Vehicle control device

Abstract

To provide a vehicle control device for performing appropriate lane change stop determination in consideration of a moving direction of other vehicles.SOLUTION: A vehicle control device (100) comprises: a lane change stop determination unit (5) configured to determine whether or not to stop a lane change and return to an original lane when another vehicle (14) is detected in an area defined by a predetermined longitudinal range and a predetermined width direction range while an own vehicle (15) is performing lane change; and a moving direction determination unit (4) configured to determine a moving direction of the other vehicle (14) based on other vehicle information acquired by an other vehicle information acquisition unit (2) and road information acquired by a road information acquisition unit (3). The lane change stop determination unit (5) is configured to change at least one of the longitudinal range and the width direction range depending on the moving direction of the other vehicle determined by the moving direction determination unit (4).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present application relates to a vehicle control device. [Background technology]

[0002] In a driving assistance technology that assists vehicle driving, a vehicle control device has been proposed that starts and stops lane changing at appropriate timing, taking into account surrounding vehicles, in order to reduce the burden on the driver. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology that, when another vehicle is detected entering a predetermined area during an automated lane change, determines whether to continue the lane change based on the position of the vehicle, and continues or stops the lane change.

[0003] The conventional technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 is said to be able to avoid unnatural vehicle behavior, such as when a lane change to an adjacent lane is almost completed and the vehicle returns to the original lane, thereby reducing the impact on traffic flow and occupants. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6895111 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, if the host vehicle starts to change lanes from its current lane to the adjacent lane while maintaining a safe distance from another vehicle in the adjacent lane, and the other vehicle accelerates or decelerates, causing the host vehicle to approach the other vehicle, the host vehicle needs to stop the lane change and return to the original lane to avoid approaching the other vehicle. However, if the approaching vehicle is attempting to leave the adjacent lane by changing lanes, it is appropriate for the host vehicle to continue changing lanes to the adjacent lane even if the host vehicle is approaching the other vehicle. Conversely, if the other vehicle is attempting to change lanes to the adjacent lane, it is appropriate for the host vehicle to stop changing lanes even if the host vehicle is not approaching the other vehicle. In this way, the host vehicle's driving needs to be flexibly controlled according to the behavior of the other vehicle.

[0006] According to the conventional technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, the cancellation of a lane change is restricted depending on the position of the vehicle relative to lane markings on the road, and the direction of movement of other vehicles is not taken into consideration. Therefore, there is a concern that if the lane change of the vehicle is cancelled in a situation where there is little possibility of approaching other vehicles, there is a risk that the occupants of the vehicle may feel uncomfortable.

[0007] The present application discloses a technique for solving the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a vehicle control device that realizes appropriate driving of the vehicle by taking into account the direction of movement of other vehicles. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The vehicle control device disclosed in the present application comprises: a vehicle state acquisition unit that acquires a driving state of the vehicle; an other vehicle information acquisition unit that acquires other vehicle information including the position and speed of other vehicles traveling on the road on which the host vehicle is traveling; a road information acquisition unit that acquires road information including information about the lane center of an adjacent lane that is adjacent to the lane from which the host vehicle is traveling; a vehicle control unit that executes a lane change of the host vehicle to the adjacent lane based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit; A vehicle control device comprising: a lane change cancellation determination unit that determines whether to cancel the lane change and return to the original lane when another vehicle is detected within an area defined by a predetermined longitudinal range and a predetermined widthwise range during the lane change; a movement direction determination unit that determines a movement direction of the other vehicle based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit and the road information acquired by the road information acquisition unit; Equipped with The lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change at least one of the longitudinal direction range and the width direction range according to the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit. It is characterized by the following. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the vehicle control device disclosed in the present application, a vehicle control device can be obtained that realizes appropriate driving of the own vehicle by taking into account the moving direction of other vehicles. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle control device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating how the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment determines the direction of movement of another vehicle. FIG. [Figure 3] 3 is an explanatory diagram of a case in which the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment determines the direction of movement of another vehicle in a manner different from that of FIG. 2. FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the width-direction speed of another vehicle converted into a direction perpendicular to the lane center in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 5] 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between a lateral speed threshold and a lane width in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 6] 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a lane change cancellation determination region in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 7]4 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where the vehicle control device in accordance with the first embodiment suppresses the movement of the host vehicle to avoid a collision in the same direction as another vehicle. FIG. [Figure 8] 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment prompts the driver to stop changing lanes of the own vehicle. FIG. [Figure 9] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing another case in which the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment prompts the driver to stop changing lanes of the own vehicle. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the lane change cancellation determination region in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 11] 3 is a flowchart showing the processing of the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 12] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of an ECU that constitutes the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Embodiment 1 A vehicle control device according to a first embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 1, a vehicle control device 100 includes a host vehicle state acquisition unit 1, a other vehicle information acquisition unit 2, a road information acquisition unit 3, a movement direction determination unit 4, a lane change cancellation determination unit 5, and a vehicle control unit 6. In-vehicle sensors 7 include sensor devices mounted on the host vehicle, such as a vehicle speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, a yaw rate sensor, a camera, radar, a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) that performs light-based detection and ranging, and a GPS (Global Positioning System). Map information 8 includes map data acquired from outside the host vehicle or stored in the host vehicle.

[0012] In the vehicle control device 100, at least the vehicle control unit 6, the lane change cancellation determination unit 5, and the movement direction determination unit 4 are configured by an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) of the vehicle. Note that the entire vehicle control device 100 may be configured by the ECU of the vehicle.

