Nissan Motor Company Limited

Taketoshi Kawabe

Shinichiro Joe

Ikuhiro Taniguchi

Hikaru Nishira

Ken Ito

Shigeru Nakajima

Itsuro Muramoto

Michel Mensler

Hiroshi Kumaki

Hiromasa Sakai

Yoshitaka Deguchi

Tomoya Imazu

Yasushi Narita

Yoshinori Yamamura

Motoharu Nishio

Masaru Okamoto

Kouichi Kuroda

Kouichiro Yonekura

Seigo Komatsu

Shin-ichiro Joe

Joe Shinichiro

A lane change assist system is comprised of a host vehicle state detecting device that detects a host vehicle traveling condition, a surrounding vehicle detecting device that detects other vehicle located around the host vehicle, a lane detecting device that detects a lane around the host vehicle, and a processing unit. The processing unit is arranged to set a target lane, to determine a period of a lane change assist, to set a predicted period for an evaluation of a lane change to the target lane based on a prediction, to obtain an appropriate speed range during the predicted period for each gap, and to select a target vehicle speed from the appropriate speed range.

Lane change assist system

A vehicle operation support apparatus includes a vehicle operation plan determination section to determine a vehicle operation plan including a future time series of a selection of a planned target vehicle and a future time series of a selection of a planned target lane position over a prediction horizon of time. The vehicle operation plan determination section includes an operation part to predict a future time series of a state of a vehicle group over the prediction horizon in accordance with a candidate value of the vehicle operation plan, the vehicle group including the host vehicle and each detected vehicle, an operation part configured to perform an evaluation operation of providing a quantitative measure in accordance with the predicted value of the time series vehicle group state, and an operation part configured to generate the vehicle operation plan by optimization based on the evaluation operation.

Vehicle operation support apparatus

A model predictive control apparatus includes an initial solution generation section, an abnormality handling section, and an objective function adjustment section. The abnormality handling section performs initial solution generation when it is determined that performed optimization is abnormal. The initial solution generation section generates an initial optimal value of a future time series control input in accordance with an initial objective function, without reference to a candidate value of the time series control input. The objective function adjustment section adjusts the current objective function so that the current objective function varies stepwise with time toward the normal objective function when it is determined that the current objective function is different from the normal objective function.

Model predictive control apparatus

A motor torque control apparatus for an automotive vehicle includes a transmission which has either one of a fixed speed ratio and a variable speed ratio; at least one motor/generator coupled with the transmission as a propelling power source of the vehicle, a power of the power source being transmitted to a road wheel for propulsion of the vehicle through the transmission; and a controller configured to be electrically connected to the motor/generator for motor torque control. Moreover, this controller includes a disturbance observer that estimates a driving force, and a motor torque control section that controls the driving force estimated by the disturbance observer, to bring the estimated driving force closer to a target driving force by way of servo control.

Motor torque control apparatus and method for automotive vehicle

In control apparatus and method for a hybrid vehicle, a target driving power and a target driving torque are calculates from at least one of detected values and estimated values of both of a vehicle speed and an accelerator opening angle, a target engine speed is calculated from the target driving power; and target values of motor torques of the first and second motors/generators and of an engine torque are set from at least one of revolution speed variation rates of any two revolution elements of a power transmission mechanism of the hybrid vehicle and a running resistance torque, the target engine speed, an engine speed, the target driving power, and the target driving torque in such a manner that no excessive lack in the driving torque for the target driving torque occurs and a deviation between the target engine speed and the engine speed is decreased.

Control apparatus and method for hybrid vehicle

In shift control apparatus and method for a hybrid transmission suitable for use in a hybrid vehicle, at least one of a target drive torque and a target input revolution acceleration to be a value within a realizable region to be set as a drive torque command value or an input revolution command acceleration is corrected in such a manner that polarities of the target drive torque and the target input revolution acceleration are left unchanged, in a case where a combination of the target drive torque with the target input revolution acceleration falls out of a realizable region on two-dimensional coordinates of the drive torque and the input revolution acceleration, the drive torque command value and the input revolution acceleration command value contributing to controls of the main power source and the motor/generators in place of the target drive torque and the target input revolution acceleration.

Shift control apparatus and method for hybrid transmission applicable to hybrid vehicle

In system and method for improving operator driving assistance of an automotive vehicle, at an indication of acceleration timing and magnitude and the lane change timing, a lane change necessity is calculated and a lane change trigger signal is produced while the host vehicle is operated on a road that has at least three lanes and, at the calculation of the lane change necessity and at the production of the lane change signal, a new lane change trigger signal is prohibited to indicate until a forward lane change operation is deemed to be completed, in a case where the vehicle is traveling on a multiple number traffic lane road.

System and method for improving vehicle operator driving assistance of automotive vehicle

In a toroidal continuously variable transmission (TCVT) control apparatus with a variator unit and a ratio control hydraulic system, an electronic TCVT control unit electronically feedback-controls a transmission ratio based on a deviation from a desired transmission ratio, and generates a normal-period command signal to be input to a step motor for compensating for the deviation. The control unit determines whether the deviation can be compensated for by electronically feedback-controlling the transmission ratio based on the deviation and generates an abnormal-period command signal to be input to the step motor to realize a step-motor displacement capable of shifting or diverging the transmission ratio to a speed-reduction side, while keeping a trunnion out of contact with a stopper in the direction of the trunnion axis, when the deviation cannot be compensated for by electronically feedback-controlling the transmission ratio based on the deviation.

