JP3750240B2 - Vehicle control device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vehicle control device capable of changing the operation characteristics of a vehicle behavior control device in accordance with the situation of a scheduled road.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In general, a vehicle is equipped with a behavior control device such as a prime mover or a transmission, and the operation characteristics of the behavior control device are based on a case where the behavior is changed by a driver's operation and a running state detected by various sensors. May be changed automatically.
[0003]
However, since the control of the operation characteristics is executed after encountering a specific road condition, the control of the operation characteristics with respect to the road condition can easily be performed later, and the drivability may be reduced.
[0004]
On the other hand, in recent years, with the development of navigation systems, the situation of the road on which the vehicle is scheduled to travel is detected in advance, and the behavior of the vehicle is controlled to the desired state by controlling the prime mover and automatic transmission based on the detection result. An invention has been made. An example of such a vehicle control device is described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-72591.
[0005]
The vehicle control device described in the above publication includes own vehicle position specifying means for detecting the current position of the own vehicle, traveling road estimation means for obtaining an estimated position of the own vehicle several seconds later with reference to an electronic map, Driving resistance measuring means for determining the current load state in the vehicle drive system, driving force predicting means for correcting the current load state based on the gradient information of the electronic map and determining the required driving force at the estimated position, and necessary driving Based on the force, either the engine or the automatic transmission is adjusted in advance, and the drive system control means that suppresses fuel consumption within the range that can handle the required driving force, and information on the speed of the host vehicle is detected and recorded on the electronic map And a traveling locus recording means for accumulating.
[0006]
According to the vehicle control apparatus, the current driving pattern of the driver is identified based on the output state of the accelerator opening sensor, and the data is transferred to the drive system control unit. The drive system control unit corrects the content of the drive system control based on the advanced look-ahead according to the driving pattern and the past driving force estimation accuracy.
[0007]
The drive system control unit also determines whether or not the driver's driving pattern has changed, and copes with changes in the driving pattern due to the driver's mood or sudden conscious destination change. Correct the control. Specifically, the driver's mental state is identified from the output state of the accelerator opening sensor, and the settings of the engine and the automatic transmission based on the pre-reading driving force estimation are changed based on the identification result.
[0008]
In this way, by setting the required driving force according to the estimated position of the host vehicle obtained by the traveling road estimating means, the driving state according to the road condition is maintained, and the driver's intention is the driving force. Reflected in the control, the drivability in specific road conditions is improved.
[0009]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the vehicle control device described in the above publication, the intention of the driver is not until the vehicle reaches the predetermined section of the planned road and the driver's driving pattern changes based on the road condition of the predetermined section. Therefore, the driver's intention is not reflected in the driving force of the vehicle at the initial traveling stage when the vehicle reaches the predetermined section, and drivability may be reduced.
[0010]
The present invention has been made against the background of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle control device that can reflect the driver's intention in the behavior of the vehicle over the entire predetermined section of the planned road. It is said.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problem and Action]
  In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 controls the behavior of a vehicle andOf automatic transmissions installed onA vehicle control device comprising: a behavior control device capable of changing operation characteristics; a planned travel road setting device for setting a planned travel road for the vehicle; and a road status detection device for detecting a status of the set planned travel road The behavior control device in a predetermined section of the planned roadThe movement ofAn external input means for setting operation characteristics by external input is provided, and the predetermined section and the operation characteristics are set by a driver.
  The invention of claim 2 is the same as that of claim 1,The scheduled road setting device includes means for notifying the driver of the start of the predetermined section and the operation characteristics.It is characterized by that. The invention of claim 3 is the same as that of claim 1 or 2,The road condition detection device ends the predetermined section,AndAnd the movementIt is characterized by having means to notify the driver of the characteristics.
[0012]
The behavior control device according to the present invention includes an engine as a vehicle driving force source, an engine electronic control device that controls engine output, an automatic transmission that is disposed on the output side of the engine, and an automatic transmission that controls the automatic transmission. Electronic control device for machine, hydraulic control circuit for controlling operation and hydraulic pressure of components of automatic transmission, brake device for controlling braking force of vehicle, automatic speed control device for automatically controlling vehicle speed without stepping on accelerator pedal A suspension device for holding the vehicle body, a steering device for controlling the traveling direction of the vehicle, and the like.
