Crosswind determination device and crosswind determination method

Abstract

This crosswind determination device comprises: a calculation unit (121) configured to calculate, on the basis of the lateral acceleration of a vehicle (10) and the yaw rate of the vehicle (10), a crosswind estimation value that is a value indicating the strength of a crosswind striking the vehicle (10); a correction unit (122) configured to correct the crosswind estimation value on the basis of a vehicle body speed; and a processing unit (123) configured to execute processing based on the crosswind estimation value corrected by the correction unit (122).

Description

Crosswind determination device and crosswind determination method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a crosswind determination device and a crosswind determination method.

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a control device that has a function of detecting a crosswind hitting a vehicle and a function of controlling an aerodynamic device of the vehicle. Specifically, the control device determines whether a crosswind is hitting the vehicle based on the absolute value of the yaw rate and the absolute value of the lateral acceleration. Furthermore, if the control device determines that a crosswind is hitting the vehicle, it executes a process to activate the aerodynamic device, thereby suppressing instability in vehicle behavior.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-93618

[0004] The above-described control device cannot estimate the strength of a crosswind hitting the vehicle, and therefore cannot execute a process according to the strength of the crosswind hitting the vehicle.

[0005] A crosswind determination device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a calculation unit configured to calculate a crosswind estimation value, which is a value indicating the strength of a crosswind hitting the vehicle, based on the lateral acceleration of the vehicle and the yaw rate of the vehicle; a correction unit configured to correct the crosswind estimation value based on the vehicle speed; and a processing unit configured to perform processing based on the crosswind estimation value corrected by the correction unit.

[0006] A crosswind determination method according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes calculating a crosswind estimation value, which is a value indicating the strength of a crosswind hitting the vehicle, based on the lateral acceleration of the vehicle and the yaw rate of the vehicle, correcting the crosswind estimation value based on the vehicle speed, and performing processing based on the corrected crosswind estimation value.

[0007] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle control device. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the traveling mode of the vehicle of FIG. 1 when a crosswind hits it. FIG. 3 is a graph showing the relationship between vehicle speed and Gy error. FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between crosswind strength and the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value. FIG. 5 is a table showing the relationship between the estimated crosswind value and a regulation value. FIG. 6 is a flowchart explaining the flow of processing performed by the vehicle control device of FIG. 1 to obtain the regulation value.

[0008] An embodiment in which the crosswind determination device is embodied in a vehicle control device will be described below. <Configuration of this embodiment> As shown in Fig. 1, a vehicle 10 includes a plurality of wheels 20, a braking device 30, a drive device 40, an operation system 50, a detection system 60, and a vehicle control device 100. The vehicle 10 may be a two-wheeled vehicle or a four-wheeled vehicle.

[0009] <Brake Device> The brake device 30 applies a braking force to the wheels 20. The brake device 30 includes a brake actuator 31 that adjusts the braking force applied to the wheels 20, and a brake control unit 32 that controls the brake actuator 31. The brake control unit 32 is an electronic control unit. The brake control unit 32 is configured to be able to send and receive various information to and from the vehicle control device 100 via the in-vehicle network.

[0010] <Drive Device> The drive device 40 applies drive force to the wheels 20. The drive device 40 includes a power unit 41 having at least one of an engine and an electric motor, and a drive control unit 42 that controls the power unit 41. The drive control unit 42 is an electronic control device. The drive control unit 42 is configured to be able to send and receive various information to and from the vehicle control device 100 via the in-vehicle network.

[0011] <Operation System> The operation system 50 is operated by the driver to control the behavior of the vehicle 10. The operation system 50 has a brake operation member 51, a drive operation member 52, and a steering member 53. The brake operation member 51 is operated by the driver when applying a braking force to the vehicle 10. An example of the brake operation member 51 is a brake pedal. The drive operation member 52 is operated by the driver when applying a driving force to the vehicle 10. An example of the drive operation member 52 is an accelerator pedal. The steering member 53 is operated by the driver when turning the vehicle 10. An example of the steering member 53 is a steering wheel.

