FR3131886A1 - Method and device for controlling an adaptive cruise control system of a vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and a device for controlling an adaptive cruise control system, known as the ACC system, of a first vehicle (10). To this end, a second vehicle (11) traveling in front of the first vehicle (10) is detected. Information representative of triggering of a turn signal of the first vehicle (10) is received. An indicator representative of a level of danger of a situation in which the first vehicle (10) finds itself vis-à-vis the second vehicle (11) is determined according to the reception of the information of activation of the turn signal(s) . The second vehicle (11) is selected, or not, as the target object according to a result of a comparison between the indicator and a determined threshold value. The ACC system of the first vehicle (10) is controlled based on a result of selecting the second vehicle as a target object. Figure for abstract: Figure 1

Description

Method and device for controlling an adaptive speed regulation system of a vehicle

The present invention relates to the methods and devices for controlling an adaptive speed regulation system of a vehicle, in particular a motor vehicle. The present invention also relates to a method and a device for regulating the speed of a vehicle. The present invention also relates to a method and a device for controlling a vehicle, in particular an autonomous vehicle.

Technology background

Some contemporary vehicles are equipped with functions or system(s) or driving assistance, known as ADAS (from English “Advanced Driver-Assistance System” or in French “Advanced Driving Assistance System”).

Among these systems, the adaptive cruise control system, known as ACC (from the English “Adaptive Cruise Control”), has the primary function of automatically regulating, in an adaptive manner, the speed of vehicles which are equipped with it according to their environment. Such an ACC system determines one or more acceleration instructions as a function of a speed instruction and information relating to the environment of the vehicle, the acceleration instruction(s) being able to regulate the speed of the vehicle in an adaptive manner , that is to say taking into account the environment of the vehicle.

This environmental information corresponds for example to the distance between the vehicle equipped with the ACC system and a vehicle traveling in front, to the speed (for example relative) of the vehicle traveling in front, to the acceleration (or deceleration) of the vehicle traveling in front. ahead of and/or at a regulatory speed limit. Such a vehicle is called a target vehicle or target object of the ACC system. The acceleration setpoint(s) are for example determined from a control law based on estimates of the torque supplied by a powertrain (for example a thermal or electric motor) to one or more wheels of the vehicle and the current acceleration of the vehicle.

The environmental information of a vehicle is for example obtained from sensors embedded in the vehicle, such as radars for example. This information is particularly important for a vehicle, for example to improve the safety of the vehicle by taking into account the environment around it, in particular other vehicles.

The comfort of vehicle passengers is another important factor, particularly for the acceptance of vehicle driver assistance systems. For example, excessive acceleration or deceleration is a cause of discomfort for vehicle passengers, particularly when acceleration is controlled by an ACC system. Significant and/or repeated accelerations or decelerations are sometimes due to a lack of anticipation of the behavior of the target vehicle by the ACC system or conversely to premature selection of the target vehicle.

Summary of the present invention

An object of the present invention is to solve at least one of the problems of the technological background described above.

Another object of the present invention is to improve the operation of an ACC system of a vehicle.

According to a first aspect, the present invention relates to a method for controlling an adaptive cruise control system, called the ACC system, of a first vehicle, the method comprising the following steps:

- detection of a second vehicle traveling in front of the first vehicle;

- reception of information representative of the triggering of a turn signal of the first vehicle;

- determination, following receipt, of an indicator representative of a level of dangerousness of a situation in which the first vehicle finds itself in relation to the second vehicle;

- selection of the second vehicle as the target object of the ACC system based on a result of a comparison between the indicator and a determined threshold value;

- control of the ACC system according to a selection result.

The use of a danger level indicator makes it possible to select or not the second vehicle as the target object of the ACC system of the first vehicle, depending on the situation when the first vehicle activates one or more of its indicators, which is synonymous a desire to change lanes of traffic. Thus, the regulation of the acceleration and/or the speed of the first vehicle as a function of the second vehicle is only activated when the situation requires it, which avoids, for example, braking unnecessarily when the second vehicle is sufficiently far from the first vehicle which has time to change lanes without danger of collision with the second vehicle. A delay in the selection of the second vehicle as the target object is thus authorized compared to conventional operation of an ACC system, depending on the level of danger. Unexpected braking of the first vehicle is thus avoided and the operation of the ACC system is improved.

