Vehicle control device

Abstract

To prohibit execution of unnecessary predictive acceleration and deceleration control due to erroneous operation of a direction indicator lamp switch.SOLUTION: A vehicle control device has a function to execute predictive acceleration and deceleration control in preparation for a vehicle lane change when either first or the second direction indicator lamp switch is turned on as a trigger. If one of the first and second direction indicator lamp switches is turned on after a predetermined time has passed since the other of the first and second direction indicator lamp switch was turned on, the vehicle control device executes the predictive acceleration and deceleration control, using turning on of the other direction indicator lamp switch as at least one of the triggers. If the other direction indicator lamp switch is turned on within the predetermined time after the one of the direction indicator lamp switches was turned on and off, the vehicle control device does not execute the predictive acceleration and deceleration control using the turning on of the other direction indicator lamp switch as the trigger.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control device.

Background Art

[0002] One of the controls in a vehicle is Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC). In ACC, for example, based on an operation of blinking a turn signal, preparatory acceleration / deceleration control for lane change is executed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, when a driver who once tried to turn off a blinking turn signal accidentally blinks the turn signal on the opposite side, unnecessary preparatory acceleration / deceleration control may be executed.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a vehicle control device that can prohibit the execution of unnecessary preparatory acceleration / deceleration control due to an incorrect operation of a turn signal.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The vehicle control device according to the present disclosure includes a control unit that performs acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle to execute follow-up driving control. The control unit has a function of executing preliminary acceleration / deceleration control for lane change of the vehicle triggered by turning on any one of the first and second direction indicator switches. After a predetermined time has elapsed since one of the first and second direction indicator switches was turned on and then turned off, if the other of the first and second direction indicator switches is turned on, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is executed with the turning on of the other direction indicator switch as at least one of the triggers. If the other direction indicator switch is turned on while the predetermined time has not elapsed since one of the first and second direction indicator switches was turned on and then turned off, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the other direction indicator switch is not executed.

Advantages of the Invention

[0007] According to the vehicle control device of the present disclosure, it is possible to prohibit the execution of unnecessary preliminary acceleration / deceleration control due to an incorrect operation of the direction indicator switch.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the vehicle control device according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0010] (Configuration example of vehicle control system) FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle control system 1 according to an embodiment. The vehicle control system 1 of the embodiment is mounted on a vehicle and performs follow - up driving control (ACC) to drive the host vehicle while maintaining a constant inter - vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle.

[0011] As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle control system 1 of the embodiment includes an ACC - ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 10 which is a vehicle control device according to the present disclosure, a front camera 21, a right turn signal switch 22a, a left turn signal switch 22b, a drive - system ECU 30 that controls the drive source of the vehicle, and a VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) ECU 40 that controls the brakes to perform vehicle stability control and the like. Note that the drive source may be an engine or a motor.

[0012] The front camera 21 is, for example, a stereo camera or the like, and is configured to be able to capture a front image of the vehicle. The stereo camera continuously captures still images at a predetermined frame rate and detects the distance to the position of the target in the captured image based on parallax information. The front camera 21 is installed, for example, at the center of the front part of the vehicle interior, on the front - glass surface on the back side of the rear - view mirror, so as to be able to image the front of the vehicle in a wide angle.

[0013] However, the mechanism for monitoring the front of the vehicle is not limited to a stereo camera, and sensors other than a camera, such as a millimeter - wave sensor, may be used.

[0014] The direction indicator lights (turn signal lights) that blink by operating the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b, which are direction indicator switches, are provided at the front and rear parts of the right and left sides of the vehicle, respectively, and indicate the traveling direction of the vehicle when the vehicle changes its course. The right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b are provided near the steering wheel as turn signal levers. When the turn signal lever is tilted downward or upward, the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on.

[0015] The ACC-ECU 10 is configured as a computer including, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory) not shown in the figure, and performs ACC.

[0016] ACC is a follow-up driving function that causes the vehicle (own vehicle) to drive following another vehicle (preceding vehicle) traveling ahead of it. For example, an operation switch related to ACC is provided on the steering wheel. The operation switch includes an ACC main switch for turning ACC on / off, a set switch for setting the current vehicle speed as the set speed, a set inter-vehicle distance switching switch for switching the length of the inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle, a cancel switch for canceling the operation of ACC, and a resume switch for restarting ACC at the previous set speed.