[0012] <Detection System> The detection system 60 detects various parameters of the vehicle 10. The detection system 60 has a brake sensor 61, an accelerator sensor 62, a steering angle sensor 63, a wheel speed sensor 64, an acceleration sensor 65, and a yaw rate sensor 66.

[0013] The brake sensor 61 detects the amount of operation of the brake operating member 51 by the driver. The accelerator sensor 62 detects the amount of operation of the drive operating member 52 by the driver. The steering angle sensor 63 detects the steering angle of the steering member 53. The wheel speed sensor 64 detects the rotational speed of the wheels 20 as the wheel speed. The acceleration sensor 65 detects the acceleration of the vehicle 10 in the longitudinal, lateral, and vertical directions. The yaw rate sensor 66 detects the yaw rate of the vehicle 10. The various sensors 61 to 66 that make up the detection system 60 output their detection results to the vehicle control device 100.

[0014] <Vehicle Control Device> The vehicle control device 100 includes a processing circuit 110. For example, the processing circuit 110 is an electronic control device. In this case, the processing circuit 110 includes a CPU 111 and a memory 112. The memory 112 stores a vehicle control program executed by the CPU 111. The memory 112, i.e., the computer-readable medium, includes any available medium that can be accessed by a general-purpose or dedicated computer. The processing circuit 110 controls the braking device 30 and the drive device 40 as the CPU 111 executes the vehicle control program.

[0015] <Functional Configuration of Processing Circuit> The processing circuit 110 functions as a calculation unit 121, a correction unit 122, and a processing unit 123 when the CPU 111 executes the vehicle control program. These will be described in detail below.

[0016] <Calculation Unit> The calculation unit 121 calculates various values ​​based on the detection results of the detection system 60. The calculation unit 121 calculates the braking force required by the driver for the vehicle 10 and the driving force required by the driver for the vehicle 10 based on the detection results of the brake sensor 61 and the accelerator sensor 62. The calculation unit 121 calculates the steering angle of the steering member 53 and the steering speed, which is the rate of change of the steering member 53, based on the detection result of the steering angle sensor 63. The steering speed is the amount of change in the steering angle per unit time and is a positive value regardless of the steering direction. The calculation unit 121 calculates the vehicle body speed based on the detection result of the wheel speed sensor 64. The vehicle body speed is the speed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle 10. The calculation unit 121 calculates the longitudinal acceleration, lateral acceleration, and vertical acceleration of the vehicle 10 based on the detection result of the acceleration sensor 65. The calculation unit 121 calculates the yaw rate of the vehicle 10 based on the detection result of the yaw rate sensor 66. Furthermore, the calculation unit 121 calculates wind resistance, which is resistance in the longitudinal direction according to the wind hitting the vehicle 10, and an estimated crosswind value according to the strength of the crosswind.

[0017] First, a method for calculating wind resistance will be explained. The equation of motion in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle 10 while it is running is as follows: Ft - (Fg + Fr + Fa + Fw) = m a Here, "Ft" is the driving force, "Fg" is the gradient resistance force, "Fr" is the rolling resistance force, "Fa" is the air resistance force, "Fw" is the wind resistance force, "m" is the mass of the vehicle 10, and "a" is the longitudinal acceleration. Therefore, wind resistance can be calculated from the following equation.

[0018] Fw = Ft - (Fg + Fr + Fa) - m a Each term on the right side of the above equation can be calculated based on values ​​output from the detection system 60, values ​​corresponding to the specifications of the vehicle 10, and values ​​corresponding to the environment in which the vehicle 10 is traveling. For example, the air resistance can be calculated from the Cd value, the frontal projection area of ​​the vehicle 10, the air density, and the vehicle speed. Furthermore, the rolling resistance can be calculated from the rolling coefficient of the wheel 20, the mass of the vehicle 10, and the gravitational acceleration. Alternatively, in the above equation, the only term affected by wind is the first term on the left side. Therefore, the left side of the above equation is "0" in a windless environment, but not "0" in an environment in which the wind is blowing against the vehicle body. Therefore, if the value of the right side of the above equation is calculated in advance while changing conditions such as speed in a windless environment, it is possible to calculate the wind resistance in relation to that value.

