Patent Description:
With the development of the auto industry, a lane change control system capable of automatically changing a lane on which a vehicle is traveling has been developed. When a driver operates a turn signal with the intention of changing a lane, the lane change control system may perform a lane change by automatically controlling a vehicle in a horizontal direction toward a direction where the turn signal is turned on. The lane change control system may perform a lane change by determining whether a speed, a location, and the like of a surrounding vehicle are suitable for performing the lane change, setting a control path for the lane change, and controlling steering torque along the control path. The lane change control system may detect a preceding vehicle and a following vehicle and may perform control based on the obtained information.

We have discovered that when a driving speed of a vehicle is slower, lane change control may put a driver in danger, and the driver may set a minimum operation speed capable of performing lane change control. In addition, when the minimum operation speed is set, while the vehicle travels at a speed slower than the minimum operation speed, when a lane change command of the driver is generated, we have discovered that a control strategy is desired to accelerate the vehicle to the minimum operation speed or more.

<CIT> describes a method taking into account vehicles in the overtaking lane and regulating the vehicle to an increased overtaking speed if the traffic situation detected by sensors or a driver intervention causes a desire to overtake. Distances to vehicles in the overtaking lane are measured and the overtaking speed computed depending on the distances of the vehicle to be overtaken and at least the immediately preceding vehicle in the overtaking lane.

<CIT> describes a method for regulating the speed and/or the distance of a first vehicle in relation to at least one preceding vehicle during a passing maneuver.

<CIT> describes that a vehicle has a speed regulating system and a surroundings sensor system for detecting the traffic environment including the traffic on an adjacent lane, a decision device for deciding whether a desire to change lanes can be accommodated and a command device that outputs an acceleration command to the speed regulating signal in the event of a desire to change lanes. A detection device uses the data of the sensing arrangement for detecting a window for a safe entry to the adjacent lane and the command device computes an acceleration strategy including a time point for starting acceleration.

An aspect of the present invention provides an apparatus and method for controlling a lane change in a vehicle to provide a strategy for lane change control when a driving speed of the vehicle is lower than a minimum operation speed.

The technical problems to be solved by the present inventive concept are not limited to the aforementioned problems, and any other technical problems not mentioned herein will be clearly understood from the following description.

It should be understood that the description and specific examples are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, as defined by the appended claims.

In addition, in describing an exemplary form of the present disclosure, if it is determined that a detailed description of related well-known configurations or functions blurs the gist of the present disclosure, it will be omitted.

In describing elements of forms of the present disclosure, the terms <NUM>st, <NUM>nd, first, second, A, B, (a), (b), and the like may be used herein. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element, but do not limit the corresponding elements irrespective of the nature, turn, or order of the corresponding elements. Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meanings as those generally understood by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains. Such terms as those defined in a generally used dictionary are to be interpreted as having meanings equal to the contextual meanings in the relevant field of art, and are not to be interpreted as having ideal or excessively formal meanings unless clearly defined as having such in the present application.

<FIG> is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an apparatus for controlling a lane change in a vehicle in one form of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, an apparatus <NUM> for controlling a lane change in a vehicle (hereinafter referred to as "apparatus <NUM>" for convenience of description) may include a sensor <NUM>, an input device <NUM>, a steering device <NUM>, an acceleration and deceleration device <NUM>, and a control circuit <NUM>. The apparatus <NUM> of <FIG> may be loaded into the vehicle.

The sensor <NUM> may be configured to sense an external vehicle. The sensor <NUM> may include, for example, a forward sensor <NUM> and a blind spot assist (BSA) sensor (or a rear lateral sensor) <NUM>. The sensor <NUM> may sense a preceding vehicle which is traveling on the same lane as the vehicle and a following vehicle which is traveling on a lane adjacent to the vehicle.

The input device <NUM> may configured to receive a lane change command from a driver of the vehicle. The input device <NUM> may be implemented with, for example, a turn signal lever, a switch, a button, or the like capable of receiving an input of the driver.

The steering device <NUM> may be configured to control a steering angle of the vehicle. The steering device <NUM> may include, for example, a steering wheel, an actuator interlocked with the steering wheel, and a controller for controlling the actuator.

