SE1650237A1

SE1650237A1 - Method and system for controlling driving of a vehicle along a road

Info

Publication number: SE1650237A1
Application number: SE1650237A
Authority: SE
Inventors: Malinen Samuel
Original assignee: Scania Cv Ab
Priority date: 2016-02-24
Filing date: 2016-02-24
Publication date: 2017-08-25
Also published as: SE541041C2; DE102017001288A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for controlling driving of a vehicle (1) along a road (R), comprising the step of determining wheel grooves (GL, GR) in the surface (RS) of the road along which the vehicle is travelling. The method comprises the steps of: determining external conditions comprising weather conditions and/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said road (R); and, taking measures based upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road (R) taking said determined wheel grooves (GL, GR) into account.The present invention also relates to a system for controlling driving of a vehicle along a road. The present invention also relates to a vehicle. The present invention also relates to a computer program and a computer program product.(Fig. 2a)

Description

|\/IETHOD AND SYSTEM FOR CONTROLLING DRIVING OF A VEHICLEALONG A ROAD TECHNICAL FIELD The invention relates to a method for controlling driving of a vehicle along aroad according to the preamble of claim 1. The invention also relates to asystem for controlling driving of a vehicle along a road. The invention alsorelates to a vehicle. The invention in addition relates to a computer programand a computer program product.

BACKG ROUND ART When many vehicles such as trucks, buses, cars etc. travel along a roadeventually wheel grooves are created on the surface of the road due to wearcaused by said vehicles. Such wheel groves may affect driving of the vehicles. lt is known to detect wheel tracks on the road caused by vehicles travellingon the road.

EP2325064 discloses a method in which wheel tracks/grooves are detectedand wherein it is calculated such that the vehicle is generally driving on thewheel tracks.

JP2015184747 also discloses detection of wheel tracks and determining howto drive on theses wheel tracks.

There is however a need for improving controlling driving of a vehicle along aroad taking wheel grooves into account.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a method for controllingdriving of a vehicle along a road which improves safety.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a system for controllingdriving of a vehicle along a road which improves safety.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION These and other objects, apparent from the following description, areachieved by a method, a system, a vehicle, a computer program and acomputer program product, as set out in the appended independent claims.Preferred embodiments of the method and the system are defined inappended dependent claims.

Specifically an object of the invention is achieved by a method for controllingdriving of a vehicle along a road. The method comprises the step ofdetermining wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicleis travelling. The method further comprises the steps of: determining externalconditions comprising weather conditions and/or road conditions inconnection to the vehicle driving along said road; and, taking measuresbased upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into account.

The thus determined wheel grooves are grooves made by wear on thesurface of the road caused by a large number of vehicles having travelled along the road.

The wheel grooves may be determined continuously or intermittently bymeans of detecting the surface of the road along which the vehicle istravelling by means of any suitable detection means comprising one or more Lidar units, i.e. laser scanner units, and/or one or more camera units and/or one or more radar units arranged on the vehicle. lnformation regarding wheelgrooves along the road on which the vehicle is travelling obtained fromdetecting the surface of the road may be used/processed during drive of thevehicle. lnformation regarding wheel grooves along the road on which thevehicle is travelling obtained from detecting the surface of the road may bestored in any suitable storage means comprising any suitable internal storagemeans of the particular vehicle and/or any suitable external storage meanssuch as a server unit or the like. Other vehicles may also provide informationabout the wheel grooves to an external storage means being accessible toother vehicles. Such stored information about wheel grooves is stored asmap data together with map data for the particular road and the extension ofthe particular road. Such stored information about wheel grooves isaccording to an embodiment accessible for other vehicles through map data.

The determined wheel grooves may comprise information about the extent ofthe grooves, i.e. whether the grooves are relatively deep e.g. due to long timesince new asphalt or the like was put on the road and due to many vehiclehaving worn out the road, or whether the grooves are not particularly deep or somewhere in-between.

Weather conditions may be determined by means of weather sensorscomprising any suitable rain sensor e.g. arranged in connection to thewindshield, any suitable temperature sensor, any suitable wind sensor.Weather conditions may be determined by means of external weather datafrom any external provider/server with which the vehicle, i.e. a controlunit/server unit or the like of the vehicle, may establish contact.

Road conditions may be determined by means of any suitable detectormeans comprising any suitable detector unit for detecting the surface of theroad along which the vehicle is travelling such as one or more camera unitsand/or one or more laser scanner units and/or one or more radar units. Road conditions may be determined by means of external data from any external provider/server with which the vehicle, i.e. a control unit/server unit or the like of the vehicle, may establish contact.

Thus determined weather conditions may comprise rain and extent of rain,snow and extent of snow, current temperature, wind conditions or the like.Thus determined road conditions may comprise slippery road due to e.g. iceon the road, snow on the road, oil on the road, gravel on the road, water onthe road, curves of the road or other road conditions that may affect drivingalong the road.

By thus determining wheel grooves of the road along which the vehicle istravelling and determining weather conditions and/or road conditions andtaking measure based upon the wheel grooves and the current conditionssafety is improved in that the risk of accident such as aquaplaning due towater in the grooves may be prevented.

The measures taken may vary due to the current conditions.

By rainfall to a certain degree the measure taken may involve reducing thespeed of the vehicle, changing the lateral position of the vehicle such that thewheels of the vehicle are not travelling in the grooves but beside the grooves,such a measure being dependent on the width of the lane, the lane having tobe wide enough to be able to safely travel beside the wheel grooves. For anon-autonomous vehicle, i.e. a vehicle having an operator driving the vehicle,a warning may also be provided to the operator of the vehicle of the risk ofaquaplaning and possible recommended actions such as lowering the vehiclespeed and/or positioning the vehicle such that it is not driven in the wheel grooves.

