Method and apparatus for triggering vehicle sensors based on human accessory detection

• US 10,202,115 B2
• Filed: 09/13/2016
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HERE Global B.V. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: HERE Global B.V. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Stenneth, Leon
• Primary Examiner(s): Butler, Rodney A
• Application Number:
  US15/264,180
• Publication Number:
  US 20180072313A1
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0075 Automatic parameter input, automatic initialising or calibrating means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/00 Input parameters relating to objects
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/10 Historical data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/09 Taking automatic action to avoid collision, e.g. braking and steering
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/095 Predicting travel path or likelihood of collision
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/04 Traffic conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/00 Systems using the reflection or reradiation of electromagnetic waves other than radio waves, e.g. lidar systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/86 Combinations of lidar systems with systems other than lidar, radar or sonar, e.g. with direction finders
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/89 for mapping or imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/005 including pedestrian guidance indicator
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0116 from roadside infrastructure, e.g. beacons
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

An approach is provided for triggering vehicle sensors based on human accessory detection. The approach involves receiving a location of a detection of a human accessory object in a travel network. The human accessory object is a physical object associated with a probability that a human or an animal is within a vicinity of the human accessory object. The approach also involves generating a location-based record of the human accessory object in a map database based on the location. The approach further involves a sensor of a vehicle being activated to detect the human or the animal when the vehicle is detected to enter a geographic area of the travel network associated with the location-based record of the human accessory object.

Claims

1. A method for activating a vehicle sensor based on mapped human accessory objects comprising:

receiving, by an apparatus, a location of a detection of a human accessory object in a travel network, wherein the human accessory object is a mobile physical object associated with a probability that a human or an animal is within a vicinity of the human accessory object; and

generating, by the apparatus, a location-based record of the human accessory object in a map database based on the location,

wherein a sensor of a vehicle is activated to detect the human or the animal when the vehicle is detected to enter a geographic area of the travel network associated with the location-based record of the human accessory object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensor is deactivated when the vehicle is detected to exit the geographic area, and

wherein the human accessory object is chaseable or gatherable by the human or the animal, or the human accessory object is a human accessory that contains the human or the animal.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

querying the map database to determine a pedestrian accident rate associated with the location of the detection of the human accessory object,

wherein the location-based record is generated when the pedestrian accident rate is above an accident threshold value.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

querying the map database to determine whether the geographic area includes at least one vulnerable road user location,

wherein the sensor of the vehicle is activated when the vehicle is detected to enter the geographic area that includes the at least one vulnerable road user location.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the detection of the human accessory object is performed by a reporting vehicle traversing the travel network, the method further comprising:

generating the location-based record of the human accessory object based on determining that the reporting vehicle activated a sensor of the reporting vehicle in response to the detection,

wherein the activating of the sensor of the reporting vehicle is for detecting the human or the animal.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining a time when the reporting vehicle activated the sensor of the reporting vehicle,

wherein the location-based record is generated to include a temporal parameter based on the time.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensor is an advanced sensor system including an infrared sensor, Light Imaging Detection and Ranging (Lidar) sensor, a Radio Detection and Ranging (Radar) sensor, or a combination thereof.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring the location of the detection of a human accessory object for one or more subsequent detections of the human accessory object, another human accessory object, or a combination thereof by one or more other vehicles,

wherein the location-based record of the human accessory object is created when the one or more other vehicles further detect a presence of the human or the animal at the location.

9. An apparatus for activating a vehicle sensor based on mapped human accessory objects comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program code for one or more programs,

the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform at least the following,

detect a location of a vehicle traversing a travel network;

query a map database for a location-based record based on the location of the vehicle, wherein the location-based record is generated to indicate whether a geographic area of the travel network is associated with a human accessory object that has been previously mapped to the geographic area, and wherein the human accessory object is a mobile physical object associated with a probability that a human or an animal is within a vicinity of the human accessory object;

determine that the vehicle is entering the geographic area that is associated with the human accessory object; and

trigger an activation of a sensor of the vehicle to detect the human or the animal associated with the human accessory object.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

determine that the vehicle is exiting the geographic area that is associated with the human accessory object; and

trigger a deactivation of the sensor of the vehicle.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the vehicle is an autonomous vehicle, and wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

categorize the human accessory object as either a first object type or a second object type,

wherein the first object type is a human accessory that is chaseable or gatherable by the human or the animal; and

wherein the second object type is a human accessory that contains the human or the animal.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

configure the autonomous vehicle to drive over the human accessory object when the human accessory object is categorized as the first object type.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

configure the autonomous vehicle to not drive over the human accessory object when the human accessory object is categorized as the second object type.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

detect, via the sensor, that the human or one or more other humans are within a proximity of the vehicle, the human accessory object, or a combination thereof

transmit a warning notification to a device associated with the human, the one or more other humans, or a combination thereof.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

detect, via the sensor, that the human or the one or more other humans are heading towards the vehicle,

wherein the warning notification is transmitted to the device associated with the human or the one or more other humans are heading towards the vehicle.

16. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause, at least in part, an apparatus to perform:

receiving a report from a vehicle,

wherein the report specifies a location where a human accessory object was detected by a first sensor of a vehicle and another location where a human or animal was detected by a second sensor of the vehicle,

wherein the human accessory object is a physical object associated with a probability that a human or an animal is within a vicinity of the human accessory object, and

wherein the second sensor of the vehicle is in a deactivated state and is configured to be activated on a detection of the human accessory object by the first sensor; and

generating a location-based record of the human accessory object in a map database based on the location, the another location, or a combination thereof.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein another vehicle is configured to activate another sensor to detect the human or the animal when the another vehicle is detected to enter a geographic area of the travel network associated with the location-based record of the human accessory object, and to deactivate the another sensor when the another vehicle is detected to exit the geographic area.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the another vehicle is configured with a display device, and wherein the display device presents a user interface depicting a visual representation of an output of the another sensor as the another sensor scans the geographic area to detect the human or the animal.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the apparatus is further caused to perform:

determining an infrastructure sensor based on the geographic area; and

triggering an activation or a deactivation of the infrastructure sensor to detect the human accessory object, the human, the animal or a combination thereof.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the apparatus is further caused to perform:

determining a neighboring vehicle within proximity to the vehicle, wherein the neighboring vehicle is configured with a neighboring sensor configured to detect the human accessory object, the human, the animal, or a combination thereof; and

triggering an activation of a deactivation of the neighboring sensor to detect the human accessory object, the human, the animal or a combination thereof.