JPH01197133A - Vehicle running control device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a vehicle to follow the other specified vehicle surely and simply by controlling the running of the vehicle so as to follow the other specific vehicle in accordance with the running condition of the vehicle and the running conditions of other vehicles. CONSTITUTION:A vehicle running control device 1 is provided therein with a device 2 for receiving running information such as vehicle speeds, present positions, steering angles and the like of other plurality of vehicles. Further, there are provided a device 3 for detecting the present position of the instant vehicle, and a device 4 for detecting the vehicle speed, steering angle and the like of the instant vehicle. Further, there is provided a device 5 for transmitting the present position of the instant vehicle and the running information thereof to the other vehicles. Further, there is provided a control unit 4 receiving output signals from the devices 2-4, for controlling the running of the instant vehicle. In this arrangement, the control unit 6 controls the running of the instant vehicle so as to allow the instant vehicle to follow another specific vehicle in accordance with the running information of the other vehicle and the running condition of the instant vehicle.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a vehicle travel control device, particularly for a vehicle that automatically controls the travel of its own vehicle so that it follows a vehicle to be followed. The present invention relates to a travel control device.

(Prior Art) In recent years, automatic follow-up driving systems have been developed that allow one's own vehicle to follow a preceding vehicle while maintaining a constant distance from the preceding vehicle.

For example, according to the vehicle running control device described in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 59-190948, the following distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle is detected by the following distance detecting means, and the own vehicle is driven at a constant speed by the constant speed traveling command means. The safe following distance calculated by the safe following distance calculating means is compared with the actual following distance to the preceding vehicle detected by the following distance detecting means, and the actual following distance is determined as the safe following distance. If the actual following distance is shorter than the safe following distance, the acceleration/deceleration rate control means will immediately increase the vehicle speed based on the acceleration rate calculated by the acceleration/deceleration rate control means. By quickly reducing vehicle speed based on the calculated deceleration rate, the system allows the vehicle to follow other vehicles while constantly maintaining a constant safe distance between vehicles.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) By the way, as the inter-vehicle distance detecting means for detecting the inter-vehicle distance used in the above-mentioned cruise control device, for example, laser beams, ultrasonic waves, etc. are used. Some systems detect the distance between the vehicle in front and the vehicle in front by directly irradiating the vehicle with light or ultrasonic waves. However, in the devices that use laser beams or ultrasonic waves, there is a limit to the distance that can be measured.For example, if the distance between the vehicle in front and the vehicle you are following becomes too wide, it may be difficult to detect the distance between the vehicles. was becoming difficult. Also,
When the preceding vehicle curves or another vehicle cuts between the preceding vehicle and your own vehicle, it is impossible to irradiate the preceding vehicle with laser beams or ultrasonic waves. In some cases, the following distance could not be detected.

On the other hand, recently, it has been considered to select a specific vehicle from among multiple other vehicles in front and have the vehicle follow it. Therefore, it was difficult to select a specific vehicle to follow from among multiple other vehicles in front and have the vehicle follow this vehicle. .

Therefore, the present invention provides a vehicle travel control device that automatically controls the running of the own vehicle so as to follow a vehicle to be followed, when the distance between the vehicle and the vehicle to be followed becomes too large, or when the vehicle to be followed is A vehicle travel control device that is capable of reliably following a vehicle even when the vehicle curves, and that is also capable of selecting a specific vehicle to be followed from among a plurality of other preceding vehicles and following this vehicle. The purpose is to provide

(Means for solving the problem) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is characterized by the following configuration.

That is, a receiving means receives information indicating the running state of a plurality of other vehicles from a plurality of other vehicles, a running state detecting means detects the running state of the own vehicle, and information indicating the running state of the other vehicle received by the receiving means. It is characterized by comprising a follow-up driving control means for controlling the running of the own vehicle so as to follow a specific other vehicle based on the running state of the own vehicle detected by the above-mentioned running state detection means. shall be.

Note that the information indicating the driving state received by the receiving means may include, for example, the vehicle speed of the other vehicle, the current absolute position and steering angle of the other vehicle, and the like. Further, it is conceivable that the vehicle speed, the current absolute position, the steering angle, etc. of the own vehicle are detected by the driving state detection means.

(Function) According to the above configuration, information indicating the running status of a plurality of other vehicles is received by the receiving T and stage, and the running status of the own vehicle is detected by the running status detecting means. . Then, based on the information indicating the driving conditions of other vehicles and the driving condition of the own vehicle, the following driving control means controls the driving of the own vehicle to follow a specific other vehicle. It is possible to select a specific vehicle to be followed from among other vehicles and to follow the vehicle. In addition, when the current absolute position of another vehicle is detected as the information indicating the driving state received by the receiving means, and the current absolute position of the own vehicle is detected by the driving state detecting means, It is also possible to maintain a certain distance from the vehicle and have the vehicle follow the vehicle.

According to the present invention, the information indicating the running states of a plurality of other vehicles is received by the receiving means, that is, the communication means, so that if the distance between the vehicles and a particular vehicle to be followed becomes too large, Even when the target vehicle curves, it is possible to reliably follow the target vehicle.