The acceleration and deceleration device <NUM> may be configured to control a speed of the vehicle. The acceleration and deceleration device <NUM> may include, for example, a throttle, a brake, an actuator interlocked with the throttle and the brake, and a controller for controlling the actuator.

The control circuit <NUM> may be electrically connected with the sensor <NUM>, the input device <NUM>, the steering device <NUM>, and the acceleration and deceleration device <NUM>. The control circuit <NUM> may control the sensor <NUM>, the input device <NUM>, the steering device <NUM>, and the acceleration and deceleration device <NUM> and may perform a variety of data processing and various arithmetic operations. The control circuit <NUM> may be, for example, an electronic control unit (ECU) or a sub-controller loaded into the vehicle.

According to the invention, the control circuit <NUM> receives a lane change command using the input device <NUM>. The control circuit <NUM> may receive a lane change command in a left or right direction via the input device <NUM> from the driver.

According to the invention, the control circuit <NUM> calculates a minimum operation speed for lane change control. For example, the control circuit <NUM> may calculate a minimum operation speed in response to receiving a lane change command or may calculate a minimum operation speed periodically while the vehicle travels. Upon lane change control, the apparatus <NUM> activates control only when a driving speed of the vehicle is greater than or equal to the minimum operation speed for a safe lane change. An exemplary equation for calculating a minimum operation speed Vsmin may be Equation <NUM> below.

According to Equation <NUM> above, the minimum operation speed Vsmin may be determined based on Srear, Vapp, a, tB, and tG. Herein, each of a, tB, and tG may be a kind of environmental variable indicating a predicted behavior of a following vehicle and may correspond to a predefined constant. Each of the distance Srear between the vehicle and the following vehicle and the speed Vapp of the following vehicle may be a value indicating a motion state of the following vehicle and may be measured by the sensor <NUM>.

Herein, a sensing distance of the sensor <NUM> is limited, so there may be a need for calculating the minimum operation speed Vsmin for each of when the following vehicle is located within the sensing distance of the sensor <NUM> and when the following vehicle is not located within the sensing distance of the sensor <NUM>. When the following vehicle is located within the sensing distance, the control circuit <NUM> may calculate the minimum distance Vsmin based on the distance Srear and the speed Vapp measured by the sensor <NUM>. When the following vehicle is not located within the sensing distance, the control circuit <NUM> may calculate the minimum distance Vsmin assuming that there is the worst, that is, the following vehicle proceeds at a maximum legal speed immediately over the sensing distance of the sensor <NUM>. In this case, the control circuit <NUM> sets the distance Srear to a maximum sensing distance of the sensor <NUM> and sets the speed Vapp to a maximum legal speed of a country where a vehicle is traveling. A description will be given in detail of an exemplary form of calculating the minimum operation speed with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

When a current speed of the vehicle is faster than the minimum operation speed, the control circuit <NUM> may immediately initiate lane change control. When the current speed of the vehicle is slower than the minimum operation speed, the control circuit <NUM> may provide various control strategies in consideration of a preceding vehicle.

According to an exemplary form, when a driving speed of the vehicle is lower than the minimum operation speed, the control circuit <NUM> may determine whether to accelerate the vehicle based on a speed of a preceding vehicle which is traveling on the same lane as the vehicle. In a situation where the vehicle should accelerate its driving speed to reach the minimum operation speed to activate lane change control, the control circuit <NUM> may divide a surrounding situation into four situations and may provide a control strategy suitable for each of the four situations. The control circuit <NUM> may suitably accelerate or decelerate the vehicle and may perform lane change control by controlling the steering device <NUM> and the acceleration and deceleration device <NUM>.

First of all, the control circuit <NUM> may verify whether the minimum operation speed is higher than a driving speed of the vehicle. When the driving speed of the vehicle is higher than the minimum operation speed, the control circuit <NUM> may immediately initiate a lane change. When the driving speed of the vehicle is lower than the minimum operation speed, the control circuit <NUM> may perform lane change control depending on the control strategy disclosed in Table <NUM> above.

The control circuit <NUM> may verify whether there is a preceding vehicle using the sensor <NUM>. When the preceding vehicle is not detected, the control circuit <NUM> may sufficiently accelerate the vehicle, thus accelerating the vehicle to the minimum operation speed or more to change a lane.

