Vehicle travel control apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016016469-A1
Application number	US-201514735439-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 10, 2015
Priority date	Jul 16, 2014
Publication date	Jan 21, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A vehicle travel control apparatus includes: an electric motor that generates a creep torque; a preceding vehicle following control part that performs a preceding vehicle following control for adjusting an inter-vehicle distance between a preceding vehicle and a host vehicle based on a travel state of the preceding vehicle, the preceding vehicle following control being continued until the host vehicle transitions to a stopped state; and a creep torque control part that controls a creep torque control, wherein the creep torque control part retains a target value of the creep torque to be generated by the electric motor at a predetermined value during a period in which the preceding vehicle following control is performed and the host vehicle travels.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A vehicle travel control apparatus, comprising:
an electric motor that generates a creep torque;
a preceding vehicle following control part that performs a preceding vehicle following control for adjusting an inter-vehicle distance between a preceding vehicle and a host vehicle based on a travel state of the preceding vehicle, the preceding vehicle following control being continued until the host vehicle transitions to a stopped state; and
a creep torque control part that controls a creep torque control, wherein the creep torque control part retains a target value of the creep torque to be generated by the electric motor at a predetermined value during a period in which the preceding vehicle following control is performed and the host vehicle travels.

2 . The vehicle travel control apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined value is 0.

3 . The vehicle travel control apparatus of claim 1 , wherein, during the period in which the preceding vehicle following control is performed and the host vehicle travels, the creep torque control part calculates the target value of the creep torque at a predetermined cycle, retains the target value of a previous cycle if the target value calculated in a current cycle is less than or equal to the target value calculated in the previous cycle, and otherwise updates the target value with the target value calculated in the current cycle.

4 . The vehicle travel control apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the creep torque control part sets the target value of the creep torque based on a road slope angle at a position of the vehicle during a period in which the host vehicle is stopped.

5 . The vehicle travel control apparatus of claim 1 , wherein, during the period in which the preceding vehicle following control is performed, the preceding vehicle following control part sets a target acceleration at a first timing that is immediately before the vehicle is stopped such that the target acceleration at the first timing is less than the target acceleration at a second timing that is before the first timing.

Assignees

• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Yamada Hiroshi

Classifications

• B60W2540/12

  Brake pedal position · CPC title

• B60W30/18063

  Creeping · CPC title

• B60W2552/15

  Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction · CPC title

• B60Y2400/60

  Electric Machines, e.g. motors or generators · CPC title

• B60W2554/801

  Lateral distance · CPC title