[0013]
Further, in the present invention, the external input means an input by a driver's operation, and specific examples of the external input include operation of a navigation system that detects a road condition of a road on which the vehicle is planned to run, an automatic transmission An operation of a mode setting switch for setting a shift pattern is given.
[0014]
Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to set the operation characteristic of the behavior control device by an external input before the vehicle reaches the predetermined section of the planned travel road. The driver's intention is reflected in the behavior of the vehicle over the entire period including the initial driving stage when the vehicle reaches the predetermined section, and drivability is improved.
[0015]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Next, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic system of a vehicle to which the present invention is applied. The vehicle is equipped with an engine 1 as a driving force source, and an automatic transmission 2 is connected to the output side of the engine 1. ing. An operation signal of the accelerator pedal 3 operated by the driver is input to the engine electronic control unit 4.
[0016]
An electronic throttle valve 7 driven by a throttle actuator 6 is provided in the intake pipe 5 of the engine 1. A control signal is output from the engine electronic control unit 4 to the throttle actuator 6 in accordance with the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 3, and the opening of the electronic throttle valve 7 is controlled in accordance with the control amount. .
[0017]
The engine electronic control unit 4 for controlling the engine 1 is composed of a central processing unit (CPU), a storage unit (RAM, ROM), and a microcomputer mainly including an input / output interface.
[0018]
In addition to the signal corresponding to the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 3, the engine electronic control unit 4 includes an output signal of the engine speed sensor 8, an output signal of the intake air amount sensor (air flow meter) 9, an intake An output signal of the air temperature sensor 10, an output signal of the throttle opening sensor 11 for detecting the opening of the electronic throttle valve 7, an output signal of the output shaft speed of the automatic transmission 2, in other words, an output signal of the vehicle speed sensor 12 for detecting the vehicle speed, An output signal of the coolant temperature sensor 13, an output signal of the brake switch 14 for detecting on / off of the brake pedal, and the like are input as control data.
[0019]
Further, in addition to the control of the throttle actuator 6 described above, the engine electronic control device 4 is configured to output a signal to the fuel injection device 15 and the igniter 16 that changes the ignition timing when the automatic transmission 2 is shifted. Has been. Furthermore, the engine electronic control device 4 also receives signals from a navigation system and an automatic speed control device, which will be described later, and sends control signals to the throttle actuator 6, the fuel injection device 15, the igniter 16, and the like based on these input signals. It is configured to output. The operating characteristics of the engine 1 are changed by the opening / closing control of the electronic throttle valve 7, the control of the fuel injection device 15, and the control of the igniter 16 as described above.
[0020]
On the other hand, the step-variable automatic transmission 2 has a known structure such as a torque converter, a lock-up clutch, a gear transmission mechanism, and a friction engagement device. The hydraulic pressure acting on each friction engagement device and the lockup clutch of the automatic transmission 2 is electrically controlled by a hydraulic pressure control circuit 17. The hydraulic control circuit 17 includes a shift solenoid valve and a linear solenoid valve.
[0021]
An automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 is provided for outputting a control signal to each solenoid valve of the hydraulic control circuit 17. Similar to the engine electronic control unit 4, the automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 mainly includes a central processing unit (CPU), a storage unit (RAM, ROM), and an input / output interface. Therefore, the engine electronic control unit 4 and the automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 can be integrated and integrated as necessary.
[0022]
This automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 performs a calculation based on input data in accordance with a previously stored shift diagram and calculation formula, and outputs a control signal based on the calculation result to each of the solenoid valves. Setting, control of engagement / release of the friction engagement device at the time of shifting, control of engagement / release of the lock-up clutch, control of transient hydraulic pressure at the time of shifting, and the like are executed.
