# US 11,299,176 B2 · Vehicle control device > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,299,176 B2 - Document ID: US11299176B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/674,671 - Filed: 2019-11-05 - Published: 2020-05-14 - Granted: 2022-04-12 - Earliest claimed: 2018-11-08 - Assignees: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha - Inventors: Ryosuke Fukatani; Nobuhide Kamata - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11299176B2 ## CPC - B60W 50/14: Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention - B60W 30/18: Propelling the vehicle - G05D 1/0088: {characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours (using knowledge based models G06N5/00)} - B60W 2050/0072: {Controller asks driver to take over} - B60W 2520/105: Longitudinal acceleration - B60W 2520/14: Yaw - B60W: CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT - G05D: SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES ## Abstract A vehicle control device controlling a vehicle capable of switching between an automatic driving mode and a driver involvement mode in which a driver is involved includes a blind spot boundary specifying unit configured to specify a boundary of a region becoming a blind spot of the vehicle, a traveling plan generation unit configured to generate a traveling plan in which the vehicle does not collide with a moving body assumed to be positioned on the blind spot boundary specified by the blind spot boundary specifying unit, a determination unit configured to determine whether or not the traveling plan generated by the traveling plan generation unit satisfies a predetermined condition, and a switching unit configured to switch the vehicle from the automatic driving mode to the driver involvement mode when the determination unit determines that the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A vehicle control device configured to control a vehicle capable of switching between an automatic driving mode and a driver involvement mode in which a driver is involved, the vehicle control device comprising: a blind spot boundary specifying unit configured to specify a boundary of a region becoming a blind spot of the vehicle; a traveling plan generation unit configured to generate a traveling plan in which the vehicle does not collide with a moving body assumed to be positioned on a blind spot boundary specified by the blind spot boundary specifying unit; a determination unit configured to determine whether or not the traveling plan generated by the traveling plan generation unit satisfies a predetermined condition; a switching unit configured to switch the vehicle from the automatic driving mode to the driver involvement mode when the determination unit determines that the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition; a map database; and a road type determination unit configured to determine, based on the map database, whether or not a lane in which the vehicle travels is a priority road with respect to a lane in which the assumed moving body travels; wherein the lane in which the assumed moving body travels crosses the lane in which the vehicle travels, and wherein the traveling plan generation unit is configured to generate the traveling plan on an assumption that the assumed moving body is stopping when the road type determination unit determines that the lane in which the vehicle travels is the priority road, and generate the traveling plan on an assumption that the assumed moving body is traveling when the road type determination unit determines that the lane in which the vehicle travels is not the priority road. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined condition is that at least one of a speed, an acceleration, and a yaw rate in the traveling plan generated by the traveling plan generation unit is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The vehicle control device according to claim 2, further comprising a notification unit configured to notify the driver that the vehicle is switched from the automatic driving mode to the driver involvement mode before the switching unit switches the vehicle from the automatic driving mode to the driver involvement mode when the determination unit determines that the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein a determination position where the determination unit makes a determination includes a first determination position and a second determination position positioned farther in front of the vehicle than the first determination position, and the determination unit is configured to determine whether or not the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition at the second determination position after determining whether or not the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition at the first determination position. ### Claim 5 (depends on 2) The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein the traveling plan generation unit is configured to estimate a blind spot area from the map database and the blind spot boundary specified by the blind spot boundary specifying unit and decide the type of the assumed moving body based on the blind spot area. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, further comprising a notification unit configured to notify the driver that the vehicle is switched from the automatic driving mode to the driver involvement mode before the switching unit switches the vehicle from the automatic driving mode to the driver involvement mode when the determination unit determines that the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The vehicle control device according to claim 6, wherein a determination position where the determination unit makes a determination includes a first determination position and a second determination position positioned farther in front of the vehicle than the first determination position, and the determination unit is configured to determine whether or not the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition at the second determination position after determining whether or not the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition at the first determination position. ### Claim 8 (depends on 6) The vehicle control device according to claim 6, wherein the traveling plan generation unit is configured to estimate a blind spot area from the map database and the blind spot boundary specified by the blind spot boundary specifying unit and decide the type of the assumed moving body based on the blind spot area. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein a determination position where the determination unit makes a determination includes a first determination position and a second determination position positioned farther in front of the vehicle than the first determination position, and the determination unit is configured to determine whether or not the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition at the second determination position after determining whether or not the traveling plan satisfies the predetermined condition at the first determination position. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The vehicle control device according to claim 9, wherein the traveling plan generation unit is configured to estimate a blind spot area from the map database and the blind spot boundary specified by the blind spot boundary specifying unit and decide the type of the assumed moving body based on the blind spot area. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the traveling plan generation unit is configured to estimate a blind spot area from the map database and the blind spot boundary specified by the blind spot boundary specifying unit and decide the type of the assumed moving body based on the blind spot area. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein a determination position where the determination unit makes the determination of whether or not the traveling plan generated by the traveling plan generation unit satisfies the predetermined condition is a position where a visible region ratio is below a predetermined ratio during the traveling of the vehicle.