When the preceding vehicle is detected, the control circuit <NUM> may verify a speed of the preceding vehicle. When the speed of the preceding vehicle is higher than the minimum operation speed, since there is no collision risk although the control circuit <NUM> accelerates the vehicle, the control circuit <NUM> may accelerate the vehicle to the minimum operation speed or more and may change a lane.

When the speed of the preceding vehicle is lower than the minimum operation speed, the control circuit <NUM> may consider a speed of the preceding vehicle and a headway between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle. Since the headway is sufficiently long, when there is no probability of collision while the vehicle accelerates and changes a lane, the control circuit <NUM> may accelerates the vehicle to the minimum operation speed or more and may change a lane.

Since the headway is not sufficiently long, when there is a probability of collision while the vehicle accelerates and changes a lane, the control circuit <NUM> may decelerates the vehicle. After a following vehicle overtakes the vehicle or after a distance from the preceding vehicle is provided, the control circuit <NUM> may retry lane change control.

A description will be given in detail of each of the above-mentioned control strategies with reference to <FIG>.

Hereinafter, a description will be given in detail of an operation of calculating the minimum operation speed with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

<FIG> is a drawing illustrating an exemplary operation of an apparatus for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to an exemplary form of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, a vehicle <NUM> may include an apparatus <NUM> of <FIG>. In a description of <FIG>, an operation described as being performed by the vehicle <NUM> may be understood as being controlled by a control circuit <NUM> of the apparatus <NUM>.

In one form, when a following vehicle <NUM> which is traveling on a target lane corresponding to a lane change command is sensed by a sensor of the vehicle <NUM>, the vehicle <NUM> may calculate a minimum operation speed based on a speed of the following vehicle <NUM> and a distance between the vehicle <NUM> and the following vehicle <NUM>. For example, when a distance d1 between the vehicle <NUM> and the following vehicle <NUM> is shorter than a maximum sensing distance of a BSA sensor (or a rear lateral sensor), the vehicle <NUM> may measure a distance Srear and a speed Vapp using the sensor. The vehicle <NUM> may calculate a minimum operation speed for lane change control based on the measured Srear and Vapp. For example, the vehicle <NUM> may calculate the minimum operation speed by applying the measured Srear and Vapp to Equation <NUM> above. When a lane change command is input, the vehicle <NUM> may calculate a minimum operation speed by detecting the following vehicle <NUM> in a lane to be changed or may calculate a minimum operation speed by detecting the following vehicle <NUM> in a lane adjacent to the vehicle <NUM>.

<FIG> is a drawing illustrating an exemplary operation of an apparatus for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to another form of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, when a following vehicle <NUM> which is traveling on a target lane corresponding to a lane change command is not sensed by a sensor of a vehicle <NUM> according to an exemplary form, the vehicle <NUM> may calculate a minimum operation speed based on a specified speed and a sensing distance of the sensor. For example, when a distance d2 between the vehicle <NUM> and the following vehicle <NUM> is longer than a maximum sensing distance of a BSA sensor (or a rear lateral sensor), the vehicle <NUM> may fail to measure a distance Srear and a speed Vapp using the sensor. In this case, the vehicle <NUM> calculates a minimum operation speed Vsmin assuming that the following vehicle <NUM> proceeds at a maximum legal speed immediately over a sensing distance of the sensor. The vehicle <NUM> sets the distance Srear to a maximum sensing distance of the sensor and sets the speed Vapp to a maximum legal speed of a country where the vehicle <NUM> is traveling. The vehicle <NUM> calculates a minimum operation speed by applying the set Srear and Vapp to Equation <NUM> above. When a lane change command is input, the vehicle <NUM> may calculate a minimum operation speed by detecting the following vehicle <NUM> in a lane to be changed or may calculate a minimum operation speed by detecting the following vehicle <NUM> in a lane adjacent to the vehicle <NUM>.

Hereinafter, a description will be given in detail of a control strategy provided when a preceding vehicle is not detected, with reference to <FIG>.

<FIG> is a drawing illustrating an exemplary operation of an apparatus for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to one form of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, when a preceding vehicle is not sensed by a sensor of a vehicle <NUM>, the vehicle <NUM> may control a driving speed of the vehicle <NUM> to be higher than a minimum operation speed and may perform lane change control when the driving speed of the vehicle <NUM> is higher than the minimum operation speed. When the preceding vehicle is not located within a sensing distance of a forward sensor, the vehicle <NUM> may fail to detect the preceding vehicle. When the preceding vehicle is not located within the sensing distance of the sensor, since the vehicle <NUM> sufficiently accelerates its driving speed, it may accelerate the driving speed to a minimum operation speed and may change a lane.