[0023]
The engine electronic control unit 4 and the automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 are connected to each other so that data communication is possible. The automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 includes the accelerator pedal 3 as control data. Operation signal, throttle opening sensor 11 output signal, vehicle speed sensor 12 output signal, cooling water temperature sensor 13 output signal, brake switch 14 output signal, and the like. In addition, the automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 transmits a signal for setting each gear position to the engine electronic control unit 4.
[0024]
On the other hand, a signal of a mode setting switch 19 for setting the shift pattern of the automatic transmission 2 is input to the electronic control unit 18 for the automatic transmission. Economy mode selected when driving, power mode selected when driving with emphasis on driving force, snow mode or traffic jam mode where the second speed is set when starting, and manual mode where the gear position is switched by operating the shift lever Etc. can be selected. The operation characteristics of the automatic transmission 2, in other words, the output torque are changed by the various controls as described above.
[0025]
Selection of these modes is performed by changing a shift map, for example. FIG. 3 shows an example of a shift diagram when the automatic transmission 2 upshifts from the first speed to the second speed. The shift line in the economy mode is set to a lower vehicle speed side than the shift line in the normal mode, and the power The mode shift line is set on the higher vehicle speed side than the normal mode shift line.
[0026]
The automatic transmission electronic control unit 18 configured as described above is connected to the navigation system 20 so as to be capable of data communication with each other, and controls the automatic transmission 2 based on information detected by the navigation system 20. It is also possible. As shown in FIG. 4, the navigation system 20 includes an electronic control device 21, a first information detection device 22, a second information detection device 23, a player 24, a display 25, and a speaker 26.
[0027]
The electronic control device 21 includes a central processing unit (CPU), a storage device (RAM, ROM), and a microcomputer mainly including an input / output interface. The player 24 is for reading information stored in an information recording medium 27 such as an optical disk or a magnetic disk.
[0028]
The information recording medium 27 stores information necessary for driving the vehicle, such as maps, place names, roads, main buildings around the roads, and specific road conditions such as straight roads, curves, uphills, and the like. , Downhills, gravel roads, sandy beaches, riverbeds, urban areas, mountainous areas, ordinary roads, highways, road signs on each road, etc. are stored.
[0029]
The road information is stored in the information recording medium 27 in a digitized state. In other words, the road map is divided into meshes, and each mesh unit consists of nodes and links that connect the nodes. The attributes of the links connected to each node, specifically the latitude of the road And longitude, road number, road width, straight road distance, road gradient, curve radius, and the like are stored.
[0030]
The first information detection device 22 is for detecting the current position of the own vehicle, the road condition, the inter-vehicle distance from other vehicles, and the like by self-contained navigation. The first information detection device 22 indicates the direction in which the vehicle travels. A geomagnetic sensor 30 to detect, a gyro compass 31, and a steering sensor 32 to detect the steering wheel steering angle are included.
[0031]
Further, the first information detection device 22 includes a gradient sensor 33 for detecting the gradient of the road, a video camera 34 for detecting the preceding vehicle and detecting a distance between the vehicles, a laser cruise device 35, a distance sensor 36, and the rotational speed of each wheel. A wheel speed sensor 37 that detects separately and an acceleration sensor 38 that detects the acceleration of the vehicle are included.
[0032]
  Then, the first information detection device 22And DenThe child control device 21 is connected to be able to perform data communication, and data detected by the first information detection device 22 is transferred to the electronic control device 21.
[0033]
The second information detection device 23 is for detecting the current position of the host vehicle, road conditions, other vehicles, obstacles, weather, and the like by radio navigation, and the second information detection device 23 includes an artificial satellite 39. A GPS antenna 40 for receiving the radio wave, an amplifier 41 connected to the GPS antenna 40, and a GPS receiver 42 connected to the amplifier 41.
[0034]
Further, the second information detection device 23 includes a transmitter mounted on another vehicle, a beacon or a sign post installed on the roadside, a VICS (Vehicle Information & Communication System), an SSVS (Super Smart Vehicle). An antenna 44 that receives radio waves from the ground information transmission system 43 such as a system), an amplifier 45 connected to the antenna 44, a ground information receiver 46 connected to the amplifier 45, and the like.
