METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR VALIDATING INFORMATION

• US 20130090803A1
• Filed: 06/22/2011
• Published: 04/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Sthlin, Ulrich, Grotendorst, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 9,393,958 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/30.3
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/09 Taking automatic action to avoid collision, e.g. braking and steering
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 17/00 Testing of vehicles testing fluid tightness G01M3/00; testing elastic properties of bodies or chassis, e.g. torsion-testing, G01M5/00; testing alignment of vehicle headlight devices G01M11/06; testing of engines G01M15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/251 of input or preprocessed data
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/803 of input or preprocessed data
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/58 Recognition of moving objects or obstacles, e.g. vehicles or pedestrians; Recognition of traffic objects, e.g. traffic signs, traffic lights or roads
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/163 involving continuous checking
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/164 Centralised systems, e.g. external to vehicles

Abstract

A method for validating information, wherein a first information item is detected essentially continuously, at least for the duration of its relevance, by a vehicle-to-X communication device, wherein a second information item is detected at the same time as the first information item by at least an individual sensor or a group of sensors, wherein the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors is coupled at the data level to the vehicle-to-X communication device and wherein the first and/or second information items are validated by reconciling an information content of the first and second information items in the case of corresponding information content. The method is distinguished by the fact that the second information item is detected in an essentially discontinuous fashion.

Claims

1-16. -16. (canceled)

17. A method for validating information,

wherein a first information item is detected essentially continuously, at least for the duration of its relevance, by a vehicle-to-X communication device,

wherein a second information item is detected at the same time as the first information item by at least one individual sensor or a group of sensors,

wherein the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors is coupled at the data level to the vehicle-to-X communication device,

and wherein the first and/or second information items are validated by reconciling information content of the first and second information items in the case of corresponding information content,

wherein the second information item is detected in an essentially discontinuous fashion.

18. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the at least one individual sensor is a sensor of the generic type:

radar,

lidar,

laser scanner,

ultrasound sensor,

mono camera,

stereo camera,

wheel speed sensor,

acceleration sensor,

rotational speed sensor or

steering angle sensor.

19. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the group of sensors is a group of individual sensors of the same generic type and/or of different generic types.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the information contents of the information items of the individual sensors of the group of sensors are merged to form a common composite information item, wherein, in particular, the common composite information item constitutes the second information item.

22. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the information contents of the first and second information items are not merged.

23. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the first and/or second information items are no longer categorized as being validated if the first information item is no longer detected essentially continuously.

24. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the information content of the validated first information items and/or validated second information items is made available at least to a driver assistance system in a vehicle.

25. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the validated first information items or validated second information items have a high degree of reliability which is sufficient for a vehicle control intervention.

26. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the information content of the first information item is used to reduce a threshold value of an object detection process, wherein the object detection process is performed by means of the at least one individual sensor and/or the group of sensors.

21. The method as claimed in 17, wherein the first and second information items contain at least one of a position, a direction of movement, a speed and a generic type of an object.

27. A system for validating information, for carrying out a method comprising:

a first information item is detected essentially continuously, at least for the duration of its relevance, by a vehicle-to-X communication device,

a second information item is detected at the same time as the first information item by at least one individual sensor or a group of sensors,

the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors is coupled at the data level to the vehicle-to-X communication device,

the first and/or second information items are validated by reconciling information content of the first and second information items in the case of corresponding information content, and

the second information item is detected in an essentially discontinuous fashion,

the system comprising;

a vehicle-to-X communication device and at least one individual sensor or a group of sensors,

wherein the vehicle-to-X communication device is coupled at the data level to the at least one individual sensor or to the group of sensors via an electronic information reconciling module,

wherein the vehicle-to-X communication device detects a first information item, and while it is detecting said information item it outputs it to the electronic information reconciling module,

wherein the vehicle-to-X communication device outputs the first information item essentially continuously to the electronic information reconciling module,

wherein the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors detects a second information item, essentially at the same time as the detection of the first information item by the vehicle-to-X communication device, and while it is detecting said information item it outputs it to the electronic information reconciling module,

and wherein the electronic information reconciling module carries out a software algorithm for reconciling the information content of the first and second information items,

and when corresponding information content is detected it validates the first and/or the second information item,

wherein the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors outputs the second information item in an essentially discontinuous fashion to the electronic information reconciling module.

28. The system as claimed in claim 27, wherein in that the vehicle-to-X communication device exchanges information on the basis of at least one of the following types of link:

WLAN link, in particular according to IEEE 802.11,

ISM link (Industrial, Scientific, Medical Band),

ZigBee,

Bluetooth,

UWB,

Infrared link and

Mobile radio link.

29. The system as claimed in claim 27, wherein an electronic information merging module is assigned to the group of sensors, the electronic information merging module merges the information contents of the information items of the individual sensors of the group of sensors to form a common composite information item, wherein the common composite information item constitutes the second information item.

30. The system as claimed in claim 27, wherein the electronic information reconciling module and the electronic information merging module comprise partially or completely common data processing means.

31. The system as claimed in claim 27, wherein the electronic information reconciling module and/or the electronic information merging module are assigned to any desired vehicle control unit, wherein they are, in particular, partially or completely identical to an electronic computing module which is assigned to the vehicle control unit.

32. The use of a method in a motor vehicle comprising:

a method for validating information comprising;

a first information item is detected essentially continuously, at least for the duration of its relevance, by a vehicle-to-X communication device,

a second information item is detected at the same time as the first information item by at least one individual sensor or a group of sensors,

the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors is coupled at the data level to the vehicle-to-X communication device,

the first and/or second information items are validated by reconciling information content of the first and second information items in the case of corresponding information content, and

the second information item is detected in an essentially discontinuous fashion; and

a system comprising;

a vehicle-to-X communication device and at least one individual sensor or a group of sensors,

wherein the vehicle-to-X communication device is coupled at the data level to the at least one individual sensor or to the group of sensors via an electronic information reconciling module,

wherein the vehicle-to-X communication device detects a first information item, and while it is detecting said information item it outputs it to the electronic information reconciling module,

wherein the vehicle-to-X communication device outputs the first information item essentially continuously to the electronic information reconciling module,

wherein the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors detects a second information item, essentially at the same time as the detection of the first information item by the vehicle-to-X communication device, and while it is detecting said information item it outputs it to the electronic information reconciling module,

and wherein the electronic information reconciling module carries out a software algorithm for reconciling the information content of the first and second information items,

and when corresponding information content is detected it validates the first and/or the second information item,

wherein the at least one individual sensor or the group of sensors outputs the second information item in an essentially discontinuous fashion to the electronic information reconciling module.