JP2023012711A - Vehicle control device and vehicle control method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method by which sailing control can be ended early by predicting an environmental change ahead of a vehicle.SOLUTION: According to a vehicle control device 10 and a vehicle control method, a prediction condition is provided as an ending condition for determining to end sailing control. The prediction condition is satisfied in the case where there is a possibility of approach of another moving obstacle except a preceding vehicle located ahead in a traveling lane in which a vehicle currently travels. Thus, it is possible to predict an environmental change ahead of the vehicle while performing the sailing control, and to end the sailing control early when there is a possibility that the vehicle may approach another moving obstacle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The disclosure in this specification relates to a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method that perform sailing control.

A control called sailing control or coasting control is known. Sailing control is control that interrupts the power transmission path between the engine and the wheels while the vehicle is running. The vehicle runs by inertia by executing the sailing control. As a result, the vehicle travels without using the power of the prime mover, thereby suppressing fuel consumption. In the device described in Patent Literature 1, when the inter-vehicle time to the preceding vehicle becomes shorter while the sailing control is being executed, the sailing control is terminated in order to decelerate.

JP 2018-34597 A

The device described in Patent Literature 1 monitors the inter-vehicle time to the preceding vehicle, but does not predict environmental changes in front of the vehicle. Prediction of changes in the environment ahead of the vehicle includes, for example, prediction that a preceding vehicle in an adjacent lane will cut in the front and prediction that a merging vehicle will cut in the front on an expressway.

During sailing control, for example, when there is a sudden interruption, deceleration must be started immediately if the inter-vehicle time to the interrupting preceding vehicle is smaller than the threshold. Therefore, it cannot be said that the start of deceleration is sufficiently early. Further, if the start of deceleration is delayed, it becomes necessary to use the friction brake to rapidly decelerate, which deteriorates the ride comfort.

The object of the disclosure is to provide a vehicle control device and a vehicle control method capable of estimating changes in the environment in front of the vehicle and ending the sailing control at an early stage. intended to

The present disclosure employs the following technical means to achieve the aforementioned objects.

The vehicle control device disclosed herein includes a sailing control unit (12) that performs sailing control to cut off a power transmission path between a prime mover (24) mounted on a vehicle (21) and wheels (22); a sailing determination unit (13) for determining the start and end of control and outputting the determination result to the sailing control unit, wherein the sailing determination unit determines a termination condition for determining that the sailing control should be terminated. is provided with a prediction condition that is satisfied when there is a risk of approaching a moving obstacle other than the preceding vehicle located in front of the current lane, and if the prediction condition is satisfied at least, the sailing control is terminated. It is a vehicle control device that judges.

The vehicle control method disclosed herein performs sailing control to cut off a power transmission path between a prime mover (24) mounted on a vehicle (21) and wheels (22), and starts and ends the sailing control. is satisfied when the termination condition for determining that the sailing control is to be terminated is that there is a risk of approaching a moving obstacle other than the preceding vehicle positioned in front of the lane in which the vehicle is currently traveling. A vehicle control method comprising a prediction condition and determining to end sailing control when at least the prediction condition is satisfied.

According to such a vehicle control device and vehicle control method, a prediction condition is provided as an end condition for determining to end the sailing control. The prediction condition is met when there is a risk of approaching a moving obstacle other than the preceding vehicle positioned in front of the current lane. A moving obstacle is an obstacle that does not currently exist in front of the vehicle in the direction of travel, but may be located on the predicted travel route as it moves in the future, such as a person, an animal, or another vehicle. If there is a risk of approaching such a moving obstacle, it may be necessary to decelerate, so it is preferable to cancel the sailing control and decelerate early. Therefore, while the sailing control is being executed, the environment change in front of the vehicle is predicted, and the sailing control is terminated early if there is a risk of the vehicle approaching a moving obstacle. This enables gradual deceleration by engine braking or regenerative braking, thereby suppressing sudden deceleration caused by other moving obstacles.

It should be noted that the symbols in parentheses of each of the means described above are examples showing the correspondence with specific means described in the embodiments described later.

