LANE CHANGE OF A VEHICLE

Abstract

A system includes a computer that has a processor and memory. The memory contains instructions that can be executed by the processor to determine that a vehicle is in an overtaking lane of a highway, and, in response to a determination that a vehicle behind in the overtaking lane is approaching or closely following the host vehicle, to actuate a component of the host vehicle.

Description

FIELD OF TECHNOLOGYThis disclosure relates to techniques for controlling vehicle components.GENERAL STATE OF THE ARTVehicles may operate in various modes in which one or more components, such as a propulsion and / or steering system of the vehicle, are controlled by a vehicle computer. Various existing systems include adaptive cruise control that can control the speed of a vehicle; lane centering in which vehicle steering is controlled to maintain a lateral position of a vehicle in the center of a lane; and lane change in which vehicle steering can be controlled to move a vehicle from one lane to another.SUMMARYThis disclosure provides techniques for controlling vehicle components, features, and / or systems in response to determining that a rear vehicle is approaching or closely following (i.e., within a predetermined distance) a vehicle located on the passing lane of a freeway. In one example, the system determines that a rear vehicle is closely following when a separation distance between the vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time. In one example, the system determines that a rear vehicle is approaching when the rear vehicle will reach the vehicle in less than a threshold amount of time. The specified amount of time and the threshold amount of time may be predetermined values based on user input and / or rules and regulations specific to the location and operation of the vehicle (e.g., federal, state, country, city, etc.).In response to a determination that a rear vehicle is approaching or closely following a host vehicle located on the passing lane of a highway, the computer may actuate components and / or systems of the host vehicle. In one example, the computer may initiate a lane change to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane, including, for example, actuating an actuator of a vehicle steering system.Disclosed herein is a system including a computer having a processor and a memory. The memory includes instructions executable by the processor to determine that a host vehicle is on a passing lane of a highway, and actuate a component of the host vehicle in response to a determination that a rear vehicle is approaching or closely following the host vehicle on the passing lane.The instructions to determine that the rear vehicle closely follows the host vehicle may include instructions to determine that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.The instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching the host vehicle may include instructions for determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in less than a threshold amount of time.The instructions to determine that the rear vehicle is approaching the host vehicle may include further instructions to determine that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.The instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching the host vehicle may include instructions for determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in more than a low threshold amount of time.The instructions may include further instructions to determine that a gap exists between a front adjacent vehicle and a rear adjacent vehicle on a lane adjacent to the passing lane.The component may be an actuator of a steering system of the host vehicle.The instructions may include further instructions to actuate the actuator to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane.The determination that the rear vehicle is approaching or closely following the host vehicle may be based on distance information received from a sensor of the host vehicle.The determination that the host vehicle is on the passing lane may be based on lane attributes identified by a camera of the host vehicle.Disclosed herein is a method including determining that a host vehicle is on an overtaking lane of a freeway, and responsive to a determination that a rear vehicle on the overtaking lane approaches or closely tracks the host vehicle, actuating a component of the host vehicle.Determining that the rear vehicle closely follows the host vehicle may include determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.Determining that the rear vehicle is approaching may include determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in less than a threshold amount of time.Determining that the rear vehicle is approaching may include determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.Determining that the rear vehicle is approaching may include determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in more than a small threshold amount of time.The method may include determining that a gap exists between a front adjacent vehicle and a rear adjacent vehicle on a lane adjacent to the passing lane.The method may include actuating the actuator to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane.The determination that the host vehicle is on the passing lane may be based on location information from a GNSS sensor of the host vehicle.