JP5387466B2 - Vehicle travel control device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle travel control device, and more particularly to a travel control device that performs auto-cruise control, and belongs to the field of vehicle automatic travel technology.

  As vehicle auto-cruise control, vehicle speed control that carries out constant speed running while maintaining the vehicle speed at the target vehicle speed, and inter-vehicle distance control that carries out follow-up running by controlling the inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle to the target distance, etc. In these controls, engine control and brake control are automatically performed in order to maintain the target vehicle speed or the target inter-vehicle distance.

  This auto-cruise control is also performed in a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission, but in the case of a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission, the driver may disengage the clutch during auto-cruise control and perform a gear shifting operation. In vehicle speed control, the control is usually canceled (terminated).

  However, in the inter-vehicle distance control, for example, considering the fuel efficiency and quietness, the gear position is shifted up to reduce the engine speed, or the engine brake is operated to temporarily increase the inter-vehicle distance. Since operations such as downshifting are performed relatively frequently, if the control is canceled each time, the cancellation and setting of the control are frequently repeated, and the operation becomes complicated.

  Therefore, for example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, in the case of inter-vehicle distance control, even if the clutch is disconnected for a shift operation, the control is not canceled, the shift operation is terminated, and the clutch is connected. Sometimes it is considered to automatically resume the control. In particular, in Patent Document 1, when the clutch is connected after the shift operation and the inter-vehicle distance control is resumed, the engine output torque is controlled so as to cancel the engine brake torque, and the shock at the time of clutch connection is suppressed. Inhibiting is described.

Japanese Patent No. 3750584

  By the way, in a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission, if the clutch is disengaged for shifting operation during the inter-vehicle distance control and the transmission of power from the engine to the drive wheels is interrupted, the inter-vehicle distance control is not canceled. The engine control and the brake control will be continued in the shut-off state. In such a state, when the manual transmission is downshifted and the accelerator pedal is depressed, for example, for overtaking the preceding vehicle. Since it is presumed that the driver has performed an acceleration operation, it is desirable to stop the brake control and release the brake.

  However, during inter-vehicle distance control, for example, the vehicle is shifted down for the purpose of decelerating to increase the inter-vehicle distance from the preceding vehicle, and the accelerator pedal is depressed so that no shock is generated when the clutch is connected next, so-called It is also possible to perform rotational alignment. In this case, when the brake is released as described above, the deceleration force temporarily decreases against the driver's request for deceleration until the clutch is engaged, and the driver feels uncomfortable or uneasy.

  This problem occurs not only in the case of the inter-vehicle distance control but also in the vehicle speed control when the control is not canceled even if a power cut-off operation such as a clutch disengagement operation is performed.

  The present invention addresses the above-described problems during auto-cruise control in a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission. During execution of vehicle speed control or inter-vehicle distance control, the clutch is disengaged for shifting or manual operation is performed. When the transmission is shifted to the neutral position and the transmission of power from the engine to the drive wheels is interrupted and the brake control continues, the manual transmission shift down operation and the accelerator pedal depression It is an object to appropriately perform the brake control according to a driver's request when an operation is performed.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a vehicle travel control apparatus according to the present invention is configured as follows.

  First, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application is based on a clutch that is connected / disconnected by a driver, a manual transmission that is controlled by a driver, acceleration by engine drive control, and brake braking control. In a vehicle travel control device provided with auto cruise control means for performing auto cruise control for maintaining the vehicle speed or the inter-vehicle distance at a target value by deceleration, in a state where the braking control by the auto cruise control means is being performed. When a power cut-off operation is performed to cut off power transmission from the engine to the drive wheels, and the accelerator pedal is depressed in this state, if the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal is greater than a predetermined value, the braking is performed. When the control is released and the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal is not greater than the predetermined value, the braking control Characterized by comprising a.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle travel control apparatus according to the first aspect, the braking control means switches the engine from the engine to the drive wheel when the depression amount of the accelerator pedal is not larger than a predetermined value. After the power transmission operation is performed, the braking control is continued for a predetermined time.

  Further, the invention according to claim 3 is the vehicle travel control device according to claim 2, wherein the braking control means performs the predetermined time after the power transmission operation from the engine to the drive wheels is performed. When the accelerator pedal is depressed when the time has elapsed, the braking control is released.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle travel control apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the auto cruise control means controls the vehicle speed to a target value. And the inter-vehicle distance control for controlling the inter-vehicle distance to the target value can be selectively executed, and the braking control means performs the power shut-off operation in a state where the braking control is performed during the inter-vehicle distance control. The auto-cruise control means cancels the auto-cruise control when the power shut-off operation is performed during vehicle speed control.