(Example) The present invention will be explained in detail below.

FIG. 1 shows an overall schematic configuration of a vehicle cruise control device according to the present embodiment. A receiving device 2 for receiving driving information, a vehicle position detecting device 3 for detecting the current position of the vehicle, a driving state detecting device 4 for detecting the traveling state of the vehicle such as the vehicle speed and steering angle, and the above-mentioned a transmitting device 5 for transmitting running information such as the current position, vehicle speed, and steering angle of the own vehicle detected by the own vehicle position detection device 3 and the running state detection device 4 to a plurality of other vehicles; and each of the above-mentioned devices 2 and 3. A control unit 6 for controlling the running of the own vehicle in response to input signals from .4.
and has.

In addition, as the own vehicle position detection device 3, for example, GP
Global positioning satellite system (Global
It is assumed that a positioning system (Positioning System) is used. This GPS is capable of measuring the current position of a vehicle with a positioning accuracy of about 30 meters based on radio waves emitted from a plurality of artificial satellites. Further, it is assumed that the signal transmitted by the transmitting device 5 is a unique signal (eg, has a different frequency) for each vehicle.

Next, the vehicle running control device 1 of this embodiment will be explained in more detail based on FIG. 2. The receiving device 2 receives running information (
It has a receiver 2a for receiving (transmitted from a transmitter 5 of another vehicle) and a demodulator 2b for demodulating the signal received by this receiver 2a into a controllable signal. The vehicle position detection device 3 receives the G P via the antenna 8.
It consists of a position information receiver 3a for receiving a position information signal from S, and a own vehicle position calculation map ri@3b for detecting the own vehicle position based on the received signal. The driving state detection device 4 also includes a vehicle speed detection sensor 4a that detects the vehicle speed of the own vehicle, a throttle sensor 4b that detects the throttle opening degree to control the vehicle speed, and a steering angle sensor 4c that detects the steering angle. Further, the transmitting device 5 includes a modulator 5b that converts the driving information signal of the own vehicle outputted from the control unit 6 into a signal that is easy to transmit.
and a transmission fi5a for transmitting the modulated signal to other vehicles, and a transmission antenna 9 is connected to the transmission fi5a.

The vehicle travel control device 1 is provided with a following travel switch 10 for activating the device 1, and is also provided with a following leading vehicle setting device 11 which is activated when the switch 10 is turned on. The preceding vehicle setting device 11 converts the identification number of the preceding vehicle arbitrarily inputted by the occupant into a digital signal and outputs it to the control unit 6 as necessary. Furthermore, apart from the receiving device 5, the shortest pressure 11! (For example, 30 meters I・
A radar sensor 12 that uses radio waves or the like is provided to detect the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle (within 300 meters).

Next, the control unit 6 for controlling the running state of the host vehicle will be explained. This control unit 6 selects a following-leading vehicle setting device from among the signals indicating the running information of other vehicles received by the receiving device 2. a received data selection circuit 13 that selects a signal of a specific preceding vehicle specified by the device 11 when the device 11 is activated; an output signal output from this circuit 13 and the own vehicle output from the own vehicle position detection device 3; Calculating the inter-vehicle distance to a specific vehicle based on the signal indicating the position I\g14, Calculating the inter-vehicle distance to another vehicle that is the shortest distance from the own vehicle based on the signal output from the radar sensor 12 An inter-vehicle distance calculation circuit 15, an inter-vehicle distance detection method switching circuit 16 that determines which circuit to select the output signal from among the vehicle distance calculation circuits 14 and 15, and a throttle opening control circuit 16 that determines which circuit to select the output signal from among the vehicle distance calculation circuits 14 and 15. A throttle control circuit 18 for controlling the operation of a throttle actuator 17 for adjusting the vehicle speed, and a brake control circuit 2 for controlling the operation of one brake actuator for performing a brake operation to control the vehicle speed.
0, and a signal indicating running information of a specific vehicle from the received data selection circuit 13, a signal indicating the following distance from the following distance detection method switching circuit 16, and each output signal from the running state detection device 4 are input. Accordingly, a set vehicle speed calculation circuit 21 is provided which sets the traveling speed of the host vehicle based on these signals. In addition, this arithmetic circuit 2
1 is output to the transmitting device 5 via the data output circuit 22, and the output signal is also output to the throttle control circuit 18 and the brake control circuit 20.

Next, the control operation for follow-up travel by the control unit 6 will be explained based on the flowchart shown in FIG. 3.4.

