Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60K—ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
  • B60K31/00—Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator
  • B60K31/02—Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator including electrically actuated servomechanism including an electric control system or a servomechanism in which the vehicle velocity affecting element is actuated electrically
  • B60K31/04—Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator including electrically actuated servomechanism including an electric control system or a servomechanism in which the vehicle velocity affecting element is actuated electrically and means for comparing one electrical quantity, e.g. voltage, pulse, waveform, flux, or the like, with another quantity of a like kind, which comparison means is involved in the development of an electrical signal which is fed into the controlling means
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60K—ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
  • B60K31/00—Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator
  • B60K31/0058—Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator responsive to externally generated signalling
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60W—CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT
  • B60W2555/00—Input parameters relating to exterior conditions, not covered by groups B60W2552/00, B60W2554/00
  • B60W2555/60—Traffic rules, e.g. speed limits or right of way
  • B60W2555/80—Country specific, e.g. driver age limits or right hand drive
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60W—CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT
  • B60W2556/00—Input parameters relating to data
  • B60W2556/45—External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
  • B60W2556/50—External transmission of data to or from the vehicle of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data

Definitions

• Adaptive speed control system comprising a speed pilot for automobiles
• This invention relates to an adaptive speed control system comprising a speed pilot for automobiles according to the preamble of claim 1.
• Speed pilots as such are known.
• An example for such speed pilot is disclosed in DE 100 06 780 Cl .
• the object of the present invention is to find a new speed pi- lot which is more comfortable for the driver and by which more safety traveling is achieved.
• the present speed pilot it is possible to assist a driver, so that he is automatically informed in advance of any speed change on the road. If the driver is informed about change of maximal allowed speed, he receives this information automatically via wireless data communication, which can be done via the known wireless application protocol WAP by mobile phones or by broadcast signals of a broadcast station. Such broadcast station can send these special signals via RDS - (radio data signals) - protocol.
• WAP wireless application protocol
• Such broadcast station can send these special signals via RDS - (radio data signals) - protocol.
• the speed limits are stored within a navigation-CD. If the driver drives his car on a motorway, this is recognized from the navigation system. With the speed pilot being activated, the car is driven always at or below the al- lowed maximum speed. If the car drives at the allowed maximum speed and this speed is reduced due to the fact that the road narrows, for example, this information is stored on the navigation-CD. If the driver reaches this area, speed reduction is automatically recognized due to the fact that this information is stored on the navigatio -CD. The result is that the car's speed is reduced, too. If the driver reaches the end of the reduced speed area, it is possible according to the present invention that the car automatically accelerates to the speed maximum.
• this information usually is not stored on a navigation-CD.
• Such information may be sent by a broadcast station via a traffic message channel, for example. This information is received within the car and then the programmable speed pilot accordingly reduces its speed.
• the information about the speed limits sent by a broadcast station or by telephone services has higher priority than the speed limit information stored on a navigation-CD since the wireless received speed limit information is more actual than the information stored on the CD.
• an optical or acoustical information can be activated when maximum speed changes.
• change of maximum speed allowed on the road is transmitted such early that the speed is smoothly adapted.
• a confirmation button in the speed pilot In a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a confirmation button in the speed pilot .
• This confirmation button needs to be pressed by the driver in case he intends to drive at a new speed which is foreseen by the speed pilot. After such confirmation button having been pressed, the speed pilot automatically controls the new speed of the car.
• this invention entails a navigated cruising speed pilot -NC/SP- pertaining to the control of automobile speed on the basis of an adaptive speed control system that utilizes the prescribed traffic speed limits (as generally indicated on signboards along the road) as the transient target speed whenever no other vehicle is traveling a head of an NC/SP equipped vehicle, at a collision range, an before subsequent route sec- tion with a different traffic speed limit is reached an hence a new transient target speed limit is triggered by the navigation system.
