Slow or stopped vehicle ahead advisor with digital map integration

• US 20080275618A1
• Filed: 05/04/2007
• Published: 11/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations Incorporated (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Grimm, Donald K., Krishnan, Hariharan
• Granted Patent: US 8,355,852 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/96
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2031/0033 Detecting longitudinal speed or acceleration of target vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0075 Automatic parameter input, automatic initialising or calibrating means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/65 Data transmitted between vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/162 event-triggered

Abstract

A driver assistance or collision avoidance system is adapted for use with trailing and preceding host vehicles, and in a preferred embodiment includes a preceding vehicle speed sensor for determining the current speed of the preceding vehicle at a point; a vehicle-to-vehicle communication sub-system; a normal speed determining sub-system operable to determine the normally expected speed of the preceding vehicle at the point, and including an exterior remote vehicle sensor or digital map-indicia database; and a controller configured to compare the current and normally expected speeds, and the discrepancy there-between to a threshold, and cause an alert to be generated only when the discrepancy exceeds the threshold or an otherwise stalled condition is determined.

Claims

1. A selectively communicating slow vehicle advisory system adapted for use with a trailing vehicle having an operator, and a host vehicle traveling upon a thoroughfare, and communicatively coupled to and spaced from the trailing vehicle, said system comprising:

at least one vehicle condition-sensor configured to determine the current speed of the host vehicle;

a normal speed determination sub-system configured to determine a normal speed of the host vehicle;

a controller communicatively coupled to the sensor and sub-system and configured to compare the current and normal speeds, so as to determine a speed discrepancy, compare the discrepancy to a speed threshold, and cause to be transmitted to the trailing vehicle a signal, only when the discrepancy exceeds the threshold; and

a slow-vehicle alert generator configured to generate an alert at the trailing vehicle, upon receipt of the signal.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said sensor and sub-system being further configured to determine a plurality of sets of current and correlative normal speeds over a period,

said controller being further configured to compare each set of current and correlative normal speeds, so as to determine a plurality of discrepancies, compare each discrepancy to the threshold, and cause the signal to be transmitted only when each discrepancy exceeds the threshold over the period.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said host vehicle including a hazard notification mechanism manually shiftable between “

on” and

“

off”

positions by the operator,

said controller being further configured to cause the signal to be transmitted when the discrepancy exceeds the threshold or the mechanism is at the “

on”

position.

4. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said host vehicle including diagnostic software configured to autonomously generate a diagnostic trouble code, when a drive-train error occurs,

said controller being further configured to cause the signal to be transmitted when the discrepancy exceeds the threshold or the trouble code is generated.

5. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said host vehicle including a turn signal mechanism manually shiftable between “

on” and

“

off”

positions by the operator,

said controller being further configured to not cause the signal to be transmitted, when the turn signal mechanism is at the “

on”

position.

6. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said controller being further configured to generate a plurality of differing alerts, wherein each alert correlates to a relative direction from the trailing vehicle to the host vehicle.

7. The system as claimed in claim 1;

and

an adjustment mechanism configured to receive an input from the operator, host vehicle or trailing vehicle, and modify the threshold or the generation of the alert according to the operator or vehicular input.

8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein said sub-system includes a locator device and a map database, and the input is a road classification retrieved from the map database.

9. The system as claimed in claim 1;

and

a host vehicle communication sub-system configured to directionally re-transmit the alert from the host vehicle,

said controller being further configured to store the alert, and cause the alert to be re-transmitted to further trailing vehicles.

10. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said threshold being approximately positive 32 kilometers per hour, as measured by subtracting the host vehicle current speed from its normal speed at the location.

11. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said sub-system including short and long-range detection devices operable to detect a remotely traveling vehicle within a zone,

said controller, sensor, and sub-system being cooperatively configured to determine the speed of the remote vehicle relative to the host vehicle speed.

12. The system as claimed in claim 11,

said sub-system including a radar, lidar, infrared, or vision based device.

13. The system as claimed in claim 1,

said sub-system including a locator device, and a map database,

said locator being configured to determine the current position coordinates of the host vehicle,

said map including a plurality of position points representing the thoroughfare, and indicia correlated to said points, wherein the indicia includes the normal speed at the given point,

said locator, and database being configured to match the current position coordinates with a position coordinate and retrieve the normal speed at the point.

14. The system as claimed in claim 13,

said controller being further configured to determine a current heading for the host vehicle,

said signal including the current position coordinates and the heading of the host vehicle,

said alert being further configured to notify the operator of a relative left, right, or straight-ahead host vehicle position.

