Vehicle and traveling state determination method of vehicle

• US 7,917,271 B2
• Filed: 08/21/2007
• Issued: 03/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamada, Takeshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Khoi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kiswanto; Nicholas
• Application Number:
  US11/892,252
• Publication Number:
  US 20080059033A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,316 Days
• Field of Search: 701/70, 340/439
• US Class Current: 701/70
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 17/007 Wheeled or endless-tracked vehicles G01M17/08 takes precedence

Abstract

When an accelerator opening Acc is smaller than a flat road threshold Aref1, an ECO indicator is illuminated, and when the accelerator opening Acc is equal to or larger than a climbing road threshold Aref2 larger than the flat road threshold Aref1, the ECO indicator is extinguished (S120 and S220), when the accelerator opening Acc is equal to or larger than the flat road threshold Aref1 and smaller than the climbing road threshold Aref2, the previous state of the ECO indicator is maintained until climbing road determination performed based on a vehicle speed V is finished, and when the climbing road determination is finished, the ECO indicator is illuminated or extinguished based on the result of the determination.

Claims

1. A vehicle comprising:

an accelerator operation amount detection unit for detecting an accelerator operation amount;

a vehicle speed detection unit for detecting a vehicle speed;

a climbing road traveling determination unit for performing climbing road traveling determination whether the vehicle travels on a predetermined climbing road based on said detected vehicle speed;

a traveling state determination unit for determining that a traveling state of the vehicle is a good state that is an energy efficient state when said detected accelerator operation amount is smaller than a first operation amount, determining that the traveling state of the vehicle is a poor state that is an energy inefficient state when said detected accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than a second operation amount larger than said first operation amount, maintaining a determination result of the previous traveling state of the vehicle while said climbing road traveling determination unit performs the climbing road traveling determination when said detected accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than said first operation amount and smaller than said second operation amount, determining that the traveling state of the vehicle is the good state when said climbing road traveling determination unit determines that the vehicle travels on said predetermined climbing road when said detected accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than said first operation amount and smaller than said second operation amount, and determining that the traveling state of the vehicle is the poor state when said climbing road traveling determination unit determines that the vehicle does not travel on said predetermined climbing road when said detected accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than said first operation amount and smaller than said second operation amount; and

a notification unit for notifying an occupant of the determination result by said traveling state determination unit.

2. A vehicle according to claim 1, said vehicle further comprising an operation amount setting unit for setting said first operation amount and said second operation amount based on said detected vehicle speed.

3. A vehicle according to claim 2, wherein said operation amount setting unit sets said first operation amount and said second operation amount so as to increase with increasing vehicle speed.

4. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said traveling state determination unit determines that the vehicle travels on said predetermined climbing road when a change amount of said detected vehicle speed is equal to or larger than a predetermined change amount.

5. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said notification unit has an illuminatable display portion on the front of a driver seat, illuminates said display portion when said traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling state is the good state, and extinguishes said display portion when said traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling state is the poor state.

6. A traveling state determination method of a vehicle for determining whether a traveling state of the vehicle is a good state that is an energy efficient state or a poor state that is an energy inefficient state in notification of whether the traveling state is the good state or the poor state to an occupant by illuminating or extinguishing an indicator mounted in a compartment,

said method determining that the traveling state of the vehicle is the good state when an accelerator operation amount is smaller than a first operation amount,

said method determining that the traveling state of the vehicle is the poor state when the accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than said second operation amount larger than said first operation amount,

said method maintaining a determination result of the previous traveling state of the vehicle while climbing road traveling determination whether the vehicle travels on a predetermined climbing road is performed based on a vehicle speed when the accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than said first operation amount and smaller than said second operation amount,

said method determining that the traveling state of the vehicle is the good state when it is determined in said climbing road traveling determination that the vehicle travels on said predetermined climbing road when the accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than said first operation amount and smaller than said second operation amount, and

said method determining that the traveling state of the vehicle is the poor state when it is determined in said climbing road traveling determination that the vehicle does not travel on said predetermined climbing road when the accelerator operation amount is equal to or larger than said first operation amount and smaller than said second operation amount.