1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle provided with a vehicle control device; FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing processing executed by a sailing control unit 12 and a sailing determination unit 13;

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle 21 provided with a vehicle control device 10 of this embodiment. In addition to the vehicle control device 10, the vehicle 21 includes wheels 22, a transmission 23, an engine 24, a braking device 25, a vehicle state sensor 26, a driver monitoring device 27, a locator 28, a map database 29, and a surroundings monitoring device 30. there is The engine 24 is a prime mover and generates power for driving the vehicle 21 . Power generated by the engine 24 is transmitted to the wheels 22 via the transmission 23 and the axles 31 . The transmission 23 transmits the power from the engine 24 to the axle 31 while changing the torque, speed and direction of rotation.

The transmission 23 has a plurality of friction elements such as clutches and brakes. The transmission 23 can change the gear ratio stepwise by selectively engaging each friction element. The transmission 23 rotates the axle 31 and the wheels 22 connected to the axle 31 at a set number of revolutions by the power generated by the engine 24 . The transmission 23 also has a clutch inside. The clutch is a power transmission device that switches between a transmission state in which the power of the engine 24 is transmitted to the axle 31 and a disconnected state in which the power is not transmitted.

Wheels 22 are connected to transmission 23 via axles 31 . Power generated by the engine 24 is transmitted to the transmission 23, the axles 31 and the wheels 22 in this order. Thus, the transmission 23 and the axle 31 form a power transmission path between the engine 24 and the wheels 22 .

The brake device 25 is a device that reduces the rotation speed of the wheel 22, and is configured with a friction material and a mechanism that operates the friction material. The brake device 25 reduces the rotation speed of the wheels 22 by pressing a friction material against the rotor provided on each wheel 22 .

The driver monitoring device 27 is also called a driver status monitor (hereinafter "DSM"). Driver Status Monitor is a registered trademark. The DSM 27 detects and alerts the driver to conditions such as driver distraction, dozing off, and improper driving posture. The DSM 27 has a near-infrared light source, a near-infrared camera, and a control unit for controlling them. The DSM 27 is installed, for example, on the upper surface of the cover of the steering column, with the near-infrared camera directed toward the driver's seat side. The DSM 27 uses a near-infrared camera to photograph the vicinity of the driver's face irradiated with near-infrared light from the near-infrared light source. A face image captured by the near-infrared camera is analyzed by the control unit.

When the control unit determines that the driver is dozing with his/her eyes closed, the control unit outputs to the vehicle control device 10 that the driver is dozing. The dozing state includes not only the state in which the driver is dozing off and his eyes are closed, but also the state in which he is dozing off. Further, when the analyzed face angle or line of sight of the driver deviates from a predetermined frontal area centered on the frontal direction for a predetermined determination time or longer, the control unit causes the driver to look aside. It is determined that the vehicle is in a state of not paying attention to the front. When the control unit determines that the driver does not gaze ahead, it outputs to the vehicle control device 10 that the driver does not gaze ahead. The control unit also outputs the direction of the line of sight of the driver to the vehicle control device 10 .

The vehicle state sensor 26 is a group of sensors that detect information regarding the state of the host vehicle. Vehicle state sensors 26 include a vehicle speed sensor, an accelerator opening sensor, a brake pedal sensor, and the like. The vehicle speed sensor detects the vehicle speed of the vehicle 21, which is the own vehicle. The accelerator opening sensor detects the depression amount of an accelerator pedal provided in the vehicle 21 . A brake pedal sensor detects whether the brake pedal is depressed. The vehicle state sensor 26 outputs the current value of the physical state quantity to be detected, that is, the data indicating the detection result to the vehicle control device 10 .

The perimeter monitoring device 30 is a device that monitors the perimeter of the vehicle. The perimeter monitoring device 30 is configured to detect the presence and position of a predetermined detection target. The perimeter monitoring device 30 outputs information on the detected object to be detected to the vehicle control device 10 . The perimeter monitoring device 30 also measures the inter-vehicle distance to the preceding vehicle. The preceding vehicle is another vehicle that is ahead of the vehicle 21 and closest to the vehicle 21 in the same driving lane as the vehicle 21 . As the perimeter monitoring device 30, for example, a perimeter monitoring camera, millimeter wave radar, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging/Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging), sonar, or the like can be employed.

