Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Torsten Wey

Dirk Gunia

Jens Dornhege

Marc Roeber

Gerald Doerne

Mike John Mould

Salvador Toledo

Christoph Schlaug

Janet Meise

Timothy Gerard Offerle

Frank Peter Engels

Rakan C Chabaan

Johan Hultén

Kirt Eschtruth

Bengt Johan Henrik Jacobson

Brad G Hochrein

Gregor Allexi

Nate Rolfes

Amin Kashi

Stefan Kappes

Mithat Ceylan

Markus Lemmen

Dirk-Uwe Eidam

Jan Meier

Claudia Kunze

Edwin Vliem

Joerg Hamel

Jens Domhege

Kay C Müller

Marcus Kalabis

Kashi Amin

A method and apparatus for controlling a parking process of a vehicle. The method including setting an upper speed limit; using a speed-limiting device to limit the speed of the vehicle at a parking speed that is less than or equal to the upper speed limit speed; suppressing an accelerator pedal speed increase request that increases the vehicle speed over the upper speed limit; and performing the assisted parking operation while limiting the vehicle speed and terminating the suppression of the increase in speed when the accelerator pedal is depressed by more than a predetermined value. Wherein the predetermined value is selected as a function of a slope on which the vehicle is located. The invention also relates to a steering system for an assisted parking procedure of a vehicle and a vehicle with such a steering system.

Method and apparatus for controlling a parking process of a vehicle

Various embodiment include a system and a method for recognizing road signs. An image of a road sign may be captured by least one image sensor. A vehicle computer may receive the image data representing one or more road signs along a route and display one or more images of the road sign based on the image data. The display may be capable of presenting one or more status of the road sign based on one or more travel states for the vehicle. These travel states may include at least one of an amount of elapsed travel time, distance travelled, or speed.

Arrangement and method for recognizing road signs

A method for parking a vehicle in a parking spot comprises scanning objects to determine if a feasible parking space is available, the neighboring objects including at least one object either in front of or behind the vehicle and at least one object alongside the vehicle; determine whether there is a sufficient slot length in which to park the vehicle and to determine a height of the object alongside which the vehicle is to be parked in order to park the vehicle at a lateral distance from the object alongside the vehicle dependent upon the particular height of such object relative to a height of a bottom of a door; and parking the vehicle in the space wherein the vehicle is parked at the lateral distance from the object vehicle based upon the detected height of such object relative to the height of the bottom of the door.

Vehicle park assist system and method for parking a vehicle using such system

Various embodiments include a system and a method for recognizing road signs. An image of a road sign may be captured by least one image sensor. A vehicle computer may receive the image data representing one or more road signs along a route and display one or more images of the road sign based on the image data. The display may be capable of presenting one or more status of the road sign based on one or more travel states for the vehicle. These travel states may include at least one of an amount of elapsed travel time, distance travelled, or speed.

A method and apparatus for determining whether to alert a driver of a vehicle to the presence of a traffic sign in the vehicle's driving environment. An optical system on-board the vehicle detects the traffic sign and determine information related to the sign. Driving maneuvers carried out by the vehicle are monitored to determine driving situation information. The driving situation information and the traffic sign information are used to determine a probability that the sign is pertinent for the vehicle under the current driving conditions. If the probability is above a threshold, the driver is alerted to the traffic sign. The probability of the pertinence of the traffic sign may be further determined on the basis of lane-specific information such as vehicle position relative to a freeway exit ramp start or end, or performance of a lane change by the vehicle.

Device and method for traffic sign recognition

A lane-keeping method and system for a motor vehicle determines a transverse deviation and an misalignment angle of the motor vehicle relative to a target lane centerline, calculates a reference track for the motor vehicle to follow to return to the centerline using the transverse deviation and the misalignment angle, determines a reference yaw rate using a curvature of the reference track and a longitudinal speed of the vehicle, and compares the reference yaw rate with an actual yaw rate of the vehicle to determine a control deviation. A steering input is then applied to a steering system of the motor vehicle to minimize the control deviation.

Lane-keeping assistance method for a motor vehicle

The invention relates to a method for reducing a risk of or avoiding a roll-over event of a vehicle, having means of an electronic controllable steering system and an electronic control unit. The electronic control unit identifies the occurrence of the roll-over risk, such that control means generate a signal in order to steer the road wheels more into the direction in which the vehicle is tending to roll-over.

Roll stability control and roll-over mitigation by steering actuation

A method for controlling a vehicle steering system having a plurality of subsystems that generate steering requests for the steering system comprising the steps of receiving a plurality of steering requests at an electronic control unit, receiving a plurality of vehicle parameter signals at the electronic control unit, the vehicle parameter signals being representative of a driving situation for each subsystem in the plurality of subsystems, setting an order of priority for application of the steering requests by the electronic control unit as a function of the driving situation for each subsystem, and controlling the application of the steering requests to the vehicle steering system in the set order of priority and within a predetermined overall torque limit.

Device and method for controlling a steering system in a vehicle

A park assist system for parking a vehicle in a target parking space includes a sensing system. The sensing system determines whether there is a sufficient slot length in a target parking space too small to complete a parking maneuver in a single maneuver, but large enough to complete a parking maneuver in more than one maneuver. During each of the more than one parking maneuvers, the driver is prompted to execute a calculated steering trajectory.

The invention relates to a method for compensating for drive influences of a drive train of a motor vehicle on its steering system, said motor vehicle having an electric power steering system. A drive train simulation model which is integrated into the motor vehicle and permanently activated is used to determine disturbance variables from a driven behavior so that a compensation torque which counteracts the disturbance variables is generated for the power steering system.

Method for compensating for drive influences on the steering system of a vehicle using an electric power steering system

A deceleration warning device for reducing rear-end collisions in road traffic includes a sensor for detecting a longitudinal acceleration value, a control device receiving the longitudinal acceleration value, determining an acceleration limit value, and generating a warning signal if the longitudinal acceleration value exceeds the acceleration limit value, and a rear lighting display for displaying an alarm state when the control device emits a warning signal. Determination of the acceleration limit value is based upon a plurality of signals including an anti-lock braking system (ABS) signal and a brake pedal position signal. The control device is operable in one of three levels depending upon a detected quality of the signals.

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Moers, Germany

Torsten Wey