By slippery road and/or heavy side wind and/or heavy curves the measuretaken may involve reducing the speed of the vehicle, having a lateral positionof the vehicle such that the wheels of the vehicle are travelling in thegrooves, the grooves in such a situation assisting in keeping the vehicle onthe road. For a non-autonomous vehicle, i.e. a vehicle having an operator driving the vehicle, a warning may also be provided to the operator of thevehicle of the risk of slippery road and/or heavy side wind and/or heavycurves and possible recommended actions such as Iowering the vehiclespeed and/or positioning the vehicle such that it is driven in the wheel grooves.

The vehicle may be any vehicle driving on a road comprising a truck, a bus ora car. The vehicle could also be a motor cycle, where a motor cycle mayrequire other measures to be taken, e.g. avoid wheel grooves to a greater eXtent.

According to an embodiment of the method the step of determining wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travellingcomprises the step of detecting the surface of the road so as to determinewheel grooves. Detecting the surface of the road comprises according to anembodiment detecting the width of the lane of the road along which thevehicle is travelling. Detecting the surface of the road and the width of thelane of the road along which the vehicle is travelling comprises detecting therelative position of the wheel grooves along the lane and the possibility forthe vehicle to safely drive on the left side of the wheel grooves, i.e. positionthe vehicle such that the left wheels are on the left side of the left wheelgroove and right wheels are on the left side of the right wheel groove, and/oron the right side of the wheel grooves, i.e. position the vehicle such that theleft wheels are on the right side of the left wheel groove and right wheels areon the right side of the right wheel groove. Detecting the surface of the roadand thus detecting possible existence of wheel grooves is a very efficient wayof determining the existence of the wheel grooves with high accuracy of theposition of the wheel grooves. Detecting of the wheel grooves may beperformed by means of any suitable detection means as mentioned above.Information/data about thus detected wheel grooves may be stored in anysuitable internal and/or external storage means as mentioned above. By thusdetecting the surface of the road it may be possible to detect road conditions such as ice on the road, snow on the road, water on the road or the like, andit is according to an embodiment also possible to detect water in the wheelgrooves, i.e. possible to detect the wheel grooves even when they are filled with water.

According to an embodiment of the method the step of determining wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travellingcomprises the steps of: determining the current position of the vehicle; andextracting map information of wheel grooves in the surface of the road alongwhich the vehicle is travelling. Hereby information about wheel grooves maybe obtained for a vehicle which is not equipped with detection means fordetecting wheel grooves. Hereby information about wheel grooves may beobtained at an earlier stage, e.g. prior to when it possible to detect the wheelgrooves by means of detection means arranged on the vehicle, such thatmeasures may be taken earlier and thus further reducing the risk forincidents/accidents such as aquaplaning due to heavy rainfall and water inthe grooves.

According to an embodiment of the method the step of taking measuresbased upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controllingdriving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into accountcomprises one or more of: adapting the speed of the vehicle, adapting thelateral position of the vehicle relative to the determined wheel grooves,warning a possible operator of the vehicle. Such measures will improve safety and control of the driving of the vehicle along the road.

According to an embodiment the method further comprises the step ofcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within avehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement and/or to infrastructure withina vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement. By communicatinginformation about possible risk due to current external conditions and saidwheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within a vehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement other vehicle equipped with such vehicle-to-vehicle arrangement are informed about the risk and may take propermeasures such as reducing speed and/or changing lateral position relative tothe wheel grooves in the case of risk of aquaplaning due to rainfall. Thevehicle-to-vehicle communication may be to vehicles behind the vehicle butalso oncoming vehicles. Thus safety is improved. By communicatinginformation about possible risk due to current external conditions and saidwheel grooves on the road to infrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructurecommunication arrangement other vehicles may be informed viainfrastructure about the risk. lnfrastructure may comprise electronic signsarranged in connection to the road along which the vehicle is travelling.lnfrastructure may comprise external servers or the like configured to provideinfrastructure-to-vehicle information about the current risk to other vehicles.lnfrastructure may comprise external servers or the like configured to provide traffic warning via radio.

According to an embodiment of the method, if said determined externalconditions involves weather conditions comprising rain fall on the road alongwhich the vehicle is travelling, the step of taking measures comprisesreducing the speed of the vehicle and/or changing the lateral position of thevehicle so that the vehicle wheels are driving on side of the wheel grooves,and/or warning the operator of the vehicle of risk of aquaplaning. Herebysafer driving of the vehicle is facilitated in that the risk for aquaplaning is reduced.

Specifically an object of the invention is achieved by a system for controllingdriving of a vehicle along a road. The system comprises means fordetermining wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicleis travelling. The system further comprises means for determining externalconditions comprising weather conditions and/or road conditions inconnection to the vehicle driving along said road; and means for taking measures based upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into aCCOUnt.

According to an embodiment of the system the means for determining wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travellingcomprises means for detecting the surface of the road so as to determine wheel grooves.

According to an embodiment of the system the means for determining wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travellingcomprises means for determining the current position of the vehicle; andmeans for extracting map information of wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

According to an embodiment of the system the means for taking measuresbased upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controllingdriving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into accountcomprises one or more of: means for adapting the speed of the vehicle,means for adapting the position of the vehicle relative to the determinedwheel grooves, means for warning a possible operator of the vehicle.

According to an embodiment the system further comprises means forcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within avehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement and/or means forcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to infrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement.

According to an embodiment of the system the means for taking measurescomprises means for reducing the speed of the vehicle and/or means forchanging the lateral position of the vehicle so that the vehicle wheels aredriving on side of the wheel grooves, and/or means for warning the operatorof the vehicle of risk of aquaplaning, if said determined external conditions involves weather conditions comprising rain fall on the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The system for controlling driving of a vehicle along a road is adapted toperform the methods as set out herein.

