Driver assisting system for optimizing curve traversal

• US 9,096,266 B2
• Filed: 01/15/2010
• Issued: 08/04/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Irie, Yoshiaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Algahaim, Helal A
• Assistant Examiner(s): WALLACE, DONALD JOSEPH
• Application Number:
  US13/522,134
• Publication Number:
  US 20120290173A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,027 Days
• Field of Search: 701 41- 44
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/225 Direction of gaze
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/15 Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction
• 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: B60W 30/10 Path keeping cruise control for automatically following a preceding vehicle B60W30/165
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/16 Control of distance between vehicles, e.g. keeping a distance to preceding vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/082 Selecting or switching between different modes of propelling
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/025 Active steering aids, e.g. helping the driver by actively influencing the steering system after environment evaluation B62D1/28 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/84 Data processing systems or methods, management, administration

Abstract

To perform appropriate travel control of a vehicle without applying an uncomfortable feeling to a driver, an ideal travel locus, that is a travel locus that becomes a target when travel control of the vehicle is performed, is set, plural guide target points which guide the vehicle when the travel control is performed are set on the ideal travel locus, and when the vehicle is guided to the guide target points, the vehicle is guided by making a degree of influence when the vehicle is guided at the plural guide target points different from each other. With the configuration, in a portion having a low degree of importance on the ideal travel locus, when the vehicle is guided by reducing the degree of influence of the guide target points, since the vehicle is guided in a state that a compelling force is small, the vehicle can be guided without applying an uncomfortable feeling to the driver. Further, in a portion having a high degree of importance on the ideal travel locus, when the vehicle is guided by increasing the degree of influence of the guide target points, since the vehicle is guided by a large compelling force, appropriate travel control of the vehicle can be performed.

Claims

1. A vehicle control device that performs travel control of a vehicle by setting a target travel region that is a travel region that becomes a target at the time the travel control is performed, the vehicle control device comprising:

an electronic control unit (ECU);

a target point extracting unit executed by the ECU and configured to set a plurality of target positions for guiding the vehicle on the target travel region at the time the travel control is performed, and extract a plurality of guide target points as points set on a speed pattern capable of realizing a travel of the vehicle in the target travel region by an actuator used to the travel of the vehicle, each of the plurality of guide target points corresponding to each of the plurality of target positions; and

a vehicle guide unit executed by the ECU and configured to guide the vehicle by setting a degree of influence at the time the vehicle is guided at an important target point which is one of the guide target points among the plurality of guide target points higher than the other guide target points so as to weight a compelling force at the time the vehicle is guided to the important target point higher than the other guide target points, and by controlling the actuator based on the speed pattern, at the time the vehicle is guided to the target positions, and set again the target position and guide the vehicle, at the time a path along which the vehicle being guided travels is not the target travel region,

wherein, as a speed of the vehicle becomes fast, the plurality of the target positions increase the degree of influence of the target position set far from the vehicle.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of the target positions make the degree of influence different at the time steering control of the vehicle is performed.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein

the target travel region is set as a target locus that is a locus along which the vehicle travels, and

the plurality of the target positions make the degree of influence different in response to a curvature of the target locus at a position where the target position is set.

4. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of the target positions increase the degree of influence of the target position set to a portion near to a position at which a driver gazes.

5. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein

the target travel region is set as a target locus that is a locus along which the vehicle travels, and

the plurality of the target positions increase the degree of influence at the target position set to a portion where a curvature of the target locus changes.

6. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein as a road width of a road along which the vehicle travels becomes narrow, the plurality of the target positions increase the degree of influence of the target position set at a position near to a center of the road width.

7. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of the target positions reduce the degree of influence of the target position set to a portion having a high degree of danger.

8. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein at the time the vehicle travels at a first speed, the degree of influence of the target position set to a first position from the vehicle is a first degree of influence, and

wherein when the vehicle travels at a second speed greater than the first speed, the degree of influence of the target position set to a second position from the vehicle that is greater than the first position, is a second degree of influence greater than the first degree of influence.

9. A vehicle control device that performs travel control of a vehicle by setting a target travel region that is a travel region that becomes a target at the time the travel control is performed, the vehicle control device comprising:

an electronic control unit (ECU);

a target point extracting unit executed by the ECU and configured to set a plurality of target positions for guiding the vehicle on the target travel region at the time the travel control is performed, and extract a plurality of guide target points as points set on a speed pattern capable of realizing a travel of the vehicle in the target travel region by an actuator used to the travel of the vehicle, each of the plurality of guide target points corresponding to each of the plurality of target positions, where at the time the target travel region is a single curve having an angle of 180°

or more, the target point extracting unit divides the curve into two portions which are an anterior half portion and a latter half portion of the curve, extracts an important target point among the plurality of guide target points which is one of the guide target points at an inside of the curve in the latter half portion of the curve, and extracts an approach target points among the plurality of guide target points which is one of the guide target points at a portion on an outside of an out-in-out travel locus in the target travel region on a proximal side of the important target point in a progress direction of the vehicle, as a point at which the vehicle can be easily guided to the important target point; and

a vehicle guide unit executed by the ECU and configured to guide the vehicle by setting a degree of influence at the time the vehicle is guided at the important target point among the plurality of guide target points higher than the approach target point, so as to weight a compelling force at the time the vehicle is guided to the important target point higher than the approach target point, and by controlling the actuator based on the speed pattern, at the time the vehicle is guided to the target positions, and set again the target position and guide the vehicle, at the time a path along which the vehicle being guided travels is not the target travel region,

wherein, as a speed of the vehicle becomes fast, the plurality of the target positions increase the degree of influence of the target position set far from the vehicle.