JP5304735B2 - Tracking control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a following control device advantages in precisely performing acceleration control of a vehicle upon lane change when performing following control by ACC. <P>SOLUTION: The acceleration control timing upon lane change of an own-vehicle 201 when performing following travel by ACC is determined on the basis of an angle between a traveling direction of the own-vehicle 201 and a lane boundary line 103, a distance between the lane boundary line 103 and the own-vehicle 201, vehicle information about a preceding vehicle 202 on an own-vehicle travel lane 101, and vehicle information about a preceding vehicle 203, a rear vehicle 204 on an adjacent lane 102. When performing the lane change of the own-vehicle, acceleration control is performed in response to a vehicle speed of the own-vehicle, the presence of the preceding vehicle 203, the rear vehicle 204 on the adjacent travel lane 102, and the vehicle speed of the preceding vehicle 203, the rear vehicle 204 when the preceding vehicle 203, the rear vehicle 204 is present. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2012,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a follow-up control device that improves safety when changing lanes.

In recent years, cruise control functions (hereinafter referred to as ACC) that support driving operations have been adopted in automobiles.
This ACC is a function that supports the driving operation by following the vehicle while maintaining the distance between the vehicles according to the vehicle speed within the set vehicle speed.
The following is proposed as a follow-up control device that realizes such a function (see Patent Document 1).
This vehicle follow-up device detects the moving body when the overtaking lane determining means determines that there is an available overtaking lane, compared to when it is not determined that there is an overtaking lane available. Setting condition changing means is provided for changing the setting condition so that it is difficult to set the preceding vehicle.
And when overtaking can be performed using the overtaking lane, it is difficult for the driver to overtake the moving body ahead of the host vehicle by making it difficult to set the moving body as a preceding vehicle. Nevertheless, the moving body is prevented from being unnecessarily set as the preceding vehicle.

JP 2009-113764 A

However, in the conventional follow-up control device, the degree of acceleration of the vehicle at the time of lane change at the time of follow-up control by ACC tends to be slower than the degree of acceleration at the time of lane change by a driver's manual operation. There is a disadvantage in performing control accurately.
The cause is that it has an acceleration suppression function for preventing sudden acceleration when the preceding vehicle cannot be detected due to the performance of the radar provided for detecting the preceding vehicle. In addition, the vehicle must have a rapid acceleration suppression function for suppressing excessive acceleration of the host vehicle with respect to fluctuations in the vehicle speed of the preceding vehicle. Furthermore, it is difficult to increase the acceleration only at the time of lane change because it is difficult to reliably determine the situation at the time of lane change.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a tracking control device that is advantageous in accurately performing acceleration control of a vehicle at the time of lane change at the time of tracking control by ACC. .

  In order to achieve the above-described object, the present invention provides a tracking control device that controls tracking of a host vehicle so that the host vehicle tracks a preceding vehicle traveling ahead at a set vehicle speed. And a front radar that detects a front vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane, a rear radar that detects a rear vehicle traveling lane behind the host vehicle and a rear vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane, and a lane on the road surface in front of the host vehicle The front vehicle based on the front camera that captures an image, the winker operation detection switch that detects the winker operation of the host vehicle, the detection result of the front vehicle by the front radar, and the detection result of the rear vehicle by the rear radar And a front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit that acquires vehicle information indicating a driving situation of the rear vehicle, and a lane from the lane image captured by the front camera A lane information acquisition unit that acquires lane information including a positional relationship of the host vehicle with respect to the identified lane, and a travel lane that includes a distance between the lane and the host vehicle from the lane information acquired by the lane information acquisition unit. Travel lane departure information calculation means for calculating departure information, travel lane departure information including a distance between the lane and the host vehicle, calculated by the travel lane departure information calculation means, and the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit Based on the vehicle information of the forward vehicle detected by the forward radar and the vehicle information of the backward vehicle detected by the backward radar, the acceleration start timing at which the host vehicle changes the lane to an adjacent lane is determined. Accelerating start timing determining means, vehicle information of the front vehicle detected by the front radar, and the rear vehicle detected by the rear radar An acceleration calculation unit that calculates acceleration when the host vehicle starts acceleration at the acceleration start timing determined by the acceleration start timing determination means and changes the course to the adjacent lane based on the vehicle information of the vehicle It is characterized by that.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to accurately determine the timing of acceleration control at the time of changing the lane of the host vehicle when following the vehicle by the cruise control function, which is advantageous in accurately performing the acceleration control of the vehicle.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the tracking control apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the acceleration calculation table for calculating the acceleration of the own vehicle at the time of lane change according to the driving | running | working condition of the vehicle ahead and back vehicle of an adjacent lane in the tracking control apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is driving condition explanatory drawing which shows the relationship between the own vehicle for explaining operation | movement of the tracking control apparatus of embodiment of this invention, a front vehicle, and a back vehicle. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the tracking control apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is the screen figure imaged with the front camera of the tracking control apparatus of embodiment of this invention.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a tracking control device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The follow-up control device 1 is mounted on a vehicle.
The tracking control device 1 includes a vehicle speed sensor 11, a front radar 12, a rear radar 13, a front camera 14, a winker operation detection switch 15, a cruise control function control ECU (hereinafter referred to as ACC control ECU) 21, an engine ECU 41, and a display / alarm sound output. The unit 42 is configured to be included.