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSFIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example system for a vehicle. FIG. 2 is an illustration of an example traffic scenario illustrating a proximate vehicle. FIG. 3 is an illustration of an example traffic scenario illustrating an approaching vehicle. FIG. 4 is an illustration of an example traffic scenario illustrating an opening for lane change. FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram illustrating an example process for initiating a lane change of the vehicle.DETAILED DESCRIPTIONFIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example vehicle system 100. As shown in FIG. 1, a system 100 includes a host vehicle 102 that in turn includes a computer 104 communicatively coupled to various elements, including sensors 108, subsystems or components 110, such as steering, propulsion, braking, a human-machine interface (MMS) 112, and a communication component 114, via a vehicle network 106. The computer 104 and the server 118 discussed below include a processor and a memory. A memory of the computer 104, such as those described herein, includes one or more forms of non-transitory media readable by the computer 104, and may store instructions executable by the computer 104 for performing various operations such that the vehicle computer is configured to perform the various operations, including those disclosed herein.For example, the computer 104 may include a generic computer having a processor and memory as described above, and / or may include an electronic control unit (ECU) or controller for a specific function or set of functions and / or a dedicated electronic circuit including an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) fabricated for a particular operation (e.g., an ASIC for processing data from sensors and / or communicating data from sensors 108). In another example, the computer 104 may include an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), which is an integrated circuit manufactured to be configurable by a user. In example embodiments, a hardware description language such as very high speed integrated circuit hardware description language (VHDL) may be used to describe digital and mixed signal systems such as FPGA and ASIC. For example, an ASIC is fabricated based on VHDL programming provided prior to fabrication, whereas logical components within an FPGA may be configured based on VHDL programming, e.g., stored on memory electrically connected or coupled to the FPGA circuit. In some examples, a combination of processor(s), ASIC(s), and / or FPGA circuitry may be included in the computer 104. Further, the computer 104 may include a plurality of computers in the vehicle (e.g., a plurality of ECUs or the like) that operate together to perform operations attributed herein to the computer 104.A memory of the computer 104 may include any type, such as hard disk drives, solid state drives, or any other volatile or non-volatile media. The memory may store the collected data transmitted from the sensors 108. The memory may be a separate device from the computer 104, and the computer 104 may retrieve information stored by the memory via a communication network in the vehicle, such as the vehicle network 106, e.g., via a controller area network (CAN) bus, a local interconnect network (LIN) bus, a wireless network, etc. Alternatively or additionally, the memory may be part of the computer 104, for example, as an internal memory of the computer 104.The computer 104 may include or access instructions to operate one or more components 110 such as vehicle brakes, propulsion (e.g., one or more of an internal combustion engine, an electric motor, a hybrid motor, etc.), steering, climate control, interior and / or exterior lights, infotainment, navigation, etc., as well as to determine whether and when the computer 104 is to control such operations, as opposed to a human operator. For example, the computer 104 may include, via the vehicle network 106, more than one processor, e.g., which may be included in or communicatively coupled to components 110, such as sensors 108, electronic control units (ECUs), or the like, included in the vehicle for monitoring and / or controlling various vehicle components, e.g., a powertrain controller, a brake controller, a steering controller, etc.As used herein, a steering system refers to a set of mechanical and / or electromechanical components used to steer the vehicle 102. Accordingly, the steering system 126 may include, for example, a steering wheel 124, as well as a steering column connected to the steering wheel 124. The steering system 126 may also include an electronic power assistance steering (EPAS) motor or actuator 122 that operates to boost and / or increase torque transferred from the steering wheel 124 to a pinion gear positioned on a steering rack of the vehicle 102. The steering system 126 may further include bushings, seals, fluid couplings, steering rods, steering dampers, etc., that assist in controlling the heading of the vehicle 102 as the vehicle moves along a path 150.The computer 104 may generally be arranged for communication in the vehicle network 106, which may include an in-vehicle communication bus, such as a controller area network (CAN) or the like, and / or other wired and / or wireless mechanisms. The vehicle network 106 corresponds to a communication network that may facilitate the exchange of messages between