Travel controller, server, and in-vehicle device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016272199-A1
Application number	US-201415032513-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 16, 2014
Priority date	Oct 30, 2013
Publication date	Sep 22, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A travel control device includes: a vehicle detection device configured to detect a position of a peripheral vehicle that travels in a periphery of a host vehicle in a lane, in which the host vehicle travels, or a lane adjacent to and heading in a same direction of the host vehicle; a generation device configured to assign a potential field to a predetermined region, which is adjacent to the position of the peripheral vehicle, the potential field indicating a degree of psychological pressure received by a driver of the host vehicle, and configured to generate a potential distribution that represents a distribution of the potential field of the peripheral vehicle on a road; and a control device configured to control a travel condition of the host vehicle that the host vehicle travels in the potential field relatively low in the potential distribution.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A travel control device comprising:
a vehicle detection device configured to detect a position of a peripheral vehicle that travels in a periphery of a host vehicle in a lane, in which the host vehicle travels, or a lane, which is adjacent to and is heading in a same direction as the lane in which the host vehicle travels; a generation device configured to assign a potential field to a predetermined region, which is adjacent to the position of the peripheral vehicle detected by the vehicle detection device, the potential field indicating a degree of psychological pressure received by a driver of the host vehicle, and configured to generate a potential distribution that represents a distribution of the potential field of the peripheral vehicle on a road; a control device configured to control a travel condition of the host vehicle that the host vehicle travels in the potential field, which is relatively low in the potential distribution generated by the generation device; a rendering device configured to render a potential distribution image, which virtually illustrates a height of the potential field distributed across the road, based on the potential distribution generated by the generation device; and a display control device configured to control a predetermined display device mounted in the host vehicle to display the potential distribution image rendered by the rendering device.

2 . The travel control device according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a speed acquisition device configured to acquire speed information indicative of a speed of the host vehicle, wherein: the generation device adjusts a range or a height of the potential field that is assigned in a forward and rearward direction of the peripheral vehicle, according to a magnitude of the speed that is represented by the speed information acquired by the speed acquisition device.

3 . The travel control device according to claim 1 , wherein:
the vehicle detection device further detects a size of the peripheral vehicle; and the generation device adjusts a range or a height of the potential field assigned to the peripheral vehicle, according to the size of the vehicle detected by the vehicle detection device.

4 . The travel control device according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a road information acquisition device configured to acquire road information indicative of a road condition, on which the host vehicle travels, wherein: the generation device adjusts a range or a height of the potential field assigned to the peripheral vehicle, according to the road condition in the periphery of the host vehicle, the road condition being represented by the road information acquired by the road information acquisition device.

5 . The travel control device according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a weather information acquisition device configured to acquire weather information indicative of a weather condition in the periphery of a current location of the host vehicle, wherein: the generation device adjusts a range or a height of the potential field assigned to the peripheral vehicle, according to the weather condition which is represented by the weather information acquired by the weather information acquisition device.

6 . (canceled)

7 . The travel control device according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a road information acquisition device configured to acquire road information indicative of a road condition on which the host vehicle travels, wherein: the control device restricts a control for a travel condition of the host vehicle when the host vehicle travels on the road having a specific condition, based on the road information acquired by the road information acquisition device.

8 . The travel control device according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a traffic congestion detection device configured to detect an occurrence of traffic congestion ahead of the host vehicle, wherein: when the traffic congestion detection device detects the occurrence of traffic congestion ahead of the host vehicle, the control device restricts a control for a travel condition of the host vehicle; and when the traffic congestion detection device detects that the traffic congestion ahead of the host vehicle is resolved, the control device cancels a restriction.

9 . A travel control device comprising:
a vehicle detection device configured to detect a position of a peripheral vehicle that travels in a periphery of a host vehicle in a lane, in which the host vehicle travels, or a lane, which is adjacent to and is heading in a same direction as the lane in which the host vehicle travels; a generation device configured to assign a potential field to a predetermined region, which is adjacent to the position of the peripheral vehicle detected by the vehicle detection device, the potential field indicating a degree of psychological pressure received by a driver of the host vehicle, and configured to generate a potential distribution that represents a distribution of the potential field of the peripheral vehicle on a road; a control device configured to control a travel condition of the host vehicle that the host vehicle travels in the potential field, which is relatively low in the potential distribution generated by the generation device; a recording device configured to acquire driving behavior information regarding a vehicle-to-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the peripheral vehicle or a lane condition in which the host vehicle has traveled, and configured to store the driving behavior information in a storage device, wherein: the generation device adjusts a range or a height of the potential field assigned to the peripheral vehicle, according to a tendency of a driving behavior based on the driving behavior information stored in the storage device.

10 . A server comprising:
an acquisition device configured to acquire information regarding positions and travel conditions of a plurality of vehicles which travel on a road having a plurality of lanes heading in a same direction; a generation device configured to assign a potential field to a predetermined region, which is adjacent to a position of each vehicle, based on the information regarding each vehicle acquired by the acquisition device, the potential field indicating a degree of psychological pressure received by a driver of another vehicle, and configured to generate a potential distribution that represents a distribution of the potential field of each vehicle on the road; a determination device configured to determine control information regarding a travel condition of each vehicle that each vehicle travels in the potential field which is relatively low in the potential distribution generated by the generation device; a transmission device configured to transmit the control information regarding each vehicle, which is determined by the determination device, to another vehicle corresponding to the control information; a recording device configured to store driving behavior information, indicative of a driving behavior regarding a vehicle-to-vehicle distance between each vehicle and a peripheral vehicle or a traveled lane condition, in a storage device based on the information acquired by the acquisition device, wherein: the determination device determines the control information regarding the travel condition of each vehicle according to a tendency of the driving behavior for each vehicle based on the driving behavior information stored in the storage device.

11 . The server according to claim 10 , wherein:
the determination device determines the control information for controlling a travel condition of an autonomou

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Kawahara Nobuaki
• Tauchi Makiko

Classifications

• B60T2210/34

  Blind spots · CPC title

• B60T2210/32

  Vehicle surroundings · CPC title

• G08G1/096775

  where the origin of the information is a central station · CPC title

• B60W2556/65

  Data transmitted between vehicles · CPC title

• G08G1/04

  using optical or ultrasonic detectors · CPC title