First, in step S1, a signal indicating the driving information of another vehicle (vehicle speed, current position, steering angle, etc.) received by the receiving device 2 and the own vehicle position obtained by the own vehicle position detecting device 3 and the driving state detecting device 4 are transmitted. The signals of each row, such as the signal indicating , are input, and then, in step S2, the follow-up running switch 10 is turned on, and it is determined whether or not the following run state is entered. Then, if it is in the following running state,
In step S3, it is determined whether the following mode is a designated vehicle following mode in which a designated vehicle is followed among a plurality of vehicles. If it is the designated vehicle following mode, it is determined in step S4 whether the vehicle to be followed is the designated vehicle to be followed. If the vehicle is not the designated vehicle, the reception data selection circuit 13 selects the following preceding vehicle setting device 11.
until the signal of the specific vehicle to be followed set in is selected.
The operations from step S1 to step S3 described above are repeated. Further, if it is confirmed in step S4 that the vehicle is the designated vehicle, in step S5, the inter-vehicle distance calculation circuit 14 The inter-vehicle distance between the two vehicles is calculated.

Further, when it is determined in step S that the mode is not the specified vehicle following mode, it is determined in step S6 whether the mode is the shortest distance vehicle following mode, which follows the preceding vehicle that is the shortest distance from the own vehicle among the preceding vehicles, If it is the shortest distance vehicle following mode, the travel information of the shortest distance vehicle is processed in step S7. In step S7, the travel information is processed based on the control operation shown in the flowchart of FIG. That is, in step 81', the signal output by the radar sensor 12 is input to the inter-vehicle distance calculation circuit 15, whereby the inter-vehicle distance to the vehicle at the shortest distance is calculated. Then, in step 82', it is determined whether the inter-vehicle distance calculated in step S1' is shorter than the shortest inter-vehicle distance stored in advance, and if the actual inter-vehicle distance is longer than the memorized inter-vehicle distance, The actual inter-vehicle distance is set as the current inter-vehicle distance, and if the actual inter-vehicle distance is shorter than the shortest inter-vehicle distance stored in memory, the shortest inter-vehicle distance previously stored in step 83' is set as the current inter-vehicle distance. Set.

Then, in step S8 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, a safe inter-vehicle distance is calculated based on the driving information of the other vehicle (vehicle speed, current position, steering angle, etc.) and the driving information of the own vehicle, and in step S9, the above-mentioned Step S,
Alternatively, by comparing the respective inter-vehicle distances set in step S7 with the safe inter-vehicle distances, if it is determined that the inter-vehicle distances are safe, in step SIO the vehicle speeds of the preceding vehicle and the own vehicle are the same. Determine whether
If No, it is determined in step Sl+ whether the vehicle speed of the preceding vehicle is greater than the vehicle speed of the host vehicle. Then, if the vehicle speed of the preceding vehicle is higher than the vehicle speed of the own vehicle, step S
Step S12 performs acceleration processing to increase the own vehicle speed to maintain a safe inter-vehicle distance, and if it is determined that the own vehicle is slower, deceleration processing is performed in step S13. Control is performed to reduce the speed of the own vehicle and maintain the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle at a safe distance. Note that if it is determined in step S9 that the following distance is not a safe distance, the operation of the throttle actuator 17 and the brake actuator 19 is controlled by the throttle control circuit 18 and the brake control circuit 20 so as to promptly ensure a safe following distance. That will happen.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, a specific vehicle to be followed is specified from among the preceding vehicle that is closest to the own vehicle or a plurality of vehicles preceding the own vehicle, and a constant inter-vehicle distance is constantly maintained between these preceding vehicles. It becomes possible to follow the vehicle after securing it.

In this embodiment, the inter-vehicle distance detection method switching circuit 16 requires inter-vehicle distance data calculated based on a signal from the GPS and inter-vehicle distance data calculated based on a signal from the radar sensor 12. Since the radar sensor 12 is configured to be switched and used depending on the
The limit for accurate tracking (distance between vehicles is approximately 30 meters)
In the above cases, the following distance data calculated based on the signal from the GPS is used, and if the distance makes it impossible for the accuracy of the GPS (the following distance is 30 meters or less), the data is based on the signal from the radar sensor 12. Since the inter-vehicle distance data calculated using the following method is used, it is possible to accurately measure the inter-vehicle distance to the preceding vehicle.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the vehicle traveling device of the present invention, it is possible to select a specific vehicle to be followed from among a plurality of other vehicles and to follow the vehicle to be followed.

In addition, since information indicating the driving condition of the following vehicle is received by the receiving means, even if the vehicle distance from the following vehicle becomes too large or the following vehicle curves, it is reliable. It is possible to follow the vehicle.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the entire vehicle travel control device according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the vehicle travel control device. , and FIG. 3.4 are flowcharts illustrating control operations for follow-up travel by the vehicle travel control device. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Vehicle running control device, 2... Receiving means (receiving device), 3.4... Running state detection means (own vehicle position detection device, running state detection means), 6... Follow-up running Control means (control unit z 1 Tough Figure 4)

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) Receiving means for receiving information indicating the running states of a plurality of other vehicles, running state detecting means for detecting the running state of the host vehicle, and information indicating the running states of the other vehicles received by the receiving means. and a following driving control means for controlling the driving of the own vehicle so as to follow a specific other vehicle based on the driving state of the own vehicle detected by the driving state detecting means. Features of vehicle travel control device.