[0019] Next, a method for calculating the crosswind estimated value will be described with reference to FIG. 2 . The calculation unit 121 calculates the crosswind estimated value based on the lateral acceleration, yaw rate, and vehicle speed. When the vehicle 10 is not subjected to a crosswind as indicated by the outline arrow in FIG. 2 , the direction of travel of the vehicle 10 does not change from the direction indicated by the solid arrow due to the influence of the crosswind. On the other hand, when the vehicle 10 is subjected to a crosswind as indicated by the outline arrow in FIG. 2 , the direction of travel of the vehicle 10 changes from the direction indicated by the solid arrow to the direction indicated by the dashed-dotted arrow due to the influence of the crosswind. In this case, the crosswind applied to the vehicle 10 generates lateral acceleration and a yaw rate in the vehicle 10. However, under such circumstances, the driver operates the steering member 53 to prevent the vehicle 10 from deviating from the lane in which the vehicle 10 is traveling. In other words, the driver operates the steering member 53 in a direction that eliminates the influence of the crosswind so as to prevent the direction of travel of the vehicle 10 from changing. In this way, when the traveling direction of the vehicle 10 is maintained by operating the steering member 53, a yaw rate is unlikely to occur even though lateral acceleration is occurring. Taking such steering into consideration, when a crosswind is blowing against the vehicle 10, unlike when a crosswind is not blowing against the vehicle 10, lateral acceleration is generated but a yaw rate is unlikely to occur.

[0020] Here, the lateral acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor 65 is referred to as "actual Gy," and the lateral acceleration calculated from the yaw rate detected by the yaw rate sensor 66 is referred to as "estimated Gy." In this case, the stronger the crosswind, the greater the difference between the actual Gy and the estimated Gy. Hereinafter, the Gy error will be defined as an index showing the strength of the crosswind by the following equation:

[0021] Gy error = actual Gy - estimated Gy The Gy error is a positive or negative value depending on the direction of the crosswind. The estimated Gy is the product of the yaw rate and the vehicle speed. Therefore, if the yaw rate is represented as "Yr" and the vehicle speed is represented as "V", the Gy error can be expressed as follows:

[0022] Gy error = actual Gy - (Yr V) As an example, if the driver operates the steering member 53 in a situation where a crosswind hits the vehicle 10 while the vehicle 10 is traveling straight on a horizontal road surface, and the vehicle 10 continues traveling straight, the yaw rate is "0", and therefore the estimated Gy is "0". In other words, the Gy error increases depending on the strength of the crosswind. Furthermore, if the vehicle 10 is traveling on a road surface that is inclined in the longitudinal and transverse directions, it is preferable to perform a correction according to the magnitude of the inclination when calculating the Gy error.

[0023] <Correction Unit> Figure 3 is a graph showing experimental results of the relationship between vehicle speed and Gy error when the strength of the crosswind is changed. As shown in Figure 3, when the vehicle speed is constant, the stronger the crosswind, the larger the Gy error. In other words, when the vehicle speed is constant, it can be determined that the stronger the crosswind, the larger the Gy error. On the other hand, even when the strength of the crosswind is constant, when the vehicle speed is high, the Gy error is larger than when the vehicle speed is low. More specifically, referring to the approximation line L15 when the crosswind strength is 15 m / s and the approximation line L20 when the crosswind strength is 20 m / s, it can be said that when the crosswind strength is constant, the Gy error is proportional to the square of the vehicle speed.

[0024] Therefore, the correction unit 122 calculates an estimated crosswind value indicating the strength of the crosswind by correcting the Gy error calculated by the calculation unit 121 with the vehicle speed. If the estimated crosswind value is denoted as "Ew", the estimated crosswind value can be obtained from the following equation.