[0013] FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the ECU that constitutes at least a part of the vehicle control device 100 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 12, the ECU 112 is configured with a processor 1001 and a storage device 1002. Although not shown, the storage device 1002 includes a volatile storage device such as a random access memory and a non-volatile auxiliary storage device such as a flash memory. The processor 1001 executes a program input from the storage device 1002. In this case, the program is input from the auxiliary storage device to the processor 1001 via the volatile storage device. The processor 1001 may output data such as calculation results to the volatile storage device of the storage device 1002, or may store the data in the auxiliary storage device via the volatile storage device.

[0014] 1, a host vehicle state acquisition unit 1 acquires host vehicle states, such as the speed and acceleration of the host vehicle, based on a signal a from an on-board sensor 7, and outputs a signal c containing information indicating the host vehicle's driving state from the acquired host vehicle state. A second vehicle information acquisition unit 2 acquires other vehicle information, such as the position, speed, and acceleration of the other vehicle, based on the signal a from the on-board sensor 7, and outputs a signal d containing information indicating the driving state of the other vehicle from the acquired other vehicle information. A road information acquisition unit 3 acquires road information, such as the positions of lane markings on the road on which the host vehicle is driving and the positions of the lane centers of adjacent lanes, based on the signal a from the on-board sensor 7 and a signal b from map information 8, and outputs a signal e containing the acquired road information.

[0015] The movement direction determination unit 4 determines the movement direction of the other vehicle based on the signal d from the other vehicle information acquisition unit 2 and the signal e from the road information acquisition unit 3. The movement direction of the other vehicle may be determined, for example, by determining whether or not the other vehicle is traveling straight, whether or not the other vehicle is traveling toward the outside of an adjacent lane, whether or not the other vehicle is traveling toward the inside of an adjacent lane, or whether or not the other vehicle is traveling toward the lane from which the host vehicle is about to change lanes, and outputs a signal f indicating the determination result. By having the lane change cancellation determination unit 5 determine whether or not the host vehicle needs to cancel its lane change based on the movement direction determination result by the movement direction determination unit 4, it is possible to suppress lane change cancellation in situations where there is little need to cancel the lane change, and to encourage lane change cancellation in situations where there is a high need to cancel the lane change.

[0016] While the vehicle is changing lanes, the lane change abort determination unit 5 determines whether or not to abort the lane change based on the speed of the vehicle, the position and speed of the other vehicle, and the direction of movement of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit 4. Specifically, if the other vehicle is detected within an area defined by a predetermined distance range in the width direction of the road and a predetermined distance range in the longitudinal direction of the road, the lane change abort determination unit 5 determines to abort the lane change of the vehicle, and if the other vehicle is not detected within the above area, the lane change abort determination unit 5 determines to continue the lane change of the vehicle. The lane change abort determination unit 5 outputs a signal g corresponding to the result of its determination.

[0017] The vehicle control unit 6 outputs a signal h to the actuator 9 for performing vehicle control such as maintaining a target speed of the host vehicle, maintaining the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling, changing lanes from the current lane to an adjacent lane, and canceling a lane change by returning to the original lane while the host vehicle is changing lanes. The actuator 9 provided in the host vehicle is made up of a plurality of actuators that respectively operate, for example, a power steering device, a throttle valve, a braking system, an ignition system, etc., and operates based on the signal h from the vehicle control unit 6.

[0018] Next, we will explain how the movement direction of another vehicle is determined by the movement direction determination unit 4. Figure 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining how the movement direction of another vehicle is determined in the vehicle control device according to embodiment 1, and shows an example of determining the movement direction of another vehicle 14 when the host vehicle (not shown) changes lanes to the right in the traveling direction (upward in the figure).

[0019] In each of (a), (b), and (c) of FIG. 2, a road 10 includes a lane 11 from which the host vehicle is traveling, a lane 12 to which the host vehicle is about to change lanes, which is an adjacent lane into which the host vehicle is about to change lanes, and a lane 13 beyond the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes. A lane center 121 indicates the center of the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes. (a) of FIG. 2 illustrates a case in which the vehicle 14 is determined to be traveling straight, (b) illustrates a case in which the vehicle 14 is determined to be moving toward the inside of the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes, which is an adjacent lane, and (c) illustrates a case in which the vehicle 14 is determined to be moving toward the outside of the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes, which is an adjacent lane. In the following description, the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes may also be referred to as the adjacent lane.

[0020] The movement direction determination unit 4 determines the movement direction of the other vehicle 14 in one of three ways: determining the movement direction of the other vehicle 14 relative to the lane center 121 of the destination lane 12 adjacent to the source lane 11 in which the vehicle is traveling; and determining the movement direction of the other vehicle 14 relative to the lane center 121 of the destination lane 12 adjacent to the source lane 11 in which the vehicle is traveling. The determination patterns in this case include the following first determination pattern, second determination pattern, and third determination pattern.

[0021] That is, the first determination pattern is a determination pattern in which the other vehicle 14 is determined to be traveling straight, and corresponds to the determination pattern shown in Figure 2(a). The second determination pattern is a determination pattern in which the other vehicle 14 is determined to be moving toward the inside of the destination lane 12 adjacent to the source lane 11, and corresponds to the determination pattern shown in Figure 2(b). The third determination pattern is a determination pattern in which the other vehicle 14 is determined to be moving toward the outside of the destination lane 12 adjacent to the source lane 11, and corresponds to the determination pattern shown in Figure 2(c).

[0022] Instead of the above-described method of determination, there is another method of determining in which direction the other vehicle 14 is moving, either the lane from which the lane is to be changed 11 or the lane to which the lane is to be changed 12. The determination patterns in this case include a fourth determination pattern, a fifth determination pattern, a sixth determination pattern, and a seventh determination pattern.