  The ACC control ECU 21 includes a front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31, a lane information acquisition unit 32, a winker operation detection unit 33, a lane change determination unit 34, and an acceleration calculation unit 35.

  The vehicle speed sensor 11 is a sensor that detects the traveling speed of the host vehicle.

The front radar 12 is configured to increase the traveling speed of the forward vehicle traveling in front of the own vehicle in the own vehicle traveling lane in which the own vehicle is traveling and the adjacent lane adjacent to the own vehicle traveling lane, the inter-vehicle distance, The vehicle information including the speed and the degree of deceleration is detected.
The rear radar 13 is configured such that the traveling speed of the rear vehicle traveling behind the own vehicle in the own vehicle traveling lane in which the own vehicle is traveling and the adjacent lane adjacent to the own vehicle traveling lane, the inter-vehicle distance, The vehicle information including the speed and the degree of deceleration is detected.
As such front radar 12 and rear radar 13, various conventionally known radar devices such as a radar device using millimeter waves can be used.

  The front camera 14 is a camera that captures a front image including a road surface in front of the host vehicle, a road surface obliquely forward, and a lane boundary line marked on the road surface, and is attached to, for example, a central portion of a front bumper of the vehicle. Yes. A lane boundary line is a boundary line that divides a lane (travel lane) in which the vehicle travels.

  The blinker operation detection switch 15 is a switch that detects the blinker operation of the host vehicle, and corresponds to a left blinker operation when changing the course to the left in the traveling direction and a right blinker operation when changing the course to the right in the traveling direction. The output blinker signal is detected.

  The ACC control ECU 21 is configured by a computer, and controls each part and performs various calculations for realizing a cruise control function.

  The engine ECU 41 is a computer for controlling the engine, and performs control of various parts for controlling the engine and various calculations.

The display / alarm sound output unit 42 displays a front vehicle that travels in the vehicle traveling lane ahead of the host vehicle detected by the front radar 12 in the ACC control, and a preceding vehicle that travels in an adjacent lane adjacent to the host vehicle traveling lane. Output above.
The display / alarm sound output unit 42 displays on the display a rear vehicle that travels in the vehicle lane behind the host vehicle detected by the rear radar 13 and a rear vehicle that travels in the adjacent lane adjacent to the host vehicle lane. Output to.
Further, the display / alarm sound output unit 42 outputs on the display a display of a driving situation centered on the own vehicle such as an inter-vehicle distance between the own vehicle and the preceding vehicle and an inter-vehicle distance between the own vehicle and the rear vehicle.
Further, the display / alarm sound output unit 42 outputs an alarm when the inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle, the preceding vehicle, and the rear vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined distance as an alarm sound or a warning display.

  The front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31, the lane information acquisition unit 32, the winker operation detection unit 33, the lane change determination unit 34, and the acceleration calculation unit 35 of the ACC control ECU 21 are configured by a computer program.

