Vehicle operation assisting system

• US 7,778,753 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2005
• Issued: 08/17/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Kanaboshi, Mitsuharu, Shoda, Yasushi, Fujiwara, Yukihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Khoi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Peche; Jorge O
• Application Number:
  US11/120,312
• Publication Number:
  US 20050267660A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,933 Days
• Field of Search: 701/301, 701/302, 701/41, 701/48, 701/70, 701/71, 701/78, 701/83, 701/300, 340/435, 340/436, 340/438, 340/903, 342/70, 342/71, 342/72, 342/118, 342/175, 345/958, 367/909
• US Class Current: 701/41
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2201/022 Collision avoidance systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2260/02 Active Steering, Steer-by-Wire
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/17558 specially adapted for collision avoidance or collision mitigation road vehicle drive control systems for collision avoidance otherwise than by controlling a particular sub-unit B60W30/09
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/20 including control of steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/02 related to ambient conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/09 Driving style or behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 6/003 in order to control vehicle yaw movement, i.e. around a vertical axis B62D6/007 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 345/958 Collision avoidance
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 367/909 Collision avoidance

Abstract

A vehicle operation assist system includes as assist yaw rate calculator which calculates a necessary moving amount to avoid an obstacle based on a detection result of the obstacle by a radar device, and a vehicle movement controller controls lateral movement of the vehicle based on the calculated moving amount. When an avoiding operation detector determines initiation of an obstacle avoiding operation by the driver, the vehicle movement controller operates a braking device to control the lateral movement of the vehicle, so that the obstacle can be reliably avoided. When a restoring operation detector determines initiation of a restoring operation, the vehicle movement controller operates a power steering device to control the lateral movement of the vehicle, so that delay in the steering operation by the driver, and excessive restoring operation of the steering handle to compensate for the delay are suppressed, thus stabilizing vehicle behavior.

Claims

1. A vehicle operation assisting system which assists an obstacle avoiding operation of a vehicle moving in an initial traveling direction, and a traveling direction-restoring operation following the avoiding operation, said system comprising:

obstacle detecting means for detecting an obstacle ahead of a subject vehicle;

avoiding operation determining means for determining initiation of the obstacle avoiding operation by a driver, based on a brake pedal signal, a steering angle signal, a speed signal, and an actual time to collision;

restoring operation determining means for determining initiation of the traveling direction-restoring operation after avoiding the obstacle, based on at least a difference between a target lateral movement distance and an offset lateral distance detected by a radar device being zero or less, and the actual time to collision being less than a predetermined value, and the radar device having lost sense of the obstacle;

avoiding moving amount calculating means for calculating a necessary lateral distance that the vehicle should be moved in order to avoid the obstacle based on an output of the obstacle detecting means, based on the lateral width of the obstacle detected by the radar device, a subject vehicle lateral width, and a predetermined margin; and

vehicle movement control means for controlling lateral movement of the vehicle based on the lateral distance calculated by the avoiding moving amount calculating means,

wherein said vehicle operation assisting system is configured and arranged such that during an emergency obstacle-avoidance situation, until the restoring operation determining means determines the initiation of the traveling direction-restoring operation after the avoiding operation determining means determines the initiation of the avoiding operation, the vehicle movement control means selectively operates at least a braking device so as to generate a difference in braking forces applied to left and right wheels to control lateral movement of the vehicle in order to avoid collision with the obstacle; and

after the restoring operation determining means determines the initiation of the traveling direction-restoring operation, the vehicle movement control means operates at least a power steering device to control the lateral movement of the vehicle in order to resume the initial traveling direction;

wherein the restoring operation determining means compares an offset lateral distance from a center of the obstacle with respect to a center line of the subject vehicle, and a target lateral moving distance calculated from the lateral width of the obstacle and the lateral width of the subject vehicle; and

determines the initiation of the restoring operation when the offset lateral distance exceeds the target lateral moving distance.

2. The vehicle operation assisting system according to claim 1, wherein the restoring operation determining means determines the initiation of the restoring operation when the obstacle detecting means loses sense of the obstacle.

3. A vehicle operation assisting system which assists an obstacle avoiding operation of a vehicle moving in an initial traveling direction, and a traveling direction-restoring operation following the avoiding operation, said system comprising:

an obstacle detector which detects an obstacle ahead of a subject vehicle;

an avoiding operation detector which determines initiation of the obstacle avoiding operation by a driver, based on a brake pedal signal, a steering angle signal, a speed signal, and an actual time to collision;

a restoring operation detector which determines initiation of the traveling direction-restoring operation after avoiding the obstacle, based on at least a difference between a target lateral movement distance and an offset lateral distance detected by a radar device being zero or less, and the actual time to collision being less than a predetermined value, and the radar device having lost sense of the obstacle;

a moving amount calculator which calculates a necessary lateral distance that the vehicle should be moved in order to avoid the obstacle based on an output of the obstacle detector based on the lateral width of the obstacle detected by the radar device, a subject vehicle lateral width, and a predetermined margin; and

a vehicle movement controller which controls lateral movement of the vehicle based on the lateral distance calculated by the moving amount calculator,

wherein said vehicle operation assisting system is configured and arranged such that during an emergency obstacle-avoidance situation, until the restoring operation determining detector determines the initiation of the traveling direction-restoring operation after the avoiding operation determining detector determines the initiation of the avoiding operation, the vehicle movement controller selectively operates at least a braking device so as to generate a difference in braking forces applied to left and right wheels to control lateral movement of the vehicle in order to avoid collision with the obstacle; and

after the restoring operation detector determines the initiation of the restoring operation, the vehicle movement controller operates at least a power steering device to control the lateral movement of the vehicle in order to resume the initial traveling direction; and

wherein the restoring operation detector compares an offset lateral distance from a center of the obstacle with respect to a center line of the subject vehicle, and a target lateral moving distance calculated from the lateral width of the obstacle and the lateral width of the subject vehicle; and

determines the initiation of the restoring operation when the offset lateral distance exceeds the target lateral moving distance.

4. The vehicle operation assisting system according to claim 3, wherein the restoring operation detector determines the initiation of the restoring operation when the obstacle detector loses sense of the obstacle.

5. A method of avoiding a collision with an obstacle by a vehicle having a radar device for detecting obstacles, said method comprising the steps of:

a) sensing a first driver-initiated change in steering in a first direction when a driver begins an obstacle-avoiding operation;

b) comparing an offset lateral distance from a center of the obstacle with respect to a center line of a subject vehicle;

c) calculating a target lateral moving distance from a lateral width of the obstacle and a lateral width of the subject vehicle using a restoring operation determining means;

d) determining an initiation of a restoring operation when the offset lateral distance exceeds the target lateral moving distance, based on at least a difference between the target lateral movement distance and an offset lateral distance detected by a radar device being zero or less, and the actual time to collision being less than a predetermined value, and the radar device having lost sense of the obstacle;

e) selectively operating a braking device using an electronic controller in coordination with the first driver-initiated change in steering so as to generate a difference in braking forces applied to the left and right wheels in order to control lateral movement of the vehicle and thereby avoid collision with said obstacle;

f) passing said obstacle;

g) sensing a second driver-initiated change in steering in a second direction substantially opposite the first direction when a driver begins a vehicle travel direction-restoring operation; and

h) operating a power steering device using an electronic controller in coordination with the second driver-initiated change in steering to control the lateral movement of the vehicle in order to resume the initial traveling direction.