Millimeter-wave radar transmits millimeter waves or quasi-millimeter waves in a predetermined direction within the detection range, and analyzes the reception data of the reflected waves that are reflected by the object and returned to the detection range. It is a device that detects the position of an object inside.

LiDAR is a device that generates three-dimensional point cloud data indicating the positions of reflection points for each detection direction by irradiating laser light. LiDAR is also called laser radar. The LiDAR may be of the scanning type or of the flash type.

A perimeter monitoring camera is an in-vehicle camera that is arranged to capture an image of the perimeter of the vehicle. The peripheral monitoring camera includes a front camera arranged at the upper end of the windshield on the inside of the vehicle interior, the front grill, etc. so as to photograph the front of the vehicle. The front camera detects various objects to be detected using a discriminator using, for example, a CNN (Convolutional Neural Network) or a DNN (Deep Neural Network).

Objects to be detected include, for example, pedestrians and mobile objects such as other vehicles. Other vehicles include not only surrounding vehicles but also bicycles, motorized bicycles, and motorcycles. In addition, the perimeter monitoring device 30 is configured to be able to detect a predetermined feature. Features to be detected by the perimeter monitoring device 30 include road edges, median strips, road markings, and three-dimensional structures installed along roads. Road markings include, for example, lane markings indicating lane boundaries, pedestrian crossings, stop lines, running lanes, safety zones, and regulatory arrows. Three-dimensional structures installed along roads are, for example, guardrails, road signs, and traffic lights.

Locator 28 includes a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver and an inertial sensor. A GNSS receiver receives positioning signals from a plurality of positioning satellites. Inertial sensors include, for example, gyro sensors and acceleration sensors. The locator 28 sequentially locates the vehicle position of the own vehicle by combining the positioning signal received by the GNSS receiver and the measurement result of the inertial sensor. The vehicle position is represented by, for example, latitude and longitude coordinates. It should be noted that the positioning of the vehicle position may be performed using the traveling distance obtained from the signals sequentially output from the vehicle speed sensor of the vehicle state sensor 26 . The locator 28 outputs positional information obtained by positioning to the vehicle control device 10 .

The map database 29 is a non-volatile memory and stores map data such as link data, node data, road shapes, and structures. The link data includes data such as a link ID specifying a link, link length indicating the length of the link, link direction, link travel time, link shape, node coordinates of the start and end of the link, and road attributes. be. As an example, the link shape may consist of a coordinate string indicating the coordinate positions of shape interpolation points representing both ends of the link and the shape therebetween. The road attributes include road name, road type, road width, lane number information representing the number of lanes, speed limit value, and the like. The node data consists of data such as a node ID with a unique number assigned to each node on the map, node coordinates, node name, node type, and connection link ID in which the link ID of the link connecting to the node is described. be. The link data may be subdivided by lane, that is, by lane, in addition to by road section.

From the information on the number of lanes and/or the type of road, it is possible to determine whether a road section, that is, a link corresponds to a road with multiple lanes on one side, a single lane on one side, or a two-way road with no center line. Two-way roads without a central line do not include one-way roads. A two-way road without a center line here refers to a two-way road without a center line among general roads other than highways and motorways.

The map data may also include a 3D map consisting of point clouds of feature points of road shapes and structures. When a 3D map consisting of point groups of feature points of road shapes and structures is used as the map data, the locator 28 can extract the feature points of road shapes and structures from this 3D map without using a GNSS receiver. LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging/Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging) that detects the point group of the position of the vehicle or the detection result of the periphery monitoring device 30 may be used to specify the position of the vehicle. The three-dimensional map may be generated based on captured images by REM (Road Experience Management).