[0017] When the ACC main switch is pressed, the ACC function is activated. Thereafter, when the set switch is pressed, the current vehicle speed is set as the set speed. The set speed can be changed by pressing the resume switch or the set switch. That is, by pressing the resume switch, the set speed can be increased, and by pressing the set switch, the set speed can be decreased. Also, by pressing the set inter-vehicle distance switching switch, for example, it is possible to switch whether to set the inter-vehicle distance to be longer, shorter, or set it in the middle.

[0018] When the set vehicle speed is set, the ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control) that causes the ACC-ECU 10 to drive the vehicle following the preceding vehicle ahead is started. In ACC, depending on the presence or absence of a preceding vehicle, following the preceding vehicle with the set vehicle speed set by a switch operation as the upper vehicle speed and constant speed driving at the set vehicle speed are automatically switched. During following driving, the vehicle is decelerated or accelerated so that the inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle ahead is maintained at the target inter-vehicle distance.

[0019] Such an ACC function is also applied, for example, when changing lanes of the vehicle. At this time, as will be described in detail later, the ACC-ECU 10 performs various controls based on lane information including information on the lane recognized by the front camera 21.

[0020] To realize the above functions, the ACC-ECU 10 includes, as functional units, a preceding vehicle detection unit 11, an acceleration / deceleration control unit 12, counters 13a and 13b, and a storage unit 14. The above functional units of the ACC-ECU 10 are realized by the CPU included in the ACC-ECU 10 expanding and executing a control program stored in, for example, a ROM in a RAM.

[0021] The preceding vehicle detection unit 11 acquires a front image of the vehicle from the front camera 21 and analyzes the acquired front image to detect a preceding vehicle existing in front of the vehicle.

[0022] When the vehicle is going straight, the preceding vehicle detection unit 11 detects, for example, a vehicle existing in front of the vehicle in the same lane as the own lane as the preceding vehicle. When the vehicle is about to change lanes, the preceding vehicle detection unit 11 detects, for example, a vehicle existing in front of the vehicle in the adjacent lane to the lane to be changed as the preceding vehicle.

[0023] The fact that the vehicle is about to change lanes can be determined, for example, when driving on a road without a branch road or the like, by the driver operating and flashing the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b which is a direction indicator switch. Note that the vehicle lane change includes the case where the vehicle overtakes a vehicle ahead in the own lane.

[0024] When the vehicle is under ACC application (ACC on), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 performs deceleration control via the VSC-ECU 40 and acceleration control via the drive system ECU 30. That is, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 controls the VSC-ECU 40 and the drive system ECU to perform acceleration / deceleration control of the vehicle.

[0025] More specifically, when the vehicle is going straight, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 performs acceleration / deceleration control of the host vehicle while maintaining a constant inter-vehicle distance from the preceding vehicle. Or, when there is no preceding vehicle in front of the vehicle, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 performs acceleration / deceleration control of the host vehicle so that it is maintained at a preset set vehicle speed.

[0026] Also, when the vehicle is about to change lanes, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 executes preliminary acceleration / deceleration control for lane change preparation. The preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is performed to control the vehicle to an appropriate speed so that the lane change can be performed smoothly.

[0027] Specifically, in the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control, when there is a preceding vehicle in the lane to be changed that is faster than the current host vehicle speed or there is no preceding vehicle, the host vehicle is accelerated to the set vehicle speed in conjunction with the operation of the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b on the lane change destination side. However, when the difference between the speed of the preceding vehicle traveling in the lane to be changed and the speed of the host vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, it may be difficult to perform a smooth lane change, so the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is not performed.

[0028] Also, when there is a preceding vehicle in the lane to be changed that is slower than the current host vehicle speed, the host vehicle is decelerated in conjunction with the operation of the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b on the lane change destination side. By these controls, the vehicle is controlled to an appropriate speed at which a smooth lane change is possible while it is in the lane before the change.

[0029] After that, when the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b, which is the trigger for the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control, is turned off, the preliminary acceleration control ends.

