Flash Ladar Collision Avoidance System

• US 20120154785A1
• Filed: 10/31/2011
• Published: 06/21/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Autonomous Mobility US LLC (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Advanced Scientific Concepts, Inc.
• Inventors: Gilliland, Patrick, Stettner, Roger, Heuhebaert, Laurent, Goldstein, Bart
• Granted Patent: US 8,692,980 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 356/5.01
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 1/566 including wiping devices B60S1/563, B60S1/583 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2007/4977 including means to prevent or remove the obstruction
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/4813 Housing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/4972 Alignment of sensor
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0214 in accordance with safety or protection criteria, e.g. avoiding hazardous areas monitoring the location of vehicles within a certain area, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas, in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/13
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/024 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S

Abstract

A vehicular collision avoidance system comprising a system controller, pulsed laser transmitter, a number of independent ladar sensor units, a cabling infrastructure, internal memory, a scene processor, and a data communications port is presented herein. The described invention is capable of developing a 3-D scene, and object data for targets within the scene, from multiple ladar sensor units coupled to centralized LADAR-based Collision Avoidance System (CAS). Key LADAR elements are embedded within standard headlamp and taillight assemblies. Articulating LADAR sensors cover terrain coming into view around a curve, at the crest of a hill, or at the bottom of a dip. A central laser transmitter may be split into multiple optical outputs and guided through fibers to illuminate portions of the 360° field of view surrounding the vehicle. These fibers may also serve as amplifiers to increase the optical intensity provided by a single master laser.

Claims

1. A ladar sensor with a field of view and headlamp with forward illuminating pattern housed within a common envelope and mounted to a vehicle, said envelope with at least one transparent face capable of transmitting visible wavelengths of light and infrared laser light;

said ladar sensor further comprising

a pulsed laser light output and diffusing optic for illuminating a scene in the field of view of said ladar sensor, and

a two dimensional array of light sensitive detectors positioned at a focal point of a light collecting and focusing lens, said light sensitive detectors for producing an electrical pulse from a reflected portion of the said pulsed laser light output,

an electrical circuit connected to each light sensitive detector output for amplifying and detecting said electrical pulse with a detected pulse output, and

a timing circuit connected to each detected pulse output, and

said timing circuit further connected to a reference signal indicating the start time of said pulsed laser light output, and

said timing circuit producing an elapsed time signal indicating the time delay between the start time of the said pulsed laser light output and an electrical pulse indicated by said detected pulse output from said electrical circuit,

said headlamp further comprising

at least one visible light source with a visible light output beam and

at least one visible light transmitting optical element for conditioning said visible light output beam to create said headlamp forward illuminating pattern.

2-133. -133. (canceled)