Using information obtained from fleet of vehicles for informational display and control of an autonomous vehicle

• US 10,179,586 B2
• Filed: 08/11/2016
• Issued: 01/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Incorporated (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Johnson, Miles J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bendidi, Rachid
• Application Number:
  US15/234,887
• Publication Number:
  US 20180047285A1
• Time in Patent Office: 887 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/143 Alarm means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/403 Image sensing, e.g. optical camera
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/00 Input parameters relating to objects
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/4041 Position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/45 External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/55 using telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/65 Data transmitted between vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/08 Active safety systems predicting or avoiding probable or impending collision or attempting to minimise its consequences
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/09 Taking automatic action to avoid collision, e.g. braking and steering
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/0956 the prediction being responsive to traffic or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/082 Selecting or switching between different modes of propelling
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/0053 from vehicle to occupant
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0825 using optical means
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0141 for traffic information dissemination
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096725 : where the received information generates an automatic action on the vehicle 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 1/164 : Centralised systems, e.g. external to vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/165 : for passive traffic, e.g. including static obstacles, trees

Abstract

Described herein is an electronic control unit in an autonomous vehicle. The electronic control unit may comprise: a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory. The processor may be configured to: detect a first obstacle; determine first data related to the first obstacle; transmit the first data to a data aggregation service; receive, from the data aggregation service, second data related to a second obstacle; create a notification of the second obstacle; and deliver the notification to an interior of the autonomous vehicle.

Claims

1. An electronic control unit in an autonomous vehicle, the electronic control unit comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory, the processor configured to;

receive, from a data aggregation service, data related to an obstacle detected by at least one other vehicle, the obstacle detected while travelling during an autonomous driving mode and data indicative of the location of a disengagement of the at least one other vehicle from the autonomous driving mode to a non-autonomous driving mode, a type of the disengagement, the type being one of manual and automatic, and one or more actions taken by the at least one other vehicle following the disengagement of the autonomous driving mode, wherein the one or more actions include avoiding the obstacle;

determine whether the obstacle is still present based on the received data related to the obstacle; and

control the autonomous vehicle to take an action with respect to the obstacle based on the location of disengagement of the at least one other vehicle from the autonomous driving mode to the non-autonomous driving mode, the type of the disengagement and the one or more actions taken by the at least one other vehicle following disengagement of the autonomous driving mode if the obstacle is determined to still be present.

2. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein the data related to the obstacle detected by at least one other vehicle comprises a location of the obstacle and a description of the obstacle.

3. A method for controlling an autonomous vehicle, the method comprising:

receiving, by an electronic control unit from a data aggregation service, data related to an obstacle detected by at least one other vehicle, the obstacle detected while travelling during an autonomous driving mode and data indicative of the location of a disengagement of the at least one other vehicle from the autonomous driving mode to a non-autonomous driving mode, a type of the disengagement, the type being one of manual and automatic, and one or more actions taken by the at least one other vehicle following the disengagement of the autonomous driving mode, wherein the one or more actions include avoiding the obstacle;

determining whether the obstacle is still present based on the received data related to the obstacle; and

controlling the autonomous vehicle to take an action with respect to the obstacle based on the location of disengagement of the at least one other vehicle from the autonomous driving mode to the non-autonomous driving mode, the type of the disengagement and the one or more actions taken by the at least one other vehicle following disengagement of the autonomous driving mode if the obstacle is determined to still be present.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the data related to the obstacle detected by at least one other vehicle comprises a location of the obstacle and a description of the obstacle.

5. An autonomous vehicle comprising:

a wireless communication device;

a sensor; and

an electronic control unit in communication with the sensor, the electronic control unit configured to;

detect an obstacle, the obstacle detected while travelling during an autonomous driving mode;

determine data related to the obstacle;

transmit, via the wireless communication device, the data to a data aggregation service, the data related to the detected obstacle and data indicative of the location of a disengagement of the autonomous vehicle from the autonomous driving mode to a non-autonomous driving mode, a type of the disengagement, the type being one of manual and automatic, and one or more actions taken by the autonomous vehicle following the disengagement of the autonomous driving mode, wherein the one or more actions taken by the autonomous vehicle include avoiding the second obstacle;

receive, from the data aggregation service via the wireless communication device, second data related to a second obstacle detected by at least one other vehicle, the second obstacle detected while travelling during an autonomous driving mode and data relating to the location of a disengagement of the at least one other vehicle from the autonomous driving mode to a non-autonomous driving mode, a type of the disengagement, the type being one of manual and automatic, and one or more actions taken by the at least one other vehicle following the disengagement of the autonomous driving mode, wherein the one or more actions taken by the at least one other vehicle include avoiding the second obstacle;

create a notification of the second obstacle; and

deliver the notification to an interior of the autonomous vehicle.

6. The autonomous vehicle of claim 5, wherein the data comprises a location of the obstacle and a description of the obstacle.

7. The autonomous vehicle of claim 6, wherein the sensor is configured to capture an image of the obstacle, and wherein the description is based, at least in part, on the image.

8. The autonomous vehicle of claim 5, wherein the electronic control unit is further configured to determine an expected location of the second obstacle based, at least in part, on the second data.

9. The autonomous vehicle of claim 8, wherein the electronic control unit is further configured to cause the autonomous vehicle to take an action in response to approaching the expected location of the second obstacle based on the location of disengagement of the at least one other vehicle from the autonomous driving mode to the non-autonomous driving mode, the type of the disengagement and the one or more actions taken by the at least one other vehicle following disengagement of the autonomous driving mode.

10. The autonomous vehicle of claim 8, wherein the electronic control unit is further configured to:

determine absence of the second obstacle at the expected location of the second obstacle; and

transmit a message to the data aggregation service, the message indicating the absence of the second obstacle at the expected location of the second obstacle.

11. The autonomous vehicle of claim 5, wherein the notification comprises one or more of:

an audible notification and a visual notification.