According to a variant, the second vehicle is selected as the target object of the ACC system when the indicator is greater than the determined threshold value.

According to another variant, the determined threshold value belongs to an interval of values between 0.3 and 0.5.

According to an additional variant, the indicator is determined as a function of a time remaining before collision between the first vehicle and the second vehicle.

According to yet another variant, the indicator is determined based on:

- a set of dynamic information from the second vehicle comprising information representative of the speed of the second vehicle, information representative of acceleration of the second vehicle and information representative of the distance between the first vehicle and the second vehicle; And

- a set of dynamic information from the first vehicle comprising information representative of the speed of the first vehicle and information representative of the acceleration of the first vehicle.

According to an additional variant, the ACC system is controlled as a function of dynamic parameters of the second vehicle when the second vehicle is selected as the target object of the ACC system.

According to a second aspect, the present invention relates to a device for controlling an adaptive speed regulation system, called the ACC system, of a vehicle, the device comprising a memory associated with a processor configured for implementing the steps of the method according to the first aspect of the present invention.

According to a third aspect, the present invention relates to a vehicle, for example of the automobile type, comprising a device as described above according to the second aspect of the present invention.

According to a fourth aspect, the present invention relates to a computer program which comprises instructions adapted for the execution of the steps of the method according to the first aspect of the present invention, in particular when the computer program is executed by at least one processor.

Such a computer program can use any programming language, and be in the form of a source code, an object code, or an intermediate code between a source code and an object code, such as in partially compiled form, or in any other desirable form.

According to a fifth aspect, the present invention relates to a computer-readable recording medium on which is recorded a computer program comprising instructions for executing the steps of the method according to the first aspect of the present invention.

On the one hand, the recording medium can be any entity or device capable of storing the program. For example, the medium may comprise a storage means, such as a ROM memory, a CD-ROM or a ROM memory of the microelectronic circuit type, or even a magnetic recording means or a hard disk.

On the other hand, this recording medium can also be a transmissible medium such as an electrical or optical signal, such a signal being able to be conveyed via an electrical or optical cable, by conventional or terrestrial radio or by self-directed laser beam or by other ways. The computer program according to the present invention can in particular be downloaded onto an Internet type network.

Alternatively, the recording medium may be an integrated circuit in which the computer program is incorporated, the integrated circuit being adapted to execute or to be used in executing the method in question.

Brief description of the figures

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will emerge from the description of the particular and non-limiting examples of embodiment of the present invention below, with reference to the attached Figures 1 to 3, in which:

schematically illustrates an environment of a first vehicle, according to a particular and non-limiting embodiment of the present invention;

schematically illustrates a device configured to control an adaptive speed regulation system of the first vehicle of the , according to a particular and non-limiting embodiment of the present invention;

illustrates a flowchart of the different stages of a method of controlling an adaptive speed regulation system of the first vehicle of the , according to a particular and non-limiting embodiment of the present invention.

Description of the implementation examples

A method and a device for controlling an adaptive speed regulation system, called the ACC system, of a vehicle will now be described in what follows with reference jointly to Figures 1 to 3. The same elements are identified with same reference signs throughout the description which follows.

According to a particular and non-limiting example of an embodiment of the present invention, the control of an adaptive speed regulation system, called the ACC system, of a first vehicle comprises the detection, for example by a computer of the first vehicle implementing the presence of the invention, for example from data received from one or more sensors on board the first vehicle, from a second vehicle traveling in front of the first vehicle. Information representative of the triggering of a turn signal of the first vehicle is received by this computer, the turn signal(s) being for example activated by the driver of the first vehicle to indicate a change of lane. An indicator representative of a level of dangerousness of a situation in which the first vehicle finds itself with respect to the second vehicle is determined, for example following receipt of the activation information of the indicator(s). The second vehicle is then selected as the target object, or not, depending on a result of a comparison between the indicator and a determined threshold value. For example, if the indicator takes a value greater than the determined threshold value, then the second vehicle is selected as the target object of the ACC system. The ACC system of the first vehicle is finally controlled based on a result of whether the second vehicle is selected as a target object or not.