various on-board vehicle devices, e.g., sensors 108, components 110, the computer 104. The computer 104 may generally be programmed to send and / or receive messages to and / or from other devices of the vehicle 102, e.g., any or all of ECUs, sensors 108, actuators, components 110, a communication component 114, an MMS 112, via the vehicle network 106. For example, various subsystems of components 110 (e.g., components 110) may be controlled by respective ECUs.Further, in implementations where the computer 104 actually comprises a plurality of devices, the vehicle network 106 may be used for communication between devices represented as computer 104 in this disclosure. For example, the vehicle network 106 may provide communication capability via a wired bus, such as a CAN bus, a LIN bus, or utilize any type of wireless communication capability. The vehicle network 106 may include a network in which messages are transmitted using any other wired communication technologies and / or wireless communication technologies, e.g., Ethernet, Wi-Fi® Bluetooth® etc. Additional examples of protocols that may be used to communicate over the vehicle network 106 in some implementations include, but are not limited to, Media Oriented System Transport (MOST), Time-Triggered Protocol (TTP), and FlexRay. In some implementations, the vehicle network 106 may represent a combination of multiple networks, possibly of different types, that support communication between devices onboard a vehicle. For example, the vehicle network 106 may include a CAN bus in which some in-vehicle sensors and / or components communicate via a CAN bus, and a wired or wireless local area network in which some devices in the vehicle communicate according to Ethernet, Wi-Fi® and / or Bluetooth communication protocols.The vehicle 102 typically includes a variety of sensors 108. The sensors 108 may include a number of devices that may acquire one or more measurements of one or more physical phenomena. Some of the sensors 108 may detect data characterizing the operating environment of the vehicle, such as vehicle speed (e.g., vehicle wheel speed sensors), vehicle tow parameters, vehicle brake parameters, engine torque output, engine and transmission temperatures, battery temperatures, vehicle steering parameters, etc. Some of the sensors 108 may detect data characterizing the physical environment of the vehicle 102, such as ambient air temperature, humidity, weather conditions (e.g., rain, snow, etc.), parameters related to the slope or gradient of a road or other type of path the vehicle is moving, etc. In examples, the sensors 108 may be operated to detect the position and / or orientation of the vehicle, For example, using signals from a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) sensor, e.g., GLONASS, GPS, Galileo, Beidou; accelerometers such as piezoelectric or microelectromechanical systems (MEMS); gyroscopes such as rate, ring laser, or fiber optic gyros; inertial measurement units (IMU); and magnetometers. In examples, the sensors 108 may include sensors for detecting aspects of the environment outside the vehicle 102, such as radar sensors, scanning laser range finders, cameras, etc. The sensors 108 may also include light detection and ranging (LIDAR) sensors that operate to detect distances to objects by emitting a laser pulse and measuring the time of flight of the pulse to the object and back again. The sensors 108 may include a controller and / or a microprocessor executing instructions to perform, for example, analog-to-digital conversion to convert sampled analog measurements and / or observations into input signals that may be provided to the computer 104, e.g., via the vehicle network 106.The computer 104 may be configured to utilize vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication via the communication component 114 and / or may interface with devices external to the vehicle, e.g., through a wide area network (WAN) 116 via V2V communication. The computer 104 may communicate outside the vehicle 102, such as via vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, or V2X including cellular communication (C-V2X) and / or wireless communication, dedicated short range communications (DSRC), etc. Communication outside the vehicle 102 may be facilitated by direct radio frequency communication and / or via the network server 118. The communication component 114 may include one or more mechanisms by which the computer 104 communicates with vehicles external to the vehicle 102, including any desired combination of wireless, e.g., cellular, wireless, satellite, microwave, and radio frequency communication mechanisms and any desired network topology or topologies when a variety of communication mechanisms are used.The vehicle 102 may include the MMS 112, e.g., one or more of an infotainment display, a touchscreen display, a microphone, a speaker, a haptic device, etc. A user, such as the operator of the vehicle 102, may provide input to devices, such as the computer 104, via the MMS 112. The MMS 112 may communicate with the computer 104 via the vehicle network 106; e.g., the MMS 112 may send a message including user input provided to the computer 104 via a touch screen, a microphone, a camera capturing a gesture, etc., and / or may display output, e.g., via a display, a speaker, etc. Further, the operations of the MMS 112 may be performed by a portable user device (not shown) such