Vehicle control apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016009284-A1
Application number	US-201514796961-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 10, 2015
Priority date	Jul 11, 2014
Publication date	Jan 14, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A vehicle control apparatus for implementing inter-vehicle distance control of a vehicle carrying the apparatus behind a preceding vehicle. In the apparatus, an offset storage is configured to calculate an offset that is a difference between detected distances to first and second targets, and store the offset associated with the first target forward of the second target. The inter-vehicle distance control may be implemented based on a distance calculated by subtracting the offset from the detected distance to the first target. An offset updater is configured to determine whether or not a relative distance between the first and second targets has increased or decreased, and when the relative distance between the first and second targets has increased or decreased, update the offset stored by the offset storage.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A vehicle control apparatus for implementing inter-vehicle distance control of a vehicle carrying the apparatus behind a preceding vehicle based on reflected waves from at least one target that is a reflecting portion of the preceding vehicle, the vehicle carrying the apparatus being referred to as a subject vehicle, the reflected waves being radar waves transmitted to a front of the subject vehicle and then reflected from the at least one target, the apparatus comprising:
a target information acquirer configured to acquire target information about each of the at least one target from the reflected waves, the target information including a detected distance from the subject vehicle to the target of the preceding vehicle; an offset storage configured to, in the presence of first and second targets forward of the subject vehicle, the first target being forward of the second target, the second target being a target recognized as a rear end of the preceding vehicle, calculate and store an offset associated with the first target, the offset being a difference between the detected distance to the first target and the detected distance to the second target; and a controller configured to implement the inter-vehicle distance control to follow the second target based on the detected distance to the second target, and when the second target fails to be detected, implement the inter-vehicle distance control based on a distance calculated by subtracting the offset associated with the first target stored by the offset storage from the detected distance to the first target; and an offset updater configured to determine whether or not a relative distance between the first and second targets has increased or decreased, and when it is determined that the relative distance between the first and second targets has increased or decreased, update the offset stored by the offset storage using at least one of the detected distance to the first target and the detected distance to the second target acquired after the relative distance between the first and second targets has increased or decreased.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the offset updater is configured to, when the relative distance between the first and second targets has increased, update the offset, and when it is determined that the relative distance between the first and second targets has decreased, leave the offset unchanged.

3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the offset updater is configured to, when the relative distance between the first and second targets has decreased and the decrease in relative distance between the first and second targets is due to rearward displacement of the first target, update the offset associated with the first target.

4 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the target information further includes a relative speed between the first target and the subject vehicle,
wherein the offset updater is configured to, based on the relative speed of the first target, determine whether or not the relative distance between the first and second targets has increased or decreased.

5 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the offset updater is configured to, when the relative distance between the first and second targets has increased and the increase in relative distance between the first and second targets is due to rearward displacement of the second target by a predetermined distance or more, update an offset associated with the second target and previously stored by the offset storage.

6 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the target information further includes a relative speed between the second target and the subject vehicle,
wherein the offset updater is configured to, based on the relative speed of the second target, determine whether or not the relative distance between the first and second targets has increased or decreased.

7 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the offset storage is configured to, in the presence of a new target other than the first and second targets, the new target being forward of either or both of the first and second targets, store an offset associated with the new target that is a difference between the detected distance to the new target and the detected distance to the second target or a difference between the detected distance to the new target and the detected distance to the second target subtracted by the offset stored associated with the second target, if any.

8 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the offset storage is configured to, in the presence of a new target other than the first and second targets, the new target being rearward of the first and second targets, store or register an offset associated with each of the first and second targets that is a difference between the detected distance to the new target and the detected distance to the each of the first and second targets.

Assignees

• Denso Corp
• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Tokimasa Mitsuhiro
• Masui Youhei
• Nakadori Minoru

Classifications

• B60W2554/804

  Relative longitudinal speed · CPC title

• B60W2554/801

  Lateral distance · CPC title

• B60W2540/215

  Selection or confirmation of options · CPC title

• B60W2754/30

  Longitudinal distance · CPC title

• G01S13/931

  of land vehicles · CPC title