Patent ID: 7774123

Claim:
A system for evaluating a traffic environment of a motor vehicle and for influencing a speed of the motor vehicle in its own traffic lane, comprising: a signal transmitter that is configured to produce a signal characteristic of a desired speed of the motor vehicle; a signal transmitter that is configured to produce a signal characteristic of a yaw of the motor vehicle about its vertical axis; a signal transmitter that is configured to produce a signal characteristic of a target vehicle situated, in a direction of travel of the motor vehicle, in a detection area in front of the motor vehicle in terms of its spacing and orientation relative to the motor vehicle and that represents at least one of: (i) a speed relative to the speed of the motor vehicle; (ii) a spacing relative to the motor vehicle; and (iii) an angular offset or the lateral drift relative to the vehicle longitudinal axis of the motor vehicle; a signal transmitter that is configured to produce a signal characteristic of the speed of at least one wheel of the motor vehicle; an electronic control unit (ECU) connected to the signal transmitters and that is configured to generate output signals in response to the desired speed signal, the yaw signal, the target vehicle signal, and the wheel speed signal in which in the electronic control unit (ECU) is configured to generate a trigger signal that limits the momentary speed or momentarily the acceleration of the motor vehicle for at least a value that substantially corresponds to a maximum of a distance X between the motor vehicle and the target motor vehicle at the time of its leaving the detection area, wherein the distance X is reduced by a shortening stretch DX to an effective distance X eff that is dependent on at least one of an environmental condition environment (motorway, country road, town traffic), the speed of the target motor vehicle at the time of leaving the detection area, the momentary speed of the motor vehicle, and the bend radii of bends already driven through in the past within a predetermined period of time; and a control device connected to the electronic control unit (ECU) and that is configured to influence the actual speed of the motor vehicle in response to the output signal and the trigger signal.