as a smartphone or the like in communication with the computer 104, e.g., via Bluetooth or the like.The WAN 116 may include one or more mechanisms by which the computer 104 may communicate with the server 118. The server 118 may include a device having one or more computing devices, e.g., having respective processors and memories and / or associated data memories accessible via the WAN 116. In example embodiments, the vehicle 102 could include a wireless transmitter / receiver (i.e., a transmitter and / or receiver) to transmit and receive messages outside of the vehicle 102. Accordingly, the network may include one or more of various mechanisms for wired or wireless communication, including any desired combination of wired communication mechanisms, e.g., cable and fiber communication mechanisms, and / or wireless communication mechanisms, e.g., cellular, wireless, satellite, microwave, and radio frequency communication mechanisms, and any desired network topology or topologies when multiple communication mechanisms are utilized. Example communication networks include wireless communication networks, e.g., using Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), IEEE 802.11, V2V, or V2X, such as cellular V2X (CV2X), DSRC, etc., local area networks and / or wide area networks 116, including the Internet.Referring to FIG. 2, the disclosed systems provide techniques for determining that a rear vehicle 202 is approaching or closely following a host vehicle 102 located on the passing lane 210 of a freeway 200. The rear vehicle 202 is also referred to herein as a target vehicle and the vehicle 102 is also referred to herein as a host vehicle. "Dense following" means herein that a separation distance D between the host vehicle 102 and the rear vehicle 202 is less than a distance that the rear vehicle 202 will travel in a specified time period t 1. The rear vehicle 202 "approaching" the host vehicle 102 herein means that the rear vehicle 202 will reach the host vehicle 102 in less than a threshold amount of time t thresh1. In response to a determination that the rear vehicle 202 is approaching or closely following the host vehicle 102, the computer 104 may actuate components and / or systems of the vehicle 102. In one example, the computer 104 may initiate a lane change to move the vehicle 102 away from the passing lane 210, including, for example, actuating an actuator 122 of a vehicle steering system 126. The computer 104 can initiate a lane change only when the lane change is feasible, i.e., when the lane markings and traffic on the adjacent lane actually allow a lane change to be made.In one example, the computer 104 first determines that the host vehicle 102 is traveling on the passing lane 210 of a highway 200. In an example, the computer 104 may use vehicle sensors 108, such as a GNSS sensor, to determine that the vehicle 102 is on a highway 200 (e.g., a road having multiple lanes 210- 212 running in one direction). For example, the computer 104 may use forward-facing cameras to identify lane attributes (e.g., lane markings and road edges) compared to high-resolution maps to determine that the vehicle 102 is on an overtaking lane 210 of the freeway 200. For example, the camera system may recognize lane lines 204 and 208, line types, line colors, and road edges 206 using known image processing techniques. An overtaking lane 210 is typically defined as the innermost lane of a multi-lane freeway 200. For example, in North America, where vehicles are traveling on the right side of the road, the passing lane 210 is the leftmost lane of a multi-lane highway. An overtaking lane 210 in North America thus typically has a solid yellow line 204 on the left and a dashed white line 208 on the right. In some examples, the disclosed techniques may be applied to any host vehicle that does not travel on a right-most lane when a rear vehicle is closely following or approaching.Determining that the rear target vehicle 202 is "closely following" includes determining that a separation distance D between the host vehicle 102 and the target vehicle 202 is less than a distance (V T* t 1) the target vehicle 202 will travel in a specified time period t 1 where V T is the speed of the target vehicle 202:The set time duration t 1 or "time progress" represents the time gap between the target vehicle 202 and the host vehicle 102. That is, the time progress (or "time gap") herein means the time between the host vehicle 102 passing a point on the roadway (e.g., determined by a rearmost portion of the host vehicle 102) and the target vehicle 202 passing the same point (e.g., determined by a rearmost portion of the target vehicle 202). For the purpose of initiating a lane change, if the separation distance D between the target vehicle 202 and the host vehicle 102 is less than the speed V T of the target vehicle 202 multiplied by the set time progress t 1 the computer 104 may determine that the target vehicle 202 is closely following and may be attempting to pass by the host vehicle 102.As noted above, the specified time duration t 1 may be specified based on rules and regulations specific to the location and operation of the vehicle (e.g., federal, state, country, city, etc.). For example, some driver training programs in the United States recommend a time progress of at least 2 seconds. In some examples, the set time duration t 1 may be set by the driver via the MMS 112. The set time t 1 may