[0025] Ew = Gy error / V ２ In this way, the correction unit 122 eliminates the dependency of the Gy error on the vehicle speed by dividing the Gy error by the square of the vehicle speed. Note that the estimated crosswind value is calculated by correcting the Gy error with the vehicle speed, so the Gy error can also be considered as the estimated crosswind value before being corrected with the vehicle speed.

[0026] FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between crosswind strength and the estimated crosswind value. FIG. 4 shows the results of an experiment in which a crosswind of known strength was applied to a traveling vehicle 10 while changing the vehicle speed. As shown in FIG. 4, the stronger the crosswind, the larger the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value, regardless of the vehicle speed. In other words, the strength of the crosswind is proportional to the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value. In this respect, the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value can be said to be an index of crosswind strength, regardless of the vehicle speed. Note that, like the Gy error, the estimated crosswind value takes on a positive or negative value depending on the direction of the crosswind, and its absolute value increases depending on the strength of the crosswind.

[0027] <Processing Unit> The processing unit 123 executes processing based on the crosswind estimate corrected by the correction unit 122. In this embodiment, the processing by the processing unit 123 includes processing for determining whether traffic restrictions are necessary on the expressway on which the vehicle 10 is traveling, processing for determining the details of the traffic restrictions on the expressway on which the vehicle 10 is traveling, and processing for notifying the driver of the details of the traffic restrictions. In other embodiments, the processing by the processing unit 123 may include processing for notifying the driver of the crosswind estimate itself or the strength of the crosswind estimated from the crosswind estimate. Furthermore, the processing by the processing unit 123 may include processing for transmitting the crosswind estimate or information corresponding to the crosswind estimate to an organization that manages the expressway, a following vehicle, or the like. Furthermore, the processing by the processing unit 123 may include processing for controlling at least one of the braking device 30 and the drive device 40 so that the vehicle speed decreases as the absolute value of the crosswind estimate increases.

[0028] 5 is a table showing an example of the relationship between the estimated crosswind value and the details of traffic restrictions. The first reference value is the estimated crosswind value corresponding to a wind speed of 10 m / s. If the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is less than the first reference value, the processing unit 123 outputs "0" as a restriction value indicating that traffic restrictions are unnecessary. In other words, if the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is less than the first reference value, the processing unit 123 does not output a restriction value of "1 to 3."

[0029] The second reference value is an estimated crosswind value corresponding to a wind speed of 13 m / s. If the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the first reference value and less than the second reference value, the processing unit 123 outputs a restriction value of "1" indicating that traffic restriction is necessary.

[0030] The third reference value is an estimated crosswind value corresponding to a wind speed of 20 m / s. When the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the second reference value and less than the third reference value, the processing unit 123 outputs a restriction value of "2" indicating that a more severe traffic restriction is required than when the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is less than the second reference value. Furthermore, when the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the third reference value, the processing unit 123 outputs a restriction value of "3" indicating that a more severe traffic restriction is required than when the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is less than the third reference value.

[0031] Thus, when the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is less than the first reference value, the processing unit 123 determines that traffic restrictions on the expressway on which the vehicle 10 is traveling are unnecessary. On the other hand, when the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the first reference value, the processing unit 123 determines that traffic restrictions on the expressway on which the vehicle 10 is traveling are necessary. Furthermore, the processing unit 123 determines that the larger the restriction value, the more severe the traffic restrictions that are necessary. As an example, when the restriction value is "1," the traffic restriction is a speed restriction that sets the maximum speed at 80 km / h. When the restriction value is "2," the traffic restriction is a speed restriction that sets the maximum speed at 50 km / h and a restriction that prohibits motorcycles from entering the road. When the restriction value is "3," the traffic restriction is a complete road closure.

[0032] As described above, the estimated crosswind value indicating the strength of the crosswind is a value calculated based on the detection results of the wheel speed sensor 64, the acceleration sensor 65, and the yaw rate sensor 66. Therefore, when the behavior of the vehicle 10 fluctuates significantly, the calculation accuracy of the estimated crosswind value may be reduced. Furthermore, depending on the state of the vehicle 10, it may not be necessary to calculate the estimated crosswind value. Therefore, the processing unit 123 determines whether to execute processing based on the estimated crosswind value based on at least one of the vehicle speed, wind resistance, longitudinal acceleration, and steering speed.

