Aspects of the disclosure relate to controlling a transition between a manual driving mode and an autonomous driving mode of a vehicle. For instance, one or more processors of one or more control computing devices may control the vehicle in the autonomous driving mode. While controlling the vehicle in the autonomous driving mode and decelerating at a given rate, the processors may receive at a user input of the vehicle input requesting a transition from the autonomous driving mode to the manual driving mode. In response to the input, the processors may transition the vehicle to the manual driving mode. After transitioning the vehicle to the manual driving mode, the processors may send deceleration signals to a deceleration actuator thereby causing the vehicle to continue to decelerate at the given rate.

A vehicle (10) includes a VP (120) that carries out vehicle control in accordance with a command from an autonomous driving system (202) and a vehicle control interface (110) that interfaces between the autonomous driving system (202) and the VP (120). A tire turning angle command that requests for a wheel steer angle is transmitted from the autonomous driving system (202) to the VP (120). A signal indicating an estimated wheel angle which is an estimated value of the wheel steer angle is transmitted from the VP (120) to the autonomous driving system (202). The VP (120) steers the vehicle in accordance with the tire turning angle command set based on a wheel estimation angle while the vehicle (10) is in a straight-ahead travel state.

A controller and a method for controlling motion of a vehicle is provided. The method comprises acquiring motion information including a current state of the vehicle and a desired state of the vehicle, determining a combination of a steering angle of the wheels and motor forces for moving the vehicle from the current state into the desired state by using a first model of the motion of the vehicle and a second model of the motion of the chassis of the vehicle, determining a cost function of the motion of the vehicle, optimizing the cost function of the motion of the vehicle to compute a command signal for controlling the steering wheel and the plurality of electric motors, and controlling the steering angle of the wheels and the motor forces based on the command signal.

A method for controlling switching of steering control rights of an autonomous vehicle, may include: when switching of the steering control rights from an automated driving mode to a manual driving mode is requested, performing a control to synchronize a steering angle of a steering wheel and a steering angle of a road wheel; when a hands-on state in which the steering wheel is gripped is detected in the synchronization process, detecting an error value between the steering angle of the steering wheel and the steering angle of the road wheel; and when the error value is less than a preset value, performing a control to switch the mode of the autonomous vehicle to the manual driving mode.

A lane change track planning method includes obtaining a current vehicle speed of a vehicle; determining a sampling interval that is of a lane change control parameter and that corresponds to the current vehicle speed; performing sampling in the sampling interval of the lane change control parameter to obtain a lane change control parameter set; determining a change with time of the lane change control parameter set; and planning a lane change track that is of the vehicle and that corresponds to the lane change control parameter set.

There is disclosed a control system and a method for a host vehicle operable in an autonomous mode. The control system comprises one or more controllers. The speed and/or path of the vehicle in the autonomous mode is appropriate to a driving context.

A vehicle has a trailer backup steering input apparatus, a trailer backup assist control module coupled to the a trailer backup steering input apparatus, and an electric power assist steering system coupled to the trailer backup assist control module. The trailer backup steering input apparatus is configured for outputting a trailer path curvature signal approximating a desired curvature for a path of travel of a trailer towably coupled to the vehicle. The trailer backup assist control module is configured for determining vehicle steering information as a function of the trailer path curvature signal. The electric power assist steering system is configured for controlling steering of steered wheels of the vehicle as a function of the vehicle steering information.

Provided are a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a non-transitory storage medium. The vehicle control device includes: an acquisition part, acquiring a positional relationship between a vehicle and a lane; a control part, performing in-lane travel control that causes an actuator included in a steering device of the vehicle to output a force for causing the vehicle to travel in the lane within a range not exceeding an upper limit based on the positional relationship; and an upper limit adjustment part, changing the upper limit in response to an input to an operator that accepts a steering operation performed by an occupant of the vehicle.

A method for providing operating mode transition for a vehicle includes receiving an input indicating a request to transition from a first operating mode of the vehicle to a second operating mode of the vehicle and determining a first planned trajectory corresponding to the first operating mode. The method also includes determining a second planned trajectory corresponding to the second operating mode. The method also includes determining a first road wheel actuator angle corresponding to the first planned trajectory and determining a second road wheel actuator angle corresponding to the second planned trajectory. The method also includes determining a difference between a current handwheel actuator angle and a handwheel actuator angle corresponding to the second road wheel actuator angle and, in response to a determination that the difference is less than a threshold, transitioning from the first operating mode to the second operating mode over a determined period.

Techniques are described for estimating surface friction coefficients using lateral force excitations of one or more rear wheels of a rear wheel steering vehicle. In one example, a computing system is configured to cause excitation of a rear wheel using a lateral force that causes the rear wheel to initiate turning. The computing system may determine one or more slip angles that result from the excitation and determine a relationship between the lateral force and the slip angles. From the lateral force and slip angle relationship, the computing system may estimate the friction coefficient of a surface and may cause maneuvering of the rear wheel steering vehicle, or of another networked vehicle, to be based at least in part on the friction coefficient estimated for a particular driving surface.