The vehicle control device 10 can be implemented by a configuration including at least one processor. For example, the vehicle control device 10 can be implemented by a computer including a processor, nonvolatile memory, RAM, I/O, bus lines connecting these components, and the like. A program for operating a general-purpose computer as the vehicle control device 10 is stored in the nonvolatile memory. The vehicle control device 10 controls the transmission 23, the engine 24, the braking device 25, etc. by the processor executing the program stored in the non-volatile memory while using the temporary storage function of the RAM.

The vehicle control device 10 also operates as an ACC control unit 11, a sailing control unit 12, and a sailing determination unit 13, as shown in FIG. Execution of these operations means execution of the vehicle control method corresponding to the program. Note that the vehicle control device 10 may be composed of a plurality of devices such as a device that controls the engine 24, a device that controls the transmission 23, a device that controls the brake device 25, and the like.

The ACC control unit 11 executes adaptive cruise control. Adaptive cruise control is control to follow the preceding vehicle while maintaining a constant inter-vehicle distance from the preceding vehicle when the preceding vehicle is present. Adaptive cruise control maintains the speed of vehicle 21 at a preset speed when there is no preceding vehicle. The ACC control unit 11 starts and ends adaptive cruise control according to a driver's switch operation. The ACC control unit 11 also temporarily or completely terminates the adaptive cruise control when various termination conditions such as depression of the accelerator pedal or the brake pedal are satisfied.

The sailing control section 12 performs sailing control based on the determination by the sailing determination section 13 . Sailing control is control that blocks the power transmission path between the engine 24 and the wheels 22 . In sailing control, the engine 24 may be in a state where the fuel supply is stopped or in an idling state.

Engine 24 produces no power when fuel is not supplied. When the engine 24 does not generate power and the power transmission path connects the engine 24 and the wheels 22, engine braking is activated. Conversely, when the engine 24 does not generate power and the engine 24 and the wheels 22 are not connected by the power transmission path, the engine brake does not operate. While sailing control is being executed, the engine brake is not operating.

Sailing determination unit 13 determines the start and end of sailing control. The sailing determination section 13 outputs the determination result to the sailing control section 12 . Sailing control initiation conditions may be one or more independent conditions. Sailing control start conditions can include a condition that the inter-vehicle time becomes shorter than the start time threshold while following the preceding vehicle. The inter-vehicle time is a value obtained by dividing the inter-vehicle distance by the speed of the vehicle 21 .

Sailing control can be executed even when the vehicle is not following. An example of a condition for starting sailing control when the vehicle is not following is a condition that the difference between the vehicle speed of the vehicle 21 and the target vehicle speed is equal to or less than a certain value. Sailing control can also be executed during manual travel. An example of conditions for starting sailing control during manual travel is that the speed of the vehicle 21 is within a preset sailing execution speed range, the accelerator pedal and brake pedal are not operated, and the shift position is the D position. is the condition.

Next, conditions for terminating sailing control will be described. The sailing determination unit 13 outputs to the sailing control unit 12 that the end condition of the sailing control is satisfied when the end condition is satisfied during the execution of the sailing control.

In this embodiment, the conditions for terminating sailing control include proximity conditions, operation conditions, and prediction conditions. The sailing determination unit 13 outputs to the sailing control unit 12 that the sailing control end condition is satisfied when any one of the proximity condition, the operation condition, and the prediction condition is satisfied during the execution of the sailing control.

The proximity condition is a condition that the inter-vehicle time with the preceding vehicle is equal to or less than a threshold. Therefore, when the inter-vehicle time is equal to or less than a preset threshold value, the proximity condition is satisfied. By providing the proximity condition, the sailing control is terminated when the inter-vehicle time becomes short. If the inter-vehicle time becomes short, it means that the vehicle is approaching the preceding vehicle, and it is time to perform gradual deceleration control by engine braking. Since the timing of deceleration control is determined based on the inter-vehicle time in this manner, deceleration control can be started at a deceleration timing close to the deceleration timing when the driver operates the brakes by himself/herself.

The operation condition is established when the driver performs a predetermined operation. The operation condition is set by a driver's operation such as depressing the accelerator pedal or depressing the brake pedal. The operating conditions include the same conditions as the conditions for terminating adaptive cruise control. Since the end condition includes the operation condition, the sailing control can be ended according to the intention of the driver. In addition, since the end condition includes the operation condition, when the driver executes the acceleration/deceleration operation during the sailing control, the sailing control can be ended and the acceleration/deceleration control based on the driver's operation can be executed.

