US 6,618,000 B2 · Method and device for controlling the distance from a vehicle to a preceding vehicle

Abstract

In a method and apparatus for controlling the distance of a vehicle to a vehicle traveling ahead, in which the distance and the relative velocity of the vehicle traveling ahead are measured and the distance, in a distance control mode, is controlled by accelerating or decelerating the vehicle to a preestablished setpoint distance, wherein the deceleration permitted by the distance control process is limited and, in situations in which the setpoint distance cannot be maintained at this limited deceleration, the transition is made from the distance control process to a process limiting the distance to a minimum distance which is smaller than the setpoint distance, and the vehicle, after reaching the minimum distance, is further decelerated, so that the distance once again increases to the setpoint distance.

Claims9

Dependent claims

A method for controlling a distance of a vehicle to a vehicle traveling ahead, comprising the steps of:

measuring a distance and a relative velocity of the vehicle traveling ahead;
in a distance control mode, controlling the distance by one of accelerating or decelerating the vehicle to a preestablished setpoint distance, the deceleration permitted in the distance control mode being limited;
and
transitioning, when the setpoint distance cannot be maintained at the limited deceleration, from the distance control mode to a process limiting the distance to a minimum distance that is smaller than the setpoint distance and, after reaching the minimum distance, further decelerating the vehicle so that the distance increases to the setpoint distance.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Method and device for controlling the distance from a vehicle to a preceding vehicle

Life of this patent

Method and device for controlling the distance from a vehicle to a preceding vehicle

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims9