The present disclosure relates to a computer implemented method for operating an autonomous vehicle based on sensor data representative of an area in a driving direction of and in the vicinity of the vehicle. The vehicle is equipped with a control unit adapted to determine if a plurality of detailed actions to be performed by the vehicle successfully may be used for fulfilling a desired general action plan for the vehicle. The present disclosure also relates to a corresponding control system and to a computer program product.

A vehicle adaptive cruise control apparatus for controlling traveling of a host vehicle is provided. The vehicle adaptive cruise control apparatus that is configured to: receive a vehicle speed of the host vehicle; receive an inter-vehicle distance between a preceding vehicle and the host vehicle; define a minimum safe inter-vehicle distance; set a reaction time of a driver; and use adaptive cruise control. The vehicle adaptive cruise control apparatus uses a maximum speed reference for the host vehicle which is defined as ratio between a) the inter-vehicle distance and b) the reaction time of the driver.

Techniques for determining to modify a trajectory based on an object are discussed herein. A vehicle can determine a drivable area of an environment, capture sensor data representing an object in the environment, and perform a spot check to determine whether or not to modify a trajectory. Such a spot check may include processing to incorporate an actual or predicted extent of the object into the drivable area to modify the drivable area. A distance between a reference trajectory and the object can be determined at discrete points along the reference trajectory, and based on a cost, distance, or intersection associated with the trajectory and the modified area, the vehicle can modify its trajectory. One trajectory modification includes following, which may include varying a longitudinal control of the vehicle, for example, to maintain a relative distance and velocity between the vehicle and the object.

A vehicle controlling apparatus includes a setting unit and an acquiring unit. The setting unit is configured to set a target inter-vehicle distance. The acquiring unit is configured to acquire position information of a temporary stopping location on a traveling route on which an own vehicle travels. The setting unit is configured to, on a condition that the own vehicle travels to follow a preceding vehicle, and that the acquiring unit has acquired the position information of the temporary stopping location, make a setting change to make the target inter-vehicle distance greater than a normal setting value when a distance from the own vehicle to the temporary stopping location reaches a predetermined distance, and make a setting change to bring the target inter-vehicle distance closer to the normal setting value in accordance with the distance until the own vehicle reaches the temporary stopping location.

A reconstruction method for a secure environment envelope of a smart vehicle based on the driving behavior of a vehicle in front, starting from the simulation of the behavior of a real driver pre-estimating the potential collision risk of the drive area in front, introducing a prediction regarding the driving behavior of the vehicle in front to the environment sensing link of the smart vehicle, reconstructing, on the basis of the prediction result regarding the driving behavior of the vehicle in front, a secure environment envelope of the smart vehicle. The method uses a signal as an observed value, such as the trajectory point sequence of the vehicle in front, the indicators of the vehicle in front, the smart vehicle speed, the relative longitudinal speed of the smart vehicle and the vehicle in front, etc., and predicts the driving behavior of the vehicle in front by means of a hidden markov model (HMM); the method corrects, on the basis of the prediction result about the driving behavior of the vehicle in front, the transverse spacing and the longitudinal spacing between the smart vehicle and the vehicle in front, realizes the reconstruction of a secure environment envelope of a smart vehicle, and further realizes the pre-estimation regarding the potential collision risk of the smart vehicle in the safe drive area, and improves the security of the smart vehicle.

A control apparatus for a vehicle includes a preceding vehicle detector, a course change predictor, an oncoming vehicle detector, an oncoming-vehicle arrival-time calculator, a crossing predictor, and a following-control corrector. The course change predictor predicts a course change of a preceding vehicle detected by the preceding vehicle detector in a direction crossing an oncoming lane. When the course change is predicted, the oncoming-vehicle arrival-time calculator calculates an estimated arrival time of an oncoming vehicle detected by the oncoming vehicle detector to the preceding vehicle. The crossing predictor compares the estimated arrival time with a necessary crossing time, and predicts, when the estimated arrival time is shorter than the necessary crossing time, that the preceding vehicle will not travel across the oncoming lane. When it is predicted that the preceding vehicle will not travel across the oncoming lane, the following-control corrector lowers a deceleration or acceleration rate of the vehicle.

The optimum headway distance setting method may include determining whether or not to stop the speed adjustment operation for a vehicle by a driver of the vehicle by a control unit in the state detecting a front vehicle 1F which is traveling in front of the vehicle; determining whether or not to be stabilization of a headway distance between the vehicle and the front vehicle by the control unit when the speed adjustment operation for the vehicle is stopped; setting the optimum headway distance configured to set the stabilized headway distance as an optimum headway distance according to a traveling propensity of the driver by the control unit, and stores the optimum headway distance in the control unit.

An apparatus for controlling the driving assistance of a vehicle, a system including the same and a method for the same are provided. The apparatus for controlling the driving assistance of the vehicle includes a processor to adjust a driving assistance controlling setting value, based on at least one of whether a user looks ahead, whether the user performs a driving manipulation, and a driving condition during driving assistance of the vehicle, and a storage to store the driving assistance controlling setting value.

A driving system for a motor vehicle includes a first driving function for automated driving with automated longitudinal and transverse guidance and a second driving function for automated driving with at least automated longitudinal guidance, or with at least automated transverse guidance. The second driving function has a lower degree of automation than the first driving function. The first driving function is available in a tolerance range. Starting from a driving state with an active second driving function and a value of the driving parameter outside the tolerance range, the driving system changes, when the second driving function is active, the value of the driving parameter in the direction of the tolerance range via automated longitudinal guidance or automated transverse guidance. The driving system then determines that the driving parameter satisfies a criterion with respect to the tolerance range.

The disclosure provides a method, a system, and a computer program product for validating path data for a main link path or a second link path. The method comprises receiving at least one traffic object observation based on sensor data. The method also includes extracting a plurality of path locations associated with the at least one traffic object observation. The method also includes determining an association between the plurality of path locations based on a statistical model. The method further includes generating a trajectory for the plurality of path locations based on the association and validating the path data for the main link path or the second link path, based on the generated trajectory.