The prediction condition is a condition that is satisfied when there is a risk of approaching a moving obstacle other than the preceding vehicle positioned in front of the lane in which the vehicle is currently traveling. The aforementioned proximity condition is met when the preceding vehicle approaches, while the prediction condition is met when there is a risk of approaching another moving obstacle.

Since there is a risk of approaching other moving obstacles, there is a possibility of approaching another moving obstacle in the future, although the vehicle is not currently approaching another moving obstacle. Other moving obstacles are, for example, adjacent vehicles traveling in adjacent adjacent lanes, other vehicles heading for a merging point, and possibly moving objects such as people, bicycles, and animals on the shoulder of the road. Therefore, the moving obstacle is not a fixed obstacle, but an obstacle that may move or approach on the traveling route of the vehicle 21 in the future. Next, specific contents of the prediction conditions will be described. In this embodiment, there are four prediction conditions, and if any one of the prediction conditions is met, the termination condition is satisfied.

The first prediction condition is fulfilled when there is a merging point where another road merges with the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling within a predetermined first proximity distance ahead, for example, within 100 m. The first proximity distance may be a variable value directly proportional to the current vehicle speed, or may be a fixed value. A confluence point is a confluence point on an expressway, a confluence point with a side road on a general road, or the like. Whether or not the junction is within the first proximity distance is determined based on the location information of the junction of the map database 29 or the monitoring information of the perimeter monitoring device 30 .

The first prediction condition may be unsatisfied depending on the presence or absence of other vehicles heading to the merging point. For example, the confluence point is within the first proximity distance, but if there is no other vehicle heading to the confluence point from a different road than the vehicle 21, the condition may be considered unsatisfied, and sailing control may be continued. Also, the first prediction condition may be set to be unsatisfied when the driver sees the merging point. For example, when the merging point is within the first proximity distance, but the line of sight is directed toward the merging point by the driver monitoring device 27 before entering the first proximity distance, or another vehicle heading for the merging point has been in the line of sight for a predetermined time. , the driver recognizes that there is a merging point or another vehicle, and can determine that he or she will drive safely to the merging point. For example, if the line of sight is at a junction or another vehicle within a few seconds before entering the first proximity distance, the condition fails.

The second prediction condition is met when there is a moving obstacle on the shoulder of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling within a predetermined second proximity distance ahead, for example, within 50 m. The second proximity distance may be a variable value directly proportional to the current vehicle speed, or may be a fixed value. The condition is satisfied when the perimeter monitoring device 30 detects a moving obstacle such as a person or a bicycle on the road shoulder ahead. This is because when there is a person on the shoulder of the road, there is a possibility that the person will come out onto the road. A road shoulder is an area outside the effective width of a road and inside a movement obstruction such as a guardrail or a step that impedes movement.

Also, the second prediction condition may not be met when the driver sees a moving obstacle on the shoulder of the road. For example, a moving obstacle on the shoulder is within the second proximity distance, but if the line of sight is directed toward the moving obstacle on the road shoulder by the driver monitoring device 27 for a predetermined time before entering the second proximity distance, the driver recognizes that there is a moving obstacle on the road shoulder and can determine that safe driving is to be carried out to pass the side of the moving obstacle on the road shoulder. For example, if the line of sight is on a moving obstacle within a few seconds before entering the second proximity distance, the condition is not met.

The third prediction condition is established when an adjacent vehicle makes a preliminary action to change lanes into the driving lane within a predetermined third proximity distance ahead, for example, within 50 m. The third proximity distance may be a variable value directly proportional to the current vehicle speed, or may be a fixed value. The preliminary operation is, for example, when the direction indicator of the adjacent vehicle flashes or when the vehicle moves from the center of the adjacent lane toward the driving lane. The preliminary operation is detected by the perimeter monitoring device 30 or vehicle-to-vehicle communication.