[0030] Here, in the ACC-ECU 10, an operating upper speed and an operating lower speed are set as the speed range in which the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control can be executed in order to smoothly change lanes. When attempting to activate the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the operation of the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b, if the vehicle speed is not within the range of the operating upper speed and the operating lower speed, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is not performed.

[0031] Also, when executing the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control, in the ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment, further other conditions are imposed.

[0032] That is, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 is configured not to perform the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control when, after one of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on and off, the other of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is immediately turned on. Whether the other of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is immediately operated after one of them can be determined by referring to the states of the counters 13a and 13b described below.

[0033] The counter 13a starts timing when the right turn signal switch 22a is turned on and off, and counts until a predetermined time elapses. Therefore, when the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on after the right turn signal switch 22a is turned on, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 refers to whether the counter 13a is timing. If the counter 13a is timing, it is regarded that the predetermined time has not elapsed, and the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on (operation) of the left turn signal switch 22b is not performed.

[0034] Counter 13b measures time until a predetermined time elapses when the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on and off. Therefore, after the left turn signal switch 22b is operated, when the right turn signal switch 22a is turned on, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 refers to whether counter 13b is measuring time. If counter 13b is measuring time, preparatory acceleration / deceleration control triggered by turning on (operating) the right turn signal switch 22a is not performed, assuming that the predetermined time has not elapsed.

[0035] The storage unit 14 stores a control program, control parameters, etc. for realizing the functions of the ACC-ECU 10. Further, the storage unit 14 stores various condition values in the preparatory acceleration / deceleration control, such as the upper limit operating speed and the lower limit operating speed, and the set vehicle speed. Further, the storage unit 14 stores the setting of the predetermined time for causing counters 13a and 13b to measure time.

[0036] The drive system ECU 30 is configured as a computer including, for example, a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM (not shown), and controls a drive source (for example, an engine) of the vehicle to accelerate the vehicle. While ACC is applied to the vehicle, the drive system ECU 30 controls the drive source of the vehicle under the control of the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 to perform acceleration.

[0037] The VSC-ECU 40 is configured as a computer including, for example, a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM (not shown), and controls the brakes of the vehicle by means of a hydraulic system or the like to decelerate the vehicle. The hydraulic system includes an oil tank, a pump, a piston, a cylinder, a valve, etc. and generates power by hydraulic pressure. While ACC is applied to the vehicle, the VSC-ECU 40 controls the brakes of the vehicle under the control of the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 to perform deceleration.

[0038] (Operation example of the vehicle control system) Next, with reference to FIG. 2, an operation example of the vehicle control system 1 of the embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation of the vehicle control system 1 according to the embodiment. In the example of FIG. 2, it is assumed that the vehicle 100 during ACC application is attempting to move from the left lane of the road to the right lane.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 2(a), initially, the vehicle 100 is traveling straight in the left lane of the road while using ACC. The preceding vehicle detection unit 11 of the ACC-ECU 10 sets a predetermined range in front of the host vehicle lane as the detection area AR, and detects a vehicle 200 located within the detection area AR in the image captured by the front camera 21 as the preceding vehicle. The acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 performs acceleration / deceleration control of the vehicle 100 so that a certain inter-vehicle distance (target inter-vehicle distance) is maintained with respect to the vehicle 200 detected as the preceding vehicle.

[0040] Here, the detection area AR is set based on the lane information recognized by the front camera 21 and the operation state of the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b. That is, as in the example of FIG. 2(a), when the vehicle 100 is traveling straight and neither the right turn signal switch 22a nor the left turn signal switch 22b is operated, a predetermined range in front of the host vehicle lane is set as the detection area AR as described above.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 2(b), the driver of the vehicle (host vehicle) 100 operates the right turn signal switch 22a to blink the turn signal lamp on the right side of the vehicle. When the right turn signal switch 22a is turned on, the preceding vehicle detection unit 11 moves the position of the detection area AR set in front of the host vehicle lane of the vehicle 100 to the adjacent lane on the right turn signal switch 22a side, that is, the front of the right lane.