15. The system as claimed in claim 13, wherein a portion of said database points represent stopping or slowing locations, and said controller is further configured to not cause the signal to be transmitted, when the host vehicle current position coordinates generally match a stopping location, and the discrepancy exceeds the threshold.

16. A selectively communicating slow vehicle advisory system adapted for use with a trailing vehicle having an operator, and a host vehicle traveling upon a thoroughfare, and communicatively coupled to and spaced from the trailing vehicle, said system comprising:

at least one vehicle condition-sensor configured to determine the current speed of the host vehicle;

a normal speed determination sub-system configured to determine a normal speed of the host vehicle,

said sub-system including a locator device, and a map database,

said locator being configured to determine the current position coordinates of the host vehicle,

said map including a plurality of position points representing the thoroughfare, and indicia correlated to said points, wherein the indicia includes the normal speed at the location,

said locator, and database being further configured to match the current position coordinates with a position coordinate and retrieve the normal speed at the location;

a controller communicatively coupled to the sensor and sub-system, and configured to compare the current and normal speeds, so as to determine a speed discrepancy, compare the discrepancy to a speed threshold not less than positive 10 miles per hour, as measured by subtracting the preceding vehicle current speed from its normal speed at the location, and cause to be transmitted to the trailing vehicle a signal, only when the discrepancy exceeds the threshold; and

a remote vehicle alert generator configured to generate a plurality of differing alerts at the trailing vehicle, wherein each alert correlates to a relative direction from the trailing vehicle to the host vehicle.

17. A selectively alerting slow vehicle advisory system adapted for use with a preceding vehicle, and a host vehicle having an operator, traveling upon a thoroughfare, and communicatively coupled to and spaced from the preceding vehicle, said system comprising:

a preceding vehicle speed sensor configured to determine the current speed of preceding vehicle;

a preceding vehicle locator configured to determine the current position coordinates of the preceding vehicle;

a location and speed communication sub-system configured to at least periodically communicate the preceding vehicle speed and location to the host vehicle;

a normal speed determination sub-system configured to determine a normal speed of the preceding vehicle at the location; and

a controller configured to compare the current and normal speeds, so as to determine a speed discrepancy, compare the discrepancy to a speed threshold, and cause to be generated an alert, only when the discrepancy exceeds the threshold.

18. The system as claimed in claim 17;

and

a host vehicle locator communicatively coupled to the controller, and configured to determine current host vehicle position coordinates, and a current host vehicle heading,

said preceding vehicle locator and sub-system being further configured to determine and transmit a current heading of the preceding vehicle,

said controller being further configured to determine a host vehicle trailing condition based on the preceding and host vehicle position coordinates, and headings, and compare the speeds, only when the host vehicle trailing condition is determined.

19. The system as claimed in claim 18,

said host vehicle locator including a map database, wherein said database includes a plurality of position points representing the thoroughfare,

said controller being further configured to determine a same-thoroughfare travel condition, based on the current position coordinates of the preceding and host vehicles, and database, and to compare the speeds only when the same-thoroughfare travel condition is determined.

20. The system as claimed in claim 19,

said host vehicle locator being further configured to receive a destination input, and generate a navigation route, based on the current position coordinates and the destination input,

said controller being further configured to determine, based on the current position coordinates of the preceding and host vehicles, and the route, a same-route travel condition, wherein the current position coordinates of the preceding vehicle are located on the route, and to compare the speeds only when the same-route travel condition is determined.

21. The system as claimed in claim 17,

said host vehicle including a braking module shiftable between engaged and disengaged positions,

said controller being further configured to suppress the generation of an alert, when the module is at an engaged position.

22. The system as claimed in claim 17,

said preceding vehicle speed sensor being further configured to determine a plurality of current speeds over a period;

said communication sub-system being further configured to communicate the plurality of preceding vehicle current speeds to the host vehicle;

said controller being further configured to determine a preceding vehicle acceleration rate based on the plurality of current speeds and period, compare the acceleration rate to an acceleration threshold, and cause the alert to be generated, only when the rate does not exceed the threshold.

23. The system as claimed in claim 17,

said host vehicle including a lane-change module configured to autonomously effect a lane change by the host vehicle,

said controller being communicatively coupled to the lane-change module,

said alert being configured to cause an autonomous lane change by the host vehicle.

24. The system as claimed in claim 17,

said host vehicle including a brake system configured to reduce the host vehicle speed, and a brake module configured to autonomously activate the brake system,

said controller being communicatively coupled to the brake module,

said alert being configured to autonomously activate the brake system.