The use of a dangerousness indicator makes it possible to use or not the second vehicle as a target object of the ACC system of the first vehicle depending on the situation when the first vehicle wishes to change lanes. Thus, the regulation of the acceleration of the first vehicle as a function of the second vehicle is only activated when the situation requires it, which avoids, for example, braking unnecessarily when the second vehicle is sufficiently far from the first vehicle which has time to change lanes without danger of collision with the second vehicle.

There schematically illustrates a first vehicle 10 following a second vehicle 11 on a portion of road in an environment 1, according to a particular and non-limiting embodiment of the present invention.

There illustrates a first vehicle 10, for example a motor vehicle, carrying one or more sensors configured to detect the presence of objects in the environment 1 of the first vehicle 10. According to other examples, the first vehicle 10 corresponds to a car, a bus, a truck, a utility vehicle or a motorcycle, that is to say a vehicle of the motorized land vehicle type.

The first vehicle 10 corresponds to a vehicle circulating under the total supervision of a driver or circulating in an autonomous or semi-autonomous mode. The first vehicle 10 circulates according to a level of autonomy equal to 0 or according to a level of autonomy ranging from 1 to 5 for example, according to the scale defined by the American federal agency which has established 5 levels of autonomy ranging from 1 to 5, level 0 corresponding to a vehicle with no autonomy, whose driving is under the total supervision of the driver, level 1 corresponding to a vehicle with a minimum level of autonomy, whose driving is under the supervision of the driver with minimal assistance from an ADAS system, and level 5 corresponding to a completely autonomous vehicle.

According to the example of the , the first vehicle 10 circulates on a portion of road with two traffic lanes 1001, 1002. The first vehicle 10 circulates for example on the right traffic lane 1001, the two traffic lanes 1001 and 1002 being in the same direction of travel. traffic. The right traffic lane 1001 corresponds for example to the traffic lane considered to be the slowest and the left traffic lane 1002 corresponds to the traffic lane considered to be the fastest.

The notions of right and left are defined according to the direction of travel of the first vehicle 10. The “slowest” lane of traffic is on the right in countries where vehicles travel in the right lane (countries such as France for example). example). The “slowest” lane of traffic is on the left in countries where vehicles travel in the left lane (countries such as the United Kingdom for example).

According to the example of the , the first vehicle 10 follows a second vehicle 11, at a determined distance which can vary over time (depending on the dynamic behavior of the first vehicle 10 and the second vehicle 11), the second vehicle 11 traveling on the same traffic lane 1001 than the first vehicle 10 and in the same direction as the first vehicle 10.

The first vehicle 10 carries for example one or more of the following sensors:

- one or more millimeter wave radars arranged on the first vehicle 10, for example at the front, at the rear, on each front/rear corner of the vehicle; each radar is adapted to emit electromagnetic waves and to receive the echoes of these waves returned by one or more objects (for example the second vehicle 11 located in front of the first vehicle 10 according to the example of the ), with the aim of detecting obstacles and their distances from the first vehicle 10; and or

- one or more LIDAR(s) (from the English “Light Detection And Ranging”, or “Detection and estimation of the distance by light” in French), a LIDAR sensor corresponding to an optoelectronic system composed of a transmitter device laser, a receiving device comprising a light collector (to collect the part of the light radiation emitted by the transmitter and reflected by any object located in the path of the light rays emitted by the transmitter) and a photodetector which transforms light collected as an electrical signal; a LIDAR sensor thus makes it possible to detect the presence of objects (for example the second vehicle 11) located in the emitted light beam and to measure the distance between the sensor and each detected object; and or

- one or more cameras (associated or not with a depth sensor) for acquiring one or more images of the environment around the first vehicle 10 located in the field of vision of the camera(s).

