Vehicle control apparatus

1. A vehicle control apparatus in a vehicle provided with a shift-by-wire parking mechanism that switches an output shaft of an automatic transmission between a locked state in which rotation is not possible, and an unlocked state in which rotation is possible, the vehicle control apparatus comprising:

a control element that executes an auto parking control that sets the parking mechanism to the locked state when a request to switch a vehicle electrical power source from an ignition on position to an ignition off position has been received and a vehicle stop condition has been established,

an ending process element that, after operation of the parking mechanism by the auto parking control, when the locked state has been established within a reference period, performs a normal ending process that stops a vehicle drive source and switches the vehicle electrical power source to the ignition off position, and when the locked state has not been established within the reference period, performs an abnormal ending process that stops the vehicle drive source and switches the vehicle electrical power source to an accessory position; and

a support process element that, if an increase in vehicle speed is detected when the parking mechanism is operated by the auto parking control, performs a support process that prohibits operation of the parking mechanism and extends the reference period.

2. A vehicle control apparatus used in a vehicle that employs a shift-by-wire parking mechanism that, as necessary, switches an output shaft of an automatic transmission between a locked state in which rotation is not possible and an unlocked state in which rotation is possible, the vehicle control apparatus comprising:

a first control element that outputs a request to execute an auto parking control that sets the parking mechanism to the locked state when a request to switch a vehicle electrical power source from an ignition on position to an ignition off position has been received and a vehicle stop condition has been established, and a second control element that executes the auto parking control in response to input of that execution request;

the first control element including a first determination element that determines whether or not a locked state establishment report has been received from the second control element before a predetermined reference period since output of the execution request has passed, and an ending process element that, when determined that the establishment report has been received, performs a normal ending process that stops a vehicle drive source and switches the vehicle electrical power source to the ignition off position, and when determined that the establishment report has not been received, performs an abnormal ending process that stops the vehicle drive source and switches the vehicle electrical power source to an accessory position; and

the second control element including a second determination element that determines whether or not there is an increase in vehicle speed when the auto parking control execution request has been input, a support process element that, when determined that the vehicle speed has not increased, allows the parking mechanism to operate, and when determined that the vehicle speed has increased, performs a support process that prohibits operation of the parking mechanism and outputs an extension request to extend the reference period to the first control element, and a reporting element that outputs an establishment report to the first control element when the locked state has been established by operation of the parking mechanism.

3. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the reference period is managed by a guard timer provided in the first control element, and the support process of the support process element extends the reference period by increasing a time-up threshold value of the guard timer.

4. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the support process element includes a configuration that, when the support process has been executed, performs a process that notifies a driver of extension of the reference period.

5. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the support process element includes a configuration that, when the support process has been executed, performs a process that notifies a driver of extension of the reference period and requests that the driver operate a brake.

6. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the support process element includes a configuration that, when the support process has been executed, after notifying the driver of extension of the reference period, automatically performs a process that cuts off power transmission from the automatic transmission to drive wheels, and a process that causes the brake to be operated.

7. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1 , the parking mechanism comprising:

a parking gear that is externally fixed to the output shaft of the automatic transmission,

a parking lock pole that has a catch that is engaged with the parking gear, and is displaced such that the catch is engaged with the parking gear to put the parking gear in the locked state in which rotation is not possible, and the catch is disengaged from the parking gear to put the parking gear in the unlocked state in which rotation is possible,

a parking rod that is pushed or pulled so as to be displaced towards or away from the parking gear,

a detent lever that is supported so as to be capable of tilting to push or pull the parking rod, and

an actuator for tilting the detent lever by a predetermined angle in an appropriate direction.

8. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the parking mechanism includes:

a parking gear that is externally fixed to the output shaft of the automatic transmission;

a parking lock pole that has a catch that is engaged with the parking gear, and is displaced such that the catch is engaged with the parking gear to put the parking gear in the locked state in which rotation is not possible, and the catch is disengaged from the parking gear to put the parking gear in the unlocked state in which rotation is possible,

a parking rod that is pushed or pulled so as to be displaced towards or away from the parking gear,

a detent lever that is supported so as to be capable of tilting to push or pull the parking rod, and

an actuator for tilting the detent lever by a predetermined angle in an appropriate direction.

9. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the parking mechanism includes:

a parking gear that is externally fixed to the output shaft of the automatic transmission;

a parking lock pole that has a catch that is engaged with the parking gear, and is displaced such that the catch is engaged with the parking gear to put the parking gear in the locked state in which rotation is not possible, and the catch is disengaged from the parking gear to put the parking gear in the unlocked state in which rotation is possible,

a parking rod that is pushed or pulled so as to be displaced towards or away from the parking gear,

a detent lever that is supported so as to be capable of tilting to push or pull the parking rod, and

an actuator for tilting the detent lever by a predetermined angle in an appropriate direction.

10. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the parking mechanism includes:

a parking gear that is externally fixed to the output shaft of the automatic transmission;

a parking lock pole that has a catch that is engaged with the parking gear, and is displaced such that the catch is engaged with the parking gear to put the parking gear in the locked state in which rotation is not possible, and the catch is disengaged from the parking gear to put the parking gear in the unlocked state in which rotation is possible,

a parking rod that is pushed or pulled so as to be displaced towards or away from the parking gear,

a detent lever that is supported so as to be capable of tilting to push or pull the parking rod, and

an actuator for tilting the detent lever by a predetermined angle in an appropriate direction.