Patent ID: 11067165

Abstract:
In this vehicle control device (10), which controls operation of a vehicle provided with a transmission including a direct gear and an overdrive gear, which is a gear with a lower gear ratio than that of the direct gear, a travel segment determination unit (15) determines a next travel segment which, forward in the travel direction of the vehicle, has a road slope different from that of the current travel segment where the vehicle is currently traveling. A next gear stage selection unit (16) determines a next gear stage, which will be the gear stage of a transmission in the next travel segment, on the basis of the speed of the vehicle, an equal fuel consumption map of the engine of the vehicle, and the travel resistance of the vehicle in the next travel segment estimated on the basis of the road slope in the next travel segment. The next gear stage selection unit (16) selects the next gear stage referring to different equal fuel consumption maps depending on whether the gear stage of the transmission is the direct gear or whether the gear stage of the transmission is a normal gear.