Vehicle controller

• US 9,896,102 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2015
• Issued: 02/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Subaru Corp.
• Original Assignee: Subaru Corp.
• Inventors: Tanaka, Yuichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Jen, Ian
• Application Number:
  US14/810,227
• Publication Number:
  US 20160023659A1
• Time in Patent Office: 939 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/445 Differential gearing distribution type
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/46 Series type
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/48 Parallel type
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/08 including control of electric propulsion units, e.g. motors or generators
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/107 with endless flexible members
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/184 with wheel brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/00 Control systems specially adapted for hybrid vehicles hybrid vehicle design, B60K6/00; electric vehicles B60L
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/14 in conjunction with braking regeneration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/15 Control strategies specially adapted for achieving a particular effect
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/244 Charge state
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/12 Brake pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/801 Lateral distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/804 Relative longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/0644 Engine speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/106 Longitudinal acceleration
• 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 30/18127 Regenerative braking
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/40 : Engine management systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 : Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/93 : Conjoint control of different elements

Abstract

A vehicle controller includes a camera unit that detects driving conditions of a preceding vehicle; a re-acceleration determiner that determines based on the driving conditions of the preceding vehicle whether or not a re-acceleration state in which the preceding vehicle decelerates and then accelerates occurs; and a rotation controller that, if it is determined that the vehicle is in a re-acceleration state, maintains the engine speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.

Claims

1. A vehicle controller comprising:

a sensor that detects a driving condition of a preceding vehicle;

a re-acceleration determiner configured to determine, based on the driving condition of the preceding vehicle and the subject vehicle, whether or not a re-acceleration state where the preceding vehicle decelerates and then accelerates occurs, wherein the re-acceleration determiner determines that the preceding vehicle is in the re-acceleration state when the preceding vehicle is accelerated from a state in which both the preceding vehicle and the subject vehicle are decelerating; and

a rotation controller that, when the re-acceleration determiner determines that the preceding vehicle is in the re-acceleration state, maintains a rotational speed of an engine not less than a lower limit, wherein the lower limit is higher than an idling speed.

2. The vehicle controller according to claim 1, further comprising:

an electric motor connected to the engine,

wherein the rotation controller drives the electric motor to maintain the rotational speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.

3. The vehicle controller according to claim 2,

wherein the rotation controller shuts down fuel supply to the engine to maintain the rotational speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.

4. The vehicle controller according to claim 1,

wherein the rotation controller supplies fuel to the engine to maintain the rotational speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.

5. The vehicle controller according to claim 1,

wherein, when a driver of the vehicle equipped with the vehicle controller performs a brake operation, the rotation controller disables a lower-limit maintenance control that maintains the rotational speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.

6. The vehicle controller according to claim 2,

wherein, when a driver of the vehicle equipped with the vehicle controller performs a brake operation, the rotation controller disables a lower-limit maintenance control that maintains the rotational speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.

7. The vehicle controller according to claim 3,

wherein, when a driver of the vehicle equipped with the vehicle controller performs a brake operation, the rotation controller disables a lower-limit maintenance control that maintains the rotational speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.

8. The vehicle controller according to claim 4,

wherein, when a driver of the vehicle equipped with the vehicle controller performs a brake operation, the rotation controller disables a lower-limit maintenance control that maintains the rotational speed of the engine not less than a lower limit.