The system according to the invention has the advantages according to the corresponding method claims.

Specifically an object of the invention is achieved by a vehicle comprising a system as set out herein.

Specifically an object of the invention is achieved by a computer program forcontrolling driving of a vehicle along a road, said computer programcomprising program code which, when run on an electronic control unit oranother computer connected to the electronic control unit, causes theelectronic control unit to perform methods as set out herein.

Specifically an object of the invention is achieved by a computer program product comprising a digital storage medium storing the computer program.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS For a better understanding of the present invention reference is made to thefollowing detailed description when read in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views, and in which: Fig. 1 schematically illustrates a side view of a vehicle according to the present invention; Fig. 2a schematically illustrates a plan view of a road with two lanes withwheel grooves in the surface of the road; Fig. 2b schematically illustrates a profile of a lane of the road in fig. 2a; Fig. 2c schematically illustrates the profile of the lane in fig 2b with a vehiclelaterally positioned within wheel grooves; Fig. 2d schematically illustrates the profile of the lane in fig 2b with a vehiclelaterally positioned beside the wheel grooves; Fig. 3 schematically illustrates a block diagram of a system for controllingdriving of a vehicle along a road according to an embodiment of the present invenﬁon; Fig. 4 schematically illustrates a block diagram of a method for controllingdriving of a vehicle along a road according to an embodiment of the present invention; and Fig. 5 schematically illustrates a computer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Hereinafter the term “link” refers to a communication link which may be aphysical connector, such as an optoelectronic communication wire, or a non-physical connector such as a wireless connection, for example a radio or microwave link.

Hereinafter the term “wheel grooves” refers to grooves along lanes of theroad generally caused by multiple vehicles having travelled along the road onwithin essentially the same lateral position causing wear on the road surfaceresulting in grooves along the road, i.e. along the respective lane of a road.The term “wheel grooves” refers to essentially parallel grooves running alongthe road, i.e. a lane of a road, the distance between the essentially parallelgrooves generally corresponding to the distance between the wheels of the 11 vehicles having travelled along the road. The term “wheel grooves” refers to concave wearing outs on the surface of the road.

Fig. 1 schematically illustrates a side view of a vehicle 1 according to thepresent invention. The exemplified vehicle 1 is a heavy vehicle in the shapeof a truck. The vehicle according to the present invention could be anysuitable vehicle such as a bus or a car or a motor cycle. The vehicleaccording to the present invention could be an autonomous vehicle. Thevehicle comprises a system l for controlling driving of the vehicle 1 along aroad R according to the present invention.

Fig. 2a schematically illustrates a plan view of a road R with two lanes L1, L2 with wheel grooves GL, GR in the surface RS of the road R.

The respective lane L1, L2 have wheel grooves created in the surface of theroad due to wear caused by driving of vehicles along said road R over time.The lane L1 of the road has a left groove GL and a right groove GR, the leftand right grooves GL, GR corresponding to left and right wheels of thevehicles having created the wheel grooves.

A vehicle 1 is driving along the road R in the lane L1. The vehicle comprisesa system I for controlling driving of the vehicle 1 along the road R accordingto the present invention. The vehicle 1 is laterally positioned in the lane L1such that the wheels of the vehicle are running in the wheel grooves.

The vehicle 1, i.e. the system l, comprises means for determining the wheelgrooves GL, GR. The means for determining the wheel grooves GL, GR maycomprise means 112 for detecting the road R and hence the grooves. Thevehicle 1, i.e. the system l, comprises means for determining weatherconditions such as rainfall and road conditions in connection to the roadalong which the vehicle 1 is travelling. The vehicle 1, i.e. the system l,comprises means for taking measures based upon said determined externalconditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into account. 12 The vehicle is according to an embodiment provided with detection means fordetecting the surface of the road so as to detect wheel grooves. Thedetection means may comprises any suitable detector unit comprising anysuitable camera unit and/or any suitable laser scanner unit and/or anysuitable radar unit. The detector unit is according to an embodiment also configured to detect the width of the lane L1.

Fig. 2b schematically illustrates a profile of a lane L1 of the road in fig. 2a.The lane L1 has a width W, which may be determined by means of thedetector unit of the vehicle 1.

Fig. 2c schematically illustrates the profile of the lane in fig 2b with a vehicle laterally positioned within wheel grooves.

Fig. 2d schematically illustrates the profile of the lane in fig 2b with a vehiclelaterally positioned beside the wheel grooves.

Fig. 3 schematically illustrates a system I for controlling driving of a vehicle along a road according to an embodiment of the present invention.The system I comprises an electronic control unit 100.

The system I comprises means 110 for determining wheel grooves in thesurface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The means 110 for determining wheel grooves in the surface of the roadalong which the vehicle is travelling comprises means 112 for detecting thesurface of the road so as to determine wheel grooves. The means 112 fordetecting the surface of the road is arranged to detect wheel grooves in thesurface of the road. The means 112 for detecting the surface of the road isaccording to an embodiment arranged to detect the width of the lane of theroad along which the vehicle is travelling.

The means 112 for detecting the surface of the road so as to determine wheel grooves may comprise any suitable detector unit. The means 112 for 13 detecting the surface of the road and hence wheel grooves in the roadcomprises according to an embodiment one or more Lidar units, i.e. laserscanner units, and/or one or more camera units and/or one or more radarunits. The means 112 for detecting the surface of the road and hence wheelgrooves in the road is arranged on the vehicle driving along the road.