[0033] When the brake operating member 51 is operated strongly, when the drive operating member 52 is operated, or when the steering member 53 is operated quickly, the behavior of the vehicle 10 changes significantly, which may reduce the detection accuracy of some sensors. Therefore, the processing unit 123 executes processing based on the crosswind estimate value when the absolute value of the longitudinal acceleration is less than the acceleration determination value, but does not execute processing based on the crosswind estimate value when the absolute value of the longitudinal acceleration is equal to or greater than the acceleration determination value. Furthermore, the processing unit 123 executes processing based on the crosswind estimate value when the vehicle is not braking, but does not execute processing based on the crosswind estimate value when the vehicle is braking. Furthermore, the processing unit 123 executes processing based on the crosswind estimate value when the steering speed of the steering member 53 is less than the steering speed determination value, but does not execute processing based on the crosswind estimate value when the steering speed of the steering member 53 is equal to or greater than the steering speed determination value. The acceleration determination value and the steering speed determination value are values ​​that are set in advance through experiments or the like.

[0034] If the vehicle speed is low, it is highly likely that the vehicle 10 is not traveling on a highway. Therefore, when the vehicle speed is equal to or greater than the speed determination value, the processing unit 123 executes processing based on the crosswind estimated value. On the other hand, when the vehicle speed is less than the speed determination value, the processing unit 123 does not execute processing based on the crosswind estimated value. As an example, the speed determination value may be 50 km / h to 70 km / h.

[0035] Furthermore, when the wind resistance is small, it is highly likely that the crosswind is weak. Therefore, when the wind resistance is less than the resistance determination value, the processing unit 123 does not execute processing based on the crosswind estimated value, but when the wind resistance is equal to or greater than the resistance determination value, it executes processing based on the crosswind estimated value. Here, wind resistance is a force in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle 10. However, it is extremely unlikely that the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle 10 and the wind direction will completely coincide. Therefore, when wind resistance, which is the fore-and-aft component of the wind hitting the vehicle 10, is occurring, it is highly likely that the vehicle 10 is experiencing a crosswind.

[0036] Note that when the condition for the processing unit 123 not to execute processing based on the crosswind estimated value is met, there is no need for the calculation unit 121 to calculate the crosswind estimated value. Therefore, when the condition for the processing unit 123 not to execute processing based on the crosswind estimated value is met, the calculation unit 121 does not need to calculate the crosswind estimated value.

[0037] If the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is less than the first reference value, no traffic restrictions are required on the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling. On the other hand, if the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the first reference value, traffic restrictions are required on the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling. If the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the first reference value, it is determined whether or not the restriction value corresponds to one of "1" to "3." In this respect, it can be said that the processing unit 123 determines whether or not a traffic restriction is required based on whether or not the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the first reference value. Furthermore, it can be said that the processing unit 123 determines the content of the traffic restriction by calculating the restriction value based on the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value when it is determined that a traffic restriction is required.

[0038] <Flow of Processing Executed by Vehicle Control Device> The flow of processing executed by the vehicle control device 100 will be described with reference to Fig. 6. This processing is executed in a predetermined control cycle while the vehicle is traveling.

[0039] 6, the vehicle control device 100 acquires the vehicle body speed, longitudinal acceleration, lateral acceleration, vertical acceleration, yaw rate, and steering speed based on the detection results of the detection system 60 (S11 to S14). Next, the vehicle control device 100 determines whether the vehicle body speed is equal to or greater than a speed determination value (S15). If the vehicle body speed is less than the speed determination value (S15: NO), the vehicle control device 100 terminates this process. On the other hand, if the vehicle body speed is equal to or greater than the speed determination value (S15: YES), the vehicle control device 100 determines whether the absolute value of the longitudinal acceleration is less than the acceleration determination value (S16). If the absolute value of the longitudinal acceleration is equal to or greater than the acceleration determination value (S16: NO), the vehicle control device 100 terminates this process.