The front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31 is the travel speed of the host vehicle detected by the vehicle speed sensor 11, the lane boundary marked on the road surface identified by the lane information acquisition unit 32 described later, and the lane boundary lines on both sides in the width direction of the road surface. Travel lane departure information calculating means for calculating a lateral distance between the vehicle and the host vehicle and an angle of the host vehicle with respect to the lane boundary line.
Further, the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31 includes a travel speed and a position of a front vehicle traveling in front of the host vehicle detected by the front radar 12, a travel speed of a rear vehicle traveling behind the host vehicle detected by the rear radar 13, and Vehicle information is detected based on the location.
Vehicle information includes the relative speed of the forward vehicle and the backward vehicle with respect to the own vehicle, the change state of the travel speed, the travel position with respect to the own vehicle and its movement change, the forward vehicle, the front vehicle including the inter-vehicle distance between the backward vehicle and the own vehicle, It is the information which shows the traveling condition of a back vehicle.

  The lane information acquisition unit 32 identifies a lane boundary line at the center of the road surface, a lane boundary line marked on both sides in the width direction of the road surface, etc. Lane information including the positional relationship of the host vehicle with respect to the identified lane is acquired.

  The winker operation detection unit 33 is a left winker operation when changing the course to the left in the traveling direction from the winker signal detected by the winker operation detection switch 15 or the right blinker when changing the course to the right in the traveling direction. It is an operation, that is, the operation state of the turn signal of the own vehicle is determined.

The lane change determining unit 34 determines an acceleration start timing when the host vehicle changes lanes, and constitutes an acceleration start timing determining means in the claims.
The conditions when the lane change determining unit 34 determines the acceleration start timing are as follows.
1) The operation state of the turn signal of the own vehicle detected by the turn signal operation detection unit 33.
2) The lateral distance between each lane boundary detected by the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31 and the own vehicle is equal to or less than a certain distance, and the traveling direction angle of the own vehicle with respect to the lane boundary is constant. The state exceeding the angle of the unit must be maintained for a predetermined time.
3) Vehicle information of the front vehicle and the rear vehicle including the front vehicle, the distance between the rear vehicle and the host vehicle detected by the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31.

The acceleration calculation unit 35 includes the acceleration calculation table TBL shown in FIG. 2, and determines the acceleration when the host vehicle changes lanes while following the preceding vehicle by the ACC with reference to the acceleration calculation table TBL.
That is, the acceleration calculation unit 35 includes the presence / absence of a vehicle ahead of the adjacent lane, the traveling speed when the vehicle ahead of the adjacent lane exists, the presence / absence of the vehicle behind the adjacent lane, and the vehicle behind the adjacent lane. When the vehicle is moving, the acceleration when the vehicle changes lanes is determined with reference to the acceleration calculation table TBL based on the travel speed.

FIG. 3 is a travel situation explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the host vehicle being followed by the ACC, the front vehicle, and the rear vehicle. Reference numeral 101 is the host vehicle travel lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, and reference numeral 102 is the host vehicle travel lane. An adjacent lane adjacent to the right side of 101, 103 is a lane boundary.
Reference numeral 201 denotes the host vehicle, and reference numeral 202 denotes a preceding vehicle that the host vehicle is following by ACC.
Reference numeral 203 denotes a front vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane 102 in front of the host vehicle, and reference numeral 204 denotes a rear vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane 102 behind the host vehicle.

Next, the operation will be described.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the follow-up control apparatus of this embodiment.
Hereinafter, the operation will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 4 by taking the traveling situation shown in the traveling situation explanatory diagram of FIG. 3 as an example.

Now, in the traveling state shown in FIG. 3, the host vehicle 201 is following the front vehicle 202 by ACC.
Then, the host vehicle 201 is in a situation where the lane is changed beyond the lane boundary line 103 and is about to pass the preceding vehicle 201.
For this reason, the host vehicle 201 is blinking the right turn signal 211 to change the lane from the host vehicle travel lane 101 to the adjacent lane 102.

The turn signal operation detection unit 33 detects a turn signal of a turn signal operated by the driver, determines whether the turn signal is a right turn signal or a left turn signal, and determines whether the driver intends to change lanes. (Step S1).
In addition, the detection of a blinker signal can determine that there is an intention to detect a blinker signal and change the lane by the driver when the blinker signal is output for a certain period of time.