The data obtained from this sensor(s) varies depending on the type of sensor. When it comes to radar or LIDAR, the data corresponds for example to distance data between points of the detected object and the sensor. Each detected object is thus represented by a cloud of points (each point corresponding to a point of the object receiving the radiation emitted by the sensor and reflecting at least in part this radiation), the cloud of points representing the envelope (or a part of the envelope) of the detected object as seen by the sensor and ultimately by the vehicle 10 carrying the sensor. When it comes to a video camera, the data corresponds to data associated with each pixel of the acquired image(s), for example gray level values coded on for example 8, 10, 12 or more bits for each color channel, for example RGB (from the English “Red, Green, Blue” or in French “Rouge, vert, bleu”). These data make it possible, for example, to determine the successive positions taken by an object moving in the environment 1, for example the second vehicle 11, and to deduce one or more dynamic parameters of the moving object such as speed and/or or acceleration. These data also make it possible to determine the lines on the ground to, for example, participate in determining whether the second vehicle 11 and the first vehicle 10 belong to the same traffic lane, for example.

The data acquired by the on-board sensor(s) feeds, for example, one or more driver assistance systems, known as ADAS (from English “Advanced Driver-Assistance System” or in French “Advanced Driving Assistance System”). ) embedded in the first vehicle 10. Such an ADAS system is configured to assist, or even replace, the driver of the first vehicle 10 to control the first vehicle 10 on its route.

According to one example, the first vehicle 10 has an ADAS system corresponding to an adaptive speed regulation system, called the ACC system. When the ACC system is activated, the objective of the ACC system is to achieve a set acceleration, called A _{set point} (t), which varies over time 't' and which makes it possible to maintain or reach a regulation speed and/or to maintain a determined safety distance from the second vehicle 11 upstream of the first vehicle 10, that is to say from a target vehicle traveling in front of the first vehicle 10 in the same direction of traffic on the same lane traffic, when the second vehicle 11 is selected as the target object by the ACC system. The data obtained from the sensor(s) on board the first vehicle 10 allows the ACC system of the first vehicle 10 to establish a target acceleration value A _target (t) over time 't'. The target acceleration A _target (t) becomes an acceleration setpoint A _setpoint (t). The ACC system or a computer of this system transmits for example the acceleration instructions A _setpoint (t) which it has determined to the computer(s) supervising the operation of a powertrain of the first vehicle 10, in particular for that the latter(s) determine(s) the torque instructions to be generated by the powertrain to respect the acceleration instructions A _setpoint (t) and regulate the speed of the first vehicle 10.

A target acceleration value is for example determined at a current instant t ₀ from a set of data obtained from one or more object detection sensors on board the first vehicle 10 and/or from setpoint parameters entered for example by the driver or determined from data on the environment of the first vehicle 10. The target acceleration value (expressed in ms ^-2 ) is for example calculated from:

- data representative of the dynamic behavior of the second vehicle 11 (for example speed and/or acceleration) when the latter is selected as the target object of the ACC system; these data are for example obtained from a set of positions taken by the second vehicle 11 over a time interval preceding the current instant t ₀ for which the target acceleration is determined. The data on the positions taken by the second vehicle 11 are advantageously determined from the data received from the object detection sensor(s) on board the first vehicle 10;

- data representative of the dynamic behavior of the first vehicle 10 (for example speed, acceleration, distance from the second vehicle 11), these data being obtained from sensors embedded in the first vehicle 10, the distance being for example obtained from data received from the object detection sensor(s); and or

- setpoint parameters supplied to the ACC system, such as for example a target speed, a distance or a target inter-vehicle time (DIV or TIV), these parameters being recorded in memory, determined by analysis of the environment (for example the Target speed is determined by reading speed limit signs or from data received from a navigation system) or entered by a user via a Human-Machine interface, called HMI.

A process for controlling the ACC system of the first vehicle 10 following a second vehicle 11 (which travels on the same lane as the first vehicle 10) is advantageously implemented by the first vehicle 10, that is to say by a computer or a combination of computers of the on-board system of the first vehicle 10, for example by the computer(s) in charge of controlling the ACC system.

In a first operation, the presence of the second vehicle 11 in front of the first vehicle 10 is detected, for example from data received from one or more sensors embedded in the first vehicle 10 (for example radars and/or LIDAR).

