Vehicle cruise control apparatus and vehicle cruise control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10345443-B2
Application number	US-201515529920-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 15, 2015
Priority date	Nov 28, 2014
Publication date	Jul 9, 2019
Grant date	Jul 9, 2019

Abstract

A radar device for detecting a distance between vehicles by the transmission and reception of survey waves is mounted in a vehicle as an object detection means for detecting an object. A cruise control apparatus includes a trajectory calculation means for calculating a moving locus of a preceding vehicle traveling in front of an own vehicle on the basis of the detection result of the radar device, a route prediction means for calculating a predicted route of the vehicle on the basis of the moving locus of the preceding vehicle calculated by the trajectory calculation means, an axial deviation detection means for detecting the axial deviation of the radar device, and an invalidation processing means for invalidating the predicted route calculated by the route prediction means when it is detected that the axial deviation detection means has detected axial deviation of the radar device.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vehicle cruise control apparatus for controlling the traveling of an own vehicle on the basis of a predicted route which is a future travel route of the own vehicle, the own vehicle having an inter-vehicle distance sensor for detecting a distance between vehicles by the transmission and reception of survey waves provided in the own vehicle as a sensor for detecting an object, the apparatus comprising:
at least one electronic control unit including a processor and memory, the electronic control unit configured to:
calculate a moving locus of a preceding vehicle traveling in front of the own vehicle on the basis of the detection result of the inter-vehicle distance sensor and store in the memory the calculated moving locus;
calculate the predicted route on the basis of the stored moving locus of the preceding vehicle and store in the memory the calculated predicted route;
detect the axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor;
invalidate the predicted route stored in the memory in response to an axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor occurring;
set the preceding vehicle present on the predicted route which has not been invalidated among the preceding vehicles as a followed vehicle; and
output a control signal to control a vehicle speed to keep a distance between the own vehicle and the followed vehicle.

2. The vehicle cruise control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic control unit is further configured to:
capture images of the peripheral environment including the traveling road provided in the own vehicle; and
determine whether or not a target deemed to be the same object as the preceding vehicle detected by the inter-vehicle distance sensor is included in the image data acquired by the imaging device, wherein
invalidate the predicted route in response to the target being determined to be excluded in the case in which it was detected that an axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor occurs, and validates the predicted route in response to determining that the target is included.

3. The vehicle cruise control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic control unit is further configured to:
calculate the predicted route on the basis of the yaw velocity of the own vehicle; and
invalidate the predicted route when an axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor occurs, and validates the predicted route.

4. A vehicle cruise control method for controlling the traveling of an own vehicle on the basis of a predicted route which is a future travel route of the own vehicle, wherein an inter-vehicle distance sensor for detecting a distance between vehicles by the transmission and reception of survey waves is provided in the own vehicle as an object detection means for detecting an object, the method comprising:
calculating a moving locus of a preceding vehicle traveling in front of the own vehicle on the basis of the detection result of the inter-vehicle distance sensor;
calculating the predicted route on the basis of the moving locus of the preceding vehicle;
detecting the axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor; and
invalidating the predicted route in response to an axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor occurring.

5. A vehicle cruise control apparatus for controlling the traveling of an own vehicle on the basis of a predicted route which is a future travel route of the own vehicle, the own vehicle having an inter-vehicle distance sensor for detecting a distance between vehicles by the transmission and reception of survey waves provided in the own vehicle as a sensor for detecting an object, the apparatus comprising:
a memory;
a processor communicable to the memory and the inter-vehicle distance sensor; and
a set of computer-executable instructions stored on the memory that cause the processor to implement:
calculating a moving locus of a preceding vehicle traveling in front of the own vehicle on the basis of the detection result of the inter-vehicle distance sensor and storing in the memory the calculated moving locus;
calculating the predicted route on the basis of the stored moving locus of the preceding vehicle and store in the memory the calculated predicted route;
detecting the axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor;
invalidating the predicted route stored in the memory in response to the processor detecting that an axial deviation of the inter-vehicle distance sensor occurs;
setting the preceding vehicle present on the predicted route which has not been invalidated among the preceding vehicles as a followed vehicle; and
outputting a control signal to control a vehicle speed to keep a distance between the own vehicle and the followed vehicle.

Assignees

• Denso Corp
• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Masui Youhei
• Nanami Takeshi
• Nishida Takashi

Classifications

• B60W2552/20

  Road profile, i.e. the change in elevation or curvature of a plurality of continuous road segments · CPC title

• G01S2013/9319

  Controlling the accelerator · CPC title

• G01S2013/93185

  Controlling the brakes · CPC title

• G01S2013/93271

  in the front of the vehicles · CPC title

• G01S2013/932

  using own vehicle data, e.g. ground speed, steering wheel direction · CPC title