Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Aisin Seiki Kabushiki Kaisha

Katsuhiko Iwazaki

Hiroaki Kataoka

Seiji Kawakami

Hisashi Satonaka

Tomohiko Endo

Yuu Tanaka

Yoshifumi Iwata

Toru Sugiyama

Yuichi Kubota

Hideyuki Iwakiri

Akira Matsui

Chumsamutr Rattapon

Satoru Niwa

Mitsuhiko Morita

Yu Watanabe

Yuji Okuda

Yoshiki Ninomiya

Quy Hung Nguyen Van

Arata Takahashi

Yoshifumi Int Prop Dep Iwata

Yuu Int Prop Dep Tanaka

The in-vehicle device transfers the selected image selected by the user from the photographed images stored in the storage device and the selected vehicle state, which is the vehicle state when the selected image is captured, to the form terminal. The portable device transmits the selected image and the selected vehicle state to the image management server only when the transmission is permitted by the user. The image management server determines whether or not the selected image is a rare image using the selected image and the selected vehicle state, and stores the selected image in the image storage device when the selected image is determined to be a rare image.

Information management system, and in-vehicle device, portable device, and image management server used therein

The in-vehicle device transfers the selected image selected by the user from the photographed images stored in the storage device and the selected vehicle state, which is the vehicle state when the selected image is captured, to the portable device. The portable device executes a portable side determination process for determining whether or not the selected image is a rare image by using the selected image and the selected vehicle state, and transmits the selected image determined to be a rare image by the portable side determination process and the selected vehicle state to the image management server only when the transmission is permitted by the user. The image management server stores the selected image and the selected vehicle state transmitted from the portable device in the image storage device.

Information management system, and portable device and image management server used therein

An object of the present invention is to provide a steering assist device which can perform steering assist control having excellent capability to follow up a traveling path by increasing the steering amount in the steering control at a curve entrance. A steering assist device of the present invention is a steering assist devicefor calculating a steering target value based on a shape of a traveling path on which a vehicle travels, and assisting steering according to the steering target value, wherein it is determined whether the vehicle is traveling a curve entrance of the traveling path, and when it is determined that the vehicle is traveling a curve entrance, a change in the steering target value is increased compared with the case of traveling a part of the path other than a curve entrance. As a result, a steering amount to turn the steering wheel can be increased at a curve entrance, and a delay in the turning of the steering wheel at a curve entrance can be suppressed.

Steering support device

In a driving assistance system having an actuator () for steering steered wheels of a vehicle, a positional deviation detecting unit () detects a deviation of a position of the vehicle from a forward travel path of the vehicle based on information around the vehicle. A steering control variable determination unit () determines a steering control variable to cancel the deviation. If a vehicle speed detected by a vehicle speed detecting unit is equal to or greater than a predetermined speed, the steering control variable determined by a steering control variable determination unit () decreases with an increase of the vehicle speed under the condition that the deviation of the position of the vehicle from the forward travel path is same. The driving assistance system can reduce a driver's discomfort caused by the steering control through the actuator () when the vehicle is running at a high speed.

Driving assistance system and driving assistance method

A steering assist system for applying a steering torque reduces the influence of a time-dependent steering control amount on an assist steering torque when a predetermined driving operation by a driver is detected. Thus, the influence of the time-dependent steering control amount on the applied steering torque, which increases when the period of time over which actual moving state deviates from the target moving state increases is reduced when the driver makes the predetermined driving operation. Thus, it is possible to avoid the problem where steering feel degrades because the steering torque increases over time.

Steering assist system and steering assist method

The present invention aims at providing a steering assistance apparatus which can accurately detect a curve exit of a running path and perform steering assistance control with an excellent running path following capability. The steering assistance apparatus of the present invention is a steering assistance apparatusfor providing a steering mechanism with a steering torque such that a vehicle runs along a running path according to an image capturing the running path in front of the vehicle, which estimates a curve direction of the running path by processing the image, estimates a steering direction of a driver of the vehicle according to a steering operation of the driver, and determines that the vehicle is running through a curve exit according to a fact that the estimated curve direction and steering direction do not coincide with each other. This makes it possible to determine the curve exit of the running path accurately and perform appropriate steering assistance control.

A future yaw rate &#x3b3;(t) is estimated according to a current yaw rate &#x3b3;(t) and a steering angular velocity. As compared with directly detecting the yaw rate &#x3b3;(t) from a vehicle body, calculating the yaw rate &#x3b3;(t) from a steering operation can attain a yaw rate having a phase advanced by a time lag &#x394;t, whereby the future yaw rate &#x3b3;(t) can be estimated accurately.