[0035]
The GPS receiver 42 and the ground information receiver 46 are connected to the electronic control device 21 so that data communication is possible, and data detected by the second information detection device is transferred to the electronic control device 21.
[0036]
The display 25 is composed of a liquid crystal or a cathode ray tube (CRT), and is based on data stored in the information recording medium 27 and data detected by the first information detection device 22 and the second information detection device 23. A function to display information such as the planned road to the destination, the road status of the planned road, the current position of the host vehicle, the presence and position of other vehicles, the presence or absence of obstacles, and the road status And a function for displaying a shift diagram used for controlling the automatic transmission 2 and a travel mode corresponding to the predetermined section. Note that various kinds of information are output by the speaker 26 in parallel with the operation of displaying on the display 25.
[0037]
Various switches 28 and an external input pen 29 are connected to the display 25. By operating these switches 28 or the external input pen 29, the first information detection device 22 or the second information detection device 23 is operated. Control, setting of destination and scheduled road, setting of predetermined section on planned road, display and setting of driving mode suitable for road condition of predetermined section, display of shift map applied to control of automatic transmission 2 And changes can be made.
[0038]
In the navigation system 20 having the above-described configuration, the planned road data detected by the first information detection device 22, the planned road data detected by the second information detection device 23, and the information recording medium 27 are stored. The map data is comprehensively compared or evaluated, and the current position of the vehicle on the travel route of the vehicle and the surrounding road conditions are determined.
[0039]
Here, when the current position is determined based on the data detected by the first information detection device 22, there may be a detection error in each sensor. Therefore, control is performed to absorb errors by map matching. The map matching is a control for correcting the current position of the vehicle by comparing the traveling locus of the vehicle detected from signals from various sensors with the map data stored in the information recording medium 27.
[0040]
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, a brake device 47, an automatic speed control device 48, a suspension device 49, and a steering device 50 that control the behavior of the vehicle are connected to the navigation system 20 so that data communication is possible. The brake device 47 is electrically controlled by a brake pedal operated by a driver, a master cylinder that converts the depression force of the brake pedal into a hydraulic pressure, a wheel cylinder that acts on the hydraulic pressure of the master cylinder, and a hydraulic pressure that acts on the wheel cylinder. A solenoid valve, a wheel speed sensor 37 for detecting the rotation speed of each wheel, and the like are included.
[0041]
The brake device 47 controls the hydraulic pressure of each wheel cylinder by controlling the hydraulic pressure of each wheel cylinder on the basis of a braking function that generates a braking force by supplying hydraulic pressure to the wheel cylinder by operating the brake pedal, and a signal detected by the wheel speed sensor 37. It has an anti-lock brake system function that suppresses locking.
[0042]
Further, by controlling the braking force of the brake device 47 and the output torque of the engine 1, it is possible to achieve a traction control function that suppresses the wheels from spinning with an excessive driving force when the vehicle starts.
[0043]
The automatic speed control device 48 is for controlling the engine 1 and the automatic transmission 2 to automatically control the speed of the vehicle, and controls the setting, release, return, etc. of the vehicle speed. The signal of the automatic speed control device 48 is input to the engine electronic control device 4 and the automatic transmission electronic control device 18, and the opening of the electronic throttle valve 7 is controlled without the accelerator pedal 3 being depressed, and the vehicle speed is automatically adjusted. Can be kept constant. The constant speed traveling control is also released when the accelerator pedal 3, the brake pedal, the shift lever of the automatic transmission 2 and the parking lever are operated during execution of the constant speed traveling control.
[0044]
The suspension device 49 is for supporting the vehicle body and controlling the behavior of the vehicle body such as vibration and steering stability. The suspension device 49 is an actuator that controls the damping force of the shock absorber, air spring, shock absorber, air An actuator that controls the spring constant and damping force of the spring is included. In the suspension device 49, the damping force of the shock absorber, the damping force of the air spring, and the spring constant are controlled by a computer in accordance with the traveling conditions of the vehicle, and the handling stability and the riding comfort are improved.