[0023] That is, the fourth determination pattern is a determination pattern in which it is determined that the other vehicle 14 is moving toward the lane 12 from which the own vehicle is about to change lanes, and the fifth determination pattern is a determination pattern in which it is determined that the other vehicle 14 is moving toward the lane 11 from which the own vehicle is about to change lanes. The sixth determination pattern is a determination pattern in which it is determined that the other vehicle 14 is moving toward the lane 13 beyond the lane 12 from which the own vehicle is about to change lanes. The seventh determination pattern is a determination pattern in which it is determined that the determination is invalid, and is a determination pattern in which the other vehicle 14 is moving toward a location other than the lane 11 from which the own vehicle is about to change lanes, the lane 12 from which the own vehicle is about to change lanes, or the lane 13 from which the own vehicle is about to change lanes.

[0024] When making a judgment based on the position of the lane center 121 of the destination lane 12 adjacent to the lane 11 from which the host vehicle is traveling, the movement direction of the other vehicle 14 is judged as shown in Table 1 below, based on the lateral speed of the other vehicle 14, the width direction deviation of the other vehicle 14 from the lane center 121 of the destination lane 12, and the lateral speed threshold of the other vehicle 14 used to determine whether the other vehicle 14 is traveling straight, as shown in Table 1 below. Here, the lateral speed of the other vehicle 14 is expressed as in the following notation (1), the width direction deviation of the other vehicle 14 used to determine whether the other vehicle 14 is traveling straight from the lane center 121 of the destination lane 12 is expressed as in the following notation (2), and the lateral speed threshold of the other vehicle 14 used to determine whether the other vehicle 14 is traveling straight is expressed as in the following notation (3).

number

[0025] The width-direction deviation of the other vehicle 14 shown in the above-mentioned notation (2), which is based on the lane center 121 of the lane 12 to which the vehicle is to change lanes adjacent to the lane 11 from which the vehicle is traveling, can be obtained based on the position information of the lane center 121 of the lane 12 to which the vehicle is to change lanes, acquired from the road information acquisition unit 3, and the position information of the other vehicle 14 acquired from the other vehicle information acquisition unit 2. The width-direction deviation of the other vehicle shown in the above-mentioned notation (2) is a value having a sign, where a leftward direction relative to the lane 12 to which the vehicle is to change lanes is designated as a "positive" sign and a rightward direction relative to the lane 12 to which the vehicle is to change lanes is designated as a "negative" sign. The direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 is determined as shown in Table 1 below. [Table 1]

[0026] The determination patterns P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 shown in Table 1 correspond to the determination patterns P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 shown in FIGS. 2(a), (b), and (c), respectively.

[0027] The determination of the moving direction of the other vehicle 14 shown in Table 1 determines whether the other vehicle 14 is moving left or right based on the lateral speed of the other vehicle 14, but this can also be replaced with a prediction of the movement of the other vehicle based on the lighting status of the turn signal of the other vehicle. Table 2 shown below shows the determination of the moving direction of the other vehicle based on the lighting status of the turn signal of the other vehicle. [Table 2]

[0028] The determination patterns P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 shown in Table 2 correspond to the determination patterns P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 shown in FIGS. 2(a), (b), and (c), respectively.

[0029] Next, a case will be described in which the movement direction of the other vehicle is determined based on the position of the dividing line of the adjacent lane 12. In this case, the movement direction of the other vehicle 14 is determined based on the width-direction deviation of the other vehicle 14 based on the position of the left dividing line 122 of the lane 12 and the position of the right dividing line 123 of the lane 12.

[0030] Here, the width-wise deviation of the other vehicle 14 based on the position of the left dividing line 122 of the lane 12 ahead of the lane change will be expressed as shown in the notation (4) below, and the width-wise deviation of the other vehicle based on the position of the right dividing line 123 of the lane 12 ahead of the lane change will be expressed as shown in the notation (5) below.

number

[0031] The width-direction deviation of the other vehicle 14 based on the position of the left lane marking 122 of the lane 12 ahead of the lane change as an adjacent lane, and the width-direction deviation of the other vehicle 14 based on the position of the right lane marking 123 of the lane 12 ahead of the lane change as an adjacent lane, can be obtained based on the position information of the adjacent lane markings acquired from the road information acquisition unit 3 and the position information of the other vehicle acquired from the other vehicle information acquisition unit 2. Furthermore, the width-direction deviation of the other vehicle shown in the above-mentioned notations (4) and (5) is a value with a sign, and here, the left direction is positive and the right direction is negative relative to the left lane marking 122 and right lane marking 123.

[0032] Table 3 below shows how the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 is determined based on the positions of the left lane marking 122 and the right lane marking 123 in the lane 12 to be changed into as an adjacent lane. [Table 3]

[0033] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a case in which the determination of the direction of movement of another vehicle is performed in a manner different from that of FIG. 2 in the vehicle control device according to embodiment 1, and shows an example of the determination of the direction of movement of another vehicle 14 when the vehicle (not shown) changes lanes to the right in the direction of travel (upward in the figure).

[0034] In each of (a), (b), and (c) of Figure 3, a road 10 includes a lane 11 from which a vehicle (not shown) is traveling, a lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes, and a second lane 13 beyond the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes. Figure 3 (a) shows a case where the vehicle 14 is determined to be traveling straight, (b) shows a case where the vehicle 14 is determined to be moving toward the inside of the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes, and (c) shows a case where the vehicle 14 is determined to be moving toward the outside of the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes. In the following description, the lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes is also referred to as an adjacent lane.

[0035] The determination patterns P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 shown in Table 3 correspond to the determination patterns P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 shown in FIGS. 3(a), 3(b), and 3(c), respectively.

