A driving support ECU initializes a target trajectory calculation parameter at a start of LCA; calculates, based on the target trajectory calculation parameter, a target trajectory function representing a target lateral position which is a target position of an own vehicle in a lane width direction in accordance with an elapsed time from the start of LCA; calculates a target control amount based on the target trajectory function; when a steering operation by a driver has been detected, again initializes the target trajectory calculation parameter; and recalculates the target trajectory function based on the target trajectory calculation parameter.

A vehicle control apparatus according to the present invention outputs a signal regarding a target braking/driving force for guiding a vehicle in a target traveling direction to a braking/driving controller. The signal regarding the target braking/driving force is acquired based on information regarding a running route of the vehicle and a physical amount regarding a motion state of the vehicle. The vehicle control apparatus outputs a signal regarding a steering correction torque for correcting a steering torque according to a behavior of the vehicle to a steering force controller. The signal regarding the steering correction torque is acquired based on a vehicle-body slip angle of the vehicle and the target braking/driving force.

A method to control, while driving along a curve, a road vehicle with a variable stiffness and with rear steering wheels. The method comprises the steps of: determining an actual attitude angle of the road vehicle; establishing a desired attitude angle; determining an actual yaw rate of the road vehicle; establishing a desired yaw rate; and changing, in a simultaneous and coordinated manner, the steering angle of the rear wheels and the distribution of the stiffness of the connection of the four wheels to the frame depending on a difference between the actual attitude angle and the desired attitude angle and depending on a difference between the actual yaw rate and the desired yaw rate.

A behavior control apparatus for a vehicle includes a vehicle speed detector, a curvature setting unit, a steering angle detector, a yaw rate detector, a deceleration rate detection unit, a target yaw rate setting unit, a vehicle behavior determination unit, and a vehicle behavior controller. The vehicle behavior controller includes a grip restored vehicle speed estimation unit, an estimated yaw rate setting unit, a grip restored target yaw rate setting unit, and a steering control unit. The steering control unit makes a steering control including allowing a yaw rate of the vehicle to settle at a grip restored target yaw rate at which tire grip is restored, on the basis of a difference between an estimated yaw rate and the grip restored target yaw rate.

A method for operating a steer-by-wire steering system of a motor vehicle is proposed. The steer-by-wire steering system includes a steering wheel, a force feedback actuator coupled to the steering wheel, a steering actuator coupled to a steerable wheel, and a control system. The method includes a) the determination of steering information while taking into account a steering wheel angle and/or a driver's steering torque applied to the steering wheel by the driver; b) controlling the steering actuator while taking into account the steering information to adjust a desired wheel steering angle of the steerable wheel; c) controlling the force feedback actuator for setting a steering wheel torque; and d) providing a threshold value associated with steering wheel torque and/or the wheel steering torque; e) generating a torque value representing or reproducing the steering wheel torque and/or the wheel steering torque; and f) outputting an overshoot signal if the torque value reaches the threshold value. A corresponding steer-by-wire steering system is also proposed.

An apparatus for estimating a column torque in a motor-driven power steering system includes a vehicle speed sensing unit configured to sense a vehicle speed; a steering sensing unit configured to sense a steering state of a driver; a yaw rate sensor configured to output a measured yaw rate by sensing a tilted state of a vehicle; and a column torque estimation unit configured to calculate a self-aligning torque and an estimated yaw rate based on the vehicle speed and the steering state inputted from the vehicle speed sensing unit and the steering sensing unit, estimate a column torque by adjusting angular velocity compensation gains with respect to a steering angular velocity for each of the estimated yaw rate and the vehicle speed, and output a final column torque by adjusting the estimated column torque according to a difference between the measured yaw rate and the estimated yaw rate.

A system and a method for active steering control with automatic torque compensation are disclosed with a processor that generates a targeted torque signal after receiving a steering assistance signal generated by an active driver assistance device, overlays the targeted torque signal on a driver's torque signal after receiving the driver's torque signal sensed by a torque sensor to generate a steering torque signal, and performs an assistance logic algorithm according to the steering torque signal. As the assistance logic algorithm is performed based on both the steering assistance signal and the driver's torque signal, the steering assistance effect provided by the system and the method will not resist against the way of driver's steering, allowing the driver to easily and stably control the vehicle.

A method for estimating a longitudinal force difference ΔFx acting on steered axle wheels of a vehicle, the method comprising obtaining data from the vehicle related to an applied steering torque M.sub.steer associated with the steered axle wheels, obtaining a scrub radius value r.sub.s associated with the steered axle wheels, and estimating the longitudinal force difference ΔFx, based on the obtained data and on the scrub radius r.sub.s, as proportional to the applied steering torque M.sub.steer and as inversely proportional to the scrub radius r.sub.s.

The present disclosure provides a steering control apparatus, a method therefor and a steering system, wherein, when a vehicle slips, the steering control apparatus increases traction by steering a road wheel to the left and right along a current steering direction. Particularly, the steering control apparatus comprises: a slip occurrence determination unit for determining whether or not the vehicle has slipped; a steering angle determination unit for, when it is determined that the vehicle has slipped, determining a current steering angle of a steering wheel as a reference steering angle; and a control unit for controlling a driving shaft so that the road wheel may be steered to the left and right within a first angle range on the basis of the reference steering angle.

The automatic steering control that changes the traveling direction of the vehicle according to the road information on the travel path to the own vehicle that is automatically driven on the travel path, based on the steering force of the driver's operation of the steering wheel detected by the steering force detector and the lateral deviation of the own vehicle detected by the lateral deviation calculator in the direction perpendicular to the travel direction on the travel path, compared to when the lateral deviation is small corresponding to the magnitude of the lateral deviation, when the lateral deviation is large, the automatic steering control amount acting on the steering force is controlled so that the automatic steering control amount acting on the steering force of the steering wheel operation by the driver becomes larger.