Adaptive cruise control system for vehicle

• US 7,054,733 B2
• Filed: 02/14/2003
• Issued: 05/30/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Watanabe, Kenichi, Kubota, Kenta, Kubota, Masanori
• Primary Examiner(s): Camby, Richard M.
• Application Number:
  US10/366,516
• Publication Number:
  US 20030158648A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,201 Days
• Field of Search: 701/91, 701/93, 701/95, 701/96, 701/300, 701/301, 340/903, 340/435, 340/436, 342/69, 342/70, 180/197, 180/170, 180/179, 318/587
• US Class Current: 701/96
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/0008 including means for detecting potential obstacles in vehicle path
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/16 Control of distance between vehicles, e.g. keeping a distance to preceding vehicle

Abstract

An adaptive cruise control system for a host vehicle is arranged to calculate a target vehicle speed, to calculate a target driving force based on the target vehicle speed, to limit a rate of increase of the target driving force when a direction of a wheel driving torque applied to driving wheels is changed from a decelerating direction to an accelerating direction, and to control a throttle opening of an engine based on the limited target driving force.

Claims

1. An adaptive cruise control system for a host vehicle, comprising:

a controller configured

to set a target vehicle speed,

to set a target driving force on the basis of the target vehicle speed,

to control a driving force on the basis of the target driving force, and

to limit a magnitude of a rate of change of the target driving force within a first predetermined value when a direction of a wheel driving torque applied to driving wheels of the host vehicle is changed from one of an accelerating state for accelerating a rotation of the driving wheel and a decelerating state for decelerating the rotation of the driving wheels to the other of the accelerating state and the decelerating state.

2. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to limit a magnitude of a rate of decrease of the target driving force within a second predetermined value when a direction of a wheel driving torque applied to driving wheels of the host vehicle is changed from an accelerating state for accelerating a rotation of the driving wheels to a decelerating state for decelerating the rotation of the driving wheels.

3. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a preceding vehicle detector for detecting an approaching state between the host vehicle and a preceding vehicle ahead of the host vehicle, the controller being further configured to inactivate limiting the magnitude of the rate of change of the target driving force when the approaching state between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle is within a predetermined state.

4. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the preceding vehicle detector includes an inter vehicle distance sensor for detecting an inter vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle, the controller being further configured to cancel limiting the magnitude of the rate of change of the target driving force when the inter vehicle distance is smaller than or equal to a third predetermined value.

5. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the preceding vehicle detector includes a relative speed detector for detecting a relative speed between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle and an approaching tendency detector for detecting a magnitude of an approaching tendency between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle, the controller being further configured to cancel limiting the magnitude of the rate of decrease of the target driving force when the approaching tendency is greater than or equal to a fourth predetermined value.

6. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a braking detector for detecting a magnitude of a braking demand of a vehicle occupant, the controller being further configured to cancel limiting the magnitude of the rate of decrease of the target driving force when the magnitude of the braking demand is greater than a fifth predetermined value.

7. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to limit a magnitude of a rate of increase of the target driving force within a sixth predetermined value when a direction of a driving wheel torque applied to driving wheels of the host vehicle is changed from a decelerating direction for decelerating a rotation of the driving wheels to an accelerating direction for accelerating the rotation.

8. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the controller is further configured to estimate an engine brake driving wheel torque having a direction of decelerating the rotation of the driving wheels and to estimate a running resistance driving wheel torque having a direction of decelerating the rotation of the driving wheels, the controller being further configured to cancel limiting the magnitude of rate of change of the target driving force when the driving wheel torque due to the target driving force is greater than the sum of the engine brake driving wheel torque and the running resistance driving wheel torque.

9. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 7, further comprising an acceleration detector for detecting an acceleration of the host vehicle, the controller being further configured to cancel limiting the magnitude of rate of change of the target driving force when the acceleration is greater than a seventh predetermined value.

10. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to limit a rate of increase of the target driving force within a seventh predetermined value when the controller determines that the rate of increase of the target driving force takes a value greater than the seventh predetermined value and during when a magnitude of the target driving force is smaller than a magnitude of a total of braking forces applied to the host vehicle.

11. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the controller is further configured to cancel limiting the rate of increase of the target driving force when the magnitude of the target driving force is greater than or equal to the magnitude of the total of braking forces applied to the host vehicle.

12. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an acceleration detector for detecting an acceleration of the host vehicle, the controller being further configured to limit a rate of increase of the target driving force within a seventh predetermined value when the controller determines that the rate of increase of the target driving force takes a value greater than the seventh predetermined value and during when the acceleration is smaller than an eighth predetermined value.

13. The adaptive cruise control system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the controller is further configured to cancel limiting the rate of increase of the target driving force when the acceleration is greater than or equal to the eighth predetermined value.

14. An adaptive cruise control system for a host vehicle, comprising:

a vehicle speed detector for detecting a host vehicle speed;

an inter vehicle distance detector for detecting an inter vehicle distance between the host vehicle and a preceding vehicle ahead of the host vehicle; and

a controller coupled to the inter vehicle distance detector and the vehicle speed detector, the controller being configured,

to calculate a target vehicle speed on the basis of the host vehicle speed and the inter vehicle distance,

to calculate a target driving force on the basis of the target vehicle speed,

to control a driving force on the basis of the target driving force, and

to limit a magnitude of a rate of change of the target driving force within a first predetermined value when a direction of a wheel driving torque applied to driving wheels of the host vehicle is changed from one of an accelerating state for accelerating a rotation of the driving wheel and a decelerating state for decelerating the rotation of the driving wheels to the other of the accelerating state and the decelerating state.

15. A method of executing an adaptive cruise control system for a host vehicle, the method comprising:

setting a target vehicle speed;

setting a target driving force on the basis of the target vehicle speed;

controlling a driving force on the basis of the target driving force; and

limiting a magnitude of a rate of change of the target driving force within a first predetermined value when a direction of a wheel driving torque applied to driving wheels of the host vehicle is changed from one of an accelerating state for accelerating a rotation of the driving wheel and a decelerating state for decelerating the rotation of the driving wheels to the other of the accelerating state and the decelerating state.

16. An adaptive cruise control system for a host vehicle, comprising:

target vehicle speed setting means for setting a target vehicle speed;

target driving force setting means for setting a target driving force on the basis of the target vehicle speed;

driving force controlling means for control a driving force on the basis of the target driving force, and

limit means for limiting a magnitude of a rate of change of the target driving force within a first predetermined value when a direction of a wheel driving torque applied to driving wheels of the host vehicle is changed from one of an accelerating state for accelerating a rotation of the driving wheel and a decelerating state for decelerating the rotation of the driving wheels to the other of the accelerating state and the decelerating state.