[0042] When another vehicle (other vehicle) exists within the detection area AR moved to the front of the right lane, the preceding vehicle detection unit 11 detects that vehicle as the preceding vehicle. The acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 performs preliminary acceleration / deceleration control so that the speed of the vehicle 100 matches the speed of the vehicle traveling in the lane to be changed when the speed of the vehicle 100 is within the range of the above-described operation upper limit speed and operation lower limit speed and the speed difference from the vehicle traveling in the lane to be changed is less than a predetermined value.

[0043] When there is no other vehicle in the detection area AR moved to the front of the right lane, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 performs preliminary acceleration / deceleration control to adjust the speed of the vehicle 100 to a preset target speed on the condition that the speed of the vehicle 100 is within the range of the above-mentioned operation upper limit speed and operation lower limit speed.

[0044] As shown in Fig. 2(c), the driver starts a lane change to the right lane.

[0045] As shown in Fig. 2(d), the lane change of the vehicle 100 to the right lane is completed. Suppose that the driver who has completed the lane change tries to turn off the right turn signal switch 22a again and accidentally blinks the left turn signal switch 22b.

[0046] In this case, there is a risk that the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 will be activated again with the operation of the left turn signal switch 22b as a trigger and start the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control. However, if the left turn signal switch 22b is immediately operated following the operation of the right turn signal switch 22a, the possibility that the driver is trying to immediately return to the left lane after changing to the right lane is low, and such operations of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b are likely to be accidental operations by the driver.

[0047] In the ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment, in the above operation, since the right turn signal switch 22a is turned on and then off, the counter 13a for the right turn signal switch 22a starts timing at this timing. Further, since the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on after the right turn signal switch 22a is turned off, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 refers to the status of the counter 13a when starting the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the operation of the left turn signal switch 22b.

[0048] In the example of Fig. 2(d), it is assumed that immediately after the right turn signal switch 22a is turned off and then the left turn signal switch 22b is immediately turned on, the counting of the predetermined time by the counter 13a continues. In this case, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 does not perform preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the operation of the left turn signal switch 22b.

[0049] As described above, in a lane change, due to a driver's incorrect operation or the like after the lane change is completed, there may be a case where, among the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b, the side opposite to the originally turned-on side is activated.

[0050] The ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment includes counters 13a and 13b that count for a predetermined time after the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b are turned off. Also, when the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b are operated successively, etc., the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 refers to the states of the counters 13a and 13b, thereby suppressing unnecessary preliminary acceleration / deceleration control even when the driver makes a misoperation.

[0051] In addition, in the above, even when the left turn signal switch 22b is turned off after the right turn signal switch 22a is turned off, when the counter 13a has finished counting for the predetermined time, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 executes preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the left turn signal switch 22b.

[0052] Also, in the example of Fig. 2, the case of operating the right turn signal switch 22a to change lanes from the left lane to the right lane has been described, but the same control as above is performed even in a lane change in the reverse direction. That is, after turning on the left turn signal switch 22b to change lanes from the right lane to the left lane and then the right turn signal switch 22a is turned on, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 refers to the state of the counter 13b corresponding to the left turn signal switch 22b.

[0053] At this time, if the counter 22b is continuing to count time, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 does not perform preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the left turn signal switch 22b. On the other hand, if the counter 22b has finished counting time, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 performs preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the left turn signal switch 22b.

[0054] (Processing example of vehicle control device) Next, with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, a processing example of the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control by the ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the timekeeping process executed in the background while ACC is applied to the running of the vehicle 100 by the ACC-ECU 10 according to the embodiment.

[0055] As shown in FIG. 3, when ACC is started and ACC is applied to the running of the vehicle 100 (step S101), the counters 13a and 13b monitor whether the operations of the corresponding right turn signal switch 22a and left turn signal switch 22b have been performed (step S102). While neither the right turn signal switch 22a nor the left turn signal switch 22b is operated (step S102: No), the counters 13a and 13b continue to monitor these right turn signal switch 22a and left turn signal switch 22b.

[0056] When either the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on and off (step S102: Yes), either one of the corresponding counters 13a and 13b starts counting time (step S103). Also, either one of the counters 13a and 13b monitors whether a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of counting time (step S104). While the predetermined time has not elapsed since the start of counting time (step S104: No), the counters 13a and 13b continue to count time.