be increased by the driver, for example, to be comfortable for the driver when a car is tailgating. Settings of the specified time duration t 1 may be permitted within limits based on, for example, local rules and regulations. Alternatively or additionally, the determined time duration t 1 may be determined empirically, e.g., by operating test vehicles on a test track or the like and / or in simulations and determining a time gap for a speed that appears to indicate that the target vehicle 202 is proximate to the host vehicle 102.A host vehicle 102 may include sensors 108 that may be used to determine a separation distance D from other vehicles, such as a target vehicle 202. For example, suitable techniques could use radar, camera, or lidar sensors. Further, for example, the speed of the host vehicle 102 may be measured using the vehicle wheel speed sensors.Referring to FIG. 3, determining that the rear target vehicle 202 is "approaching" the host vehicle 102 includes determining that the target vehicle 202 will reach the host vehicle 102 in less than a threshold amount of time t thresh1. This threshold time duration t thresh1 is the "time to arrival" which is the time to travel the distance between the host vehicle 102 and the target vehicle 202 at the relative speed between the two vehicles 102, 202. Thus, the time to arrival can be determined by dividing the separation distance D by the speed difference (V T- V H) where V T is the speed of the target vehicle 202 and V H is the speed of the host vehicle 102. In one example, the threshold time duration t may be thresh15 seconds or more. The system interprets a short time to arrival (e.g., less than 5 seconds) between the target vehicle 202 and the host vehicle 102 as an indication that the target vehicle 202 is approaching and wishing to pass.However, if the target vehicle 202 is approaching so quickly that the time to arrival at the host vehicle 102 is less than a low threshold t thresh2 e.g., 2 to 5 seconds, the system will not initiate a lane change to clear the passing lane 210. In such a situation, the target vehicle 202 could plan to change lanes to override the host vehicle 102, or could have already begun changing lanes. At a very short time to arrival, the computer 104 may maintain the host vehicle 102 on the passing lane 210 to prevent confusion or disruption of a lane change by the target vehicle 202.Determining that the target vehicle 202 is approaching also includes determining that the separation distance D between the host vehicle 102 and the target vehicle 202 is less than a distance that the target vehicle 202 will travel in a specified time period t 2, e.g., 10 seconds. This time gap or "progress of time" prevents a response to the approaching target vehicle 202 if it may be perceived by the host vehicle 102 as too early and / or too far to move away from the passing lane.Thus, the computer 104 may be programmed to initiate a lane change of the host vehicle 102 when it is determined that the target vehicle 202 is approaching and further approaching in a manner such that the target vehicle 202 will reach the host vehicle 102 in a time period between the threshold time period t thresh1 and the small threshold time period t thresh2 and the separation distance D is less than the distance (V T* t 2) that the target vehicle 202 will travel in a specified time period t 2 ANDIn some examples, the threshold duration t thresh1, the low threshold t thresh2 and the fixed duration t 2 may be determined empirically by operating a test vehicle 102 either in the real world or virtually in a simulation at different speeds and in different scenarios with a test target vehicle 202. Alternatively or additionally, time thresholds could be set by a user, typically within parameters set by a vehicle manufacturer and / or applicable laws, rules, and / or regulations, via the HMI 112.Referring to FIG. 4, before the computer 104 can initiate a lane change to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane 210 in response to an approaching or closely following target vehicle 202, the system determines whether there is an appropriate gap on the adjacent lane 211 for a lane change of the host vehicle 102. In other words, the system determines whether a gap exists between a front adjacent vehicle 402 and a rear adjacent vehicle 404 on a lane 211 adjacent to the passing lane 210. A "suitable gap" denotes a distance between the front and rear adjacent vehicles 402, 404 such that the host vehicle 102 can move onto the lane 211 occupied by the vehicles 402, 404, with the vehicle 402 located in front of the host vehicle 102 and the vehicle 404 located behind the vehicle 102.In one example, it may be assumed that there is an appropriate gap between the host vehicle 102 and the front adjacent vehicle 402 when the time to arrival of the host vehicle 102 is greater than a set time threshold tthresh_adjist e.g., 40 seconds, and a separation distance D F between the host vehicle 102 and the front adjacent vehicle 402 is greater than a distance that the host vehicle 102 will travel in a set adjacent time period t adj, e.g., 1 second.It may be assumed that there is an appropriate gap between the host vehicle 102 and the rear adjacent vehicle 404 when the time to arrival of the rear adjacent vehicle 404 is greater than the adjacent threshold time tthresh_adjist e.g., 40 seconds, and a separation distance D R between the host vehicle 