Also, the third prediction condition may be set as unsatisfied when the driver sees the preliminary motion. For example, when an adjacent vehicle about to change lanes is within the third proximity distance, but the line of sight is directed toward the adjacent vehicle by the driver monitoring device 27 for a predetermined time before entering the third proximity distance, the driver Since it is possible to recognize the preliminary motion of the adjacent vehicle and to carry out safe driving in preparation for the lane change, the sailing control may be continued assuming that the condition is not met. For example, if the line of sight is on an adjacent vehicle within a few seconds before entering the third proximity distance, the condition is not satisfied.

The fourth prediction condition is met when the driver falls asleep or looks aside. The fourth prediction condition is met when the driver monitoring device 27 detects that the driver is asleep or does not gaze ahead. While dozing off or looking aside, the driver is not looking ahead and may approach other moving obstacles. Sailing control is therefore terminated.

Next, processing executed by the sailing control unit 12 and the sailing determination unit 13 will be described. FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing the processing executed by the sailing control unit 12 and the sailing determination unit 13. As shown in FIG. The processing shown in FIG. 2 is periodically executed while the vehicle 21 is running.

In step S1, the sailing determination unit 13 acquires a sensor signal for determining conditions for starting sailing control. The sensor signal acquired in step S1 is, for example, a signal detected by the perimeter monitoring device 30 or a signal detected by the vehicle speed sensor.

In step S2, based on the sensor signal acquired by the sailing determination unit 13, it is determined whether or not the conditions for starting sailing control are satisfied. End the flow.

In step S3, since the start condition is met, the sailing determination section 13 outputs a start signal to the sailing control section 12 indicating that the start condition for sailing control is met, and the process proceeds to step S4. Accordingly, the sailing control unit 12 starts sailing control when the start signal is acquired.

In step S4, the sailing determination unit 13 acquires a sensor signal for determining conditions for ending the sailing control, and the process proceeds to step S5. The sensor signals acquired in step S4 are, for example, signals detected by the surroundings monitoring device 30, signals detected by the driver monitoring device 27, signals detected by the locator 28, and signals detected by the vehicle speed sensor.

In step S5, based on the signal acquired by the sailing determination unit 13, it is determined whether or not the condition for terminating the sailing control is satisfied. If the condition is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S5. return.

In step S6, the sailing determination unit 13 outputs to the sailing control unit 12 an end signal indicating that the condition for ending the sailing control is satisfied, and this flow ends. The sailing control unit 12 ends the sailing control when the end signal is acquired.

As described above, according to the vehicle control device 10 and the vehicle control method of the present embodiment, a prediction condition is provided as an end condition for determining to end the sailing control. The prediction condition is met when there is a risk of approaching a moving obstacle other than the preceding vehicle positioned in front of the current lane. This makes it possible to predict environmental changes in front of the vehicle during sailing control, and to terminate sailing control early if there is a risk of the vehicle approaching another moving obstacle. As a result, gradual deceleration by engine braking becomes possible, and sudden deceleration caused by other obstacles can be suppressed.

Further, in this embodiment, the prediction condition is satisfied when there is a merging point where another road merges with the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling within the first proximity distance ahead, or when there is another vehicle headed for the merging point. becomes. This is because there is a risk of approaching other vehicles traveling on other roads at the merging point.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the prediction condition is met when there is a moving obstacle on the shoulder of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling within the second proximity distance ahead. This is because if there is a moving obstacle on the road shoulder, there is a risk of approaching the moving obstacle when passing by.

Further, in the present embodiment, the prediction condition is met when an adjacent vehicle in front within the third proximity distance makes a preliminary action to change lanes into the driving lane. This is because there is a risk that an adjacent vehicle will cut in and approach the adjacent vehicle.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the prediction condition becomes unsatisfactory when the driver sees an adjacent vehicle, another vehicle heading for the merging point, a moving obstacle on the road shoulder, or the merging point. This is because the driver anticipates changes in the environment, can drive safely, and is less likely to approach other obstacles.

