Steering Control via Visible Distance Estimation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing steering technologies fail to accurately assist a driver in navigating a vehicle along a road's curvature, especially under adverse weather conditions due to inaccuracies in road curvature detection by cameras.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus that includes a position obtainer, road information obtainer, target curvature calculator, and steering controller, which estimates a target steering angle based on current and target road information, and adjusts for environmental conditions like visibility to ensure accurate steering assistance regardless of weather.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If camera-based road curvature detection is used, then the system can obtain road shape information, but the detection accuracy deteriorates under adverse weather conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary calculation approach that uses visible distance as a mediator between environmental conditions and target position selection. Instead of directly relying on camera detection which fails under adverse weather, the system calculates visible distance based on environmental information and uses it to determine the target position for curvature detection, thereby indirectly obtaining reliable road shape information even when direct camera detection is compromised
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter used for target position determination from a fixed distance to a dynamic visible distance that adapts to environmental conditions. By adjusting the target position based on visible distance calculations that consider weather factors, the system maintains detection reliability across varying environmental conditions rather than using a static detection parameter
2Device complexity
If a fixed target distance is used for curvature detection, then the control system is simple, but the steering accuracy deteriorates when visibility changes due to environmental conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the target position dynamic by adjusting it according to visible distance calculations. Instead of using a fixed target distance, the system continuously adapts the target position based on environmental conditions and visible distance, allowing the control system to maintain accuracy under varying conditions while adding only moderate complexity through the visible distance calculation mechanism
3Stability of the object's composition
If the target position is far from the current position, then the steering control is stable, but the responsiveness to immediate road curvature changes deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent dynamically adjusts the target position distance based on visible distance calculations. When visibility is good, the target position can be set farther away for stable control; when visibility deteriorates, the target position automatically adjusts to a closer distance to maintain responsiveness. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize both stability and responsiveness according to real-time environmental conditions
Data Source
AI summary
A target steering angle calculator calculates, based on a target curvature, a target steering angle representing a steering angle of the vehicle at a target position. A current steering-angle obtainer obtains a current steering angle representing a steering angle of the vehicle at a current position. A steering controller controls the steering of the vehicle to cause the current steering angle to follow the target steering angle. A distance estimator estimates, based on at least one of the environmental information around the vehicle and control information about the vehicle, a visible distance representing a distance visibly recognizable by the driver of the vehicle to a front of the vehicle. The target curvature obtainer uses the visible distance as the target distance to obtain the target curvature at the predetermined target position that has the visible distance away from the current position along the road in the travelling direction.