Subsequently, the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31 detects the front radar 12 and is traveling in the adjacent lane 102 adjacent to the front vehicle 202 following the ACC and the own vehicle travel lane 101 on which the own vehicle 201 travels. For the forward vehicle 203, the inter-vehicle distance and the relative speed between the host vehicle 201 and the forward vehicles 202 and 203 are calculated.
In addition, the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31 calculates the inter-vehicle distance and relative speed between the host vehicle 201 and the rear vehicle 204 for the rear vehicle 204 traveling in the adjacent lane 102 (step S2).

  Next, the lane boundary 103 identified by the lane information acquisition unit 32, the angle between the lane boundary 103 and the traveling direction of the host vehicle 201, and the distance between the lane boundary 103 and the host vehicle 201 ( Vehicle acquired by the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31 for the lateral position of the host vehicle 201 with respect to the lane boundary line 103, the distance from the lane boundary line 103 of the host vehicle 201), and the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 of the adjacent lane 102. Information, for example, the distance between the front vehicle and the host vehicle that are traveling in the host vehicle traveling lane defined according to the traveling speed of the host vehicle that is following the vehicle according to ACC, the vehicle ahead and the vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane The acceleration start timing of the host vehicle 201 is determined based on the inter-vehicle distance from the vehicle and the inter-vehicle distance between the rear vehicle and the host vehicle.

  In the example of the traveling state shown in FIG. 3, when the ACC set vehicle speed is 100 km / h, and the follow-up control vehicle speed by the ACC of the own vehicle 201 is, for example, 80 km / h, the front vehicle traveling on the own vehicle traveling lane 101 The distance between the vehicle 202 and the host vehicle 201 is 40 m or more, the distance between the front vehicle traveling in the adjacent lane and the host vehicle is 60 m or more, the distance between the rear vehicle and the host vehicle is 60 m or more, When the turn signal is operated and the distance L between the lane boundary line 103 and the host vehicle 201 is within 30 centimeters, the acceleration start timing of the host vehicle 201 is determined.

  Then, by the acceleration calculation unit 35, the presence / absence of the vehicle ahead of the adjacent lane in the vehicle information acquired by the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit 31, the traveling speed of the vehicle ahead of the adjacent lane, Based on the presence / absence of a rear vehicle and the traveling speed when there is a rear vehicle on the adjacent lane, the acceleration when the host vehicle changes lanes is determined with reference to the acceleration calculation table TBL shown in FIG. S3).

FIG. 5 is a screen image captured by the front camera 104 and shows an example of the distance between the host vehicle 201 and the lane boundary line 103 (the lateral position of the host vehicle 201 with respect to the lane boundary line 103).
The screen shown in FIG. 5 is an image of the front of the host vehicle captured by the front camera 14, and symbol C is the mounting position of the front camera 104, for example, the center of the front bumper of the host vehicle 201 to which the front camera 104 is mounted. Shows the part.
Therefore, the distance L ′ between the host vehicle 201 and the lane boundary line 103 can be obtained as a value obtained by subtracting (the width of the host vehicle) / 2 from (distance L on the screen) × (1 / screen reduction rate). It is.

Therefore, the lane change determining unit 34 determines that the own vehicle 201 is in the lane at the timing when the distance between the own vehicle 201 and the lane boundary line 103 obtained in this way is less than a certain distance, for example, 30 centimeters or less. It is determined that the vehicle is in a situation where the boundary line 103 is about to be exceeded, that is, a lane changeable situation.
At this time, the lane change determining unit 34 also includes the presence / absence of the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 in the adjacent lane 102 that is about to change the lane, and the own vehicle 201 when the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 exist. The timing at which the lane can be changed is determined from the inter-vehicle distance with the preceding vehicle 203 and the inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle 201 and the rear vehicle 204.
In addition, the relative speed between the host vehicle 201 and the preceding vehicle 203, the speed change situation of the front vehicle 203, the relative speed between the host vehicle 201 and the rear vehicle 204, and the speed change situation of the rear vehicle 204 can be changed and the acceleration can be started. It is also possible to use a condition for determining a proper timing.
As a result, when the lane change determination unit 34 determines the timing at which the lane can be changed and the acceleration can be started (step S4), the acceleration calculation unit 35 refers to the acceleration calculation table TBL and the engine based on the determined acceleration information. The engine control by the ECU 41 is started, the host vehicle 201 is accelerated, and the lane change is started (step S5).