102 and the rear adjacent vehicle 404 is greater than a distance that the rear adjacent vehicle 404 will travel in the set time period t adj to evaluate the travel of the adjacent vehicle 404, e.g., 1 second. AND AND AND ANDIn the case where there is no closely succeeding vehicle 202, or when the approaching vehicle 202 is still far away, the threshold time tthresh_adjand the set time period t adj may be increased to, for example, 80 seconds and 3 seconds, respectively. This longer time period effectively increases the distances D F and D R between the host vehicle 102 and the adjacent vehicles 402 and 404. In the presence of a rear vehicle 202, the system may accept coming closer to the adjacent vehicles 402 and 404 on the adjacent lane 211 than if no such rear vehicle 202 were present, therefore the shorter time duration for the adjacent threshold time tthresh_adjand the fixed adjacent time duration t adj. In some examples, the threshold time tthresh_adjand the fixed time duration t adj for the front and rear adjacent vehicles 402 and 404, respectively, may be the same or different.In some examples, the computer 104 may confirm the intention of a rear vehicle 202 to pass by the host vehicle 102 by recognizing signs provided by the rear vehicle 202, e.g., by recognizing that a rear vehicle lights its high beam, and / or whether the left turn signal is on even if both vehicles 102, 202 are already driving on the leftmost passing lane 210. The high beam and / or the turn signal of the target vehicle 202 may be detected using the camera sensors 108, for example. In some examples where host vehicle 102 is driving on a lane with other vehicles driving on passing lane 210 at a similar speed, computer 104 may suppress initiation of a lane change so that host vehicle 102 does not lose its position in a sequence of vehicles on lane 210. In such a case, the computer 104 could wait until a slower vehicle (e.g., the front adjacent vehicle 402) on the adjacent lane 211 has been bypassed by the host vehicle 102 to initiate the lane change.FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram illustrating an example process 500 for controlling a host vehicle 102, including possibly initiating a lane change when a vehicle 102 is traveling on an overtaking lane 210 of a freeway 200. The process 500 may be executed, for example, according to programming in a computer 104 included in the vehicle 102. Process 500 includes multiple blocks that may be executed in the illustrated order. The process 500 could alternatively or additionally include fewer blocks, or may include the blocks being executed in a different order.The process 500 may begin at decision block 502, such as in response to the vehicle 102 being placed in an on state or a "drive" state, for example, to be operated on a roadway. Block 502 includes the computer 104 determining whether the vehicle 102 is on an overtaking lane 210 of a freeway 200. In one example, the computer 104 may access and compare high resolution maps to a GNSS location of the vehicle to determine that the vehicle 102 is on a highway. The computer 104 may use information from, e.g., forward facing cameras 108 to identify lane attributes (e.g., lane markings and road edges) compared to high resolution maps to determine that the vehicle 102 is on an overtaking lane 210 of the freeway 200. If the computer 104 determines that the vehicle 102 is on an overtaking lane 210, the process 500 proceeds to decision blocks 504 and 506, which may be executed in parallel or sequentially, and / or implementations are possible that include only one of the blocks 504, 506, and not the other. If the vehicle 102 is not on an overtaking lane 210, the process 500 returns to decision block 502 until it is determined that the vehicle is on an overtaking lane 210.At decision block 504, the computer 104 determines whether a rear vehicle 202 is approaching the vehicle 102 on the passing lane 210. If the computer 104 determines that a rear vehicle 202 is approaching the vehicle 102, the process proceeds to block 508. Otherwise, the process returns to decision block 504 to monitor traffic for an approaching vehicle.At decision block 506, the computer 104 determines whether a rear vehicle 202 is proximate to the vehicle 102 on the passing lane 210. If the computer 104 determines that a rear vehicle 202 is following the vehicle 102 in close proximity, the process proceeds to block 508. Otherwise, the process returns to decision block 506 to monitor traffic for a nearby vehicle.At block 508, the process proceeds to decision block 510 if either decision block 504 or decision block 506 has determined that a rear vehicle 202 is approaching or closely following, respectively.At decision block 510, the computer 104 determines whether there is an appropriate gap in traffic on an adjacent lane 211 to allow the vehicle 102 to change lanes and move away from the passing lane 210. If the computer 104 determines that there is an appropriate gap, the process proceeds to block 512. Otherwise, the process returns to decision block 510 to monitor traffic for an appropriate gap to enable lane change.At block 512, in response to a determination that a rear vehicle 202 on the passing lane 210 approaches or closely follows the vehicle 102, and that there is an appropriate gap in traffic, the computer 104 may actuate one or more components of the vehicle 102, such as operating a turn signal of