to a predeterminable multiple of the desired speed of the motor vehicle in the electronic control unit (ECU).

9. System according to claim 1, wherein the “

environmental speed”

value is limited to a predeterminable lower threshold value and a predeterminable upper threshold value in the electronic control unit (ECU).

10. System according to claim 1, wherein a bend characteristic is differentiated in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to a path traveled and, according to the result, the “

environmental speed”

value is reduced with a predetermined rate.

11. System according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined rate depends on at least one of the speed of the motor vehicle and on the distance from the target motor vehicle.

12. System according to claim 1, wherein a bend characteristic is differentiated in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to a path traveled and, in the case of a sequence of bend changes over a certain distance, according to the result, the “

environmental speed”

value is reduced with a predetermined rate.

13. System according to claim 12, wherein the predetermined rate depends on at least one of the speed of the motor vehicle and on the distance from the target motor vehicle.

14. System according to claim 1, wherein a bend characteristic is differentiated in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to a path traveled and, in the case of long straight sections over a certain distance, according to the result, the “

environmental speed”

value is increased with a predetermined rate.

15. System according to claim 14, wherein the predetermined rate depends on at least one of the speed of the motor vehicle and on the distance from the target motor vehicle.

16. System according to claim 1, wherein a bend characteristic is differentiated in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to a path traveled and, in the case of double bends (two contradirectional bend sections without any or with just one relatively short straight intermediate stretch), according to the result, the “

environmental speed”

value is reduced with a high rate.

17. System according to claim 1, wherein, given a signal which reproduces a yaw rate lying above a predetermined value, the “

environmental speed”

value is reduced with a high rate by a dynamic component and, in the absence of the yaw rate signal lying above the predetermined value, the dynamic component is restored in the electronic control unit (ECU).

18. System according to claim 17, wherein, in the case of right-hand traffic, the dynamic component is only subtracted from the environmental speed or restored for right-hand bends and, in the case of left-hand traffic, the dynamic component is only subtracted from the environmental speed or restored for left-hand bends in the electronic control unit (ECU).

19. System according to claim 17, wherein the dynamic component is modified in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to at least one of the speed of the motor vehicle and the distance from the target motor vehicle.

20. System according to claim 1, wherein a bend characteristic is differentiated in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to a path traveled and, according to the result, the “

environmental speed”

value is reduced with a predetermined rate.

21. System according to claim 20, wherein the predetermined rate depends on at least one of the speed of the motor vehicle and the distance from the target motor vehicle.

22. System according to claim 1, wherein a bend characteristic is differentiated in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to a path traveled and, in the case of a sequence of bend changes over a certain distance, according to the result, the “

environmental speed”

value is reduced with a predetermined rate.

23. System according to claim 22, wherein the predetermined rate depends on at least one of the speed of the motor vehicle and the distance from the target motor vehicle.

24. System according to claim 1, wherein a bend characteristic is differentiated in the electronic control unit (ECU) according to a path traveled and, in the case of long straight sections over a certain distance, according to the result, the “

environmental speed”

value is increased with a predetermined rate.

25. System according to claim 24, wherein the predetermined rate depends on at least one of the speed of the motor vehicle and the distance from the target motor vehicle.

26. System according to claim 1, wherein the “

environmental speed”

is determined by averaging.