In the example defined by the acceleration calculation table TBL in FIG. 2, the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 exist in the adjacent lane 102 and the traveling speed of the front vehicle 203 is the following vehicle speed of the own vehicle that is following the vehicle by ACC. When the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a following vehicle speed of 75 km or less when the vehicle speed is less than 65 km to 70 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “none”, that is, the own vehicle 201 does not accelerate. Start the change.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed exceeding the following vehicle speed of 85 km to 100 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes the lane is “none”, that is, the own vehicle 201 does not accelerate and refrains from changing the lane.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed equivalent to the following vehicle speed of 75 km to 85 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “small”, that is, the own vehicle 201 is an acceleration smaller than the normal acceleration. Start lane change.

In addition, when the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 exist in the adjacent lane 102 and the traveling speed of the front vehicle 203 is 85 km or higher that exceeds the following vehicle speed of the own vehicle that is following by the ACC, the rear vehicle 204 is 75 km. When the vehicle travels at a speed below the following vehicle speed, the acceleration when the host vehicle changes lanes is “medium”, that is, the host vehicle 201 starts changing lanes at an acceleration comparable to the normal acceleration.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed exceeding the following vehicle speed of 85 km to 100 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “large”, that is, the own vehicle 201 changes lanes with an acceleration larger than the normal acceleration. Start.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed equivalent to the following vehicle speed of 75 km to 85 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “medium”, that is, the own vehicle 201 has an acceleration comparable to the normal acceleration. Start lane change.

Further, when there is a front vehicle 203 and a rear vehicle 204 in the adjacent lane 102 and the traveling speed of the front vehicle 203 is traveling at a speed comparable to the following vehicle speed of the own vehicle that is following the ACC, When the vehicle 204 is traveling at a following vehicle speed of 75 km or less, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “small”, that is, the own vehicle 201 starts changing lanes with an acceleration smaller than the normal acceleration.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed exceeding the following vehicle speed of 85 km to 100 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “small”, that is, the own vehicle 201 changes lanes with an acceleration smaller than the normal acceleration. Start.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed equivalent to the following vehicle speed of 75 km to 85 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “none”, that is, the own vehicle 201 starts changing lanes without accelerating. To do.

Further, when the front vehicle 203 exists in the adjacent lane 102 and the rear vehicle 204 does not exist, the traveling speed of the front vehicle 203 is lower than the following vehicle speed of the own vehicle that follows the ACC of 65 Km to 70 Km. When the vehicle is traveling, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “none”, that is, the own vehicle 201 starts changing lanes without accelerating.
In addition, when the preceding vehicle 203 is traveling at a speed exceeding the following vehicle speed of 85 km or more, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes the lane is “medium”, that is, the own vehicle 201 changes the lane at an acceleration comparable to the normal acceleration. To start.
Further, when the preceding vehicle 203 is traveling at a speed equivalent to the following vehicle speed of 75 km to 85 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “small”, that is, the own vehicle 201 has an acceleration smaller than the normal acceleration. Start lane change.