the vehicle and actuating an actuator 122 of a steering system 126 of the vehicle 102. Alternatively or additionally, the computer 104 may actuate one or more components of the vehicle 102, such as steering, reducing the drive and / or braking of the vehicle 102 according to one or more predefined maneuvers to cause a lane change away from the passing lane 210. For example, any suitable technique could be used to actuate a lane change of a vehicle. After block 512, the process 500 ends.Operations, systems, and methods described herein should always be implemented and / or performed in accordance with applicable owner / user and / or security policy control instructions.The disclosure has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in a descriptive and non-limiting nature. Many modifications and variations of the present disclosure are possible in light of the above teachings and the disclosure may be practiced other than as specifically described.In the drawings, the same reference numerals indicate the same elements. Further, some or all of these elements could be changed. With respect to the media, processes, systems, methods, etc. described herein, it should be understood that, although the steps of such processes, etc. have been described as occurring according to some ordered sequence, the described steps could be performed in an order other than the order described herein when executing such processes, unless otherwise indicated or inferred from context. Likewise, it is further understood that certain steps may be performed simultaneously, that other steps may be added, or that certain steps described herein may be omitted. In other words, the descriptions of processes herein are provided to illustrate certain embodiments and should not be construed to limit the claimed invention in any way.The first and second adjectives are used throughout the specification as identifiers and are not intended to indicate any meaning, order, or quantity unless expressly stated otherwise.The term exemplary is used herein in the sense that it indicates an example, e.g., a reference to an example device should be read only as a reference to an example device.The use of "responsive to", "based on", and "when determined" herein indicates a causal relationship, and not just a purely temporal relationship.Computer-executable instructions may be compiled or interpreted from computer programs created using a variety of programming languages and / or technologies, including, without limitation, and either alone or in combination, Java, C, C++, Visual Basic, Java Script, Perl, Python, HTML, etc. Generally, a processor, e.g., a microprocessor, receives instructions, e.g., from a memory, a computer readable medium, etc., and executes these instructions, thereby performing one or more processes including one or more of the processes described herein. Such instructions and other data may be stored and transmitted using a variety of computer readable media. A file in a networked device is generally a collection of data stored on a computer readable medium such as a storage medium, random access memory, etc. A computer-readable medium includes any medium that participates in providing data (e.g., instructions) that may be read by a computer. Such a medium may take many forms including, without limitation, non-volatile media and volatile media. Instructions may be transmitted by one or more transmission media including optical fibers, wires, wireless communication, including internal structures comprising a system bus coupled to a processor of a computer. Common forms of computer readable media include, for example, RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH EEPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other medium from which a computer can read.According to the present invention, there is provided a system comprising: a computer including a processor and a memory, the memory including instructions executable by the processor to: determine that a host vehicle is on a passing lane of a highway; and in response to a determination that a rear vehicle on the passing lane approaches or closely follows the host vehicle, actuate a component of the host vehicle.According to one embodiment, the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle closely follows include instructions for determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.According to one embodiment, the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching include instructions for determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in less than a threshold amount of time.According to one embodiment, the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching include further instructions for determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.According to one embodiment, the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching include instructions for determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in more than a small threshold amount of time.According to one embodiment, the instructions include further instructions to determine that a gap exists between a front adjacent vehicle and a rear adjacent vehicle on a lane adjacent to the passing lane.According to one embodiment, the component is an actuator of a steering system of the host vehicle.According to one embodiment, instructions include further instructions to actuate the actuator of the steering