The means 110 for determining wheel grooves in the surface of the roadalong which the vehicle is travelling is according to an embodiment based oncurrent position of the vehicle and extracted map information of wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The means 110 for determining wheel grooves in the surface of the roadalong which the vehicle is travelling comprises means 114 for determiningthe current position of the vehicle.

The means 114 for determining the position of the vehicle comprisesaccording to an embodiment a global positioning system, GPS, forcontinuously determining the position of the vehicle along the road on which it is travelling.

The means 110 for determining wheel grooves in the surface of the roadalong which the vehicle is travelling comprises means 116 for extracting mapinformation of wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which thevehicle is travelling.

The means 116 for extracting map information of wheel grooves in thesurface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling comprises accordingto an embodiment a map information unit comprising map data comprisinginformation about the trajectory of the road on which the vehicle is travellingcomprising information about wheel grooves in the surface of the road alongwhich the vehicle is travelling.

The system I comprises according to an embodiment storage means 120 forstoring data of detected wheel grooves. The storage means 120 is according 14 to an embodiment configured to store data of the degree of hazard thedetected wheel grooves may constitute, e.g. how deep the wheel grooves are.

The storage means 120 comprises internal storage means 122 on board thevehicle. The internal storage means 122 may be any suitable means forstoring information such as a control unit, a computer or the like. The internalstorage means 122 is according to an embodiment comprised in theelectronic control unit 100.

The storage means comprises external storage means 124 external to thevehicle. The external storage means 124 may be any suitable externalstorage means such as a sever unit, a computer, a tablet or the like. Othervehicles may also provide information about the wheel grooves to theexternal storage means 124. The external storage means 124 is thusaccording to an embodiment accessible to other vehicles. Such storedinformation about wheel grooves is stored as map data together with mapdata for the particular road and the extension of the particular road. Suchstored information about wheel grooves is according to an embodimentaccessible for other vehicles through map data.

The means 116 for extracting map information of wheel grooves in thesurface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling is according to anembodiment configured to extract map information of wheel grooves in thesurface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling from the externalstorage means 124. The means 116 for extracting map information of wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling isaccording to an embodiment configured to extract map information of wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling fromthe internal storage means 122.

The system l further comprises means 130 for determining external conditions comprising weather conditions and/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said road.

The means 130 for determining external conditions comprises means 132 fordetermining weather conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said road.

The means 132 for determining weather conditions in connection to thevehicle driving along said road may comprise any suitable means for determining weather conditions.

The means 132 for determining weather conditions in connection to thevehicle driving along said road comprises one or more weather sensor units.The weather sensor units may comprise one or more rain sensor units. Theweather sensor units may comprise one or more temperature sensor units.

The weather sensor units may comprise one or more wind sensor units.

The means 132 for determining weather conditions in connection to thevehicle driving along said road comprises according to an embodimentmeans for extracting external weather data from one or more externalweather data units comprising any suitable external server unit. The means132 for determining weather conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said road comprises one or more external weather data units.

Thus determined weather conditions may comprise rain and extent of rain, snow and extent of snow, current temperature, wind conditions or the like.

The means 130 for determining external conditions comprises means 134 fordetermining road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along saidroad.

The means 134 for determining road conditions in connection to the vehicledriving along said road comprises means for detecting road conditions inconnection to the vehicle driving along said road. The means for detecting 16 road conditions comprises any suitable detector unit for detecting the surfaceof the road along which the vehicle is travelling such as one or more cameraunits and/or one or more laser scanner units and/or one or more radar units.The means 134 for determining road conditions in connection to the vehicledriving along said road comprises according to an embodiment the means112 for detecting the surface of the road. Thus the means 112 for detectingthe surface of the road is according to an embodiment arranged to detectroad conditions.

The means 134 for determining road conditions in connection to the vehicledriving along said road comprises means for extracting information aboutroad conditions from one or more external units comprising any suitable server unit.

Thus determined road conditions may comprise slippery road due to e.g. iceon the road, snow on the road, oil on the road, gravel on the road, water onthe road, curves of the road or other road conditions that may affect drivingalong the road.

The system I comprises means 140 for determining the speed of the vehicle.The means 140 for determining the speed of the vehicle comprises according to an embodiment the speedometer of the vehicle.

The system l further means 150 for taking measures based upon saiddetermined external conditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along saidroad taking said determined wheel grooves into account.

The means 150 for taking measures based upon said determined externalconditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking saiddetermined wheel grooves into account comprises one or more of: means foradapting the speed of the vehicle, means for adapting the position of thevehicle relative to the determined wheel grooves, means for warning a possible operator of the vehicle. 17 The means 150 for taking measures based upon said determined externalconditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking saiddetermined wheel grooves into account comprises means 152 for adaptingthe speed of the vehicle.

The means 152 for adapting the speed of the vehicle comprises means forreducing the speed.

The means 152 for adapting the speed of the vehicle comprises means forcontrolling the brakes of the vehicle. The means for controlling the brakes ofthe vehicle may comprise one or more electronic control units. The means forcontrolling the brakes comprises activating brakes to a certain degree so asto reduce the speed of the vehicle. The means for controlling the brakes ofthe vehicle may comprise or be comprised in the electronic control unit 100.

The means 152 for adapting the speed of the vehicle comprises means forcontrolling torque demand to the drive means, e.g. internal combustionengine, of the vehicle. The means for controlling the torque demand maycomprise one or more electronic control units. The means for controlling thetorque demand may comprise or be comprised in the electronic control unit100.

The means 150 for taking measures based upon said determined externalconditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking saiddetermined wheel grooves into account comprises means 154 means for adapting the position of the vehicle relative to the determined wheel grooves.