These data allow the computer to determine the distance between the two vehicles 10 and 11, this distance being called inter-vehicle distance (known as DIV) or inter-vehicle time (known as TIV). Such a distance varies over time depending on the dynamic behavior of each of these vehicles 10, 11.

In a second operation, the triggering of one or more side indicators, for example the left indicators 101 of the first vehicle 10, is detected or information representative of the triggering of the indicators is received by the computer in charge of the process.

A flashing light (also called a flasher) advantageously corresponds to lighting used to indicate or signal a change of direction (for example to the right (respectively to the left) when the right (respectively left) flashing light(s) are activated).

The lighting of a flashing light is generally orange in color and a flashing light, when activated, emits light discontinuously. The frequency of the flashes is for example between 60 and 120 flashes per minute, for example 90 flashes per minute.

The triggering of the left turn signals 101 of the first vehicle 10 is thus representative of an intention of the first vehicle 10 (for example of its driver) to change lanes to move onto the lane 1002 located to the left of the lane. current 1001 of the first vehicle 10.

The flashing lights of the first vehicle 10 are advantageously controlled by one or more computers of the on-board system of the first vehicle 10. The on-board system of the first vehicle 10 comprises a set of computers linked together by one or more communication buses. These computers form for example a multiplexed architecture for the production of different services useful for the proper functioning of the first vehicle 10 and to assist the driver and/or passengers of the vehicle in controlling the first vehicle 10, for example by controlling the ACC system. and/or the activation and deactivation of each of the vehicle's flashing lights as a function of control signals received from control members arranged for example in the passenger compartment of the first vehicle 10, these control signals circulating on the multiplexed architecture . The computers exchange data with each other via one or more computer buses, for example a CAN data bus type communication bus (from the English “Controller Area Network” or in French “Réseau de controllers”) , CAN FD (from the English “Controller Area Network Flexible Data-Rate” or in French “Network of controllers with flexible data rate”), FlexRay (according to the ISO 17458 standard) or Ethernet (according to the ISO/IEC 802 standard -3).

The detection of the activation of the indicators 101 is thus for example obtained by the reception of wired information of binary type acquired by the computer or the intelligent service unit, called BSI, of the first vehicle 10 when this information is transmitted on the wired network, for example the data bus, of the on-board system of the first vehicle 10. Such information corresponds to a binary value taking a first value when the indicators are active or activated and a second value when the indicators are inactive or deactivated. Such information is for example transmitted by the BSI to the computer in charge of the process via the data bus connecting these two computers.

In a third operation, an indicator representative of a level of dangerousness (or criticality) of a situation in which the first vehicle 10 finds itself with respect to the second vehicle 11 is determined following the detection of the triggering of the indicators 101 .

According to a first embodiment, the level of dangerousness is determined as a function of a parameter corresponding to the time remaining before collision, called TTC (from the English “Time-to-Collision”), the TTC being calculated according to any known method of those skilled in the art, for example as described in the article entitled “New Algorithms for Computing the Time-to-Collision in Freeway Traffic Simulation Models”, by Jia Hou et al., published on December 31, 2014 in “Computational Intelligence and Neuroscience”, volume 2014.

According to this first example, the level of dangerousness is for example inversely proportional to the TTC, that is to say that the lower the TTC, the higher the level of dangerousness.

According to a second embodiment, the level of dangerousness is determined according to:

- a set of dynamic information from the second vehicle 11 comprising the speed of the second vehicle 11, the acceleration of the second vehicle 11 and information representative of the distance between the first vehicle 10 and the second vehicle 11 (for example the distance between -vehicle, called DIV, in meters or the inter-vehicle time, called TIV, in seconds); And

- a set of dynamic information from the first vehicle 10 including the speed of the first vehicle 10, the acceleration of the first vehicle 10 and optionally a jerk value (from the English "jerk", also called jerk value maximum stroke) depending on the speed of the first vehicle 10.

A jerk value advantageously corresponds to a quantity representing a variation of the acceleration over time, expressed in ms ^-3 .