system to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane.According to one embodiment, the determination that the rear vehicle is approaching or closely following is based on distance information received from a sensor of the host vehicle.According to one embodiment, the determination that the host vehicle is on the passing lane is based on lane attributes identified by a camera of the host vehicle.According to the present invention, a method includes: determining that a host vehicle is on a passing lane of a highway; and responsive to a determination that a rear vehicle is approaching or closely following the host vehicle on the passing lane, actuating a component of the host vehicle.According to one embodiment, determining that the rear vehicle closely follows includes determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.According to one embodiment, determining that the rear vehicle is approaching includes determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in less than a threshold amount of time.According to one embodiment, determining that the rear vehicle is approaching includes determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.According to one embodiment, determining that the rear vehicle is approaching includes determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in more than a small threshold amount of time.According to an embodiment, the above invention is further characterized by determining that a gap exists between a front adjacent vehicle and a rear adjacent vehicle on a lane adjacent to the passing lane.According to one embodiment, the component is an actuator of a steering system of the host vehicle.According to one embodiment, the above invention is further characterized by actuating the actuator to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane.According to one embodiment, the determination that the rear vehicle is approaching or closely following is based on distance information received from a sensor of the host vehicle.According to one embodiment, the determination that the host vehicle is in the passing lane is based on location information from a GNSS sensor of the host vehicle.

Claims

A system comprising: a computer including a processor and a memory, the memory including instructions executable by the processor to: determine that a host vehicle is on a passing lane of a highway; and in response to a determination that a rear vehicle is approaching or closely following the host vehicle on the passing lane, actuate a component of the host vehicle.The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle closely follows include instructions for determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching include instructions for determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in less than a threshold amount of time.The system of claim 3, wherein the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching include further instructions for determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.The system of claim 3, wherein the instructions for determining that the rear vehicle is approaching include instructions for determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in more than a small threshold amount of time.The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions include further instructions to determine that a gap exists between a front adjacent vehicle and a rear adjacent vehicle on a lane adjacent to the passing lane.The system of claim 1, wherein the determination that the rear vehicle is approaching or closely following is based on distance information received from a sensor of the host vehicle.The system of any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the component is an actuator of a steering system of the host vehicle, and wherein the instructions include further instructions to actuate the actuator of the steering system to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane.A method comprising: determining that a host vehicle is on a passing lane of a highway; and responsive to a determination that a rear vehicle on the passing lane approaches or closely tracks the host vehicle, actuating a component of the host vehicle.The method of claim 9, wherein determining that the rear vehicle closely follows includes determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.The method of claim 9, wherein determining that the rear vehicle is approaching includes determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in less than a threshold amount of time.The method of claim 11, wherein determining that the rear vehicle is approaching includes determining that a separation distance between the host vehicle and the rear vehicle is less than a distance that the rear vehicle will travel in a specified amount of time.The method of claim 11, wherein determining that the rear vehicle is approaching includes determining that the rear vehicle will reach the host vehicle in more than a small threshold amount of time.The method of claim 9, further comprising determining that a gap exists between a front adjacent vehicle and a rear adjacent vehicle on a lane adjacent to the passing lane.The method of any of claims 9 to 14, wherein the component is an actuator of a steering system of the host vehicle, and further comprising actuating the actuator to move the host vehicle away from the passing lane.

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