Hereinafter, a description will be given of a control strategy when a preceding vehicle is detected with reference to <FIG>.

<FIG> is a drawing illustrating an exemplary operation of an apparatus for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to another exemplary form of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, when a minimum operation speed Vsmin is lower than a speed Vf of a preceding vehicle <NUM>, a vehicle <NUM> may control its driving speed to be higher than the minimum operation speed Vsmin and may perform lane change control when the driving speed of the vehicle <NUM> is higher than the minimum operation speed Vsmin. When the preceding vehicle <NUM> is located within a sensing distance of a forward sensor, the vehicle <NUM> may detect a speed of the preceding vehicle <NUM>. When the speed Vf of the preceding vehicle <NUM> is faster than the minimum operation speed Vsmin, since the vehicle <NUM> sufficiently accelerates its driving speed, it may accelerate the driving speed to the minimum operation speed Vsmin and may change a lane.

Referring to <FIG>, when a minimum operation Vsmin is higher than a speed Vf of a preceding vehicle <NUM>, a vehicle <NUM> may determine whether to accelerate based on a speed of the preceding vehicle <NUM> and a distance between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>. When the preceding vehicle <NUM> is located within a sensing distance of a forward sensor, the vehicle <NUM> may sense the speed Vf of the preceding vehicle <NUM>. When the speed Vf of the preceding vehicle <NUM> is slower than the minimum operation speed Vsmin, the vehicle <NUM> is unable to sufficiently accelerate its driving speed, so it may determine whether to accelerate in consideration of a headway between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>.

According to an exemplary form, the vehicle <NUM> may determine a probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM> based on the speed Vf of the preceding vehicle <NUM> and a distance between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>. When there is no the probability of collision, the vehicle <NUM> may control its driving speed to be higher than the minimum operation speed Vsmin and may perform lane change control when the driving speed of the vehicle <NUM> is higher than the minimum operation speed Vsmin. The vehicle <NUM> may predict a driving path of the vehicle <NUM> and a driving path of the preceding vehicle <NUM> until a lane change is completed. When there is no probability of collision with the preceding vehicle <NUM> since a headway is long as a result of the prediction, the vehicle <NUM> may accelerate its driving speed to the minimum operation speed Vsmin and may change a lane along the predicted driving speed.

<FIG> is a drawing illustrating an exemplary operation of an apparatus for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to another aspect of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, a vehicle <NUM> may determine a probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and a preceding vehicle <NUM> based on a speed Vf of the preceding vehicle <NUM> and a distance between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>. When there is the probability of collision, the vehicle <NUM> may control its driving speed to decelerate. The vehicle <NUM> may predict its driving path and a driving path of the preceding vehicle <NUM> until a lane change is completed. When there is a probability of collision with the preceding vehicle <NUM> since a headway is short as a result of the prediction, the vehicle <NUM> may perform deceleration control. After the vehicle <NUM> decelerates, it may determine the probability of collision again and may calculate a minimum operation speed again. The vehicle <NUM> may provide a headway and may allow a following vehicle <NUM> to overtake the vehicle <NUM> by decelerating. After a headway is sufficiently provided or a minimum operation speed is reset after the following vehicle <NUM> overtakes the vehicle <NUM>, the vehicle <NUM> may retry a lane change.

Hereinafter, a description will be given in detail of an operation of determining a probability of collision with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

<FIG> and <FIG> are drawings illustrating an exemplary operation for determining a probability of collision in an apparatus for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to an exemplary form of the present disclosure.

According to one form, a vehicle may estimate its predicted driving path and a predicted driving path of a preceding vehicle based on a speed of the preceding vehicle and a distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle and may determine a probability of collision between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle based on the predicted driving path of the vehicle and the predicted driving path of the preceding vehicle.