[0057] When the predetermined time has elapsed since the start of counting time (step S104: Yes), either one of the counters 13a and 13b that has been continuing to count time ends the counting time (step S105).

[0058] Also, while ACC is applied during the running of the vehicle 100, the counters 13a and 13b appropriately monitor whether ACC has ended (step S106). While ACC is applied (step S106: No), the counters 13a and 13b repeat the processes of steps S102 to S105, and when ACC ends (step S106: Yes), the counters 13a and 13b end the process.

[0059] As described above, in the ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment, the timekeeping process executed in the background when ACC is applied ends.

[0060] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control process executed by the ACC-ECU 10 according to the embodiment when ACC is applied.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 4, ACC is started and ACC is applied to the running of the vehicle 100 (step S201). Thereby, when there is a preceding vehicle in the own lane, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 controls the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle 100 by the VSC-ECU 40 so as to maintain the target inter-vehicle distance in accordance with the speed of the preceding vehicle, and when there is no preceding vehicle, in accordance with the set vehicle speed during straight running (step S202).

[0062] Also, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 monitors whether either the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on (step S203). While neither the right turn signal switch 22a nor the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on (step S203: No), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 continues to monitor these right turn signal switch 22a and left turn signal switch 22b.

[0063] When either the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on (step S203: Yes), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 determines whether the other operation was performed and turned off before one of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b was turned on (step S204).

[0064] When the other one of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is operated (step S204: Yes), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 determines whether or not any one of the counters 13a and 13b corresponding to the other one of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b has finished counting (step S205). When the other one of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is not operated (step S204: No), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 skips the process of step S205.

[0065] When the process of step S205 is skipped, or when the counting of any one of the corresponding counters 13a and 13b has ended (step S205: Yes), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 determines whether or not the speed of the vehicle 100 at that time is equal to or higher than the operation lower limit value and equal to or lower than the operation upper limit value (step S206). When the speed of the vehicle 100 is equal to or higher than the operation lower limit value and equal to or lower than the operation upper limit value (step S206), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 determines whether or not there is a preceding vehicle in the lane to be changed (step S207).

[0066] The lane to be changed is a lane adjacent to the own lane on one side of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b that has been confirmed to be turned on in the process of step S203. Whether or not there is a preceding vehicle in the lane to be changed is determined by the preceding vehicle detection unit 11 from the front image captured by the front camera 21 as described above.

[0067] When there is a preceding vehicle in the lane to be changed (step S207: Yes), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 determines whether or not the speed difference between the vehicle 100 and the preceding vehicle is less than a predetermined value (step S208). When there is no preceding vehicle in the lane to be changed (step S207: No), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 skips the process of step S208.

[0068] If the process of step S208 is skipped, or if the speed difference from the preceding vehicle is less than a predetermined value (step S208: Yes), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 executes preliminary acceleration / deceleration control (step S209).

[0069] At this time, when there is a preceding vehicle (step S207: Yes), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 controls the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle 100 by the VSC-ECU 40 and the drive system ECU 30 so as to maintain a target inter-vehicle distance based on the speed of the preceding vehicle, and when there is no preceding vehicle (step S207: No), so as to reach the set vehicle speed.

[0070] Note that while neither the right turn signal switch 22a nor the left turn signal switch 22b is operated (step S203: No), if there is an operation of the other one preceding the turning on of either the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b and the counting of the corresponding counters 13a, 13b has not ended (step S205: No), if the speed of the vehicle 100 is not within the range between the operating lower limit value and the operating upper limit value (step S206: No), and if the speed difference from the preceding vehicle is greater than or equal to a predetermined value (step S208: No), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 skips the process of step S209 and does not perform preliminary acceleration / deceleration control.

[0071] Also, while ACC is applied to the running of the vehicle 100, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 appropriately monitors whether ACC has ended (step S210). While ACC is applied (step S210: No), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 repeats the processes after step S202, and when ACC ends (step S210: Yes), the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 ends the process.

[0072] Thus, the process of the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control by the ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment ends.