The means 154 means for adapting the position of the vehicle relative to thedetermined wheel grooves. The means for adapting the position of thevehicle relative to the determined wheel grooves comprises means forcontrolling the steering of the vehicle. The means for controlling the steeringof the vehicle may comprise one or more electronic control units. The meansfor controlling the steering of the vehicle may comprise or be comprised inthe electronic control unit 100. 18 The means 150 for taking measures based upon said determined externalconditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking saiddetermined wheel grooves into account comprises means 156 for warning apossible operator of the vehicle. The means 156 for warning an operatorcomprises warning the operator of the risk due to the wheel grooves and thecurrent external conditions comprising weather conditions and/or roadconditions. The means 156 for warning an operator comprises according to an embodiment providing recommendations based on the current situation.

The means 156 for warning an operator of the vehicle comprises visualmeans for visual warning. The visual means for visual warning comprisesaccording to an embodiment one or more display units on e.g. the instrumentpanel, a head-up-display on the windshield or the like, for displaying saidwarning comprising information regarding the risk due to the wheel groovesand the current external conditions. The visual means for visual warningcomprises according to an embodiment one or more projection units forwarning the operator of the vehicle by projection of a light source, saidprojection according to a variant being on the ground surface in connection tothe vehicle. Said projection unit for warning the operator of the vehicle byprojection of a light source may be configured to project light sources in thewheel grooves, i.e. a certain extension of the wheel grooves in front of thevehicle and/or light sources next to the wheel grooves constitutingrecommendation where the vehicle should drive, if the external conditions aresuch that it is safer to drive on the side of the wheel grooves, e.g. by rainfalland sufficiently wide lane of the road.

The means for warning an operator of the vehicle comprises according to anembodiment sound means for audible warning such as an alarm, a voice message or the like.

The means for warning an operator of the vehicle comprises according to anembodiment tactile means such as vibrating/moving the seat of the operator,the steering wheel, the gas pedal, the brake pedal or the like so as to draw 19 attention to the operator of the risk due to the wheel grooves and the currentexternal conditions. The tactile means may be a complement to the visualmeans and/or the sound means in order to get the attention of the operator of the vehicle.

According to an embodiment of the system I the means 150 for takingmeasures comprises the means 152 for reducing the speed of the vehicleand/or the means 154 for changing the lateral position of the vehicle so thatthe vehicle wheels are driving on the side of the wheel grooves, and/or themeans 156 for warning the operator of the vehicle of risk of aquaplaning, ifthe means 130 for determining external conditions determines weatherconditions comprising rain fall on the road along which the vehicle istravelling.

The system l further comprises means 160 for communicating informationabout possible risk due to current external conditions and said wheel grooveson the road to other vehicles within a vehicle-to-vehicle communicationarrangement V2V. The other vehicle may comprise means 200 for receiving and communicating information, e.g. an electronic control unit or the like.

The system l further comprises means 170 for communicating informationabout possible risk due to current external conditions and said wheel grooveson the road to infrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communicationarrangement V21. The infrastructure may comprise means 300 for receivingand communicating information, e.g. an electronic control unit, an electronic sign or the like.

The means 170 for communicating information about possible risk due tocurrent external conditions and said wheel grooves on the road toinfrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangementcomprises according to an embodiment communicating the information to anelectronic sign arranged in connection to the road along which the vehicle istravelling.

The means 170 for communicating information about possible risk due tocurrent external conditions and said wheel grooves on the road toinfrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangementcomprises according to an embodiment communicating the information toexternal servers or the like configured to provide infrastructure-to-vehicleinformation about the current risk to other vehicles. Infrastructure maycomprise external servers or the like configured to provide traffic warning viaradio.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 110 fordetermining wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicleis travelling via a link 10. The electronic control unit 100 is via the link 10arranged to receive a signal from said means 110 representing data wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 110 fordetermining wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicleis travelling via a link 10. The electronic control unit 100 is via the link 10arranged to receive a signal from said means 110 representing data forwheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 112 fordetecting the surface of the road so as to determine wheel grooves via a link12. The electronic control unit 100 is via the link 12 arranged to receive asignal from said means 112 representing data wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 114 fordetermining the current position of the vehicle via a link 14. The electroniccontrol unit 100 is via the link 14 arranged to receive a signal from said means 114 representing data for current position of the vehicle.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 116 forextracting map information of wheel grooves in the surface of the road along 21 which the vehicle is travelling via a link 16a. The electronic control unit 100 isvia the link 16a arranged to send a signal to said means 116 representingdata for wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle istravelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 116 forextracting map information of wheel grooves in the surface of the road alongwhich the vehicle is travelling via a link 16b. The electronic control unit 100 isvia the link 16b arranged to receive a signal from said means 116representing data for wheel grooves in the surface of the road along whichthe vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 120 forstoring data of detected wheel grooves via a link 20. The electronic controlunit 100 is via the link 20 arranged to send a signal to said means 120representing data for detected wheel grooves in the surface of the road alongwhich the vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the internal storagemeans 122 on board the vehicle via a link 22. The electronic control unit 100is via the link 22 arranged to send a signal to said internal storage means122 on board the vehicle representing data for detected wheel grooves in thesurface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the external storagemeans 124 on board the vehicle via a link 24a. The electronic control unit100 is via the link 24a arranged to send a signal to said external storage 22 means 124 representing data for detected wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the external storagemeans 124 on board the vehicle via a link 24b. The electronic control unit100 is via the link 24b arranged to receive a signal from said external storagemeans 124 representing data for wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 130 fordetermining external conditions via a link 30. The electronic control unit 100is via the link 30 arranged to receive a signal from said means 130representing data for external conditions comprising weather conditions and/or road conditions.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 132 fordetermining weather conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along saidroad via a link 32. The electronic control unit 100 is via the link 32 arrangedto receive a signal from said means 132 representing data for weather conditions such as rain conditions, wind conditions, temperature conditions.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 134 fordetermining road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along saidroad via a link 34. The electronic control unit 100 is via the link 34 arrangedto receive a signal from said means 130 representing data for road conditions.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 140 fordetermining the speed of the vehicle via a link 40. The electronic control unit100 is via the link 40 arranged to receive a signal from said means 140 representing data for current speed of the vehicle.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 150 fortaking measures based upon said determined external conditions so as to 23 facilitate controlling driving along said road taking said determined wheelgrooves into account via a link 50. The electronic control unit 100 is via thelink 50 arranged to send a signal to said means 150 representing data fortaking measures comprising data for adapting the speed and/or data foradapting the lateral position and/or data for warning an operator of the vehicle.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 152 foradapting the speed of the vehicle via a link 52. The electronic control unit 100is via the link 52 arranged to send a signal to said means 152 representingdata for adapting the speed of the vehicle.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 154means for adapting the position of the vehicle relative to the determinedwheel grooves via a link 54. The electronic control unit 100 is via the link 54arranged to send a signal to said means 154 representing data for adapting the lateral position of the vehicle.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 156 forwarning a possible operator of the vehicle via a link 56. The electronic controlunit 100 is via the link 56 arranged to send a signal to said means 156representing data for warning an operator of the vehicle comprising data for visual warning and/or data for sound warning and/or data for tactile warning.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 160 forcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within avehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement V2V via a link 60a. Theelectronic control unit 100 is via the link 60a arranged to send a signal to saidmeans 160 representing data about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to be communicated to othervehicle/vehicles. 24 The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 160 forcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within avehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement V2V via a link 60b. Theelectronic control unit 100 is via the link 60b arranged to receive a signal fromsaid means 160 representing data about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road communicated from other vehicle/vehicles.

