Patent ID: 11906025
Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
Field: Mechanical elements (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  F  Y | IPC B  F

Claim 7:
8. A control apparatus for a vehicle that is provided with (i) a power source, (ii) drive wheels and (iii) a fluid transmission device which is disposed in a power transmission path between the power source and the drive wheels and which includes a lockup clutch,
the control apparatus comprising:
a follow-up-running control portion configured to control a follow-up running in which the vehicle automatically runs following a preceding vehicle with a predetermined inter-vehicle distance to the preceding vehicle from the vehicle; and
a lockup-clutch control portion configured to control the lockup clutch such that an operation state of the lockup clutch is placed in one of a released state, a slipping state or an engaged state,
wherein the lockup-clutch control portion is configured, during the follow-up running, to execute a fluid-temperature increase suppressing control for controlling the operation state of the lockup clutch in a manner that suppresses increase of a temperature of a working fluid which circulates in the fluid transmission device and which is used to switch the operation state of the lockup clutch, and
wherein the follow-up-running control portion is configured to stop the follow-up running, when determining that change in a running performance of the vehicle caused by execution of the fluid-temperature increase suppressing control makes it difficult to execute the follow-up running.