[0036] In addition, the determination of the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 based on the positions of the left dividing line 122 and the right dividing line 123 of the lane 12 to which the lane change is to be made, as shown in Table 3, may be performed by replacing the condition of the lateral speed of the other vehicle 14 with a movement prediction based on the state of the turn signal of the other vehicle 14, as in the case of using the width-wise deviation of the other vehicle based on the lane center of the adjacent lane, as shown in Table 1.

[0037] The lateral speed of the other vehicle 14 can also be replaced with the widthwise speed converted into a direction perpendicular to the center of the road to determine the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14. Here, the widthwise speed converted into a direction perpendicular to the center of the road is expressed as shown in the following notation (6).

number

[0038] The widthwise speed of the other vehicle shown in notation (6) can be obtained from the direction of the road 10 as seen from the other vehicle 14, i.e., the direction of the lane 12 ahead of the lane change, the longitudinal direction of the other vehicle 14, and the lateral speed of the other vehicle 14. Here, the direction of the center of the road as seen from the other vehicle 14 is expressed as shown in notation (7) below, the longitudinal speed of the other vehicle 14 is expressed as shown in notation (8) below, and the lateral speed of the other vehicle 14 is expressed as shown in notation (9) below.

number

[0039] 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the width-direction speed of another vehicle converted into a direction perpendicular to the lane center in the vehicle control device according to embodiment 1. As shown in FIG. 4, the width-direction speed of another vehicle 14 converted into a direction perpendicular to the center 101 of the road 10 can be calculated by the following formula (1).

number

[0040] The lateral speed threshold value shown in the above-mentioned notation (3) can also be made variable depending on the width-direction deviation shown in the above-mentioned notation (2). The width-direction deviation shown in the notation (2) corresponds to the position of the center of gravity of the other vehicle 14 relative to the lane center 121 (see FIG. 2) of the lane 12 before the lane change.

[0041] 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the lateral speed threshold and lane width in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment, with the vertical axis representing the lateral speed threshold and the horizontal axis representing the width-direction deviation. As shown in FIG. 5, the lateral speed threshold is at its minimum value at the positions of the left and right lane markings 122 and 123 of the lane 12 ahead of the lane change, and is at its maximum value at the lane center 121. This lateral speed threshold is calculated using the following equation (2):

number

[0042] As described above, by determining the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 using the width-direction speed, it is possible to appropriately determine the direction of movement even for another vehicle traveling straight (lateral speed = 0) at an angle to the lane. As shown in the above formula (2), by making the lateral speed threshold variable, another vehicle 14 traveling away from the lane center 121 is likely to be in the middle of changing lanes, so the lateral speed threshold can be made smaller to make it less likely to be determined as traveling straight, and another vehicle 14 traveling close to the lane center 121 is unlikely to be in the middle of changing lanes, so the lateral speed threshold can be made larger to make it more likely to be determined as traveling straight.

[0043] Also, the moving direction of the other vehicle 14 can be determined by using the lateral acceleration instead of the lateral speed of the other vehicle. That is, a lateral acceleration threshold value (for example, 0.5 [m / s 2 ]), and a determination similar to that for determining the direction of movement based on the lateral speed is made. By determining the lateral movement of the other vehicle 14 based on the lateral acceleration, an increase or decrease in the lateral speed can be predicted, and the lateral movement of the other vehicle can be determined at an earlier timing than when the lateral speed is directly used.

[0044] In addition, the lateral acceleration threshold can be corrected by the resultant speed of other vehicles acquired from the other vehicle information acquisition unit 2 and the lane curvature radius r acquired from the road information acquisition unit 3. Assuming that other vehicle 14 is traveling along the lane center 121, correcting the lateral acceleration threshold with centripetal acceleration can prevent erroneous determination of the direction of movement due to the influence of lateral acceleration generated by traveling around a curve. Here, the lateral acceleration is expressed as shown in the following notation (10), the lateral acceleration threshold is expressed as shown in the following notation (11), the resultant speed is expressed as shown in the following notation (12), and the centripetal acceleration is expressed as shown in the following notation (13).

number

[0045] Next, the determination of the width direction range will be explained. The width direction range is determined by the front minimum width direction threshold distance shown in the following formula (3), the front maximum width direction threshold distance shown in the following formula (4), the rear minimum width direction threshold distance shown in the following formula (5), and the rear maximum width direction threshold distance shown in the following formula (6).

[0046] The width-direction deviation of the vehicle with respect to the position of the left dividing line 122 of the adjacent lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes, and the width-direction deviation of the vehicle with respect to the position of the right dividing line 123 of the adjacent lane 12 to which the vehicle is about to change lanes, are both signed values, with the leftward direction relative to the dividing line being positive. In order to set the width-direction range to the range from the left dividing line to the right dividing line of the adjacent lane, the front minimum width-direction threshold distance, the front maximum width-direction threshold distance, the rear minimum width-direction threshold distance, and the rear maximum width-direction threshold distance are determined by the following equations (3), (4), (5), and (6), respectively.

number

[0047] The above is for the case where the vehicle changes lanes to the right, but when the vehicle changes lanes to the left, the minimum front width direction threshold distance, the maximum front width direction threshold distance, the minimum rear width direction threshold distance, and the maximum rear width direction threshold distance are determined by the following equations (7), (8), (9), and (10), respectively.

number

[0048] Next, the determination of the vertical range will be explained. The vertical range is determined by a front threshold distance and a rear threshold distance, which are calculated by the following equations (11) and (12), respectively.

number

[0049] The forward threshold distance shown in the above formula (11) and the rearward threshold distance shown in the formula (12) indicate the minimum inter-vehicle distance required to maintain the minimum inter-vehicle distance when a lane change is completed, assuming that the host vehicle and the other vehicle are traveling at a constant speed. If there is no vehicle ahead or behind, the forward threshold distance shown in the formula (11) and the rearward threshold distance shown in the formula (12) may each be set to "0".