Further, when the rear vehicle 204 exists in the adjacent lane 102 and the front vehicle 203 does not exist, the traveling speed of the rear vehicle 204 is lower than the following vehicle speed of the own vehicle that is following the vehicle with an ACC of 75 km or less. When the vehicle is running, the acceleration when the host vehicle changes lanes is “medium”, that is, the host vehicle 201 starts changing lanes with an acceleration equivalent to the normal acceleration.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed exceeding the following vehicle speed of 85 km to 100 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “large”, that is, the own vehicle 201 changes lanes with an acceleration larger than the normal acceleration. Start.
Further, when the rear vehicle 204 is traveling at a speed equivalent to the following vehicle speed of 75 km to 85 km, the acceleration when the own vehicle changes lanes is “medium”, that is, the own vehicle 201 has an acceleration equivalent to the normal acceleration. To start lane change.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the acceleration control timing at the time of lane change of the host vehicle 201 when following traveling by ACC is set so that the traveling direction of the host vehicle 201 becomes the lane boundary line 103. Angle, distance between the lane boundary line 103 and the host vehicle 201, vehicle information about the vehicle 202 ahead of the host vehicle lane 101, vehicle information about the vehicle 203 forward and the rear vehicle 204 in the adjacent lane 102, for example, following ACC This is determined based on the inter-vehicle distance between the front vehicles 202 and 203 and the own vehicle 201 and the inter-vehicle distance between the rear vehicle 204 and the own vehicle 201, which are defined according to the traveling speed of the own vehicle.
Therefore, it is possible to accurately determine the timing of the acceleration control of the vehicle when the lane is changed during the tracking control by the ACC, which is advantageous in accurately performing the acceleration control of the vehicle.
Further, according to this embodiment, the traveling speed of the own vehicle that is following by ACC, the presence / absence of the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 in the adjacent lane 102, the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 are present. Since it is possible to realize acceleration control at the time of lane change according to the traveling speed of the front vehicle 203 and the rear vehicle 204 when there is a vehicle, it is advantageous in accurately performing acceleration control at the time of lane change of the host vehicle that is following by ACC. It becomes.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... ACC control ECU, 12 ... Forward radar, 13 ... Back radar, 14 ... Front camera, 15 ... Blinker operation detection switch, 31 ... Front / rear vehicle information acquisition part (travel lane deviation information calculation means) ), 32 ... Lane information acquisition unit, 33 ... Blinker operation detection unit, 34 ... Lane change determination unit (acceleration start timing determination unit), 35 ... Acceleration calculation unit.

Claims (3)

In a follow-up control device that performs follow-up control of the host vehicle so that the host vehicle follows the set vehicle speed at a vehicle traveling ahead,
A front radar for detecting a front vehicle traveling in the own vehicle traveling lane and the adjacent lane in front of the own vehicle;
A rear radar for detecting a rear vehicle traveling in an own vehicle traveling lane and an adjacent lane behind the own vehicle;
A front camera that captures a lane image on the road surface in front of the host vehicle;
Turn signal operation detection switch for detecting turn signal operation of the own vehicle;
A front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit that acquires vehicle information indicating a traveling state of the front vehicle and the rear vehicle based on a detection result of the front vehicle by the front radar and a detection result of the rear vehicle by the rear radar; ,
A lane information acquisition unit that identifies a lane from the lane image captured by the front camera, and acquires lane information including a positional relationship of the host vehicle with respect to the identified lane;
Travel lane departure information calculation means for calculating travel lane departure information including a distance between the lane and the host vehicle from the lane information acquired by the lane information acquisition unit;
Traveling lane departure information including the distance between the lane and the host vehicle calculated by the traveling lane departure information calculating means, and the front vehicle detected by the front radar acquired by the front / rear vehicle information acquisition unit. Based on vehicle information and vehicle information of the rear vehicle detected by the rear radar, acceleration start timing determination means for determining an acceleration start timing at which the host vehicle changes lanes to an adjacent lane;
Acceleration start timing determined by the acceleration start timing determination means based on vehicle information of the front vehicle detected by the front radar and vehicle information of the rear vehicle detected by the rear radar Acceleration calculation unit that calculates acceleration when starting acceleration and changing the course to the adjacent lane,
A follow-up control device comprising: The travel lane departure information includes a distance between the lane and the host vehicle, and an angle of the host vehicle with respect to the lane.
The follow-up control apparatus according to claim 1. Based on the turn signal operation detected by the turn signal operation detection switch, it is determined whether the turn signal operation is the left turn signal operation when changing the course to the left in the traveling direction or the right turn signal operation when changing the course to the right in the traveling direction. Further comprising a winker operation detection unit for determining,
The adjacent lane is a left adjacent lane corresponding to a left turn signal operation of a turn signal of the host vehicle determined by the turn signal operation detection unit or a right adjacent lane corresponding to a right turn signal operation.
The follow-up control apparatus according to claim 1.

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