[0045]
The steering device 50 that controls the traveling direction of the vehicle includes a steering wheel operated by the driver, a gear box that transmits the rotation of the steering wheel to the steering link mechanism, a vane pump that supplies hydraulic pressure to the gear box, and this hydraulic pressure. An electrically controlled solenoid valve is included. And steering force is controlled according to a vehicle speed, and operativity is improved.
[0046]
Here, the correspondence relationship between the configurations of FIGS. 2 and 4 and claim 1 will be described. Engine 1, automatic transmission 2, engine electronic control device 4, automatic transmission electronic control device 18, hydraulic control circuit 17, the brake device 47, the automatic speed control device 48, the suspension device 49, the steering device 50, and the like correspond to the behavior control device of claim 1, and the navigation system 20 has the road condition detection device and the scheduled road setting device of claim 1. It corresponds to.
[0047]
In the control device of the present invention having the above-described hardware configuration, the operation characteristics of the vehicle behavior control device are set or changed by an external input by the driver according to the set scheduled driving road or a predetermined section thereof. Can do.
[0048]
Therefore, a control example in which the operation characteristics of the behavior control device are set by external input will be described based on the flowchart of FIG. First, when the driver operates the navigation system 20 to set a destination (step 1), one or more scheduled roads that can reach the destination are guided as images on the display 25. Therefore, the driver selects one of the planned traveling roads and sets it by the navigation system 20 (step 2).
[0049]
Then, based on the road condition detected by the navigation system 20, the driver sets a predetermined section of the planned traveling road by the navigation system 20 (step 3). Here, the predetermined section means an ordinary road, for example, a section having a road condition different from a paved flat straight road. Specifically, a mountain road, an ice and snow road, a highway, a gravel road, a riverbed, a winding Roads, unpaved roads, etc. It is also possible to set a plurality of predetermined sections on the planned road.
[0050]
Next, the navigation system 20 is operated by the driver, and a shift pattern is set for controlling the automatic transmission 2 when traveling in a predetermined section (step 4).
[0051]
For example, the normal mode or power mode is suitable if the predetermined section is an expressway, the economy mode is suitable if the predetermined section is a suburb with a small amount of stopped vehicles, and the predetermined section is a mountain road with many climbs and downhills, or The power mode is suitable for sandy beaches, gravel roads, and winding roads, and the traffic mode is suitable for traffic congestion areas in urban areas where start and stop are frequently repeated. If there is, a snow mode that can suppress wheel slip is suitable.
[0052]
Here, when setting the shift pattern, the shift map stored in the electronic control unit 18 for automatic transmission may be set as it is, or this shift map is displayed on the display 25 of the navigation system 20. It is also possible to change according to the driver's preference afterwards and set the changed shift diagram.
[0053]
The predetermined sections and shift patterns set in steps 3 and 4 are stored in the electronic control device 21 and the automatic transmission electronic control device 18 of the navigation system 20 (step 5), and the vehicle starts to travel. When the vehicle starts to travel, the current position of the vehicle is detected by the navigation system 20, and the distance from the current position to the start point of the predetermined section is calculated (step 6).
[0054]
Then, the navigation system 20 determines whether or not the distance from the current position of the vehicle to the start point is within a predetermined value stored in advance (step 7). Return to.
[0055]
If the determination in step 7 is affirmative, the shift applied before the arrival of the start point of the predetermined section after the navigation system 20 informs the driver that the vehicle has reached the start point of the predetermined section. The pattern is changed to the shift pattern set in step 4 (step 8). While the vehicle is traveling in a predetermined section, the automatic transmission 2 is controlled based on the shift pattern changed in step 8.
[0056]
Then, the distance from the current position of the vehicle to the end point of the predetermined section is calculated by the navigation system 20 (step 9), and whether or not the distance from the current position of the vehicle to the end point of the predetermined section is within a predetermined value. Is determined (step 10).