For this purpose and according to this second embodiment, the distance D(t) separating the first vehicle 10 from the second vehicle 11 as a function of time is determined, for example via the following equation:

D(t) = [A ₁ (t)-A ₂ (t)] * t ² /2 + Vr*t + Dist

Or :

A ₁ (t) is the acceleration of the second vehicle 11 as a function of time,

A ₂ (t) is the acceleration of the first vehicle 10 as a function of time,

Vr is the relative speed of the second vehicle 11 compared to that of the first vehicle 10 and

Dist is the distance between the first vehicle 10 and the second vehicle 11, in meters.

A critical surface is defined by integrating the distance D(t) defined above over a determined time interval.

To obtain the level of danger, this critical surface is compared to a reference surface corresponding to the integration of a minimum distance over the determined time interval.

The minimum distance D _min between the first vehicle 10 and the second vehicle 11 is for example determined as a function of the duration of a pre-established time interval, ie the inter-vehicle time specified by the driver or the system, and the speed of the second vehicle 11 as follows:

if the inter-vehicle time is equal to 1 s, then

D _min = max ((0.7 * absolute speed of the second vehicle 11), 1);

if the inter-vehicle time is equal to 1.5 s, then

D _min = max ((1 * absolute speed of the second vehicle 11), 1);

Otherwise,

D _min = max ((1.3 * absolute speed of the second vehicle 11), 1).

A critical distance depending on the minimum distance D _min , a pre-established corrective parameter and the speed of the second vehicle 11 is then determined. More specifically, the critical distance, D _crit , and the reference surface, S _ref , are defined such that:

D _crit = D _min – K ₁ * Absolute speed of the second vehicle 11

where K ₁ is a first pre-established corrective parameter; And

S _ref = 4/3 * D _crit * √ |2 * D _crit /K ₂ |

where K ₂ is a second pre-established corrective parameter.

The indicator representative of the level of dangerousness N _danger , represented for example by a value between 0 and 1, is obtained via the following equation:

N _danger = S _crit / S _ref

In a fourth operation, the second vehicle 11 is selected or not as a target object of the ACC system depending on a result of the comparison between the indicator determined in the third operation and a determined threshold value.

The determined threshold value corresponds to a value of the dangerousness level indicator, such a threshold value corresponding to a value included in an interval of values, for example between 0.3 and 0.5. For example, the threshold value is equal to 0.3, 0.4 or 0.5.

Such a threshold value corresponds for example to an adjustable parameter of the ACC system, for example via an HMI (Human-Machine Interface). This allows, for example, the driver to choose the value to use for this threshold value.

According to another example, the threshold value is selectable from a list of predefined values.

According to yet another example, the threshold value is configured by default, for example by the manufacturer of the first vehicle 10 or by the designer of the ACC system, such a threshold value being recorded in a memory of the computer.

The second vehicle 11 is selected as the target object when the dangerousness level indicator reaches or exceeds the determined threshold value.

Otherwise, that is to say as long as the dangerousness level indicator remains below the determined threshold value, the second vehicle 11 is not selected as being the target object of the ACC system, which means that the regulation of the acceleration and/or the speed of the first vehicle 10 is not a function of the second vehicle 11.

The choice or setting of a threshold value in the low range of the interval (for example equal to 0.3 or 0.35) makes it possible to select the second vehicle 11 more quickly as the target object of the ACC system and thus to regulate the speed more quickly. or the acceleration of the first vehicle 10 as a function of the TIV measured between the two vehicles 10 and 11.

The choice or setting of a threshold value in the upper range of the interval (for example equal to 0.45 or 0.5) makes it possible to select the second vehicle 11 later as the target object of the ACC system and thus to delay the regulation of the speed or acceleration of the first vehicle 10 as a function of the TIV measured between the two vehicles 10 and 11, which makes it possible to limit the braking of the first vehicle 10 to give it more time to change lanes without braking at cause of the second vehicle 11.

In a fifth operation, the ACC system is controlled based on a result of the selection of the fourth operation.

When the second vehicle 11 is selected as the target object of the ACC system, the acceleration and/or speed of the first vehicle 10 is controlled by the ACC system as a function of the second vehicle 11 (for example as a function of its dynamic behavior and a deposit TIV).