[0050] As described above, the vertical range is the range of the forward threshold distance shown in equation (11) and the range of the backward threshold distance shown in equation (12).

[0051] Next, the correction of the longitudinal range will be explained. Based on the moving direction of the other vehicle, a forward threshold distance coefficient and a rearward threshold distance coefficient are determined, and the forward threshold distance shown in equation (11) and the rearward threshold distance shown in equation (12) are corrected using the following equations (13) and (14), respectively.

number

[0052] The forward threshold distance coefficient is determined according to the direction of movement of the other vehicle in front, and the rear threshold distance coefficient is determined according to the direction of movement of the other vehicle behind. Table 4 below shows how the forward threshold distance coefficient and the rear threshold distance coefficient are determined. [Table 4]

[0053] 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a lane change abort determination region in the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 6, when the other vehicle 142 traveling behind the host vehicle 15 moves toward the inside of the lane 12, which is the adjacent lane, the host vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 142 are moving toward the same lane, and therefore the need for the host vehicle 15 to abort the lane change becomes greater. In such a situation, by increasing the rear threshold distance coefficient described above, the range on the rear side of the longitudinal range corrected by Equation (14) is expanded beyond the predetermined range by the amount of region Y, thereby encouraging the host vehicle 15 to abort the lane change.

[0054] 6, when the other vehicle 141 ahead traveling ahead of the host vehicle 15 moves to the outside of the adjacent lane, which is the lane 12 to which the host vehicle 15 is to change lanes, the other vehicle 141 ahead is attempting to leave the adjacent lane, and the need to cancel the lane change is reduced. In such a situation, by reducing the aforementioned front threshold distance coefficient, the range on the front side of the longitudinal range corrected by equation (13) is reduced by the amount of area Z from the predetermined range, and the lane change cancellation can be suppressed.

[0055] The range of the forward threshold distance shown in equation (11) and the range of the backward threshold distance shown in equation (12) may be changed in accordance with the width-direction deviation of the other vehicle with reference to the lane center of the lane 12 ahead of the lane change as the adjacent lane, in addition to the direction of movement of the other vehicle. In this case, if the direction of movement of the other vehicle is outward of the adjacent lane and the absolute value of the width-direction deviation of the other vehicle is greater than a predetermined threshold (for example, 1.0), the forward threshold correction coefficient or the backward threshold correction coefficient can be set to, for example, 0.4, thereby making it possible to further suppress the lane change cancellation when the degree of departure of the other vehicle from the adjacent lane is large.

[0056] In addition, when the direction of movement of the other vehicle is inside the adjacent lane 12, which is the lane to which the vehicle is about to change lanes, and the absolute value of the width direction deviation is greater than a predetermined threshold value (for example, 1.5), the threshold distance coefficient can be set to, for example, 1.4, thereby encouraging the vehicle to stop changing lanes in a situation where the vehicle and the other vehicle are about to change lanes into the same lane.

[0057] The threshold value of the absolute value of the width-direction deviation may be variable depending on the speeds of the host vehicle and the other vehicle, rather than being a fixed value such as 1.5. Furthermore, the longitudinal range may be changed depending on the width-direction deviation of the other vehicle relative to the left dividing line 122 between the lane 11 from which the lane change is to be made and the adjacent lane 12 to which the lane change is to be made.

[0058] 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where the vehicle control device according to embodiment 1 suppresses the operation of the host vehicle to avoid another vehicle in the same direction as the other vehicle. In FIG. 7, in a situation where another vehicle 14 is about to change lanes to the lane from which the host vehicle 15 is about to change lanes, if the host vehicle 15 cancels the lane change and moves back to the lane from which the host vehicle 15 is about to change lanes, the host vehicle 15 will move in the same direction as the other vehicle 14, and such an operation will cause an abnormal approach.

[0059] Therefore, if the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 is toward the lane 11 from which the lane is to be changed and the absolute value of the widthwise deviation of the other vehicle 14 from the left dividing line 122 of the lane 12 to which the lane is to be changed as an adjacent lane is smaller than a predetermined threshold (for example, 0.5), the rear threshold distance coefficient is set to, for example, 0.2. By making the longitudinal range smaller than the predetermined range in this way, it is possible to suppress the host vehicle 15 from canceling the lane change.

[0060] 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a case in which the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment prompts the host vehicle to stop changing lanes. In FIG. 8, when the direction of movement of another vehicle 14 is toward the destination lane 12 and the host vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14 are about to change lanes into the same lane, if the absolute value of the widthwise deviation of the other vehicle 14 based on the left dividing line 122 between the source lane 11 and the destination lane 12, which is an adjacent lane, is smaller than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 0.5), the rear threshold distance coefficient is set to, for example, 1.4. In this way, by expanding the longitudinal range beyond the predetermined range, the host vehicle 15 can be prompted to stop changing lanes.

[0061] In addition, the threshold value of the absolute value of the widthwise deviation of the other vehicle 14 based on the left dividing line 122 between the lane 11 from which the lane is to be changed and the adjacent lane 12 to which the lane is to be changed may not be a fixed value such as 0.5, but may be variable depending on the speeds of the vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14.

[0062] 9 is an explanatory diagram showing another case in which the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment prompts the driver to stop changing lanes of the host vehicle, and shows a situation in which the width-direction distance L between the host vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14 is small. The longitudinal range may be changed according to the width-direction distance L between the host vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14 when it is determined that the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 is straight ahead. In FIG. 9, when the width-direction distance L between the host vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14 is smaller than a predetermined threshold (for example, 2.0), the rear threshold distance coefficient is set to, for example, 0.6.