Referring to <FIG>, a vehicle <NUM> may recognize a preceding vehicle <NUM>, a driving lane, and a target lane. The vehicle <NUM> may predict a path where the vehicle <NUM> accelerates to a minimum operation speed and changes a lane and may predict a path of the preceding vehicle <NUM>. The vehicle <NUM> may verify whether paths are duplicated. When the paths are duplicated, the vehicle <NUM> may determine that there is a probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>. When the paths are not duplicated, the vehicle <NUM> may determine that there is no probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>.

For example, a <NUM>st point <NUM>, a <NUM>nd point <NUM>, a <NUM>rd point <NUM>, a <NUM>th point <NUM>, and a <NUM>th point <NUM> may represent expected movement points of the vehicle <NUM> at intervals of a specified time (e.g., <NUM>). A <NUM>th point <NUM>, a <NUM>th point <NUM>, an <NUM>th point <NUM>, a <NUM>th point <NUM>, and a <NUM>th point <NUM> may represent expected movement points of the preceding vehicle <NUM> at intervals of the same time. The vehicle <NUM> may determine a probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM> in consideration of a location (e.g., the <NUM>st point <NUM>) of the vehicle <NUM> and a location (e.g., the <NUM>th point <NUM>) of the preceding vehicle <NUM> in the same time. In the case shown in <FIG>, all of a distance between the <NUM>st point <NUM> and the <NUM>th point <NUM>, a distance between the <NUM>nd point <NUM> and the <NUM>th distance <NUM>, a distance between the <NUM>rd point <NUM> and the <NUM>th point <NUM>, a distance between the <NUM>th point <NUM> and the <NUM>th point <NUM>, and a distance between the <NUM>th point <NUM> and the <NUM>th point <NUM> are sufficient, so the vehicle <NUM> may determine that there is no probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, a <NUM>st point <NUM>, a <NUM>nd point <NUM>, a <NUM>rd point <NUM>, and a <NUM>th point <NUM> may represent expected movement points of a vehicle <NUM> at intervals of a specified time (e.g., <NUM>). A <NUM>th point <NUM>, a <NUM>th point <NUM>, a <NUM>th point <NUM>, and a <NUM>th point <NUM> may represent expected movement points of a preceding vehicle <NUM> at intervals of the same time. The vehicle <NUM> may determine a probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM> in consideration of a location (e.g., the <NUM>st point <NUM>) of the vehicle <NUM> and a location (e.g., the <NUM>th point <NUM>) of the preceding vehicle <NUM> in the same time. In the case shown in <FIG>, a distance between the <NUM>rd point <NUM> and the <NUM>th point <NUM> is close to each other (is less than a specified value), so the vehicle <NUM> may determine that there is a probability of collision between the vehicle <NUM> and the preceding vehicle <NUM>.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to an exemplary form of the present disclosure.

Hereinafter, it may be assumed that an apparatus <NUM> of <FIG> performs a process of <FIG>. Furthermore, in a description of <FIG>, an operation described as being performed by an apparatus may be understood as being controlled by a control circuit <NUM> of the apparatus <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may receive a lane change command from a driver of a vehicle. For example, the apparatus may verify an intention for the driver to perform a lane change, through a turn signal lever, a button, a switch, or the like.

In operation <NUM>, the apparatus calculates a minimum operation speed for lane change control. For example, the apparatus may calculate a minimum operation speed based on a measurement value for a following vehicle when the following vehicle is detected or based on a setting value when the following vehicle is not detected.

In operation <NUM>, when receiving a lane change command, the apparatus may determine whether a driving speed of the vehicle is lower than the minimum operation speed. For example, the apparatus may compare the calculated minimum operation speed with a current speed of the vehicle.

When the driving speed of the vehicle is lower than the minimum operation speed, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may determine whether to accelerate the vehicle based on a speed of a preceding vehicle. For example, the apparatus may determine whether to accelerate the vehicle based on a speed of the preceding vehicle, a distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle, and/or the like. The vehicle may change a lane after acceleration control or may retry lane change control after deceleration control.