  With the above configuration, according to the invention of each claim of the present application, the following effects can be obtained.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, in the state where the braking control for deceleration is being performed during the automatic cruise control in which the vehicle speed or the inter-vehicle distance is controlled to the target value by the automatic cruise control means, When a power cut-off operation that cuts off the transmission of power from the engine to the drive wheels, such as a cutting operation or a shift operation to the neutral position of the transmission, is performed, and the accelerator pedal is depressed in this state, the accelerator When the pedal depression amount is larger than a predetermined value, that is, when it is estimated that a large acceleration force due to the shift down is required, the braking control is released, so the acceleration force may be reduced by the braking force. Therefore, for example, when overtaking the preceding vehicle, a large acceleration force according to the driver's request is obtained.

  On the other hand, if the accelerator pedal is depressed, but the amount of depression is not greater than the specified value, the shift-down operation is a deceleration operation, and the accelerator pedal is depressed when the clutch is engaged after the shift-down. In this case, the braking control is continued and the brake is operated. Therefore, in this case, a deceleration force according to the driver's request is obtained, and the deceleration force is temporarily reduced against the driver's deceleration request, thereby preventing the driver from feeling uncomfortable or uneasy. .

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, when the depression amount of the accelerator pedal is not larger than a predetermined value and the braking control is continued assuming that the downshifting operation is for deceleration, the clutch is Even after the power transmission operation from the engine to the drive wheels is performed, such as by connecting the brake, the braking control is continued for a predetermined time, so that the braking force by the braking control can be obtained together with the engine brake. A deceleration force is obtained.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the accelerator pedal is depressed when the predetermined time has elapsed, that is, when the accelerator pedal is continuously depressed even after the clutch is connected, the accelerator pedal is However, in this case, since the braking control is canceled, the driving force is reduced by the braking force. There is no cancellation, and a slow acceleration state according to the request is obtained.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when auto-cruise control can be selected between vehicle speed control for controlling the vehicle speed to the target value and inter-vehicle distance control for controlling the inter-vehicle distance to the target value. Only when the inter-vehicle distance control is executed, the braking control by the braking control means is controlled to be continued or cancelled. Therefore, the braking control is performed during the down-shifting operation during the inter-vehicle distance control that is relatively frequent. During the vehicle speed control in which the above-described effects of the control of the means are realized and the shift-down operation is performed at a relatively low frequency, the auto-cruise control itself is canceled by disengagement of the clutch, etc. Travel control suitable for each control is possible.

It is a control system figure concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement of auto-cruise control. It is a time chart.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described.

  First, the configuration of the vehicle according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The vehicle 1 includes an engine 2, a clutch 3, a manual transmission (hereinafter referred to as “transmission”) 4, and a differential device 5. The output of the engine 1 is transmitted to the left and right drive wheels 7 and 7 via the clutch 3, the transmission 4, the differential 5 and the left and right axles 6 and 6. Each of the front and rear wheels is provided with brake devices 8.

  Further, as operation members operated by a driver, an accelerator pedal 11 for controlling the output of the engine 2, a brake pedal 12 for operating the brake devices 8 ... 8, a clutch pedal 13 for connecting and disconnecting the clutch 3, A shift lever 14 for switching the gear position of the transmission 4 is provided.

  The above-described configuration of the vehicle 1 is a well-known configuration, and is not limited to the front engine / front drive vehicle as shown in the figure, and the same applies to the front engine / rear drive vehicle and the like.

  Furthermore, the vehicle 1 according to this embodiment has a travel control device capable of auto-cruise control, a control unit 20 constituting the device, a set switch 21 for starting auto-cruise control, and canceling the control. And a cancel switch 22 is provided, and signals from the switches 21 and 22 are input to the control unit 20.

  The control unit 20 includes an inter-vehicle distance sensor 23 such as a laser radar that detects the inter-vehicle distance from the preceding vehicle, an engine speed sensor 24 that detects the rotational speed of the engine 2, and an output rotational speed of the transmission 4. The vehicle speed sensor 25 for detecting the vehicle speed from the above, the accelerator sensor 26 for detecting the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 11, the brake switch 27 for detecting the depression operation of the brake pedal 12, and the clutch for detecting the depression operation of the clutch pedal 13 A switch 28 and a shift position sensor 29 for detecting the shift operation position of the shift lever 14 are provided, and signals from these sensors and the switches 23 to 29 are input to the control unit 20.