[0063] In a situation where the widthwise distance L between the own vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14 is small, even if the own vehicle 15 takes evasive action in the widthwise direction by canceling the lane change, it is difficult to avoid approaching the other vehicle 14. Therefore, by setting the rear threshold distance coefficient as described above, the longitudinal range can be reduced and the own vehicle 15 can be prevented from canceling the lane change.

[0064] Furthermore, the threshold value for the width-direction distance L need not be a fixed value such as 2.0, but may be variable depending on the speeds of the vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14, or the width-direction deviation of the other vehicle 14 from the lane center 121 of the adjacent lane.

[0065] If the width direction distance L between the host vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14 behind it is smaller than a predetermined threshold and the moving direction of the host vehicle 15 and the moving direction of the other vehicle 14 are different, the rear threshold distance coefficient may be set to, for example, 0.6 to change the longitudinal range to be smaller. In a situation where the host vehicle 15 and the other vehicle 14 are moving in the same direction, there is a possibility of abnormal closeness, so lane change cancellation should not be suppressed, and it is possible to stop suppressing lane change cancellation by setting the rear threshold distance coefficient as described above.

[0066] Furthermore, if the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 behind is outside the adjacent lane, the rear threshold distance coefficient may be set to, for example, 0.6 to change the longitudinal range to be smaller. In a situation where the other vehicle has left the adjacent lane, there is little need to cancel the lane change, and setting the rear threshold distance coefficient as described above can suppress the cancellation of the lane change.

[0067] Furthermore, if the direction of movement of the other vehicle 14 behind is toward the inside of the adjacent lane, the rear threshold distance coefficient may be set to, for example, 1.2 to change the longitudinal range to a larger value. When the other vehicle is approaching the adjacent lane, it is highly necessary to cancel the lane change, and the lane change can be canceled by setting the rear threshold distance coefficient as described above.

[0068] Next, the correction of the width direction range will be explained. Based on the direction of movement of the other vehicle, a front minimum width direction threshold distance coefficient, a front maximum width direction threshold distance coefficient, a rear minimum width direction threshold distance coefficient, and a rear maximum width direction threshold distance coefficient are determined, and the front threshold distance and rear threshold distance are corrected as follows.

number

[0069] Next, a case will be described in which, when the direction of movement of the other vehicle is outward from the adjacent lane, either the minimum width-direction threshold distance or the maximum width-direction threshold distance is multiplied by a coefficient to change the predetermined lateral range so as to be smaller. Figure 10 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the lane change abort determination region in the vehicle control device according to embodiment 1. (a) shows a case in which the direction of movement of the other vehicle 142 behind is outward from the lane 12 to be changed to as the adjacent lane and toward the lane 13 before the lane to be changed to, and (b) shows a case in which the direction of movement of the other vehicle 142 behind is inward from the lane 12 to be changed to as the adjacent lane.

[0070] 10(a), when the direction of movement of the other vehicle 142 behind is toward the outside of the lane 12 to be changed into as an adjacent lane and toward the lane 13 beyond the lane 12 to be changed into as an adjacent lane, the rear maximum width-direction threshold distance coefficient is set to, for example, 0.8, and the width-direction range is reduced by the amount of area M. In this way, by reducing the width-direction range to a value smaller than the predetermined range, it is possible to prevent the host vehicle 15 from canceling a lane change in response to the other vehicle 142 behind moving from inside the adjacent lane to outside the adjacent lane.

[0071] The width-direction range may be increased by multiplying either the minimum width-direction threshold distance or the maximum width-direction threshold distance by a coefficient when the direction of movement of the other vehicle is toward the inside of the adjacent lane. That is, as shown in FIG. 10(b), when the direction of movement of the other vehicle 142 behind is toward the inside of the lane 12 as the adjacent lane, the rear maximum width-direction threshold distance coefficient is set to, for example, 1.2, and the width-direction range is increased by the amount of region N. In this way, by increasing the width-direction range beyond a predetermined range, the lane change of the host vehicle 15 can be canceled early in response to a vehicle moving from outside the adjacent lane into the adjacent lane.

[0072] In the above explanation, the threshold distance coefficient is set to a value greater than 0, but the threshold distance coefficient can also be set to 0. By setting the threshold distance coefficient to 0, the inter-vehicle distance threshold becomes 0, and it is possible to determine not to cancel the lane change.

[0073] Furthermore, instead of multiplying the base threshold by a coefficient, the longitudinal range and width direction range can also be changed by changing the threshold parameters. For example, to expand the range on the front side of the longitudinal range, the minimum distance between the vehicle and the rear vehicle is set to 8 m, and to reduce the range on the front side of the longitudinal range, the minimum distance between the vehicle and the rear vehicle is set to 2 m.

[0074] Next, the processing procedure of the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the processing of the vehicle control device according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 11, in step S1, the host vehicle maintains lane keeping driving by maintaining the center of the lane in which it is currently traveling. When the process proceeds to step S2, it is determined whether or not there is an instruction to change lanes. The determination of whether or not there is an instruction to change lanes is made by determining that the driver has turned on the turn signal, thereby instructing the vehicle to change lanes in the direction of the turn signal.

[0075] If the result of the determination in step S2 is that there is no instruction to change lanes (No), the process returns to step S1 and continues lane-keeping driving until an instruction to change lanes is given. If the result of the determination in step S2 is that there is an instruction to change lanes (Yes), the process proceeds to step S3, where the state of the host vehicle is acquired by the host vehicle state acquisition unit 1, and then to step S4, where information about other vehicles is acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit 2. Furthermore, the process proceeds to step S5, where road information is acquired by the road information acquisition unit 3, and then to step S6.