[0057]
If a negative determination is made in step 10, the process returns to step 9, while if a positive determination is made in step 10, the navigation system 20 indicates that the vehicle has reached the end point of the predetermined section, and the automatic operation based on the set shift pattern. The driver is informed that the control of the transmission 2 is to be terminated, and control is performed to change the shift pattern to the normal shift pattern (step 11).
[0058]
Further, it is determined whether or not the destination has been reached by the navigation system 20 (step 12). If a negative determination is made in step 12, the process returns to step 6 for a plurality of predetermined sections set on the planned travel road. The same control as described above is repeated. If an affirmative determination is made in step 12, this control routine is terminated. Steps 3 and 4 correspond to the external input means of claim 1.
[0059]
When the vehicle is traveling on a road other than the predetermined section, a shift pattern that is automatically set according to a shift pattern that is set by operating the mode setting switch 19 or a road condition that is detected by the navigation system 20. It is also possible to execute control of the automatic transmission 2 based on any of the patterns. It is also possible to set a plurality of predetermined sections with different road conditions and to set different driving modes and shift diagrams corresponding to the road conditions of each predetermined section.
[0060]
As described above, according to the control example of FIG. 1, before the vehicle reaches the predetermined section of the planned road, the shift pattern applied to the control of the automatic transmission 2 conforms to the road characteristics of the predetermined section. It is possible to control. Therefore, the driver's intention is reflected in the control of the automatic transmission 2 over the entire predetermined section including the initial travel stage when the vehicle reaches the predetermined section, and drivability is improved.
[0061]
Further, according to the present invention, at least one operation characteristic among the engine 1, the automatic transmission 2, the brake device 47, the automatic speed control device 48, the suspension device 49, and the operation device 50 is set corresponding to the road condition in a predetermined section. It is also possible to execute a routine to
[0062]
Further, when a shift pattern is displayed in step 8, a display for causing the driver to determine whether or not to execute the shift pattern is displayed on the display 25 of the navigation system 20 and is approved by the driver. Only when the operation is performed, it is possible to perform control to execute the shift pattern set in step 4. Furthermore, when the shift pattern of the automatic transmission 2 is set in step 4, it can be configured so that it can be set by the mode setting switch 19.
[0063]
Furthermore, the present invention can also be applied to a vehicle equipped with an automatic transmission having a known continuously variable transmission mechanism. The present invention is also applicable to an electric vehicle equipped with an electric motor instead of an engine, or a hybrid vehicle equipped with an electric motor and an engine.
[0064]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, before the vehicle reaches a predetermined section of the planned road, it is possible to set the operation characteristics of the behavior control device so as to match the road condition of the predetermined section by external input. Become. Therefore, the driver's intention is reflected in the operation characteristics of the behavior control device over the entire predetermined section including the initial travel stage when the vehicle reaches the predetermined section, and drivability is improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing a control example of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a vehicle system to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 3 is a shift diagram showing an example of a shift pattern corresponding to each travel mode applied to the control of the automatic transmission of FIG.
4 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the navigation system shown in FIG. 2. FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 engine
2 Automatic transmission
4 Electronic control unit for engine
17 Hydraulic control circuit
18 Electronic control unit for automatic transmission
20 Navigation system
47 Brake device
48 Automatic speed controller
49 Suspension device
50 Steering device

Claims (3)

Controls the behavior of the vehicle, and an automatic transmission operating characteristics can change behavior control apparatus provided in its vehicle, and the target road setting device for setting a target road of the vehicle, is set In a vehicle control device comprising a road condition detection device for detecting the situation of a planned road to be driven,
An external input means for setting the operating characteristics of the behavior control apparatus in a predetermined section of the target road by an external input,
The vehicle control apparatus, wherein the predetermined section and the operation characteristic are set by a driver. Start of the previous SL target road setting device the predetermined section, and a control device for a vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises means for notifying said operating characteristics to the driver. Before SL road condition detecting device end of the predetermined interval, and the control apparatus for a vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the includes a means for notifying the operating characteristics to the driver.

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