Apparatus for estimating yaw rate

In deviation prevention support ECUin driving operation support system, an applied torque by steering torque applieris set based on a vehicle speed of a vehicle. The applied torque is set to increase with increase of the vehicle speed. An upper limit according to the vehicle speed is set for this applied torque. Furthermore, in a Start interval in application of the applied torque, a rate of increasing to reach a maximum is determined according to the maximum of the applied torque. In a close interval, the applied torque is decreased at a rate different from that in the Start interval, and the absolute rate of increasing the torque in the Start interval is set to be larger than the absolute rate of decreasing the torque in the close interval.

Driving operation support system and method

A vehicle speed V is read (step S), V is compared with a first threshold Vth(step S), and, when V is not less than Vth, a warning torque is set smaller with increase in V (step S). When V is less than Vth, V is further compared with a second threshold Vth(step S), and when V is less than Vth, the warning torque is set approximately in proportion to the vehicle speed (step S); when V is not less than Vthand is less than Vth, the warning torque is set at a predetermined constant value (step S).

Vehicle derailing prevention device

A parking assist device for assisting parking operation to a target parking position includes an initial position setting device for setting an initial position of the target parking position to park a vehicle, a designation display showing the target parking position, a display position calculation device for calculating an initial display position of the designation display showing the target parking position at a screen showing vehicle surroundings based on the initial position determined by the initial position setting device, and an initial display position shifting device for shifting the initial display position of the designation display to a position within a display range on the screen in case the initial display position calculated by the display position calculation device is positioned outside of the display range on the screen.

Parking assist device

A vehicle speed V is compared with a threshold Vth; when V is less than Vth, TLC is set to an initial value t; when V is not less than Vth, TLC is set shorter with increase in V. Then TLC is compared with a predetermined value t th, and when TLC is less than t th, TLC is replaced by t th being a lower limit. This improves compatibility between a reduction in an occurrence frequency of needless warnings and a guarantee of a deviation margin time.

Vehicle deviation preventing control device

A guiding device is disclosed for guiding a vehicle to a target position by controlling the steering angle while estimating the vehicle position at least based on a steering angle value, characterized in that, in estimating the vehicle position, a slowing operation with respect to a change dp in a moving distance of the vehicle is applied to a turning curvature g(Str(p)) estimated based on the steering angle value in order to compensate for the delay due to tire deformation, whereby the delay-compensated turning curvature y(p) is obtained.

Guiding device for guiding vehicle to target place controlling the steering angle

A driving control apparatus of the present invention has a driving road keeping device for providing a torque to a steering mechanism so as to keep a vehicle traveling at a predetermined position on a driving road; a driving road departure warning device for issuing a warning of a departure from the driving road on the basis of a position of the vehicle relative to the driving road; and a setting device for setting a need or no need for execution of a control of the driving road keeping device or the driving road departure warning device. Where the setting device sets a need for execution of the control, the control of the driving road keeping device is executed when an activation condition of the driving road keeping device is met and when a cruise control device is active. Where the setting device sets a need for execution of the control, the control of the driving road departure warning device is executed when the activation condition of the driving road keeping device is not met or when the cruise control device is inactive. According to the present invention, a lane departure warning function and a lane-keep assist function are selectively executed in conjunction with activation/deactivation of the cruise control device and the activation condition of the driving road keeping device, whereby, even with an automatic stop of operation of either one of the functions, the other function can prevent the vehicle from departing from the lane.

Driving control apparatus and method having a lane keep function and a lane departure warning function

Lane width information Winf acquired by a traffic lane detector is retrieved (step S); when a value of the lane width information Winf is within a predetermined range of change amount relative to a lane width output Wout_old at a previous time step, i.e., not less than (Wout_old+Wdec) nor more than (Wout_old+Winc), Winf is used directly as the lane width output Wout (steps S&#x2192;S&#x2192;S&#x2192;S); when the value of lane width information Winf is off the predetermined range, i.e., less than (Wout_old+Wdec), (Wout_old+Wdec) is outputted as the lane width output value Wout (steps S&#x2192;S&#x2192;S&#x2192;S); when the value of lane width information Winf exceeds (Wout_old+Winc), (Wout_old+Winc) is outputted as the lane width output Wout (steps S&#x2192;S&#x2192;S).

Vehicle departure detecting device

A parking assist apparatus performs a guidance of a vehicle toward a target parking position, even after the guidance has been canceled. The target parking position is set in accordance with an operation applied to a target parking position designation display that is displayed on a screen showing a periphery of the vehicle. It is determined whether a cancellation condition of canceling the guidance of the vehicle toward the target parking position is established. A memory continuously holds target parking position information even after the cancellation condition is established.

Growing community of inventors

Shizuoka-ken, Japan

Katsuhiko Iwazaki