Vehicle control system, vehicle control method, and non-transitory computer-readable storage medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11524700-B2
Application number	US-202016913402-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 26, 2020
Priority date	Jul 5, 2019
Publication date	Dec 13, 2022
Grant date	Dec 13, 2022

Abstract

A control system of a vehicle that can travel in a first state in which travel control is performed based on a position of a white line on a travel lane and in a second state in which travel control is performed based on a travel position of another vehicle. Periphery information is obtained of the vehicle. It is determined, based on the periphery information obtained, whether an emergency vehicle is approaching. A control unit configured to perform control so that travel control in the first state is prioritized when it is determined that the emergency vehicle is not approaching. Travel control in the second state is prioritized when it is determined that the emergency vehicle is approaching.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A control system of a vehicle that can travel in a first state in which travel control is performed based on a position of a white line on a travel lane and in a second state in which travel control is performed based on a travel position of another vehicle, comprising:
an obtainment unit configured to obtain periphery information of the vehicle;
a determination unit configured to determine, based on the periphery information obtained by the obtainment unit, that an emergency vehicle is approaching; and
a control unit configured to perform control so that the travel control by the first state is prioritized when the determination unit determines that the emergency vehicle is not approaching, and so that the travel control by the second state is prioritized when the determination unit determines that the emergency vehicle is approaching, where the travel control in the second state is based on a position, in a lateral direction, of another vehicle which is different from the emergency vehicle and travels on the same lane as the vehicle.

2. The system according to claim 1 , the control unit performs control to prioritize the travel control by the second state in a case in which the emergency vehicle is determined to have approached within a predetermined range from the vehicle, and performs control to prioritize the travel control by the first state in a case in which the emergency vehicle is determined to have fallen outside the predetermined range.

3. The system according to claim 1 , wherein in a case in which state switching is to be performed, the control unit switches the state step by step based on the position of the white line on the travel lane and the travel position of the other vehicle.

4. The system according to claim 1 , wherein in a case in which the vehicle is traveling a predetermined area when the second state is to be switched to the first state, the control unit performs the switching after the vehicle has passed the predetermined area.

5. The system according to claim 1 , further comprising: a unit configured to determine, based on the periphery information, a degree of urgency of the approach of the emergency vehicle,
wherein the control unit controls whether to switch to the travel control by the second state in accordance with the degree of urgency.

6. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the obtainment unit obtains the periphery information by one of sound detection by a sound detection unit and communication with an external device by a communication unit.

7. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit controls whether to switch to the travel control by the second state based on a width of a road.

8. The system according to claim 7 , wherein in a case in which the width of the road is smaller than a predetermined width in the travel control by the second state, an offset operation with respect to the emergency vehicle is not performed.

9. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit eases a limit value of the travel control by the second state which is performed when the emergency vehicle is determined to be approaching compared to a limit value of the travel control by the second state when the emergency vehicle is determined not to be approaching.

10. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the limit value is one of a limit value of a range permitting travel on a road and a limit value on an amount of movement during travel.

11. The system according to claim 1 , wherein when switching to the second state, the control unit sets a limit on an amount of movement during travel for a predetermined period from the start of the switching.

12. The system according to claim 1 , further comprising: a communication unit configured to notify, when the determination unit has determined that the emergency vehicle is approaching, an occupant of the vehicle that control is being performed to prioritize the travel control by the second state.

13. A control method of a vehicle that can travel in a first state in which travel control is performed based on a position of a white line on a travel lane and in a second state in which travel control is performed based on a travel position of another vehicle, the method comprising:
obtaining periphery information of the vehicle;
determining, based on the periphery information obtained in the obtaining, that an emergency vehicle is approaching; and
performing control so that the travel control by the first state is prioritized when the emergency vehicle is determined not to be approaching in the determining, and so that the travel control by the second state is prioritized when it is determined that the emergency vehicle is approaching, where the travel control in the second state is based on a position, in a lateral direction, of another vehicle which is different from the emergency vehicle and travels on the same lane as the vehicle.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer, for controlling a vehicle that can travel in a first state in which travel control is performed based on a position of a white line on a travel lane and in a second state in which travel control is performed based on a travel position of another vehicle, to function as
an obtainment unit configured to obtain periphery information of the vehicle;
a determination unit configured to determine, based on the periphery information obtained by the obtainment unit, that an emergency vehicle is approaching; and
a control unit configured to perform control so that the travel control by the first state is prioritized when the determination unit determines that the emergency vehicle is not approaching, and so that the travel control by the second state is prioritized when the determination unit determines that the emergency vehicle is approaching, where the travel control in the second state is based on a position, in a lateral direction, of another vehicle which is different from the emergency vehicle and travels on the same lane as the vehicle.

Assignees

• Honda Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Oguro Chihiro
• Yashiro Katsuya
• Horiba Ayumu
• Kanoh Tadahiko

Classifications

• B60W2554/402

  Type · CPC title

• B60W2554/801

  Lateral distance · CPC title

• B60W2420/54

  Audio sensitive means, e.g. ultrasound · CPC title

• B60W60/0017 Primary

  of other traffic participants · CPC title

• B60W2554/4023

  large-size vehicles, e.g. trucks · CPC title