[Problem] An object of the present invention is to provide an electric power steering apparatus capable of smoothly switching the control systems without self-steer by gradually changing a control torque of the torque control and a command value of the position/speed control upon fade processing that switches the control systems.

[Means for Solving the Problem] The present invention is the electric power steering apparatus including a torque sensor to detect a steering torque and a motor control unit to control a motor that applies an assist torque to a steering system of a vehicle, comprising: a function to switch a control system of the motor between a torque control system of a torque system to control a motor output torque and a position/speed control system of a steering angle system to control a steering angle of a steering in accordance with a predetermined switching trigger, wherein each of a steering angle command value and a steering angle speed of the position/speed control system and an assist torque level of the torque control system gradually change sensitive to the steering torque, when shifting from the torque control system to the position/speed control system or vice versa.

A method for determining a movement trajectory (MT) for a movable object (a vehicle) in a rule-based trajectory planning (TP) system, TP being performed based on minimizing overall costs of a cost function (CF), the CF considering violation costs (VC) which arise for each MT section from a potential respective violation of violatable rules as to the section, the rule violation (RV) including a state/transition RV, the state RV indicating a violation of a state rule indicating an impermissible state of the object; the transition RV indicating a violation of a transition rule indicating an impermissible state transition, the state RV being assigned a time-dependent cost amount of the VC, and the transition RV being assigned a fixed, time-independent cost amount of the VC, so that overall costs for a MT for each section violating a violatable rule depend on the time-dependent/fixed cost amount assigned to the violated rule.

The present invention provides an automatic driving system capable of clearly identifying the factors responsible for causing an abnormality such as an accident or malfunction of a vehicle during automatic driving after the fact. The automatic driving system automatically selects, from each automatic driving function provided in the vehicle or each level of driving automation into which each automatic driving function is classified, an automatic driving function or a level of driving automation according to the circumstances surrounding the vehicle or the driving state of the vehicle, automatically performs a part of or the entirety of a vehicle driving operation to automatically drive the vehicle, and, remembers the time of automatic driving and information indicating the selected automatic driving function or level of driving automation at that time.

The present invention provides an automatic driving system capable of clearly identifying the factors responsible for causing an abnormality such as an accident or malfunction of a vehicle during automatic driving after the fact. The automatic driving system automatically selects, from each automatic driving function provided in the vehicle or each level of driving automation into which each automatic driving function is classified, an automatic driving function or a level of driving automation according to the circumstances surrounding the vehicle or the driving state of the vehicle, automatically performs a part of or the entirety of a vehicle driving operation to automatically drive the vehicle, and, remembers the time of automatic driving and information indicating the selected automatic driving function or level of driving automation at that time.

A vehicle control system for operating an automated vehicle in a fashion more conducive to comfort of an occupant of the automated vehicle includes a sensor, an electronic-horizon database, vehicle-controls, and a controller. The sensor is used to determine a centerline of a travel-lane traveled by a host-vehicle. The electronic-horizon database indicates a shape of the travel-lane beyond where the sensor is able to detect the travel-lane. The vehicle-controls are operable to control motion of the host-vehicle. The controller is configured to determine when the database indicates that following the shape of the travel-lane beyond where the sensor is able to detect the travel-lane will make following the centerline by the host-vehicle uncomfortable to an occupant of the host-vehicle, and operate the vehicle-controls to steer the host-vehicle away from the centerline when following the centerline will make the occupant uncomfortable.

A steering control device for a vehicle controls a steering device having a steering mechanism and a drive unit configured to provide the steering mechanism with steering force for the wheels. The steering control device includes a detection unit to detect the steering angle; and a control unit to calculate a target value of a current to be supplied to the drive unit as a current command value, and execute automatic steering control to automatically control steering of the vehicle by causing the drive unit to be supplied with the current of the current command value. When an absolute value of the steering angle comes to a predetermined first threshold or more during the automatic steering control, the control unit decreases an upper limit value of an absolute value of the current command value as the absolute value of the steering angle increases.

A system and method for interrupting a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)-based automatic steering mode of a hydraulic steering system on a vehicle. When a steering wheel is manually turned by an operator, pressurized hydraulic fluid from a steering directional control valve activates an interrupter having an interrupter valve. The interrupter valve blocks pressurized fluid flow to the automatic steering system, thus overriding automatic steering and giving the operator full manual steering control via the steering wheel. The hydraulic interrupt system is mechanical with no electronic elements.

A method for providing vehicle lateral steering control. The method includes providing a mathematical model of vehicle dynamics that includes a state variable, a steering control variable and a future road disturbance factor that defines the upcoming road curvature, banks and slopes of the roadway. The method determines an optimal steering control signal that includes a feedback portion and a feed-forward portion, where the feed-forward portion includes the road disturbance factor. The method determines a state variable and a control variable for the current roadway curvature, bank and slope for stationary motion of the vehicle for constant speed, yaw rate and lateral velocity. The method then introduces a new state variable and control variable for dynamic vehicle motion for variable speed, yaw rate and lateral velocity that is a difference between the state and control variables for predicted future times and the steady state variables.

A steering control system includes: a deviation amount detection unit configured to detect a deviation amount of a car that travels on a track, from a reference traveling path of the car in a width direction of the track; a roll or lateral direction vibration amount detection unit configured to detect a roll or lateral direction vibration amount of the car; and a feedback control unit configured to perform feedback control of steering of the car so as to reduce the deviation amount and the roll or lateral direction vibration amount. The feedback control unit is configured to output a steering command value in which a specified frequency to be reduced is suppressed.

A driving supporter includes a support inhibitor that inhibits support of driving when a steering-operation value is greater than a threshold value. The support inhibitor includes a threshold-value determiner that determines the threshold value to a value greater when a first object and a second object are present than when the first object is present, and the second object is absent. The first object has a relationship in which a relative positional relationship between the object and an own vehicle is a relationship in which a steering operation is estimated to be performed in a first direction in which the own vehicle avoids the object. The second object has a relationship in which the relative positional relationship is a relationship in which the steering operation is estimated to be performed in a second direction reverse to the first direction such that the own vehicle avoids the object.