When the second vehicle 11 is not selected as the target object of the ACC system, the acceleration and/or speed of the first vehicle 10 is not controlled by the ACC system based on the second vehicle 11.

Such a process thus makes it possible to limit braking when the first vehicle has triggered its indicators, synonymous with a change of traffic lane from a current traffic lane on which the second vehicle 11 is also traveling, in front of the first vehicle 10, towards a traffic lane adjacent to the current traffic lane. Indeed, such a process makes it possible to delay the selection of the second vehicle 11 as the target object of the ACC system of the first vehicle by taking into account the level of dangerousness of the situation in which the first vehicle 10 finds itself in relation to the second vehicle 11. The selection of the second vehicle 11 as target object being delayed, the first vehicle 10 is authorized to approach the second vehicle 11 without respecting the set TIV for example (the TIV between the two vehicles 10 and 11 can then be lower than the TIV of setpoint), according to the value configured for the threshold value to which the danger level indicator is compared. This leaves the opportunity for the first vehicle 10 to change lanes without braking due to the second vehicle 11 traveling in front, which may prove more comfortable for the passengers of the first vehicle 10.

There schematically illustrates a device 2 configured to control the ACC system of a vehicle, for example of the first vehicle 10, according to a particular and non-limiting embodiment of the present invention. The device 2 corresponds for example to a device on board the first vehicle 10, for example a computer.

The device 2 is for example configured for the implementation of the operations described with regard to the and/or steps of the process described with regard to the . Examples of such a device 2 include, without being limited to, on-board electronic equipment such as an on-board computer of a vehicle, an electronic computer such as an ECU (“Electronic Control Unit”), a telephone smart phone, tablet, laptop. The elements of device 2, individually or in combination, can be integrated into a single integrated circuit, into several integrated circuits, and/or into discrete components. Device 2 can be produced in the form of electronic circuits or software (or computer) modules or even a combination of electronic circuits and software modules.

The device 2 comprises one (or more) processor(s) 20 configured to execute instructions for carrying out the steps of the method and/or for executing the instructions of the software(s) embedded in the device 2. The processor 20 may include integrated memory, an input/output interface, and various circuits known to those skilled in the art. The device 2 further comprises at least one memory 21 corresponding for example to a volatile and/or non-volatile memory and/or comprises a memory storage device which may comprise volatile and/or non-volatile memory, such as EEPROM, ROM , PROM, RAM, DRAM, SRAM, flash, magnetic or optical disk.

The computer code of the embedded software(s) comprising the instructions to be loaded and executed by the processor is for example stored on memory 21.

According to different particular and non-limiting examples of embodiment, the device 2 is coupled in communication with other similar devices or systems (for example other computers) and/or with communication devices, for example a TCU (of the English “Telematic Control Unit” or in French “Unité de Control Télématique”), for example via a communications bus or through dedicated input/output ports.

According to a particular and non-limiting embodiment, the device 2 comprises a block 22 of interface elements for communicating with external devices. The interface elements of block 22 include one or more of the following interfaces:

- RF radio frequency interface, for example of the Wi-Fi® type (according to IEEE 802.11), for example in the 2.4 or 5 GHz frequency bands, or of the Bluetooth® type (according to IEEE 802.15.1), in the band frequency at 2.4 GHz, or Sigfox type using UBN radio technology (from English Ultra Narrow Band, in French ultra narrow band), or LoRa in the 868 MHz frequency band, LTE (from English “ Long-Term Evolution” or in French “Long-Term Evolution”), LTE-Advanced (or in French LTE-advanced);

- USB interface (from the English “Universal Serial Bus” or “Bus Universel en Série” in French);

- HDMI interface (from the English “High Definition Multimedia Interface”, or “Interface Multimedia Haute Definition” in French);

- LIN interface (from English “Local Interconnect Network”, or in French “Réseau interconnecté local”).

According to another particular and non-limiting example of embodiment, the device 2 comprises a communication interface 23 which makes it possible to establish communication with other devices (such as other computers of the on-board system) via a communication channel 230. The communication interface 23 corresponds for example to a transmitter configured to transmit and receive information and/or data via the communication channel 230. The communication interface 23 corresponds for example to a CAN type wired network (from the English “Controller Area Network” or in French “Réseau de controlleres”), CAN FD (from the English “Controller Area Network Flexible Data-Rate” or in French “Réseau de controllers à flow flexible data”), FlexRay ( standardized by the ISO 17458 standard) or Ethernet (standardized by the ISO/IEC 802-3 standard).

