Vehicle travel control system

• US 6,480,769 B1
• Filed: 10/04/2000
• Issued: 11/12/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Inventors: Kageyama, Masato
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PIPALA, EDWARD J
• Application Number:
  US09/678,842
• Time in Patent Office: 769 Days
• Field of Search: 701/23, 701/26, 701/50, 701/70, 701/72, 701/205, 701/207, 701/210, 701/213, 701/220, 701/300, 701/301
• US Class Current: 701/23
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/207 with respect to certain areas, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas with possible alerting when inside or outside boundaries

Abstract

To enable vehicles to travel safely without risk of head-on collision when they have been made to travel on an oncoming lane in order to avoid an obstacle on the original lane. In addition, when travel conditions have been set or changed, it becomes possible to transmit data quickly but a problem of a production efficiency being reduced as a result of all the vehicles being stopped does not arise nor is there a safety problem due to a delay in data changes. On the basis of a monitored result of the travel conditions of the travel track, a no-entry area E is established ahead of a vehicle Jm traveling on one lane of a 2-way dual-lane vehicle track. Then travel instructions are issued to the vehicle Jm, the travel instructions causing it to avoid the no-entry area and travel on a section L of an oncoming lane, a lane whose traffic runs in the opposite direction to the one lane. Travel instructions are issued to an oncoming vehicle Jt traveling on the oncoming lane which prohibits entry to the section L. In addition, an upper limit velocity is set on the section L. Then, travel conditions, including the upper limit velocity set for the section 47, are issued as the travel instructions to the vehicle. When the travel instructions are issued to the vehicle, the vehicle travels on the section 47 at a velocity which does not exceed the upper limit velocity.

Claims

1. A vehicle travel control system in which travel conditions of a travel track made up of 2-way dual-lane vehicle tracks on which a plurality of vehicles travel are monitored by a monitor station, and travel instructions are issued to the plurality of vehicles from the monitor station;

comprising

means for setting a no-entry area which, on the basis of the monitored result of the travel conditions of the travel track, sets the no-entry area ahead of one of the vehicles traveling on one lane of the 2-way dual-lane vehicle track;

first instruction means which issues to the one of the vehicles travel instructions which cause the vehicle to avoid the no-entry area and travel on a section of an oncoming lane whose traffic runs in an opposite direction to the one lane; and

second instruction means which issues to an oncoming vehicle traveling on the oncoming lane travel instructions which prohibit entry to the section of the oncoming lane.

2. A vehicle travel control system according to claim 1, further comprising means for setting prohibited sections in which it is prohibited for the one of the vehicles to travel on the oncoming lane;

wherein, if aid section of the oncoming lane is not the prohibited section, the first instruction means and the second instruction means issue the travel instructions to the one of the vehicles and to the oncoming vehicle.

3. A vehicle travel control system in which travel conditions of a travel track on which a vehicle travels are set by a monitor station and travel instructions corresponding to the travel conditions are issued to the vehicle by the monitor station, comprising

means for setting an upper limit velocity which sets the upper limit velocity on a section of the travel track;

and

instruction means for issuing, as the travel instructions to the vehicle, travel conditions including the set upper limit velocity for the section of the travel track;

wherein, when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle travels on the section of the travel track at a velocity which does not exceed the upper limit velocity.

4. A vehicle travel control system according to claim 3, wherein, when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle gradually decreases a travel speed so as to reach a velocity instructed for the section or so as to stop traveling at the stopping point.

5. A vehicle travel control system in which travel conditions of a travel track system on which a vehicle travels are changed by a monitor station and travel instructions corresponding to the changed travel conditions are issued to the vehicle from the monitor station;

comprising

travel velocity changing means for changing a travel velocity on a section of the travel track; and

instruction means for issuing, as the travel instructions to the vehicle, travel conditions including the changed travel velocity for the section of the travel track;

wherein, when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle travels on the section of the travel track at the changed velocity.

6. A vehicle travel control system according to claim 5, wherein, when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle gradually decreases a travel speed so as to reach a velocity instructed for the section or so as to stop traveling at the stopping point.

7. A vehicle travel control system which is applied to a travel track on which a vehicle slips in accordance with a lateral acceleration applied in a lateral direction relative to a direction of travel of the vehicle, and in which travel conditions for the travel track on which the vehicle is traveling are set by a monitor station and travel instructions corresponding to the travel conditions are issued to the vehicle by the monitor station;

comprising

lateral acceleration setting means for setting an upper limit value for the lateral acceleration on a section of part of the travel track; and

instruction means for issuing, as the travel instructions to the vehicle, travel conditions including an upper limit velocity corresponding to the lateral acceleration for the section of the part of the travel track;

wherein, when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle travels on the section of the travel track at a velocity not exceeding the upper limit velocity.

8. A vehicle travel control system according to claim 7, wherein, when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle gradually decreases a travel speed so as to reach a velocity instructed for the section or so as to stop traveling at the stopping point.

9. A vehicle travel control system in which travel conditions of a travel track system on which a vehicle travels are set by a monitor station and travel instructions corresponding to the travel conditions are issued to the vehicle by the monitor station, comprising:

means for setting a stopping point which sets at one point on the travel track a stopping point at which the vehicle is supposed to stop traveling; and

instruction means for issuing, as the travel instructions to the vehicle, travel conditions including the stopping point,

wherein when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle stops at the stopping point.

10. A vehicle travel control system according to claim 9, wherein,

when the travel instructions are issued by the instruction means, the vehicle gradually decreases a travel speed so as to reach a velocity instructed for the section or so as to stop traveling at the stopping point.