• the prescribed traffic speed limits e.g. 30 km/h, 50 km/h, 60 km/h, 70 ... 130 km/h on motorways
• the prescribed traffic speed limits are respectively stored as part of data on a digital route map used by the navigation system.
• the speed pilot thus incorporates a conventional automobile navigation system comprising units such as digital memory-stored road maps, Global Positioning System (GPS) , gyroscope, computer an other navigation paraphernalia in accordance with the state of the art.
• Navigation data for the speed pilot is or can be updated via appropriate mobile telecommunication networks (GSM, UMTS, MOST, internet mailbox interface, etc.) .
• the automobile speed control system includes a cruise controller that automatically applies the brakes when automobile speed sufficiently exceeds a prescribed traffic speed as stored on a digital map in the navigation device memory and subsequently accelerates the vehicle unless the driver other wise overrides the speed pilot command.
• the invention in question relates to the control of vehicular cruising speed, whereby the latter is provided with an automatic speed control system, and particularly with an adaptive speed control system that adapts to the digitally stored, prescribed traffic speed as determined by the computer processing conventional vehicle navigation system data.
• a speed control system maintains the desired speed at or near a target speed, which may be set by the driver.
• the driver can override the cruise control system and personally command the speeding process by actuating an holding, or by actuating and releasing, the brake pedal or, if the automobile has a manual gearbox, by actuating the clutch pedal. Command is then promptly handed to the driver.
• Such automobile speed control systems can also be de- vised to activate the brakes if the vehicle is moving downhill and hence accelerates the vehicle faster than the target speed.
• the target speed may be increased to the original value, in which case the cruise control causes the automobile to accelerate to the new target speed.
• the cruise control causes the automobile to accelerate to the new target speed.
• the cruise control is causing the automobile to brake, and the driver touches the brakes, or clutch, either inadvertently or prior to taking manual control of the speed, then the cruise control is released. The driver then senses a sudden change in automobile movement opposite to his expectation. This can irritate the driver, and in an extreme situation may be dangerous due to an unexpected surge of braking power.
• Another event in which the cruise control may activate brakes is if the driver actively reduces the target speed. The automobile speed control system will cause the latter to brake until the speed is reduced to the new target speed.
• this invention provides an automobile with a speed control system, comprising a cruise controller which when activated, controls automobile speed according to a target speed - prescribed traffic speed - e.g. 50 km in the city, 70 km on urban roads or 130 km on motorways. It is an object of the invention to provide an automobile with a more conven- ient automobile speed control system, to avoid running into police monitored photographic radar traps.
• the automobile speed control system may have a conventional switching arrangement by which a driver may set, reset and cancel cruise control via NC/SP. If the driver uses the reset function to reduce the target speed, then the brakes may gently slow the automobile to the new reduced target speed.
• Figure 1 shows a block diagram of an example of the speed pilot according to the present invention.
• the speed pilot can be activated by the driving person.
• the speed pilot has several inputs 1, 2, 3 and an output 10.
• On the first input 1 a signal can be applied which corresponds to a speed which is actually driven at by the driver. Therefore, this input 1 is called manual speed input .
• navi-CD speed input signal There is another input 2, on which a speed input signal derived from a navigation-CD can be applied. This signal is called navi-CD speed input signal.
• a speed input signal can be applied, which is derived from a wireless received signal, e.g. received by a broadcast signal .
• a wireless received signal e.g. received by a broadcast signal .
• Such signal can be transmitted by a traffic message channel TMC in a RDS system.
• a speed signal is provided by which the car actually drives. Therefore, the speed pilot decides which one of the signals applied to inputs 1, 2, 3 is chosen. If the speed pilot is activated, that means the switch in the figure is in its on-position.
• the manual speed input has higher priority than the wireless speed input and the wireless speed input signal has higher priority than the information applied to the navi-CD speed input.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Transportation (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Controls For Constant Speed Travelling (AREA)
• Traffic Control Systems (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Publications (1)

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Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Families Citing this family (5)

Family Cites Families (6)

• 2002
  • 2002-06-07 EP EP02748749A patent/EP1409284A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2002-06-07 WO PCT/EP2002/006274 patent/WO2002098695A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation

Non-Patent Citations (2)

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