  The control unit 20 includes an actuator 30 for controlling the throttle valve 2a of the engine 2 based on signals from the sensors and the switches 23 to 29 when the auto cruise control set switch 21 is turned on. A control signal is output to the brake control unit 31 to control the driving force of the engine 2 and the braking force of the brake devices 8... 8 to set the vehicle speed control for maintaining the vehicle speed at a set value and the inter-vehicle distance with the preceding vehicle. Auto cruise control such as inter-vehicle distance control that maintains the value is performed. In this embodiment, as the auto-cruise control, both the vehicle speed control and the inter-vehicle distance control can be selectively performed.

  Next, auto-cruise control by the control unit 20, particularly brake control at the time of shifting operation during the auto-cruise control will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 2 and the time chart of FIG.

  First, in step S1 of the flowchart, it is determined whether or not auto-cruise control is currently being executed. If the control is being executed, then in step S2, a signal from the clutch switch 28 is sent to the clutch pedal 13. Whether or not the clutch 3 has been turned off by depressing, or whether or not the shift stage of the transmission 4 has been switched to the neutral stage, that is, the power from the engine 2 to the drive wheels 7 and 7 It is determined whether or not the transmission is interrupted. When the clutch 3 is not disengaged and the speed of the transmission 4 is the travel speed and the power from the engine 2 is transmitted to the drive wheels 7 and 7, the currently executed auto Continue cruise control.

  On the other hand, when the clutch 3 is disengaged and the signal from the clutch switch 28 is turned ON, or the transmission speed is switched to the neutral speed and the transmission of power from the engine 2 to the drive wheels 7 and 7 is interrupted. Next, in step S3, it is determined whether or not the auto cruise control currently being executed is the inter-vehicle distance control. If it is not the inter-vehicle distance control, that is, if it is the vehicle speed control, the control is terminated in step S4, and the auto-cruise control itself is canceled.

  On the other hand, if the currently executed control is the inter-vehicle distance control, in step S5, the inter-vehicle distance control is temporarily interrupted while maintaining the state at that time, and then the downshift operation is performed in step S6 and the subsequent steps. Brake control at the time.

  That is, first, in step S6, it is determined whether or not the braking control is being executed when the inter-vehicle distance control is interrupted, that is, whether or not the brake devices 8. When braking control is not being executed, it is determined in step S7 whether or not the gear position of the transmission 4 has been switched to the traveling position and the signal from the clutch switch 28 has been switched off, that is, from the engine 2. It is determined whether or not the state is switched to the power transmission state to the drive wheels 7 and 7. If the state is switched to the power transmission state, the suspended inter-vehicle distance control is resumed in step S8.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S6 that the braking control is being executed, in steps S9 and S10, based on the signal from the shift position sensor 29 and the signal from the accelerator sensor 26, the shift lever 14 Is operated to shift down the gear position, and it is determined whether the accelerator pedal 11 is depressed. If at least one of the shift down operation of the shift lever 14 and the depression operation of the accelerator pedal 11 is not performed until it is determined in step S11 that the power transmission state has been switched, in step S8, Restart the inter-vehicle distance control that was suspended.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, before the shift to the power transmission state, that is, before the shift operation is finished and the clutch 3 is connected, the shift lever 14 is downshifted, and When the depression operation of the accelerator pedal 11 has been performed, it is next determined in step S12 whether or not the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 11 is greater than a predetermined value α.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 6A, when the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 11 is larger than the predetermined value α, the brake control being executed is canceled in step S13, and the operation of the brake devices 8. At the same time, it is determined in step S14 whether or not the power transmission state has been switched. If it is determined that the power transmission state has been switched, the inter-vehicle distance control that has been interrupted in step S8 is resumed.

  As a result, during the interruption of the inter-vehicle distance control in a state where the braking control is being executed, an operation of shifting down the gear position of the transmission 4 and an operation of depressing the accelerator pedal 11 to be larger than the predetermined value α are performed. At that time, since the braking control being executed is released, if the clutch 3 is connected after the end of the downshifting operation, the large driving force output from the transmission 4 is caused by the braking force generated by the operation of the brake devices 8. Without being canceled out, it is transmitted as it is to the drive wheels 7 and 7 through the differential device 5, and for example, when overtaking the preceding vehicle, a large acceleration force according to the driver's request is obtained. It will be.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3 (B), when the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 11 determined in step S12 is not larger than the predetermined value α, the braking device 8... 8 is operated without releasing the braking control. In step S15, the system waits for switching to the power transmission state from the engine 2 to the drive wheels 7 and 7.