The means 160 for communicating information about possible risk due tocurrent external conditions and said wheel grooves on the road to othervehicles within a vehicle-to-vehicle V2V communication arrangement isoperably connected to means 200 for communicating, i.e. sending and/orreceiving information via links, the means 200 being means for one or more vehicles.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 170 forcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to infrastructure within avehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement V2l via a link 70a. Theelectronic control unit 100 is via the link 70a arranged to send a signal to saidmeans 170 representing data about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to be communicated to infrastructure.

The electronic control unit 100 is operably connected to the means 170 forcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to infrastructure within avehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement V2l via a link 70b. Theelectronic control unit 100 is via the link 70b arranged to receive a signal fromsaid means 170 representing data about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road communicated from infrastructure.

The means 170 for communicating information about possible risk due tocurrent external conditions and said wheel grooves on the road toinfrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangementV2l is operably connected to means 300 for communicating, i.e. sending and/or receiving information via links.

Fig. 4 schematically illustrates a block diagram of a method for facilitatingdriving of a vehicle along a road according to an embodiment of the present invenﬁon.

According to the embodiment the method for facilitating driving of a vehiclealong a road comprises a step S1. ln this step wheel grooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling are determined.

According to the embodiment the method for facilitating driving of a vehiclealong a road comprises a step S2. ln this step external conditions comprisingweather conditions and/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said road are determined.

According to the embodiment the method for facilitating driving of a vehiclealong a road comprises a step S3. ln this step measures based upon saiddetermined external conditions are taken so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into account.

The thus determined wheel grooves are grooves made by wear on thesurface of the road caused by a large number of vehicles having travelledalong the road.

The wheel grooves may be determined continuously or intermittently bymeans of detecting the surface of the road along which the vehicle istravelling by means of any suitable detection means. lnformation regarding wheel grooves along the road on which the vehicle istravelling obtained from detecting the surface of the road may be stored ininternal storage means on board the vehicle and/or external storage means 26 such as a server unit or the like. Other vehicles may also provide information about the wheel grooves to an external storage means.

The step of determining the wheel grooves may comprise determining theextent of the grooves, i.e. whether the grooves are relatively deep e.g. due tolong time since new asphalt or the like was put on the road and due to manyvehicle having worn out the road, or whether the grooves are not particularly deep or somewhere in-between.

Weather conditions may be determined by means of weather sensors.Weather conditions may be determined by means of external weather data from any external provider/server.

Road conditions may be determined by means of any suitable detectormeans. Road conditions may be determined by means of external data from any external provider/server.

Thus determined weather conditions may comprise rain and extent of rain,snow and extent of snow, current temperature, wind conditions or the like.Thus determined road conditions may comprise slippery road due to e.g. iceon the road, snow on the road, oil on the road, gravel on the road, water onthe road, curves of the road or other road conditions that may affect driving along the road.

By thus determining wheel grooves of the road along which the vehicle istravelling and determining weather conditions and/or road conditions andtaking measure based upon the wheel grooves and the current conditionssafety is improved in that the risk of accident such as aquaplaning due towater in the grooves may be prevented. The measures taken may vary due to the current conditions.

According to an embodiment of the method the step S1 of determining wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling comprises the step of detecting the surface of the road so as to determine 27 wheel grooves. Detecting the surface of the road comprises according to anembodiment detecting the width of the lane of the road along which thevehicle is travelling. By thus detecting the surface of the road it may bepossible to detect road conditions such as ice on the road, snow on the road,water on the road or the like, and it is according to an embodiment alsopossible to detect water in the wheel grooves, i.e. possible to detect thewheel grooves even when they are filled with water.

