Nissan Motor Company Limited

Alps Electric Co., Ltd.

Tetsuya Asada

Satoshi Tange

Kenichi Egawa

Akira Higashimata

Teppei Nagano

Jun Takahashi

Ichiro Nakahara

Tetsuya Iijima

Kazuhiko Ito

Osamu Kawanobe

Hiroyuki Kamishima

Yoshiki Onuma

Toshimasa Miwa

Shunichi Toyomasu

Toshihiko Sada

Masakazu Imai

Yoichi Koga

Tamami Ootsuki

Based upon the results of an ID check with an ignition knob lock device which prevents rotational operation of an ignition knob which is used when stating an engine of a vehicle, and of an ID check with a portable unit, a passive control unit transmits to the ignition knob lock device a command to release prohibition of rotational operation of the ignition knob, and performs an ID check with the ignition knob lock device before detecting an operation of pushing in the ignition knob.

Electronic key apparatus for vehicle and arrest cancellation method for rotation arresting device

An electric steering lock device is configured with a control unit to operate a steering column lock between a steering locked state and a steering unlocked state. The electric steering lock device has a locking limit switch that turns on when a locking member reaches the locking stop position, and turns off when an unlocking command for the locking member is outputted. An unlocking limit switch of the electric steering lock device turns on when the locking member reaches the unlocking stop position, and turns off when a locking command for the locking member is outputted. The electric steering lock control unit determines that the locking limit switch or the unlocking limit switch has malfunctioned based on the state of the locking member.

Electric steering lock device and method thereof

A door lock/unlock system for a vehicle is comprised of a door lock state detector for detecting a door lock/unlock state, a door open state detector for detecting a door open/close state, a door lock mechanism for locking and unlocking a door, and a controller. The controller is arranged to compare a first lock/unlock state detected during the door open state with a second lock/unlock state detected at a moment when an open/close state is changed from an open state to a closed state, to maintain the state of the door lock mechanism when the first lock/unlock state corresponds to the second lock/unlock state, and to set the state of the door lock mechanism at the first lock/unlock state when the first lock/unlock state does not corresponds to the second lock/unlock state.

Door lock/unlock system

A vehicle-mounted device communication controller includes a vehicle-mounted unit for communicating with ID-registered portable units, a switch-detection mechanism for detecting pressing of an operation knob, a switch-operation restriction mechanism for restricting the rotation of the knob, and a door-opening/closure detection mechanism for detecting opening and closure of a door. Signals are exchanged between the vehicle-mounted unit and each portable unit, and a portable unit having succeeded in exchanging the signals is authenticated and released from the restriction. The vehicle-mounted unit includes a sending/receiving part, a controller, an authentication part, and an ID-storage part. When the door-opening/closure detection mechanism detects opening and then closure of the door, the controller performs the search by an all search method, and only when the latest authenticated ID is stored in the ID-storage part, performs the search by an urgent search method using a simple response signal which does not include an ID.

Vehicle-mounted device communication controller

A vehicle-mounted unit includes a controller which changes a setting of a search method of portable units between a simple search method which is based on sending/receiving of simple search signals and simple response signals and an individual search method which is based on sending/receiving of normal search signals and normal response signals, and an ID-storage part which updates and stores the ID of the portable unit authenticated at a latest time as the latest authenticated ID. When the latest authenticated ID is stored in the ID-storage part, the controller searches the portable unit having the latest authenticated ID by priority and by the individual search method.

An electronic key device for a vehicle which performs starting of the vehicle by performing ID verification against a portable electronic key unit includes an ID verification device, a decision device, and a vehicle starting control device. When the number of times that the result of ID checking by the ID verification device is negative and also the portable key unit is not present within the vehicle arrives at a predetermined value, a locked mode is set in which thereafter starting of the vehicle is prohibited unless a predetermined procedure is performed. When the result of ID checking by the ID verification device is affirmative and the portable key unit is not present within the vehicle, then no such predetermined number of times calculation for setting the locked mode is performed.

Electronic key device for vehicle and starting control method for vehicle

An infrared transmitting film includes a mirror-coat layer having a lamination of high-refractive-index material layers and low-refractive-index material layers, and a color-material layer placed on the mirror-coat layer and for absorbing visible light in a given wavelength range and transmitting infrared ray. The film has 80% or more transmission factor for infrared ray.

Infrared transmitting film and infrared-sensor cover using same

In a vehicular velocity controlling apparatus for an automotive vehicle, a vehicular velocity detector is provided to detect a vehicular velocity of the vehicle, a vehicular velocity controlling section is provided that controls a vehicular driving force of the vehicle to make a detected value of the vehicular velocity substantially equal to a set vehicular velocity previously set, a plurality of switches are provided which includes a first switch (SET/COAST switch) and a second switch (RESUME/ACCELERATE switch), each switch being enabled to be interlocked with a predetermined operation of at least one switching member at a position such as to match with a general vehicular occupant's sense of vehicular manipulation, and a set vehicular velocity modifying section is provided that modifies the set vehicular velocity in such a manner that the detected value of the vehicular velocity is set to the set vehicular velocity when at least one of the following conditions is established, when a time duration of the predetermined operation of the first switch is equal to or longer than a first predetermined time duration and the detected value of the vehicular velocity is lower than the set vehicular velocity and when the time duration of the predetermined operation of the second switch is equal to or longer than a second predetermined time duration and the detected value of the vehicular velocity is higher than the set vehicular velocity.