  When the shifting operation is completed and the clutch 3 is connected and switched to the power transmission state, the process waits for a predetermined time in step S16, and continues in step S17 when the predetermined time elapses. It is then determined whether the accelerator pedal 11 is depressed. If the accelerator pedal 11 is not depressed, the interrupted inter-vehicle distance control is resumed in step S8 while the braking control is continued.

  In other words, in this case, the accelerator pedal 11 is depressed with an amount of depression smaller than the predetermined value α during power interruption, and the accelerator pedal 11 is released immediately after the clutch 3 is connected. This is for the purpose of rotation adjustment when the clutch 3 is connected after the gear position is shifted down. In other words, the shift down operation is assumed to have been a deceleration operation. It will continue. Thus, a deceleration force according to the driver's request can be obtained by the braking force by the braking control and the engine brake accompanying the shift down of the gear.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S17 that the accelerator pedal 11 is continuously depressed, in step S18, the brake control being executed is canceled and the operation of the brake devices 8 ... 8 is terminated. To do. In step S8, the interrupted inter-vehicle distance control is resumed.

  That is, in this case, since the accelerator pedal 11 is depressed even when the set time has elapsed after the shift-down operation is finished and the clutch 3 is connected, the depression of the accelerator pedal 11 is performed when the clutch 3 is connected. Therefore, in this case, the braking control is canceled and the braking force is canceled. Thereby, the driving force according to depression of the accelerator pedal is ensured, and the slow acceleration state according to the driver's request is realized.

  As described above, when the downshift operation of the transmission 4 and the depression operation of the accelerator pedal 11 are performed during the interruption of the inter-vehicle distance control in which the braking control is being performed, these operations are performed by the driver. It is determined whether the request is caused by such a request, brake control corresponding to each request is executed, and the auto-cruise control is performed satisfactorily.

  In the above embodiment, the shift-down operation is determined based on the signal from the shift position sensor 29 in step S9 of the flowchart. It may be estimated that the downshift operation has been performed based on this determination and the determination on the depression operation of the accelerator pedal in step S10.

  Further, in the above embodiment, when an operation such as clutch disengagement is performed during vehicle speed control, auto-cruise control itself is canceled, but even during vehicle speed control, the above-described inter-vehicle distance control is being performed. You may perform control similar to control.

  As described above, according to the present invention, auto-cruise control in a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission can be performed satisfactorily. Therefore, the present invention is preferably used in the manufacturing industry of this type of vehicle. There is a possibility.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle 3 Clutch 4 Manual transmission 8 Brake device 20 Control unit (auto cruise control means, braking control means)
31 Brake control unit (braking control means)

Claims (4)

  The vehicle speed or the inter-vehicle distance is maintained at the target value by the clutch that is connected / disconnected by the driver, the manual transmission that is operated by the driver, the acceleration by engine drive control, and the deceleration by brake braking control. In a vehicle travel control device equipped with auto-cruise control means for performing auto-cruise control, power transmission from the engine to drive wheels is cut off while the braking control is being performed by the auto-cruise control means. When the power cut-off operation is performed and the accelerator pedal is depressed in this state, if the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal is greater than a predetermined value, the braking control is canceled, and the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal is When the vehicle is not greater than a predetermined value, the vehicle is provided with braking control means for continuing the braking control. Control device.   The braking control means continues the braking control for a predetermined time after the power transmission operation from the engine to the driving wheel is performed when the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal is not larger than a predetermined value. The vehicle travel control apparatus according to claim 1.   The braking control means cancels the braking control when the accelerator pedal is depressed when the predetermined time has elapsed after the power transmission operation from the engine to the driving wheel is performed. The vehicle travel control device according to claim 2.   The auto-cruise control means can selectively execute vehicle speed control for controlling the vehicle speed to a target value and inter-vehicle distance control for controlling the inter-vehicle distance to a target value, and the braking control means can perform the vehicle control during the inter-vehicle distance control. Only when the power cut-off operation is performed in a state where the brake control is being performed, the brake control is continued and released, and the auto-cruise control means performs the power cut-off operation during vehicle speed control. The vehicle cruise control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the auto-cruise control is cancelled.

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