[0040] On the other hand, if the absolute value of the longitudinal acceleration is less than the acceleration determination value (S16: YES), the vehicle control device 100 determines whether the vehicle 10 is braking (S17). If the vehicle 10 is braking (S17: YES), the vehicle control device 100 ends this process. On the other hand, if the vehicle 10 is not braking (S17: NO), the vehicle control device 100 determines whether the steering speed is less than the steering speed determination value (S18). If the steering speed is equal to or greater than the steering speed determination value (S18: NO), the vehicle control device 100 ends this process. On the other hand, if the steering speed is less than the steering speed determination value (S18: YES), the vehicle control device 100 calculates the wind resistance force (S19).

[0041] Next, the vehicle control device 100 determines whether the wind resistance is equal to or greater than the resistance determination value (S20). If the wind resistance is less than the resistance determination value (S20: NO), i.e., if it is assumed that a crosswind is not blowing against the vehicle 10, the vehicle control device 100 ends this process. On the other hand, if the wind resistance is equal to or greater than the resistance determination value (S20: YES), i.e., if it is assumed that a crosswind is blowing against the vehicle 10, the vehicle control device 100 calculates an estimated crosswind value (S21). Next, the vehicle control device 100 determines whether the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than a first reference value (S22). That is, the vehicle control device 100 determines whether traffic restrictions are required for the expressway on which the vehicle 10 is traveling. If the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is less than the first reference value (S22: NO), i.e., if traffic restrictions are not required, the vehicle control device 100 ends this process. On the other hand, if the absolute value of the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the first reference value (S22: YES), that is, if traffic restrictions are required, the vehicle control device 100 acquires a restriction value corresponding to the estimated crosswind value (S23).

[0042] <Actions and Effects of the Present Embodiment> The vehicle control device 100 calculates an estimated crosswind value indicating the strength of a crosswind by correcting the Gy error calculated based on the lateral acceleration, yaw rate, and vehicle speed with the vehicle speed. Therefore, even if the vehicle 10 does not have an anemometer that directly measures the strength of the crosswind, the vehicle control device 100 can accurately estimate the strength of the crosswind the vehicle 10 will experience. Furthermore, the vehicle control device 100 can perform appropriate processing according to the estimated crosswind value calculated by itself. Specifically, the vehicle control device 100 can predict traffic restrictions on a highway while the vehicle 10 is traveling according to the estimated crosswind value. Therefore, the driver of the vehicle 10 can drive appropriately according to the strength of the crosswind. Furthermore, because the vehicle control device 100 can calculate an estimated crosswind value without relying on external information, it can predict traffic restrictions earlier than they are actually issued.

[0043] Depending on the driving conditions of the vehicle 10, the calculation accuracy of the crosswind estimate may decrease or calculation of the crosswind estimate may become unnecessary. In this regard, the vehicle control device 100 can accurately calculate the crosswind estimate when necessary based on the vehicle speed, wind resistance, longitudinal acceleration, steering speed, etc. In other words, the vehicle control device 100 can avoid calculating the crosswind estimate when it is estimated that the calculation accuracy of the crosswind estimate is low or when it is estimated that calculation of the crosswind estimate is unnecessary.

[0044] If the calculated estimated crosswind value is less than the first reference value, no traffic restriction is required. Therefore, the vehicle control device 100 determines whether or not a traffic restriction is required by determining whether or not the estimated crosswind value is equal to or greater than the first reference value. Therefore, if the estimated crosswind value is less than the first reference value, the vehicle control device 100 does not determine the content of the traffic restriction based on the estimated crosswind value. Therefore, the vehicle control device 100 can prevent unnecessary determinations.

[0045] <Modifications> This embodiment can be modified as follows: This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined and implemented within the scope of technical compatibility.

[0046] The Gy error may be any value that correlates with the strength of the crosswind. For example, the Gy error may be a value obtained by dividing the actual Gy by the estimated Gy. In the above embodiment, as long as the calculation accuracy of the crosswind estimation value can be ensured, the vehicle control device 100 may always calculate the crosswind estimation value while the vehicle 10 is traveling.

