Method for Position Determination for a Motor Vehicle

• US 20110196608A1
• Filed: 02/04/2011
• Published: 08/11/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bayerische Motoren Werke AG
• Original Assignee: Bayerische Motoren Werke AG
• Inventors: Bader, Roland, Hein, Robert, JANSEN, Axel, Isert, Carsten
• Granted Patent: US 9,291,462 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/208
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/30 Map- or contour-matching

Abstract

A method for position determination for a motor vehicle includes the acts of: satellite based determination of a geographical position of the motor vehicle, providing digital road map data, which include at least information about road segments in the surroundings of the geographical position; carrying out a first determining step for determining at least a first road segment, on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability, wherein the first determining step is based on a matching of the geographical position with the digital road map data; retrieval of traffic lane data, regarding at least the number of traffic lanes for the first road segment, from the road map database; determining the traffic lane, in which the motor vehicle is currently traveling, by use of at least the traffic lane data; and carrying out a second determining step for determining a second road segment, on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability, wherein the second determining step is based on a matching of the geographical position with the digital road map data and at least the traffic lane, in which the vehicle is traveling.

Claims

1. A method intended for position determination of a motor vehicle, the method comprising the acts of:

satellite based determining of a geographical position of the motor vehicle;

providing digital road map data, which includes at least information about road segments in a vicinity of the geographical position; and

carrying out a first determining act for determining at least a first road segment, on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability, wherein the first determining act is based on a matching of the geographical position with the digital road map data;

retrieving traffic lane data, regarding at least a number of traffic lanes for the first road segment, from a road map database;

determining a traffic lane, in which the motor vehicle is currently traveling, by use of at least the traffic lane data; and

carrying out a second determining act for determining a second road segment, on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability, wherein the second determining act is based on a matching of the geographical position with the digital road map data and at least the traffic lane in which the vehicle is traveling.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second determining act is based on a matching of the geographical position with the digital road map data, the traffic lane, in which the vehicle is traveling, and at least additional traffic lane information.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the determination of the traffic lane, in which the motor vehicle is currently traveling, takes place in a camera-based manner.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the determination of the traffic lane, in which the motor vehicle is currently traveling, takes place in a camera-based manner.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein for the purpose of the second determining act, a lane model of the first road segment is created based on the lane data, and wherein the determination of the lane, in which the motor vehicle is currently traveling, is carried out based on information of the lane model.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the number of traffic lanes of the first road segment.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the exclusion and inclusion of traffic lanes within the first road segment.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the exclusion and inclusion of traffic lanes with respect to at least one adjacent road segment.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the exclusion and inclusion of traffic lanes with respect to a road segment, on which the vehicle has traveled before.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the road segment on which the vehicle has traveled before is the road segment last traveled by the vehicle.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the interconnections between the first road segment and other road segments.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding at least one of a course and arrangement of lanes on the first road segment.

13. The method according to claim 5, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the exclusion and inclusion of traffic lanes within the first road segment.

14. The method according to claim 5, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the exclusion and inclusion of traffic lanes with respect to at least one adjacent road segment.

15. The method according to claim 5, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the exclusion and inclusion of traffic lanes with respect to a road segment, on which the vehicle has traveled before.

16. The method according to claim 5, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding the interconnections between the first road segment and other road segments.

17. The method according to claim 5, wherein the traffic lane model comprises information regarding at least one of a course and arrangement of lanes on the first road segment.

18. A method for determining a position of a motor vehicle equipped with a satellite-based vehicle navigation system, the method comprising the acts of:

in a first process, determining at least a first road segment on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability using the vehicle navigation system by matching a geographical position with digital road map data containing information about road segments in a vicinity of the geographical position;

in a second process, determining a second road segment on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability based on a matching of the geographical position with the digital road map data and at least a traffic lane in which the vehicle is traveling, said traffic lane being determined on-board the vehicle.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the act of determining the traffic lane in which the vehicle is traveling on-board the vehicle comprises the act of utilizing at least one of an on-board camera to determine the traffic lane and traffic lane data retrieved from a digital road map database.