System for providing data for vehicles

• US 10,068,475 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2014
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Esswein, Dieter, Ernstberger, Berthold
• Primary Examiner(s): Oh, Harry Y
• Application Number:
  US15/026,828
• Publication Number:
  US 20160314691A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,439 Days
• Field of Search: 701117
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3415 Dynamic re-routing, e.g. recalculating the route when the user deviates from calculated route or after detecting real-time traffic data or accidents
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3691 Retrieval, searching and output of information related to real-time traffic, weather, or environmental conditions arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions G08G1/09
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0133 for classifying traffic situation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0145 for active traffic flow control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096816 where the complete route is transmitted to the vehicle at once
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096844 where the complete route is dynamically recomputed based on new data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09685 where the complete route is computed only once and not updated

Abstract

A system for providing data for vehicles includes a region server for providing information data for vehicles in a region. A first and second of the vehicles predict path data, which indicate at least one route that the first and second vehicles will drive with a probability. The first and second vehicles are registered in the region server if the route of the first and second vehicles indicated by the predicted path data lies in the region. The region server produces the information data in dependence on received sensor data of the first vehicle. The produced information data are sent by the region server to the second vehicle if the predicted path data of the second vehicle overlap with the predicted path data of the first vehicle and the second vehicle is registered in the region server.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a first vehicle configured to predict first vehicle path data indicating at least one route which will be driven by the first vehicle in a time after predicting the first vehicle path data, the first vehicle having sensors configured to determine sensor data of the first vehicle, the sensor data indicating a position of the first vehicle and/or a state of the first vehicle and/or a state of an environment of the first vehicle and/or a state of a driver of the first vehicle;

a second vehicle configured to predict second vehicle path data indicating at least one route which will be driven by the second vehicle in a time after predicting the second vehicle path data, the second vehicle having sensors configured to determine sensor data of the second vehicle, the sensor data indicating a position of the second vehicle and/or a state of the second vehicle and/or a state of an environment of the second vehicle and/or a state of a driver of the second vehicle;

a first region server configured to provide information data for the first and second vehicles in a first region, the first region being within an area, the information data containing an item of information for controlling the first and second vehicles;

an area server configured to divide the area into the first region and into at least one further second region; and

a second region server configured to provide further information data for vehicles in the second region,

wherein;

the first and second vehicles are registered with the first region server when the route of the first and second vehicles respectively indicated by the respective predicted first vehicle and second vehicle path data is in the first region,

the first and second vehicles are configured to transmit the respectively determined sensor data to the first region server when the first and second vehicles are registered with the first region server,

the first region server is configured to evaluate the sensor data received from the first vehicle and to generate the information data on the basis of the sensor data received from the first vehicle,

the first region server is configured to transmit the generated information data to the second vehicle when the predicted second vehicle path data overlap the predicted first vehicle path data and the second vehicle is registered with the first region server, and

the first region server is configured to transmit the information data determined on the basis of the sensor data from the first vehicle to the second region server when the route indicated by the predicted first vehicle path data is partially in the first region and partially in the second region and the first vehicle is registered with the first region server.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first region server is configured to transmit the generated information data to the second vehicle when the location of the second vehicle, on the basis of whose state the information data have been generated, is along the at least one route indicated by the predicted second vehicle path data.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a third vehicle configured to predict third vehicle path data indicating at least one route which will be driven by the third vehicle in the time after predicting the third vehicle path data,

wherein;

the first, second and third vehicles are each configured to transmit their respectively predicted first vehicle, second vehicle and third vehicle path data to the area server, and

the area server is configured to determine a respective size of the first region and of the second region on the basis of the respectively predicted first vehicle, second vehicle and third vehicle path data.

4. The system as claimed in claim 3, wherein:

the third vehicle is registered with the second region server when the route indicated by the predicted third vehicle path data is in the second region, and

the second region server is configured to transmit the information data received from the first region server to the third vehicle when the third vehicle is registered with the second region server.

5. The system as claimed in claim 4, wherein:

the third vehicle has sensors configured to determine the sensor data, the sensor data from the third vehicle indicating a position of the third vehicle and a state of the third vehicle and/or a state of the environment of the third vehicle,

the third vehicle is configured to transmit the sensor data from the third vehicle to the second region server when the third vehicle is registered with the second region server, and

the second region server is configured to evaluate the sensor data from the third vehicle and to generate the further information data on the basis of the sensor data from the third vehicle.

6. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein:

the second region server is configured to transmit the further information data to the first region server, and

the first region server is configured to transmit the further information data to the first vehicle when the route indicated by the predicted first vehicle path data is partially in the first region and partially in the second region and the first vehicle is registered with the first region server.

7. The system as claimed in claim 6, wherein:

the registration of the first vehicle with the first region server is deleted when the route indicated by the predicted first vehicle path data is not in the first region, and

the first vehicle is registered with the second region server when the route indicated by the predicted first vehicle path data is in the second region.

8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein:

the area server is configured to register the first, second and third vehicles with the first region server or the second region server based on whether the route indicated by the respective predicted first vehicle, second vehicle and third vehicle path data is in the first region or the second region.

9. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sensor data and the information data is transmitted via a mobile radio network.

10. A method comprising:

providing a first region server configured to provide information data for a first vehicle and a second vehicle in a first region, the first region being within an area, the information data containing an item of information for controlling the first and second vehicles;

providing an area server configured to divide the area into the first region and into at least one further second region;

providing a second region server for providing further information data for vehicles in the second region;

the first vehicle predicting first vehicle path data, the first vehicle path data indicating at least one route which will be driven by the first vehicle in a time after predicting the first vehicle path data;

the first vehicle determining sensor data of the first vehicle by sensors in the first vehicle, the sensor data indicating a position of the first vehicle and/or a state of the first vehicle and/or a state of an environment of the first vehicle and/or a state of a respective driver of the first vehicle;

the second vehicle predicting second vehicle path data, the second vehicle path data indicating at least one route which will be driven by the second vehicle in a time after predicting the second vehicle path data;

the second vehicle determining sensor data of the second vehicle by sensors in the second vehicle, the sensor data indicating a position of the second vehicle and/or a state of the second vehicle and/or a state of an environment of the second vehicle and/or a state of a respective driver of the second vehicle;

registering the first and second vehicles with the first region server when the route of the first and second vehicles respectively indicated by the predicted first vehicle and second vehicle path data is in the first region;

transmitting the sensor data respectively determined by the first and second vehicles to the first region server when the first and second vehicles are registered with the first region server;

evaluating the sensor data received from the first vehicle and generating the information data on the basis of the sensor data received from the first vehicle by the first region server;

transmitting the generated information data to the second vehicle by the first region server when the predicted second vehicle path data overlap the predicted first vehicle path data and the second vehicle is registered with the first region server; and

transmitting the information data determined on the basis of the sensor data from the first vehicle to the second region server by the first region server when the route indicated by the predicted path data from the first vehicle is partially in the region and partially in the second region and the first vehicle is registered with the first region server.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising:

transmitting the generated information data to the second vehicle by the first region server when the location of the second vehicle, on the basis of whose state the information data have been generated, is along the at least one route indicated by the predicted second vehicle path data.

12. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising:

providing a third vehicle configured to predict third vehicle path data indicating at least one route which will be driven by the third vehicle in the time after predicting the third vehicle path data;

transmitting the predicted first vehicle, second vehicle and third vehicle path data to the area server; and

determining a respective size of the first region and of the second region on the basis of the respectively predicted first vehicle, second vehicle and third vehicle path data by the area server.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, further comprising:

predicting the third vehicle path data by the third vehicle;

registering the third vehicle with the second region server when route indicated by the predicted third vehicle path data is in the second region; and

transmitting the information data received from the first region server to the third vehicle by the second region server when the third vehicle is registered with the second region server.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13,

wherein the third vehicle has sensors configured to determine the sensor data, the sensor data from the third vehicle indicating a position of the third vehicle and a state of the third vehicle and/or a state of the environment of the third vehicle, the method further comprising:

transmitting the sensor data from the third vehicle to the second region server by the third vehicle when the third vehicle is registered with the second region server;

evaluating the sensor data from the third vehicle and generating the further information data on the basis of the sensor data from the third vehicle by the second region server;

transmitting the further information data to the first region server by the second region server; and

transmitting the further information data to the first vehicle by the first region server when the route indicated by the predicted first vehicle path data is partially in the region and partially in the second region and the first vehicle is registered with the first region server.

15. The method as claimed in 14, further comprising:

deleting the registration of the first vehicle with the first region server when the route indicated by the predicted first vehicle path data is not in the region; and

registering the first vehicle with the second region server when the route indicated by the predicted first vehicle path data is in the second region.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

registering the first, second and third vehicles with the first region server or the second server by the area server based on whether the route indicated by the respective predicted first vehicle, second vehicle and third vehicle path data is in the region or the second region.