Vehicle Control Apparatus for Intentional Steering State Transitions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Automated driving systems that switch from hands-off to manual steering without driver awareness, as they rely solely on gripping the steering wheel, may transition unexpectedly, potentially catching the driver off guard.
Innovation Solution
A control apparatus for vehicles that includes environment detection units and operation detection units to manage three states: manual steering, hands-on automatic steering, and hands-off automatic steering, ensuring transitions are made based on intentional driver actions, such as gripping or turning the steering wheel, to accurately determine the driver's intent and maintain safety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If automated driving switches to manual steering by merely detecting steering wheel grip, then the switching process is simple and fast, but the driver may not be aware of the switching occurring
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of driver intent through multiple signals (steering wheel grip, steering operations, pedal operations) before executing the state transition. This ensures the driver's intention is confirmed before switching from automated to manual steering, preventing unexpected transitions while maintaining smooth operation.
2Reliability
If multiple detection conditions are required for state transition, then driver intent is accurately determined, but the switching process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is segmented into distinct functional units: environment detection unit, operation detection unit, and travel control unit. Each unit handles specific detection tasks, and their outputs are integrated to determine state transitions. This modular segmentation reduces overall system complexity while enabling comprehensive multi-condition detection for accurate driver intent determination.
Data Source
AI summary
A control apparatus of a vehicle including a steering operator is provided. The control apparatus includes an environment detection unit configured to detect a surrounding environment of the vehicle, a travel control unit configured to execute automatic steering control based on the surrounding environment, and an operation detection unit configured to detect a first operation and a second operation by a driver. The travel control unit can take a first state in which automatic steering control is not performed, a second state in which automatic steering control is performed on condition of the second operation, and a third state in which automatic steering control is performed without condition of the second operation. The travel control unit transitions from the third state to the first state on condition of the first operation.