Method and system for preventing a following vehicle from driving up on a vehicle driving directly in front and use of the system

• US 10,843,685 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2014
• Issued: 11/24/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Stahlin, Ulrich
• Primary Examiner(s): Fox, Charles A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Butler, Michael E
• Application Number:
  US14/781,697
• Publication Number:
  US 20160039412A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,413 Days
• Field of Search: 701 41
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/17 Using electrical or electronic regulation means to control braking detecting or indicating faulty operation B60T8/885
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/09 Taking automatic action to avoid collision, e.g. braking and steering
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 6/001 the torque NOT being among the input parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/163 involving continuous checking

Abstract

A method and system for preventing a following vehicle from driving up on a vehicle driving directly in front. The following vehicle detects a behavior of the vehicle driving directly in front by sensor information and a behavior of at least one vehicle driving in front by vehicle-to-X information. The vehicle-to-x information requests an intervention in the steering of the following vehicle by a steering angle to be set and/or an intervention in the braking of the following vehicle by a deceleration to be set in order to prevent driving up on the vehicle, and wherein the steering angle and/or the deceleration requested by the vehicle-to-X information is greater than a steering angle and/or a requested deceleration requested by the sensor information and/or driver inputs. The intervention is only carried out if the steering angle and/or the deceleration is confirmed by sensor information and/or driver inputs.

Claims

1. A method for preventing a following vehicle from driving up on a first vehicle driving directly in front of the following vehicle, the method comprising:

detecting, by the following vehicle, a behavior of the first vehicle driving directly in front of the following vehicle by first sensor information indicating a first intervention of at least one of a first steering angle to be set and a first deceleration to be set;

detecting, by the following vehicle, a behavior of at least a second vehicle driving in front of the first vehicle by vehicle-to-X information indicating a second intervention of at least one of a second steering angle to be set and a second deceleration to be set, wherein the second steering angle is greater than the first steering angle, and the second deceleration is greater than the first deceleration;

sequentially;

executing, by the following vehicle, the first intervention when the second intervention is not confirmed, by at least one of;

a) controlling the steering of the following vehicle to be the first steering angle, or

b) controlling the deceleration of the following vehicle to be the first deceleration;

confirming, by the following vehicle, the second intervention, in response to detecting driver input by a driver of the following vehicle; and

in response to the second intervention being confirmed, executing, by the following vehicle, the second intervention by at least one of;

a) controlling the steering of the following vehicle to be the second steering angle, or

b) controlling the deceleration of the following vehicle to be the second deceleration in order to prevent a rear-end collision with the first vehicle.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1,

wherein the steering angle requested by the vehicle-to-X information is confirmed if the steering angle requested by the vehicle-to-x information is less than or equal to a steering angle requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs, or the requested deceleration is confirmed if it is less than or equal to a deceleration requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2,

wherein the intervention is carried out with a minimum necessary steering angle for preventing the rear-end collision if the steering angle requested by the vehicle-to-X information is greater than the steering angle requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs, or

wherein the intervention is carried out with a minimum necessary deceleration if the requested deceleration is greater than the deceleration which is requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1,

wherein the intervention is carried out with a minimum necessary steering angle for preventing the rear-end collision or a minimum necessary deceleration if the steering angle requested by the vehicle-to-X information is greater than the steering angle requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs, or the requested deceleration is greater than the deceleration requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4,

wherein the intervention is performed with the minimum necessary steering angle to prevent the rear-end collision only if the sensor information or the driver inputs actually request an intervention, or

wherein the intervention is performed with the minimum necessary deceleration to prevent the rear-end collision only if the sensor information or the driver inputs actually request an intervention.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1,

wherein the intervention is performed at least with the steering angle requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs, or

wherein the intervention is performed at least with the deceleration requested by the sensor information or the driver inputs.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6,

wherein the intervention is performed with the steering angle requested by the sensor information if the steering angle requested by the sensor information is greater than the steering angle requested by the driver inputs, or

wherein the intervention is performed with the requested deceleration if the requested deceleration is greater than the deceleration which is requested by the driver inputs.

8. The method as claimed in claim 6,

wherein the intervention is performed with the steering angle requested by the driver inputs if the steering angle requested by the driver inputs is greater than the steering requested by the sensor information, or

wherein the intervention is performed with the requested deceleration if the requested deceleration is greater than the deceleration which is requested by the sensor information.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1,

wherein no intervention is performed if only the vehicle-to-X information requests the intervention.

10. The method as claimed in at least claim 9,

wherein at least one of a visual, audible or haptic warning is output to the driver if only the vehicle-to-X information requests the intervention.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1,

wherein the behavior of the first vehicle describes a deceleration of the first vehicle and the behavior of the at least a second vehicle describes a deceleration of the at least a second vehicle.

12. A system for preventing a following vehicle from driving up on a first vehicle driving directly in front of the following vehicle, the method comprising:

environment sensors for detecting by the following vehicle a behavior of the first vehicle driving directly in front of the following vehicle by detecting first sensor information indicating a first intervention of at least one of a first steering angle to be set and a first deceleration to be set;

a vehicle-to-X communication means for detecting by the following vehicle a behavior of at least one second vehicle driving in front of the first vehicle by receiving vehicle-to-X information indicating a second intervention of at least one of a second steering angle to be set and a second deceleration to be set, wherein the second steering angle is greater than the first steering angle, and the second deceleration is greater than the first deceleration;

a processor configured to sequentially;

execute the first intervention when the second intervention is not confirmed, by at least one of;

a) controlling the steering of the following vehicle to be the first steering angle, or

b) controlling the deceleration of the following vehicle to be the first deceleration;

confirm the second intervention in response to detecting driver input by a driver of the following vehicle; and

in response to the second intervention being confirmed, execute the second intervention by at least one of;

a) controlling the steering of the following vehicle to be the second steering angle, or

b) controlling the deceleration of the following vehicle to be the second deceleration in order to prevent a rear-end collision with the first vehicle.

13. The system as claimed in claim 12,

wherein the environment sensors comprise one or more sensors of the following group:

a lidar sensor,

a radar sensor,

a camera sensor, and

an ultrasound sensor.

14. The system as claimed in claim 12,

wherein the system carries out a method for preventing a following vehicle from driving up on a vehicle driving directly in front, in which the following vehicle detects a behavior of the vehicle driving directly in front by sensor information and a behavior of at least one vehicle driving in front of the vehicle driving in front by means of vehicle-to-X information,

wherein the vehicle-to-X information requests an intervention in steering means of the following vehicle in the form of a steering angle to be set to prevent the rear-end collision with the vehicle, or requests an intervention in braking means of the following vehicle in the form of a deceleration to be set in order to prevent the rear-end collision with the vehicle,

wherein the steering angle requested by the vehicle-to-X information is greater than a steering angle requested by the sensor information or driver inputs, or the requested deceleration is greater than a requested deceleration,

wherein the intervention with the steering angle requested by the vehicle-to-X information is performed only if this steering angle is confirmed by the driver inputs, and

wherein the intervention with the requested deceleration is performed only if this deceleration is confirmed by the driver inputs.

15. A motor vehicle comprising the system as claimed in claim 12.