Toroidal continuously variable transmission control apparatus

A toroidal continuously-variable transmission shift control apparatus includes a controlling section to control an actual transmission ratio toward a target transmission ratio by producing a control command in one of a forward traveling control mode for a forward vehicle traveling state, and a reverse traveling control mode; and a control modifying section arranged to select one of the forward traveling control mode and the reverse traveling control mode in accordance with a first parameter representing a driver's intention. The control modifying section is configured to detect a change of the vehicle traveling direction in accordance with a second parameter which is the actual transmission ratio, and to modify the shift control of the toroidal continuously-variable transmission so as to shift the actual transmission ratio to a speed decreasing side upon detection of the change of the vehicle traveling direction.

Shift control of continuously-variable transmission

A method improves operator assistance of an automobile. On substantially real time basis, data on the automobile and on intervehicle relationship involving the automobile are collected. The data are processed to determine variables for evaluation. The determined variables are evaluated to recommend control input.

Method and system for vehicle operator assistance improvement

A system for enhanced ratio control in a continuously variable transmission (CVT) includes a ratio control element positionable by an actuator in response to an actuator command to establish various CVT ratios in the CVT. At least one sensor generates a train of pulses indicative of speed of rotation of a predetermined rotary member of the CVT. A measured CVT ratio generator derives information of an actual CVT ratio out of at least the train of pulses to give a measured value of CVT ratio. A filter processes the measured value of CVT ratio in a manner to refine the information of the actual CVT ratio to give an estimated value of CVT ratio. A command generator determines the actuator command such that the actuator command remains unaltered when a deviation of the estimated value of CVT ratio from a desired value of CVT ratio stays within a dead zone. A filter and command generator manager narrows the dead zone to meet precision requirement upon determination that the desired value of CVT ratio has been accomplished and adjusts filter gain at the filter in a manner to keep amplitude at frequency of noise that is contained in the measured value of CVT ratio within the narrowed dead zone.

Enhanced ratio control to establish CVT ratio with excellent precision

Operating range of feedback in CVT ratio control has been extended by use of stabilized values as an actual value of CVT ratio. The actual value of CVT ratio is derived from first and second pulse train signals provided by input and output speed sensors. Updating of rotational speed of the input member is repeated at intervals governed by the first pulse train. Updating of rotational speed of the output member is repeated at intervals governed by the second pulse train. Updating of an old value of a ratio between the latest value of the rotational speed of the input member and the latest value of the rotational speed of the output member to a new value thereof is repeated each time immediately after the rotational speeds of the input and output members have been updated since the latest updating of an old value of the ratio.

Extension of operating range of feedback in CVT ratio control

Enhanced ratio control in a toroidal drive of a T-CVT is provided. A factor of proportionality is computed by which a trunnion axial displacement and a T-CVT ratio rate are related. A filter in the form of a characteristic equation is established. This filter includes a physical quantity indicative of the T-CVT ratio and a physical quantity indicated by an actuator command, as inputs, a quasi-state quantity, as a state quantity, and a transition coefficient for the quasi-state quantity. The transition coefficient includes an observer gain. The quasi-state quantity is computed using the filter. An estimated quantity of a system state quantity of the T-CVT is computed using the quasi-state quantity, the observer gain, and a trunnion angular position. The system state quantity includes at least the first physical quantity. The observer gain is corrected in response to the factor of proportionality to keep the transition coefficient unaltered.

Enhanced ratio control in a toroidal drive

The trunnion ( ) of a vehicle toroidal continuously variable transmission is displaced by a step motor ( ) via a control valve ( ) and oil pressure servo cylinder ( ) in order to vary a speed ratio of the transmission. A controller ( ) calculates a target value (z*) of a control variable (z) based on an accelerator pedal depression amount (APS) and output disk rotation speed (&ohgr; ) (S ). Further, a time-variant coefficient (f) showing the relation between the trunnion displacement (y) and variation rate ({dot over (&phgr;)}) of the gyration angle (&phgr;) of the power roller, is calculated (S ). The error between the speed change response of the transmission and a target linear characteristic can be decreased by determining a command value (u) to the step motor ( ) under a control gain determined based on a time differential ({dot over (f)}) of the coefficient (f) (S ).

Control of toroidal continuously variable transmission

In method and apparatus for controlling a vehicular velocity of a host vehicle to follow a preceding vehicle which is running ahead of the host vehicle, a control target is switched between an inter-vehicle distance control in which the vehicular velocity of the host vehicle is controlled to make a detected value of the inter-vehicle distance substantially equal to a target value of the inter-vehicle distance and a vehicular velocity control in which the vehicular velocity of the host vehicle is controlled to make a detected value of the vehicular velocity of the host vehicle substantially equal to a target value of the vehicular velocity of the host vehicle according to a result of a detection of a variation of a gradient of a road segment which is forward of the vehicle and on which the host vehicle is to run.

Growing community of inventors

Yokohama, Japan

Taketoshi Kawabe