[0073] (Summary) When a vehicle in which ACC is applicable attempts to change lanes, the ACC-ECU performs preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by, for example, an operation of the turn signal switch. However, immediately after a lane change, due to a driver's incorrect operation or the like, the turn signal switch on the side opposite to the lane to be changed may be activated. In this case, preliminary acceleration / deceleration processing unexpected by the driver may be performed triggered by the operation of the turn signal on the opposite side.

[0074] According to the ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment, when one of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on and then off and then the other is turned on, the acceleration / deceleration control unit 12 determines whether any of the counters 13a, 13b corresponding to one of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is counting time. If any of the corresponding counters 13a, 13b is counting time, preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the other of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b is not executed.

[0075] Thereby, it is possible to prohibit the execution of unnecessary preliminary acceleration / deceleration control due to malfunction of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b. In this way, by preventing the driver from performing unexpected preliminary acceleration / deceleration control, the drivability of the vehicle 100 can be improved.

[0076] According to the ACC-ECU 10 of the embodiment, among the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b, when the right turn signal switch 22a is turned on and then off, there is a counter 13a that counts time for a predetermined time, and when the left turn signal switch 22b blinks and then goes out, there is a counter 13b that counts time for a predetermined time.

[0077] Thereby, after either the right turn signal switch 22a or the left turn signal switch 22b is turned on, if the other is turned on, the execution of the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is prohibited for a predetermined time. Therefore, among the blinkings of the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b, it is possible to identify those with a high possibility of incorrect operation by the driver, and the execution of unnecessary preliminary acceleration / deceleration control can be prohibited.

[0078] In addition, since the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is prohibited only for a predetermined time, when the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b are sequentially operated with a predetermined time interval, as in the case of overtaking driving, if it is assumed that the driver intends to change lanes again and meets the other conditions described above, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control can be executed.

[0079] Note that the turn signal switches such as the right turn signal switch 22a and the left turn signal switch 22b in the embodiment include an alternate switch and a momentary switch.

[0080] In the alternate type turn signal switch, when the operation lever of the turn signal switch is moved in a predetermined direction, the turn signal lamp on the corresponding side starts blinking, and the operation lever is fixed at the operation position. The operation lever is returned to the original position in conjunction with the operation of the steering wheel, or the driver can manually return the operation lever position. When the operation lever returns to the original position, the turn signal switch turns off and the blinking of the turn signal lamp stops and the lamp goes out.

[0081] When changing lanes, since the fluctuation of the steering angle due to the operation of the steering wheel is small, the turn signal lamp is not automatically turned off, and the driver may manually return the operation lever position. At that time, incorrect operations such as moving the operation lever too much and causing the turn signal lamp on the opposite side to blink may occur.

[0082] The operation of the momentary type turn signal switch will be described below with reference to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation lever LV of the momentary type turn signal switch.

[0083] As shown in Fig. 5, in a momentary type turn signal switch, for example, five operating positions P0, P11, P12, P21, and P22 are set for the operating lever LV of the turn signal switch. When the operating lever LV is at the operating position P0, both the left and right turn signal switches are in the non-operating state (switch off), that is, the turn signal lamp is off.

[0084] When the operating lever LV is moved to any of the operating positions P11, P12, P21, and P22, the corresponding side turn signal switch turns on and the turn signal lamp starts to blink, and the blinking of the turn signal lamp continues until the operating lever LV is released. When the hand is released from the operating lever LV moved to the operating positions P11, P12, P21, and P22, the operating lever LV automatically returns to the operating position P0.

[0085] When the operating lever LV is operated to the operating positions P11 and P21 used during lane change and then released, the operating lever LV returns to the operating position P0, and the corresponding turn signal lamp blinks several times and then turns off.

[0086] When the operating lever LV is operated to the operating positions P12 and P22 used during right and left turns and then released, the operating lever LV returns to the operating position P0, and the corresponding turn signal lamp continues to blink thereafter and turns off in conjunction with the operation of the steering wheel.

