Vehicle control system

• US 5,748,476 A
• Filed: 06/05/1995
• Issued: 05/05/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Tamura, Kazuya, Sekine, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Gary
• Application Number:
  US08/471,715
• Time in Patent Office: 1,065 Days
• Field of Search: 364/443, 364/444, 364/449, 364/426.04, 364/460, 364/461, 73/178 R, 340/903, 340/988, 340/990, 340/995, 180/167, 180/168, 180/169
• US Class Current: 701/93
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/824 Travel path sensing; Track monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2401/16 GPS track data
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/04 Means for informing, instructing or displaying
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/012 Rolling condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/24 Steering, cornering
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/70 Estimating or calculating vehicle parameters or state variables
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/9124 Roll-over protection systems, e.g. for warning or control
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/0008 including means for detecting potential obstacles in vehicle path
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/0058 responsive to externally generated signalling
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/143 Alarm means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/20 Road profile, i.e. the change in elevation or curvature of a plurality of continuous road segments
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/30 Road curve radius
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network

Abstract

A vehicle control system which controls a vehicle in accordance with the curvature of a road as determined from map information comprising a set of coordinate points which represent the course of the road. A passable vehicle speed enabling the vehicle to pass through a plurality of nodes existing at predetermined distances within an operating section established on the road ahead of a given vehicle position is calculated on the assumption that a voluntary speed reduction has been conducted. The radii of a first virtual turning locus and a second virtual turning locus produced at a predetermined lateral acceleration are calculated based on the passable vehicle speeds at the nodes. A passable zone, a warning zone and an automatic speed-reducing zone are established based on the first and second virtual turning locus radii. If any of the nodes ahead of the virtual vehicle position exists in the warning zone, a warning is provided to the driver. If any of the nodes ahead of the virtual vehicle position exists in the automatic speed-reducing zone, automatic speed reduction of the vehicle is carried out.

Claims

1. A vehicle control system, comprising:

map information outputting means for outputting a map comprised of a plurality of coordinate points representing a road;

vehicle position detecting means for detecting a position of a vehicle on said map;

vehicle speed detecting means for detecting a vehicle speed;

operating-section calculation means for calculating an operating section in which it is determined whether said detected vehicle speed is appropriate while driving in said operating section;

passable vehicle speed calculation means for calculating a passable vehicle speed at a virtual vehicle position which is established in said operating section, based on said detected vehicle speed and a distance from said vehicle position to said virtual vehicle position;

zone establishing means for establishing a passage determining zone having said passable vehicle speed as a criterion based on said virtual vehicle position;

passing condition determining means for determining a passing condition by comparing said passage determining zone with a coordinate point located ahead of said virtual vehicle position within said operating section; and

vehicle control means for controlling said vehicle based on a result of the determination by said passing condition determining means.

2. A vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein:

said passable vehicle speed calculation means sequentially establishes a plurality of said coordinate points included within said operating section as virtual vehicle positions, and determines said passing condition when passing through the coordinate points ahead of said virtual vehicle position.

3. A vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein:

said zone establishing means calculates a radius of a virtual turning locus of said vehicle based on said passable vehicle speed, and establishes said passage determining zone based on the calculated radius of said virtual turning locus.

4. A vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein:

said passable vehicle speed calculating means calculates said passable vehicle speed as a vehicle speed which is obtained on an assumption that a speed reduction is conducted at a predetermined reference speed-reducing rate from the vehicle position to said virtual vehicle position.

5. A vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein:

said vehicle control means comprises a means for providing a warning to a driver of said vehicle.

6. A vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein:

said vehicle control means comprises a means for controlling the speed of said vehicle.

7. A vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein:

said passage determining zone includes a warning zone for providing a warning to a driver of said vehicle and an automatic speed-reducing zone for automatically reducing the speed of said vehicle.

8. A vehicle control system according to claim 7, wherein:

said zone establishing means establishes said warning zone and said automatic speed-reducing zone based on a predetermined reference lateral acceleration.

9. A vehicle control system according to claim 7, wherein:

said zone establishing means establishes said warning zone and said automatic speed-reducing zone based on a predetermined reference deceleration.