Vehicular velocity controlling apparatus for automotive vehicle

When a vehicle-to-vehicle time gap is changed from a first level to a second level with a selector switch, a controller determines a desired time gap so that the desired time gap varies from the first level to the second level at such a gradual rate as to prevent an abrupt change in the vehicle speed. The controller further determines a desired vehicle spacing from the controlled vehicle to a preceding vehicle in accordance with the desired time gap and a sensed vehicle speed, and controls the driving force and braking force of the controlled vehicle so as to bring the actual vehicle spacing closer to the desired vehicle spacing.

Vehicle spacing control system

A preceding-vehicle follow-up control system is arranged to calculate a target vehicle speed based on a vehicle-to-vehicle distance and a controlled-vehicle speed, to calculate a target acceleration based on the target vehicle speed and to control driving force and braking force of the controlled vehicle based on the target acceleration. During this control period, the target acceleration is limited by an acceleration limit and a deceleration limit which are varied according the controlled-vehicle speed, respectively. This arrangement enables a follow-up vehicle speed control to be preferably executed without applying a strange feeling to a driver.

Vehicle follow-up control system

A preceding-vehicle follow-up control system is arranged to calculate a target vehicle speed employed for bringing a detected vehicle-to-vehicle distance closer to a target vehicle-to-distance, to control the controlled-vehicle speed to bring a controlled-vehicle speed closer to the target vehicle speed, to decelerate the controlled-vehicle speed to a set vehicle speed at a rate of a preset deceleration when the controlled-vehicle speed is greater than a control continuation decision value greater than an upper limit of the set vehicle speed and when the accelerating operation is terminated. This arrangement provides a smooth drive feeing to a driver even after an acceleration of the controlled vehicle is executed during a follow-up control and is terminated.

Preceding vehicle follow-up control system

In vehicular velocity controlling method and apparatus for an automotive vehicle, an inter-vehicle distance from the vehicle to a preceding vehicle which is running ahead of the vehicle is detected, a target vehicular velocity is calculated to make a detected value of the inter-vehicle distance substantially equal to a target inter-vehicle distance, a vehicular velocity of the vehicle is detected, the vehicular velocity of the vehicle is adjustably controlled to make a detected value of the vehicular velocity substantially equal to the target vehicular velocity, a target braking pressure for a vehicular brake system is calculated in accordance with a target deceleration variable calculated on the basis of the target vehicular velocity and the detected value of the vehicular velocity; and a limitation on a rate of increase in the target braking pressure is placed when the target braking pressure is in excess of a predetermined braking pressure threshold value.

Vehicular velocity controlling apparatus and method to follow up a preceding vehicle running ahead of vehicle

An automatic speed control device for a vehicle includes a distance measuring sensor,a vehicle speed sensor,and a control unit,for controlling the vehicle speed. In the control unit,a target speed determining section,determines a target speed corresponding to a distance detected by the distance measuring sensor,and the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor,A speed storing section,of the control unit,stores the detected vehicle speed as a set speed. A selecting section,of the control unit,selects a smaller speed of the target speed and the set speed. A speed control section,of the control unit,controls the vehicle speed so as to be the smaller speed selected by the selecting section,When losing the preceding vehicle, the speed control section,further controls the vehicle speed so as to maintain a present vehicle speed until the driver's vehicle reaches a lost point where the preceding vehicle was lost.

Automatic speed control device for vehicle

In vehicular velocity controlling method and apparatus for an automotive vehicle, an inter-vehicle distance from the vehicle to a preceding vehicle which is running ahead of the vehicle is detected, a relative velocity of the vehicle to the preceding vehicle is detected, a vehicular velocity of the vehicle is detected, a target value of the vehicular velocity to make a detected value of the inter-vehicle distance substantially equal to a target value of the inter-vehicle distance is calculated on the basis of the detected value of the inter-vehicle distance and a detected value of the vehicular velocity, the vehicular velocity is controlled to make the detected value of the vehicular velocity substantially equal to the target value of the vehicular velocity, a magnitude of a turning (for example, a lateral acceleration) of the vehicle is detected, a correction coefficient of the magnitude of the turning of the vehicle is calculated in accordance with the detected value of the vehicular velocity, and the target value of the vehicular velocity is corrected on the basis of the turning magnitude correction coefficient by which the detected value of the turning magnitude is corrected.

In apparatus and method for cruise control for an automotive vehicle, a controller is provided for running a self-diagnosis upon a receipt of the power supply via the first switch, for determining whether the apparatus operates normally or abnormally as a result of the run of the self-diagnosis, and for starting an acceptance of an input of the signal from the second switch when determining that the apparatus operates normally as the result of the self-diagnosis, and for issuing a warning signal when determining that the apparatus operates abnormally when the input of the signal from the second switch occurs at a time of the start of the acceptance of the input of the signal from the second switch and the input of the signal from the second switch occurs after a predetermined time has passed from the time when the acceptance of the input of the signal from the second switch occurs.

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Kanagawa, Japan

Tetsuya Asada