When the driving speed of the vehicle is higher than the minimum operation speed, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may perform lane change control. For example, when it is verified that the driving speed of the vehicle is higher than the minimum operation speed, the apparatus may immediately initiate lane change control.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling a lane change in a vehicle according to an form of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may receive a lane change command. In operation <NUM>, the apparatus may calculate a minimum operation sped Vsmin for lane change control. In operation <NUM>, the apparatus may determine whether the minimum operation speed Vsmin is greater than a driving speed Vego of a vehicle. When the minimum operation speed Vsmin is less than or equal to the driving speed Vego of the vehicle, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may perform a lane change. When the minimum operation speed Vsmin is greater than the driving speed Vego of the vehicle, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may determine whether there is a preceding vehicle.

When there is no the preceding vehicle, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may accelerate the driving speed Vego of the vehicle to the minimum operation speed Vsmin or more and may change a lane. When there is the preceding vehicle, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may determine whether a speed of the preceding vehicle is less than the minimum operation speed Vsmin. When the speed of the preceding vehicle is greater than or equal to the minimum operation speed Vsmin, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may accelerate the driving speed Vego of the vehicle to the minimum operation speed Vsmin or more and may change the lane. When the speed of the preceding vehicle is less than the minimum operation speed Vsmin, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may determine a probability of collision between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle upon acceleration. When there is no the probability of collision between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle upon acceleration, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may accelerate the driving speed Vego of the vehicle to the minimum operation speed Vsmin or more and may change the lane. When there is the probability of collision between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle upon acceleration, in operation <NUM>, the apparatus may perform deceleration control.

<FIG> is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a computing system according to an form of the present disclosure.

Referring to <FIG>, a computing system <NUM> may include at least one processor <NUM>, a memory <NUM>, a user interface input device <NUM>, a user interface output device <NUM>, a storage <NUM>, and a network interface <NUM>, which are connected with each other via a bus <NUM>.

The processor <NUM> may be a central processing unit (CPU) or a semiconductor device for performing processing of instructions stored in the memory <NUM> and/or the storage <NUM>. Each of the memory <NUM> and the storage <NUM> may include various types of volatile or non-volatile storage media. For example, the memory <NUM> may include a read only memory (ROM) and a random access memory (RAM).

Thus, the operations of the methods or algorithms described in connection with the forms disclosed in the specification may be directly implemented with a hardware module, a software module, or combinations thereof, executed by the processor <NUM>. The software module may reside on a storage medium (i.e., the memory <NUM> and/or the storage <NUM>) such as a RAM, a flash memory, a ROM, an erasable and programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically EPROM (EEPROM), a register, a hard disc, a removable disc, or a compact disc-ROM (CD-ROM). An exemplary storage medium may be coupled to the processor <NUM>. The processor <NUM> may read out information from the storage medium and may write information in the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium may be integrated with the processor <NUM>. The processor and storage medium may reside in an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). Alternatively, the processor and storage medium may reside as a separate component of the user terminal.

The apparatus according to an exemplary form of the present disclosure may enhance the convenience of a driver and may provide safety of lane change control by determining whether to accelerate a vehicle in consideration of a speed, a location, and the like of a preceding vehicle when a driving speed of the vehicle is lower than a minimum operation speed.

In addition, various effects directly or indirectly ascertained through the present disclosure may be provided.

Claim 1:
An apparatus (<NUM>) for controlling a lane change of a vehicle (<NUM>), the apparatus comprising:
a sensor (<NUM>) configured to sense an external vehicle (<NUM>, <NUM>);
an input device (<NUM>) configured to receive a lane change command from a driver of the vehicle; and
a control circuit (<NUM>) configured to be electrically connected with the sensor and the input device,
wherein the control circuit (<NUM>) is configured to:
receive the lane change command using the input device;
calculate a minimum operation speed of the vehicle for a lane change control;
determine whether to accelerate the vehicle based on a speed of a preceding vehicle (<NUM>) traveling on the same lane as the vehicle, when a driving speed of the vehicle is lower than the minimum operation speed; and
activate lane change control only when the driving speed of the vehicle is greater than or equal to the minimum operation speed,
characterized in that the control circuit (<NUM>) is configured to:
when a following vehicle (<NUM>) traveling on a target lane corresponding to the lane change command is not sensed by the sensor, set a distance between the vehicle (<NUM>) and the following vehicle (<NUM>) to a maximum distance sensible by the sensor and a speed of following vehicle (<NUM>) to a maximum legal speed of a country where the vehicle (<NUM>) is traveling, and
calculate the minimum operation speed based on the distance and the speed set by the control circuit (<NUM>).