Further, in this embodiment, the prediction condition is met when the driver falls asleep or looks aside. This is because if the driver is dozing off or looking aside, he or she will not be able to depress the brake pedal immediately, so there is a risk of approaching another obstacle.

(Other embodiments)
Although the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present disclosure.

The structures of the above-described embodiments are merely examples, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the scope of these descriptions. The scope of the present disclosure is indicated by the description of the claims, and further includes all changes within the meaning and range of equivalents to the description of the claims.

In the first embodiment described above, the vehicle 21 provided with the engine 24 as the prime mover is disclosed. However, it may be a vehicle 21 provided with a motor as a prime mover, or a vehicle 21 provided with an engine 24 and a motor as a prime mover. If a motor is provided, the sailing control can be ended early and the speed can be reduced by regenerative braking. By decelerating the vehicle early using regenerative braking, the deceleration energy can be recovered as electrical energy without wasting the deceleration energy as heat energy by the friction brake, thereby improving fuel efficiency. In addition, in the above-described first embodiment, the end condition includes the proximity condition and the operation condition in addition to the prediction condition.

The functions realized by the vehicle control device 10 in the first embodiment described above may be realized by hardware and software different from those described above, or a combination thereof. Vehicle control device 10 may communicate with, for example, another control device, and the other control device may perform part or all of the processing. If the vehicle control device 10 is implemented by electronic circuitry, it can be implemented by digital circuitry including numerous logic circuits, or by analog circuitry.

The vehicle control device 10 in the first embodiment described above may be realized by a dedicated computer constituting a processor programmed to perform one or more functions embodied by a computer program. Moreover, the storage medium for storing the computer program is not limited to the ROM, and may be stored in a computer-readable non-transition tangible storage medium as instructions executed by the computer. For example, the program may be stored in a flash memory.

In the above-described first embodiment, the vehicle control device 10 is used in the vehicle 21, but it is not limited to being mounted in the vehicle 21, and even if at least part of it is not mounted in the vehicle 21. good.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Vehicle control apparatus 11... ACC control part 12... Sailing control part 13... Sailing judgment part 21... Vehicle 22... Wheel 23... Transmission 24... Engine 25... Brake device 26... Vehicle state sensor 27... Driver monitoring device 28... Locator 29... Map database 30... Perimeter monitoring device 31... Axle

Claims (7)

a sailing control unit (12) that performs sailing control to cut off a power transmission path between a prime mover (24) mounted on a vehicle (21) and wheels (22);
A vehicle control device comprising a sailing determination section (13) that determines the start and end of the sailing control and outputs a determination result to the sailing control section,
Said sailing determination unit, as a termination condition for determining that said sailing control should be terminated,
Equipped with a prediction condition that is satisfied when there is a risk of approaching a moving obstacle other than the preceding vehicle located in front of the current lane,
A vehicle control device that determines to end the sailing control when at least the prediction condition is satisfied. The moving obstacle is a vehicle heading from another road to a junction located ahead of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling,
2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the prediction condition is met when the merging point is within a predetermined first proximity distance ahead. The moving obstacle is a moving obstacle that exists on the shoulder of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling,
3. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the prediction condition is met when the moving obstacle is within a predetermined second proximity distance ahead. The moving obstacle is a vehicle traveling in an adjacent lane adjacent to the traveling lane,
4. Any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the prediction condition is met when the moving obstacle ahead within a predetermined third proximity distance makes a preliminary action to change lanes into the driving lane. The vehicle control device according to 1. 5. The predictive condition according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the predictive condition is unsatisfied when the driver's line of sight is directed toward the moving obstacle, even if the other predictive condition is satisfied. Vehicle controller. The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the prediction condition is met when the driver falls asleep or looks aside. performing sailing control to cut off a power transmission path between a prime mover (24) mounted on a vehicle (21) and wheels (22);
determining the start and end of said sailing control;
End conditions for determining to end the sailing control include:
Equipped with a prediction condition that is satisfied when there is a risk of approaching a moving obstacle other than the preceding vehicle located in front of the current lane,
A vehicle control method, comprising determining to end the sailing control when at least the prediction condition is satisfied.

Images