[0047] The vehicle control device 100 may determine whether to execute processing based on an estimated crosswind value based on at least one of the vehicle speed, wind resistance, and steering speed. The vehicle control device 100 may determine whether traffic restrictions are required on general roads, rather than expressways. In this case, the vehicle control device 100 does not need to determine whether to execute processing based on an estimated crosswind value based on the vehicle speed.

[0048] The vehicle control device 100 does not have to determine, based on the estimated crosswind value, whether traffic restrictions are required for the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling. In other words, the vehicle control device 100 may determine, based on the estimated crosswind value, whether to perform other processing in accordance with the estimated crosswind value.

[0049] The content of the traffic regulation is preferably selected appropriately depending on the condition of the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling. For example, the traffic regulation may be a lane regulation or other regulation.

[0050] The vehicle control device 100 may determine the direction of the crosswind based on the estimated crosswind value. Then, the vehicle control device 100 may execute different processing depending on the determined direction of the crosswind. The vehicle 10 may be equipped with an aerodynamic device for stabilizing the traveling of the vehicle 10. In this case, the vehicle control device 100 may execute processing to operate the aerodynamic device in a direction that weakens the influence of the crosswind based on the estimated crosswind value.

[0051] The vehicle 10 may be equipped with a driving assistance device having an autonomous driving function, etc. The vehicle control device 100 is not limited to a processing circuit that includes a CPU and memory such as ROM and executes software processing. For example, the vehicle control device 100 may be equipped with a dedicated hardware circuit that executes at least some of the various processes executed in the above-described embodiment. An example of a dedicated hardware circuit is an ASIC. ASIC is an abbreviation for "Application Specific Integrated Circuit." In other words, the vehicle control device 100 may have any of the following configurations (a) to (c):

[0052] (a) A processing circuit comprising a processing device that executes all of the above processes according to a program and a program storage device such as a ROM that stores the program. (b) A processing circuit comprising a processing device and program storage device that executes part of the above processes according to a program, and a dedicated hardware circuit that executes the remaining processes.

[0053] (c) A processing circuit comprising dedicated hardware circuits for executing all of the above processes, wherein the software execution device comprising a processing device and a program storage device, and the dedicated hardware circuits may be plural.

[0054] The phrase "at least one" as used herein means "one or more" of the desired options. As an example, the phrase "at least one" as used herein means "only one option" or "both of two options" if the number of options is two. As another example, the phrase "at least one" as used herein means "only one option" or "any combination of two or more options" if the number of options is three or more.

Claims

1. A crosswind determination device comprising: a calculation unit configured to calculate a crosswind estimation value, which is a value indicating the strength of a crosswind hitting the vehicle, based on the lateral acceleration of the vehicle and the yaw rate of the vehicle; a correction unit configured to correct the crosswind estimation value based on the vehicle speed; and a processing unit configured to execute processing based on the crosswind estimation value corrected by the correction unit.

2. The crosswind determination device according to claim 1, wherein the processing unit is configured to determine whether or not traffic restrictions are required for the road on which the vehicle is traveling, based on the crosswind estimation value corrected by the correction unit.

3. The crosswind determination device according to claim 2, wherein the processing unit is further configured to, when determining that the traffic regulation is necessary, determine the content of the traffic regulation based on the crosswind estimated value corrected by the correction unit.

4. A crosswind determination device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the processing unit is further configured to determine whether or not to execute processing based on the crosswind estimation value corrected by the correction unit based on at least one of the vehicle speed, wind resistance which is a resistance force corresponding to the wind hitting the vehicle, longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle, and steering speed which is a rate of change in steering angle.

5. A crosswind determination method comprising: calculating a crosswind estimation value, which is a value indicating the strength of a crosswind hitting the vehicle, based on the lateral acceleration of the vehicle and the yaw rate of the vehicle; correcting the crosswind estimation value based on the vehicle speed; and performing processing based on the corrected crosswind estimation value.

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