Lane change assistance apparatus

US9682725B2 · US · B2

Patent metadata
FieldValue
Publication numberUS-9682725-B2
Application numberUS-201615095243-A
CountryUS
Kind codeB2
Filing dateApr 11, 2016
Priority dateApr 27, 2015
Publication dateJun 20, 2017
Grant dateJun 20, 2017

How to read this patent

A practical reading order for non-experts. Skip the full description unless you need deep technical detail.

  1. Title

    What the patent document calls the invention.

  2. Abstract

    A short plain-language summary of the technical disclosure.

  3. Assignees and inventors

    Who owns or filed the patent and who is credited as inventor.

  4. Key dates

    Filing, priority, publication, and grant dates set the timeline.

  5. First independent claim

    The legal scope of protection — read this for what is actually claimed.

  6. CPC / IPC classifications

    Technology tags used to group this patent with similar filings.

  7. Citations and related patents

    Prior art links and similar publications in this corpus.

Abstract

Official abstract text for this publication.

The apparatus includes: a lane change assistance unit configured to perform the lane change assistance after elapse of a margin time set in advance from the time when a direction indicator at the adjacent lane side is switched to an ON-state by a driver of the vehicle; and a determination unit configured to determine whether or not an amount of steering to the adjacent lane side by the driver during the margin time is equal to or greater than a steering amount threshold value, or to determine whether or not the vehicle moves to the adjacent lane side due to a driver's steering during the margin time by a lateral distance set in advance.

First claim

Opening claim text (preview).

What is claimed is: 1. A lane change assistance apparatus that is configured to perform a lane change assistance for controlling a vehicle such that it changes lane toward an adjacent lane from a travelling lane, the apparatus comprising: a lane change assistance unit configured to perform the lane change assistance after elapse of a margin time set in advance, from the time when a direction indicator at the adjacent lane side is switched to an ON-state by an operation of a driver of the vehicle; and a determination unit configured to determine whether or not an amount of steering to the adjacent lane side by the driver during the margin time is equal to or greater than a steering amount threshold value, or to determine whether or not the vehicle moves to the adjacent lane side due to a driver's steering during the margin time by a lateral distance set in advance, wherein, in a case where it is determined by the determination unit that the amount of steering during the margin time is equal to or greater than the steering amount threshold value, or in a case where it is determined by the determination unit that the vehicle has moved to the adjacent lane side during the margin time by the lateral distance, the lane change assistance unit is configured to start the lane change assistance before the elapse of the margin time. 2. The lane change assistance apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, in a case where it is determined by the determination unit that the amount of steering during the margin time is equal to or greater than the steering amount threshold value, or in a case where it is determined by the determination unit that the vehicle has moved to the adjacent lane side during the margin time by the lateral distance, the lane change assistance unit is configured to perform the lane change assistance of which the movement time of the vehicle is shorter than that in a case where it is not determined by the determination unit that the amount of steering during the margin time is equal to or greater than the steering amount threshold value, and in a case where it is not determined by the determination unit that the vehicle has moved to the adjacent lane side during the margin time by the lateral distance.

Assignees

Inventors

Classifications

  • Automatic changing of lane, e.g. for passing another vehicle · CPC title

Patent family

Related publications grouped by family.

External sources

Frequently asked questions

Answers are generated from the same data shown on this page.

What does patent US9682725B2 cover?
The apparatus includes: a lane change assistance unit configured to perform the lane change assistance after elapse of a margin time set in advance from the time when a direction indicator at the adjacent lane side is switched to an ON-state by a driver of the vehicle; and a determination unit configured to determine whether or not an amount of steering to the adjacent lane side by the driver d…
Who is the assignee on this patent?
Toyota Motor Co Ltd
What technology area does this patent fall under?
Primary CPC classification B62D15/0255. Mapped technology areas include Operations & Transport.
When was this patent published?
Publication date Tue Jun 20 2017 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) (B2). Legal status and post-grant events are not shown on this page.
What related patents are in patentsdb?
We list 2 related publications on this page (citations in our corpus or others sharing the same primary CPC).