[0076] In step S6, a determination is made as to whether the host vehicle is able to change lanes. The determination in step S3 as to whether the host vehicle can change lanes is based on the host vehicle's speed, the position of the other vehicle, the speed of the other vehicle, and the distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle to determine whether a sufficient distance can be maintained between the host vehicle and the other vehicle and whether the lane change can be performed safely. This determination as to whether the host vehicle can change lanes is made based on whether the other vehicle is present within the area defined by the longitudinal range and the width range, similar to the determination as to whether the host vehicle will cancel the lane change, which will be described later. Alternatively, the determination is made by multiplying the forward threshold distance and the backward threshold distance for the lane change cancellation determination by a predetermined coefficient (e.g., 1.2) to make the longitudinal range larger than the predetermined range. Multiplying by the coefficient prevents unnatural behavior, such as canceling a lane change due to a slight change in the situation immediately after starting the lane change.

[0077] If the result of the determination in step S6 is that a lane change is not possible (No), the process proceeds to step S7, where the target speed of the host vehicle is adjusted to increase the inter-vehicle distance, and the process returns to step S3. Here, the target speed of the host vehicle is set to a value obtained by subtracting a predetermined value (for example, 10 / 3.6 [m / s]) from the speed of the other vehicle.

[0078] If the result of the determination in step S6 is that a lane change is possible (Yes), the process proceeds to step S8, where the lane change to the adjacent lane to which the lane change is to be made is initiated. While the lane change is being made, road information is acquired from the road information acquisition unit 3 in step S9, and the process proceeds to step S10, where it is determined whether the lane change has been completed. The lane change completion determination in step S10 is made by determining that the lane change has been completed when the center of gravity of the vehicle has entered the adjacent lane. Note that the lane change may also be completed when the center of gravity of the vehicle has come sufficiently close to the center of the adjacent lane.

[0079] If the result of the determination in step S10 is that the lane change is not yet complete (No), in step S11 the state of the vehicle is obtained from the vehicle state acquisition unit 1, the process proceeds to step S12 to obtain the state of the other vehicle from the other vehicle information acquisition unit 2, and in step S13 the movement direction determination unit 4 determines the longitudinal range and width direction range, respectively, and the lane change cancellation determination unit 5 determines whether the lane change should be canceled.

[0080] If the result of the judgment in step S13 is that the lane change should be canceled (Yes), the process proceeds to step S14, where the vehicle control unit 6 returns to the original lane, and the process proceeds to step S15, where lane-maintaining driving is performed on the original lane, and the process ends.

[0081] If the result of the judgment in step S13 is that the lane change should be continued (No), the process returns to step S9, then proceeds to step S10, where a lane change completion judgment is made until the lane change is completed, and then, as described above, proceeds to step S11, step S12, and then step S13, where the lane change cancellation judgment is continued.

[0082] If it is determined in step S10 that the lane change has been completed (Yes), the process proceeds to step S16, where lane-keeping driving is performed in the adjacent lane into which the lane change is to be made, and the process ends.

[0083] According to the vehicle control device of the first embodiment described above, by determining whether to cancel a lane change based on the direction of movement of other vehicles, it is possible to suppress the cancellation of a lane change in situations where the vehicle is approaching another vehicle but it is not necessary to cancel the lane change, and it is also possible to cancel a lane change in situations where the vehicle is not approaching another vehicle but it is necessary to cancel the lane change, thereby reducing the impact on traffic flow and the discomfort felt by occupants.

[0084] Although the present application describes an exemplary embodiment 1, it is not limited to embodiment 1, and countless variations not exemplified are envisioned within the scope of the technology disclosed in the present application. For example, this includes cases where at least one component is modified, added, or omitted.

[0085] Next, aspects of the vehicle control device disclosed in the present application will be described below as supplementary notes. (Appendix 1) a vehicle state acquisition unit that acquires a driving state of the vehicle; an other vehicle information acquisition unit that acquires other vehicle information including the position and speed of other vehicles traveling on the road on which the host vehicle is traveling; a road information acquisition unit that acquires road information including information about the lane center of an adjacent lane that is adjacent to the lane from which the host vehicle is traveling; a vehicle control unit that executes a lane change of the host vehicle to the adjacent lane based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit; A vehicle control device comprising: a lane change cancellation determination unit that determines whether to cancel the lane change and return to the original lane when another vehicle is detected within an area defined by a predetermined longitudinal range and a predetermined widthwise range during the lane change; a movement direction determination unit that determines a movement direction of the other vehicle based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit and the road information acquired by the road information acquisition unit; Equipped with The lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change at least one of the longitudinal direction range and the width direction range according to the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit. A vehicle control device characterized by: (Appendix 2) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change the longitudinal range in accordance with the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle with respect to a lane center of the adjacent lane. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 3) the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is outside the adjacent lane and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle from a lane center of the adjacent lane is larger than a predetermined threshold. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 2) is characterized in that: (Appendix 4) the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range larger than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is inside the adjacent lane and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle from a lane center of the adjacent lane is larger than a predetermined threshold. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 2) is characterized in that: (Appendix 5) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change the longitudinal range in accordance with the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle based on a dividing line between the lane from which the lane change is to be made and the adjacent lane. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, (Appendix 6) the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the lane from which the lane is to be changed and when a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle from a dividing line between the lane from which the lane is to be changed and the adjacent lane is smaller than a predetermined threshold value. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 5) is characterized in that: (Appendix 7) the lane change abort determination unit is configured to increase the longitudinal range to a value greater than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the adjacent lane and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle with reference to a dividing line between the lane from which the lane change is to be made and the adjacent lane is smaller than a predetermined threshold value. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 5) is characterized in that: (Appendix 8) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change the longitudinal range in accordance with a width-direction distance of the other vehicle relative to the host vehicle when the movement direction determination unit determines that the other vehicle is traveling straight. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 9) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to reduce the longitudinal range to a value smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction determination unit determines that the other vehicle is traveling straight and the width direction distance of the other vehicle from the host vehicle is smaller than a predetermined threshold value; The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 8) is characterized in that: (Appendix 10) the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than the predetermined range when the width-direction distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle is smaller than a predetermined threshold value and the moving direction of the host vehicle differs from the moving direction of the other vehicle determined by the moving direction determination unit. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 11) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the outside of the adjacent lane. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 12) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range larger than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the inside of the adjacent lane. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 13) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the width direction range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the outside of the adjacent lane. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 14) the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the width direction range larger than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the inside of the adjacent lane. The vehicle control device according to (Supplementary Note 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 15) the movement direction determination unit is configured to determine the movement direction of the other vehicle based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit and position information of a lane center of the adjacent lane acquired by the road information acquisition unit. The vehicle control device according to any one of (Supplementary Note 1) to (Supplementary Note 14), (Appendix 16) the movement direction determination unit is configured to determine the movement direction of the other vehicle based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit and position information of the adjacent lane dividing line acquired by the road information acquisition unit. A vehicle control device according to any one of (Supplementary Note 1) to (Supplementary Note 14). (Appendix 17) At least the vehicle control unit, the lane change cancellation determination unit, and the movement direction determination unit are provided in an ECU of the host vehicle. The vehicle control device according to any one of (Supplementary Note 1) to (Supplementary Note 16), [Explanation of symbols]