According to an embodiment of the method the step S1 of determining wheelgrooves in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travellingcomprises the steps of: determining the current position of the vehicle; andextracting map information of wheel grooves in the surface of the road alongwhich the vehicle is travelling. Hereby information about wheel grooves maybe obtained for a vehicle which is not equipped with detection means fordetecting wheel grooves. Hereby information about wheel grooves may beobtained at an earlier stage, e.g. prior to when it possible to detect the wheelgrooves by means of detection means arranged on the vehicle, such thatmeasures may be taken earlier and thus further reducing the risk forincidents/accidents such as aquaplaning due to heavy rainfall and water inthe grooves.

According to an embodiment of the method the step S3 of taking measuresbased upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controllingdriving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into accountcomprises one or more of: adapting the speed of the vehicle, adapting thelateral position of the vehicle relative to the determined wheel grooves,warning a possible operator of the vehicle. Such measures will improve safety and control of the driving of the vehicle along the road.

According to an embodiment the method further comprises the step ofcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within a vehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement and/or to infrastructure within 28 a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement. By communicatinginformation about possible risk due to current external conditions and saidwheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within a vehicle-to-vehiclecommunication arrangement other vehicle equipped with such vehicle-to-vehicle arrangement are informed about the risk and may take propermeasures such as reducing speed and/or changing lateral position relative tothe wheel grooves in the case of risk of aquaplaning due to rainfall. Thevehicle-to-vehicle communication may be to vehicles behind the vehicle butalso oncoming vehicles. Thus safety is improved. By communicatinginformation about possible risk due to current external conditions and saidwheel grooves on the road to infrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructurecommunication arrangement other vehicles may be informed viainfrastructure about the risk. lnfrastructure may comprise electronic signsarranged in connection to the road along which the vehicle is travelling.lnfrastructure may comprise external servers or the like configured to provideinfrastructure-to-vehicle information about the current risk to other vehicles.lnfrastructure may comprise external servers or the like configured to provide traffic warning via radio.

According to an embodiment of the method, if said determined externalconditions involves weather conditions comprising rain fall on the road alongwhich the vehicle is travelling, the step S3 of taking measures comprisesreducing the speed of the vehicle and/or changing the lateral position of thevehicle so that the vehicle wheels are driving on side of the wheel grooves,and/or warning the operator of the vehicle of risk of aquaplaning. Herebysafer driving of the vehicle is facilitated in that the risk for aquaplaning isreduced.

With reference to figure 5, a diagram of an apparatus 500 is shown. Thecontrol unit 100 described with reference to fig. 3 may according to anembodiment comprise apparatus 500. Apparatus 500 comprises a non-volatile memory 520, a data processing device 510 and a read/write memory 29 550. Non-volatile memory 520 has a first memory portion 530 wherein acomputer program, such as an operating system, is stored for controlling thefunction of apparatus 500. Further, apparatus 500 comprises a bus controller,a seria| communication port, I/O-means, an A/D-converter, a time date entryand transmission unit, an event counter and an interrupt controller (not shown). Non-volatile memory 520 also has a second memory portion 540.

A computer program P is provided comprising routines for controlling drivingof a vehicle along a road according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. The program P comprises routines for determining wheel groovesin the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling. The program Pcomprises routines for determining external conditions comprising weatherconditions and/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving alongsaid road. The program P comprises routines for taking measures basedupon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controlling drivingalong said road taking said determined wheel grooves into account. Theroutines for determining external conditions comprising weather conditionsand/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said roadcomprises routines for detecting the surface of the road so as to determinewheel grooves. The routines for determining external conditions comprisingweather conditions and/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle drivingalong said road comprises routines for determining the current position of thevehicle; and extracting map information of wheel grooves in the surface ofthe road along which the vehicle is travelling. Hereby information about wheelgrooves may be obtained for a vehicle which is not equipped with detectionmeans for detecting wheel grooves. The routines for taking measures basedupon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controlling drivingalong said road taking said determined wheel grooves into accountcomprises one or more of routines for: adapting the speed of the vehicle,adapting the lateral position of the vehicle relative to the determined wheelgrooves, warning a possible operator of the vehicle. The program P comprises routines for communicating information about possible risk due to current external conditions and said wheel grooves on the road to othervehicles within a vehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement and/or toinfrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement.The computer program P may be stored in an executable manner or in acompressed condition in a separate memory 560 and/or in read/write memory 550.

When it is stated that data processing device 510 performs a certain functionit should be understood that data processing device 510 performs a certainpart of the program which is stored in separate memory 560, or a certain partof the program which is stored in read/write memory 550.

Data processing device 510 may communicate with a data communicationsport 599 by means of a data bus 516. Non-volatile memory 520 is adaptedfor communication with data processing device 510 via a data bus 513.Separate memory 560 is adapted for communication with data processingdevice 510 via a data bus 511. Read/write memory 550 is adapted forcommunication with data processing device 510 via a data bus 515. To thedata communications port 599 e.g. the links connected to the control units100 may be connected.

When data is received on data port 599 it is temporarily stored in secondmemory portion 540. When the received input data has been temporarilystored, data processing device 510 is set up to perform execution of code ina manner described above. The signals received on data port 599 can beused by apparatus 500 for determining wheel grooves in the surface of theroad along which the vehicle is travelling. The signals received on data port599 can be used by apparatus 500 for determining external conditionscomprising weather conditions and/or road conditions in connection to thevehicle driving along said road. The signals received on data port 599 can beused by apparatus 500 for taking measures based upon said determinedexternal conditions so as to facilitate controlling driving along said road taking said determined wheel grooves into account. The signals used for 31 determining external conditions comprising weather conditions and/or roadconditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said road comprisessignals used for detecting the surface of the road so as to determine wheelgrooves. The signals used for determining external conditions comprisingweather conditions and/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle drivingalong said road comprises signals used for determining the current positionof the vehicle; and extracting map information of wheel grooves in thesurface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling. Hereby informationabout wheel grooves may be obtained for a vehicle which is not equippedwith detection means for detecting wheel grooves. The signals used fortaking measures based upon said determined external conditions so as tofacilitate controlling driving along said road taking said determined wheelgrooves into account comprises one or more of signals used for: adapting thespeed of the vehicle, adapting the lateral position of the vehicle relative to thedetermined wheel grooves, warning a possible operator of the vehicle. Thesignals received on data port 599 can be used by apparatus 500 forcommunicating information about possible risk due to current externalconditions and said wheel grooves on the road to other vehicles within avehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement and/or to infrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement.