According to a particular and non-limiting embodiment, the device 2 can provide output signals to one or more external devices, such as a display screen, touch or not, one or more speakers and/or other devices (projection system) via respective output interfaces. According to one variant, one or the other of the external devices is integrated into device 2.

There illustrates a flowchart of the different stages of a method of controlling an ACC system of a vehicle, for example of the first vehicle 10, according to a particular and non-limiting embodiment of the present invention. The method is for example implemented by a device on board the first vehicle 10 or by the device 2 of the , for example by one or more processors of device 2.

In a first step 31, a second vehicle traveling in front of the first vehicle is detected, that is to say the presence of this second vehicle is determined, for example from data received from one or more detection sensors. object loaded into the first vehicle.

In a second step 32, information representative of the triggering of a turn signal of the first vehicle is received.

In a third step 33, an indicator representative of a level of danger of a situation in which the first vehicle finds itself with respect to the second vehicle is determined, following receipt of the information representative of the triggering of the flashing light at step 32.

In a fourth step 34, the second vehicle as the target object of the ACC system is selected according to a result of a comparison between the indicator and a determined threshold value.

In a fifth step 35, the ACC system is controlled according to a result of the selection of step 34.

According to a variant, the variants and examples of the operations described in relation to the apply to the stages of the process of .

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments described above but extends to a method of controlling a vehicle, for example an autonomous vehicle, which would include secondary steps without thereby departing from the scope of the present invention. The same would apply to a device configured to implement such a process.

The present invention also relates to an adaptive speed control system for a vehicle comprising device 2 of the .

The present invention also relates to a vehicle, for example an automobile or more generally an autonomous vehicle with a land engine, comprising the device 2 of the or the adaptive vehicle cruise control system above.

Claims (10)

Method for controlling an adaptive speed regulation system, called the ACC system, of a first vehicle (10), said method comprising the following steps:
- detection (31) of a second vehicle (11) traveling in front of said first vehicle (10);
- reception (32) of information representative of a triggering of a turn signal of said first vehicle (10);
- determination (33), following said reception (32), of an indicator representative of a level of dangerousness of a situation in which said first vehicle (10) finds itself with respect to said second vehicle (11);
- selection (34) of said second vehicle (11) as target object of said ACC system according to a result of a comparison between said indicator and a determined threshold value;
- control (35) of said ACC system according to a result of said selection (34). Method according to claim 1, for which said second vehicle (11) is selected as the target object of said ACC system when said indicator is greater than said determined threshold value. Method according to claim 1 or 2, for which said determined threshold value belongs to an interval of values between 0.3 and 0.5. Method according to one of claims 1 to 3, for which said indicator is determined as a function of a time remaining before collision between said first vehicle (10) and said second vehicle (11). Method according to one of claims 1 to 4, for which said indicator is determined as a function:
- a set of dynamic information of said second vehicle (11) comprising information representative of speed of said second vehicle (11), information representative of acceleration of said second vehicle (11) and information representative of distance between said first vehicle (10) and said second vehicle (11); And
- a set of dynamic information about said first vehicle (10) comprising information representative of the speed of said first vehicle (10) and information representative of acceleration of said first vehicle (10). Method according to one of claims 1 to 5, for which said ACC system is controlled as a function of dynamic parameters of said second vehicle (11) when the second vehicle (11) is selected as the target object of said ACC system. Computer program comprising instructions for implementing the method according to any one of the preceding claims, when these instructions are executed by a processor. Computer-readable recording medium on which a computer program is recorded comprising instructions for carrying out the steps of the method according to one of claims 1 to 6. Device (2) for controlling an adaptive speed regulation system, called ACC system, of a first vehicle (10), said device (2) comprising a memory (21) associated with at least one processor (20) configured for implementing the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 6. Vehicle (10) comprising the device (2) according to claim 9.