[0086] 100 vehicle control device, 1 own vehicle state acquisition unit, 2 other vehicle information acquisition unit, 3 Road information acquisition unit, 4 Movement direction determination unit, 5 Lane change cancellation determination unit, 6 Vehicle control unit, 7 In-vehicle sensor, 8 Map information, 9 Actuator, 10 Road, 11. From lane, 12. To lane, 13. Next lane, 121 Lane center, 122 Left lane line, 123 Right lane line, 14 Other vehicle, 141 Other vehicle in front, 142 Other vehicle behind, 15 Own vehicle

Claims

1. a vehicle state acquisition unit that acquires a driving state of the vehicle; an other vehicle information acquisition unit that acquires other vehicle information including the position and speed of other vehicles traveling on the road on which the host vehicle is traveling; a road information acquisition unit that acquires road information including information about the lane center of an adjacent lane that is adjacent to the lane from which the host vehicle is traveling; a vehicle control unit that executes a lane change of the host vehicle to the adjacent lane based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit; A vehicle control device comprising: a lane change cancellation determination unit that determines whether to cancel the lane change and return to the original lane when another vehicle is detected within an area defined by a predetermined longitudinal range and a predetermined widthwise range during the lane change; a movement direction determination unit that determines a movement direction of the other vehicle based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit and the road information acquired by the road information acquisition unit; Equipped with The lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change at least one of the longitudinal direction range and the width direction range according to the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit. A vehicle control device characterized by:

2. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change the longitudinal range in accordance with the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle with respect to a lane center of the adjacent lane.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

3. the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is outside the adjacent lane and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle from a lane center of the adjacent lane is larger than a predetermined threshold.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 2.

4. the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range larger than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is inside the adjacent lane and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle from a lane center of the adjacent lane is larger than a predetermined threshold.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 2.

5. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change the longitudinal range in accordance with the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle based on a dividing line between the lane from which the lane change is to be made and the adjacent lane.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

6. the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the lane from which the lane is to be changed and when a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle from a dividing line between the lane from which the lane is to be changed and the adjacent lane is smaller than a predetermined threshold value.

6. The vehicle control device according to claim 5.

7. the lane change abort determination unit is configured to increase the longitudinal range to a value greater than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the adjacent lane and a width-direction deviation of the other vehicle with reference to a dividing line between the lane from which the lane change is to be made and the adjacent lane is smaller than a predetermined threshold value.

6. The vehicle control device according to claim 5.

8. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to change the longitudinal range in accordance with a width-direction distance of the other vehicle relative to the host vehicle when the movement direction determination unit determines that the other vehicle is traveling straight.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

9. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to reduce the longitudinal range to a value smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction determination unit determines that the other vehicle is traveling straight and the width direction distance of the other vehicle from the host vehicle is smaller than a predetermined threshold value; 9. The vehicle control device according to claim 8.

10. the lane change abort determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than the predetermined range when the width-direction distance between the host vehicle and the other vehicle is smaller than a predetermined threshold value and the moving direction of the host vehicle differs from the moving direction of the other vehicle determined by the moving direction determination unit.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

11. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the outside of the adjacent lane.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

12. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the longitudinal range larger than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the inside of the adjacent lane.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

13. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the width direction range smaller than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the outside of the adjacent lane.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

14. the lane change cancellation determination unit is configured to make the width direction range larger than a predetermined range when the movement direction of the other vehicle determined by the movement direction determination unit is a direction toward the inside of the adjacent lane.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1.

15. the movement direction determination unit is configured to determine the movement direction of the other vehicle based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit and position information of a lane center of the adjacent lane acquired by the road information acquisition unit.

15. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle control device comprises:

16. the movement direction determination unit is configured to determine the movement direction of the other vehicle based on the other vehicle information acquired by the other vehicle information acquisition unit and position information of the adjacent lane dividing line acquired by the road information acquisition unit.

15. A vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 14.

17. At least the vehicle control unit, the lane change cancellation determination unit, and the movement direction determination unit are provided in an ECU of the host vehicle.

15. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle control device comprises:

Images