Parts of the methods described herein can be performed by apparatus 500by means of data processing device 510 running the program stored inseparate memory 560 or read/write memory 550. When apparatus 500 runsthe program, parts of the methods described herein are executed.

The foregoing description of the preferred embodiments of the presentinvention has been provided for the purposes of illustration and description. ltis not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise formsdisclosed. Obviously, many modifications and variations will be apparent topractitioners skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and describedin order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical 32 applications, thereby enabling others ski||ed in the art to understand theinvention for various embodiments and with the various modifications as are suited to the particular use contempiated.

Claims

33 CLAIIVIS

1. A method for controlling driving of a vehicle (1) along a road (R),comprising the step of determining (S1) wheel grooves (GL, GR) in thesurface (RS) of the road along which the vehicle is travelling, characterizedby the steps of: - determining (S2) external conditions comprising weather conditionsand/or road conditions in connection to the vehicle driving along said road(R); and - taking measures (S3) based upon said determined external conditions soas to facilitate controlling driving along said road (R) taking said determined wheel grooves (GL, GR) into account.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the step of determining wheelgrooves (GL, GR) in the surface (RS) of the road (R) along which the vehicleis travelling comprises the step of detecting the surface of the road so as to determine wheel grooves (GL, GR).

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the step of determiningwheel grooves (GL, GR) in the surface (RS) of the road (R) along which thevehicle is travelling comprises the steps of: determining the current positionof the vehicle; and extracting map information of wheel grooves (GL, GR) in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

4. A method according to any of claims 1-3, wherein the step of takingmeasures based upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitatecontrolling driving along said road (R) taking said determined wheel grooves(GL, GR) into account comprises one or more of: adapting the speed of thevehicle, adapting the lateral position of the vehicle relative to the determined wheel grooves, warning a possible operator of the vehicle.

5. A method according to any of claims 1-4, further comprising the step ofcommunicating information about possible risk due to current external conditions and said wheel grooves (GL, GR) on the road to other vehicles 34 within a vehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement (V2V) and/or to infrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement.

6. A method according to any of claims 1-5, wherein, if said determinedexternal conditions involves weather conditions comprising rain fall on theroad along which the vehicle is travelling, the step of taking measurescomprises reducing the speed of the vehicle and/or changing the lateralposition of the vehicle so that the vehicle wheels are driving on the side of thewheel grooves, and/or warning the operator of the vehicle of risk of aquaplaning.

7. A system (l) for controlling driving of a vehicle (1) along a road (R),comprising means (110) for determining wheel grooves (GL, GR) in thesurface (RS) of the road (R) along which the vehicle is travelling,(130) forcomprising weather conditions and/or road conditions in connection to the characterized by means determining external conditionsvehicle driving along said road (R); and means (150) for taking measuresbased upon said determined external conditions so as to facilitate controllingdriving along said road (R) taking said determined wheel grooves (GL, GR) into account.

8. A system according to claim 7, wherein the means (110) for determiningwheel grooves (GL, GR) in the surface (RS) of the road (R) along which thevehicle is travelling comprises means (112) for detecting the surface of the road so as to determine wheel grooves.

9. A system according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the means (110) fordetermining wheel grooves (GL, GR) in the surface (RS) of the road (R)along which the vehicle is travelling comprises means (114) for determiningthe current position of the vehicle; and means (116) for extracting mapinformation of wheel grooves (GL, GR) in the surface of the road along which the vehicle is travelling.

10. A system according to any of claims 7-9, wherein the means (150) fortaking measures based upon said determined external conditions so as tofacilitate controlling driving along said road (R) taking said determined wheelgrooves (GL, GR) into account comprises one or more of: means (152) foradapting the speed of the vehicle, means (154) for adapting the position ofthe vehicle relative to the determined wheel grooves, means (156) for warning a possible operator of the vehicle.

11. A system according to any of claims 7-10, further comprising means(160) for communicating information about possible risk due to currentexternal conditions and said wheel grooves (GL, GR) on the road to othervehicles within a vehicle-to-vehicle communication arrangement (V2V) and/ormeans (170) for communicating information about possible risk due tocurrent external conditions and said wheel grooves (GL, GR) on the road toinfrastructure within a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication arrangement(V21).

12. A system according to any of claims 7-11, wherein, if said determinedexternal conditions involves weather conditions comprising rain fall on theroad along which the vehicle is travelling, the means (150) for takingmeasures comprises means (152) for reducing the speed of the vehicleand/or means (154) for changing the lateral position of the vehicle so that thevehicle wheels are driving on side of the wheel grooves, and/or means (156)for warning the operator of the vehicle of risk of aquaplaning.

13. A vehicle (1) comprising a system (l) according to any of claims 7-13.

14. A computer program (P) for controlling driving of a vehicle along a road,said computer program (P) comprising program code which, when run on anelectronic control unit (100) or another computer (500) connected to theelectronic control unit (100), causes the electronic control unit to perform the steps according to claim 1-6. 36

15. A computer program product comprising a digital storage medium storing the computer program according to c|aim 14.