[0087] Here, an explanation will be given regarding the case where the blinking of the direction indicator does not automatically stop after a right or left turn, or when it is desired to stop the blinking at an arbitrary timing. For example, after once moving to the right turn operation position P12, by moving the operation lever LV that has returned to the original position to the reverse operation position P21, the blinking of the right turn signal can be manually stopped and turned off. Similarly, after once moving to the left turn operation position P22, by moving the operation lever LV that has returned to the original position to the reverse operation position P11, the blinking of the left turn signal can be manually stopped and turned off. Also, when the operation is performed up to the operation positions P22 and P12 deeper than the operation positions P21 and P11, the turn signals on the side corresponding to these operation positions P22 and P12 blink.

[0088] In the above operation lever LV, it is assumed that when making a right or left turn of the vehicle, the operation lever LV is moved to the operation positions P12 and P22, and when changing lanes, the operation of moving the operation lever LV to the operation positions P11 and P21 is performed. However, as described above, when the driver tries to operate at the front operation positions P11 and P21 in an attempt to change lanes, there is a possibility that the operation lever LV is accidentally moved too much and the operation reaches the deeper operation positions P12 and P22. In this case, the turn signal does not turn off after blinking several times, and the turn signal remains in a blinking state even after the lane change is completed. Therefore, the driver needs to manually stop (abort) the blinking of the turn signal. At this time, for example, even if the operation lever LV is accidentally moved largely to the deeper operation positions P22 and P12 at the back of the lane direction before the change and the wrong turn signal is accidentally turned on, the execution of unnecessary preliminary deceleration control due to this misoperation is prohibited. Thus, the significance of the present invention is particularly prominent in the momentary type of operation lever LV.

[0089] From the above, the preliminary deceleration control by the ACC-ECU 10 of the above-described embodiment is applicable to both the alternate type of turn signal switch and the momentary type of turn signal switch.

[0090] In the above-described embodiment, the ACC-ECU 10 is provided with the counter 13a for the right turn signal switch 22a and the counter 13b for the left turn signal switch 22b. However, it may be possible to measure the time after the operation of the right turn signal switch 22a and the time after the operation of the left turn signal switch 22b using a single counter. Further, the statement that preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is performed using the operation of the turn signal switch as a trigger means the gist including performing preliminary acceleration / deceleration control based on the blinking of the direction indicator lamp according to the operation of the turn signal switch.

Explanation of Signs

[0091] 1 Vehicle control system 10 ACC-ECU 11 Leading vehicle detection unit 12 Acceleration / deceleration control unit 13a, 13b Counters 14 Memory unit 21 Front camera 22a Right turn signal switch 22b Left turn signal switch 30 Drive system ECU 40 VSC-ECU 100, 200 Vehicles

Claims

1. A control unit that performs acceleration and deceleration of a vehicle to execute follow-up driving control, The control unit, Has a function of executing preliminary acceleration / deceleration control for lane change of the vehicle triggered by turning on any one of the first and second direction indicator switches, After a predetermined time has elapsed since one of the first and second direction indicator switches was turned on and then off, when the other of the first and second direction indicator switches is turned on, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control is executed with the turning on of the other direction indicator switch as at least one of the triggers, When the other direction indicator switch is turned on while the predetermined time has not elapsed since one direction indicator switch was turned on and then off, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the other direction indicator switch is not executed. Vehicle control device.

2. After any one of the first and second direction indicator switches is turned on and then off, it further includes a counter that measures the predetermined time, The control unit, After one direction indicator switch is turned on and then off, when the other direction indicator switch is turned on, it determines whether the counter is measuring time, When the counter is measuring time, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the other direction indicator switch is not executed. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

3. The counter, Among the first and second direction indicator switches, when the first direction indicator switch is turned on and then off, a first counter that measures the predetermined time, Among the first and second direction indicator switches, when the second direction indicator switch is turned on and then off, a second counter that measures the predetermined time, and includes, The control unit, When the second direction indicator switch is turned on after the first direction indicator switch is turned on and then off, if the first counter is measuring time, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the second direction indicator switch is not executed, When the first direction indicator switch is turned on after the second direction indicator switch is turned on and then off, if the second counter is measuring time, the preliminary acceleration / deceleration control triggered by the turning on of the first direction indicator switch is not executed. The vehicle control device according to claim 2.

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