18496169. DRIVING ASSISTANCE APPARATUS simplified abstract (Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha)

DRIVING ASSISTANCE APPARATUS

Organization Name

Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Inventor(s)

Yoshinari Toda of Nisshin-shi (JP)

DRIVING ASSISTANCE APPARATUS - A simplified explanation of the abstract

This abstract first appeared for US patent application 18496169 titled 'DRIVING ASSISTANCE APPARATUS

Simplified Explanation

The driving assistance apparatus described in the patent application includes a tollgate type determiner and a travel controller. The tollgate type determiner identifies whether a tollgate ahead of a vehicle is a speed-limit tollgate based on the vehicle's position and map information. The travel controller adjusts the vehicle's speed accordingly, limiting it to the speed limit if it is a speed-limit tollgate.

• Tollgate type determiner determines if tollgate is speed-limit tollgate based on vehicle position and map information
• Travel controller adjusts vehicle speed to comply with speed limit if tollgate is speed-limit tollgate

Potential Applications

This technology could be applied in the development of advanced driving assistance systems for vehicles, enhancing safety and compliance with speed limits in specific areas such as tollgates.

Problems Solved

This technology helps prevent speeding violations by automatically adjusting the vehicle's speed when passing through speed-limit tollgates, ensuring compliance with regulations and improving road safety.

Benefits

- Improved road safety by enforcing speed limits at specific locations - Enhanced convenience for drivers by automatically adjusting vehicle speed when passing through tollgates

Potential Commercial Applications

The technology could be integrated into existing driving assistance systems in vehicles, marketed to car manufacturers and fleet operators as a safety feature that promotes compliance with speed limits at tollgates.

Possible Prior Art

One possible prior art could be the use of GPS technology in vehicles to provide real-time speed limit information and adjust vehicle speed accordingly. However, the specific application of identifying speed-limit tollgates and controlling vehicle speed based on this information may be a novel aspect of this patent application.

How does the tollgate type determiner differentiate between different types of tollgates?

The tollgate type determiner uses positional information on the vehicle and map information to determine if the tollgate is a speed-limit tollgate. It is not specified in the abstract how this differentiation is made.

What happens if there is a discrepancy between the tollgate type determiner and the actual speed limit at the tollgate?

It is not mentioned in the abstract how the system handles situations where there is a discrepancy between the determined speed limit for the tollgate and the actual speed limit enforced at the location.

Original Abstract Submitted

A driving assistance apparatus includes a tollgate type determiner and a travel controller. The tollgate type determiner determines whether or not a tollgate present in front of a vehicle is a speed-limit tollgate, on the basis of positional information on the vehicle and map information. The travel controller controls a travel speed of the vehicle in accordance with the result of determination by the tollgate type determiner. When the tollgate is the speed-limit tollgate, the travel controller performs speed-limiting control such that, while passing through the tollgate, the vehicle has the travel speed limited not more than a speed limit for the speed-limit tollgate. When the tollgate is not the speed-limit tollgate, the travel controller does not perform the speed-limiting control.