Method and device for assisting a maneuvering process of a motor vehicle

• US 10,363,960 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2016
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Stefan, Frederic, Arndt, Christoph, Gussen, Uwe
• Primary Examiner(s): Mott, Adam R
• Application Number:
  US15/344,687
• Publication Number:
  US 20170129538A1
• Time in Patent Office: 995 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/06 Automatic manoeuvring for parking
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/0285 Parking performed automatically
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0217 in accordance with energy consumption, time reduction or distance reduction criteria

Abstract

A maneuvering process of a motor vehicle is assisted in at least partially automated fashion from a present position into a target position. A multiplicity of possible trajectories from the present position into the target position are determined. One of said trajectories is defined as the trajectory to be followed by the vehicle during the maneuvering process on the basis of a predefined criterion. The definition is performed repeatedly during the execution of the maneuvering process, with the trajectory to be followed being updated in each case.

Claims

1. A method for assisting an automated maneuvering process of a motor vehicle, comprising:

autonomously driving the motor vehicle during a maneuver from a first position into a target position along a first trajectory, the first trajectory selected based on a predefined criterion from a multiplicity of possible trajectories between the first position and the target position;

monitoring a second trajectory from the multiplicity of possible trajectories based on the predefined criterion while the motor vehicle is autonomously driven along the first trajectory; and

autonomously driving the motor vehicle along the second trajectory during the maneuver in response to a distance between the first trajectory and the second trajectory exceeding a threshold.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predefined criterion is at least one of:

a driving time required for the maneuver in accordance with the associated trajectory;

a driving distance required for the maneuver in accordance with the associated trajectory;

an energy expenditure required for executing the maneuver in accordance with the associated trajectory;

a minimum spacing, resulting from execution of the maneuver in accordance with the associated trajectory, of objects situated in a surrounding area; and

a number of direction changes required for the maneuver in accordance with the associated trajectory.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2 further comprising:

summing the multiplicity of possible trajectories to define a maneuvering region; and

repeatedly selecting the second trajectory for monitoring within the maneuvering region based on the predefined criterion.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the multiplicity of possible trajectories is determined inputting the following external parameters into a vehicle module:

(i) a start position, an end position and a vehicle orientation;

(ii) a presence of physical or virtual obstructions in a surrounding area;

(iii) a presence of regions in the surrounding area;

(iv) a vehicle turning capability;

(v) a vehicle dimension; and

(vi) a predefined border region wherein no obstruction should be present regardless of the trajectory defined.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

checking available information for defining the multiplicity of possible trajectories; and

,

in response to the checking, initiating a vehicle movement to gather additional information defining the multiplicity of possible trajectories prior to the maneuver.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5, wherein initiating a vehicle movement further includes autonomous driving of the motor vehicle.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising storing past trajectories traveled by the motor vehicle in a memory,

wherein the multiplicity of possible trajectories is determined by inputting the past trajectories into a vehicle module and inputting an external boundary of a maneuvering region for the motor vehicle into the vehicle module, the maneuvering region containing the target position.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising selecting the second trajectory for monitoring based on (i) a present motor vehicle position during the maneuver, and (ii) obstruction data detected by at least one vehicle sensor during the maneuver.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the motor vehicle is autonomously driven along an associated trajectory by converting the associated trajectory into setpoint values for lateral and longitudinal vehicle control.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising defining a maneuvering region by summing the multiplicity of possible trajectories.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising monitoring an external boundary of the maneuvering region using at least one vehicle sensor;

and

autonomously stopping the motor vehicle in response to the at least one vehicle sensor detecting an object crossing an external boundary of the maneuvering region.