Method and Device for Recognizing Marked Hazard Areas and/or Construction Areas in the Region of Lanes

• US 20150189244A1
• Filed: 07/10/2013
• Published: 07/02/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG), Conti Temic Microelectronic GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG), Conti Temic Microelectronic GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Hegemann, Stefan, Komar, Matthias, Lueke, Stefan
• Granted Patent: US 10,148,917 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/005 specially adapted for viewing traffic-lights
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/302 combining image information with GPS information or vehicle data, e.g. vehicle speed, gyro, steering angle data
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8093 for obstacle warning
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3691 Retrieval, searching and output of information related to real-time traffic, weather, or environmental conditions arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions G08G1/09
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/867 Combination of radar systems with cameras
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/161 Decentralised systems, e.g. inter-vehicle communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for recognizing marked hazard areas and/or construction areas in the region of lanes, in which method by means of at least one environment sensor the objects indicating hazard areas and/or construction areas are detected. According to the invention a traffic light system is detected by means of the environment sensor, the positional data of the traffic light system is determined, an environment scenario in respect of the environment structure is determined from the environment data detected by the environment sensor and is compared with a reference model of the environment scenario. If said reference model indicates no traffic light system or indicates a traffic light system having positional data differing from the positional data of the detected traffic light system, a conclusion is drawn about a traffic light system identifying a hazard and/or a construction area.

Claims

1. A method of recognizing marked hazard and/or construction areas in an area of traffic lanes, wherein objects indicating the hazard and/or construction areas are recognized by at least one environment sensor, characterized in that

a traffic light system is recognized by the environment sensor,

positional data of the traffic light system is determined,

an environment scenario regarding an environment structure is determined from environment data detected by the environment sensor and is compared with a reference model of the environment scenario, and

if said reference model indicates no traffic light system or indicates a traffic light system having positional data differing from the positional data of the recognized traffic light system, a conclusion is drawn about a traffic light system identifying a hazard and/or construction area.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the reference model is created with navigation-based information.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, in order to recognize a traffic light system identifying a hazard and/or construction area, an object classification regarding construction area-specific and/or hazard area-specific features of the traffic light system is carried out.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the reference model is generated from digital map data of a network of transport routes stored in a navigation database, wherein the digital map data comprises comprise construction area information.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that information detected by the environment sensor regarding a course of a lane and/or recognized lane information are used as an indicator of existence of a traffic light system identifying a hazard and/or construction area.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that information detected by the environment sensor regarding detected recognized road signs is used as an indicator of existence of a traffic light system identifying a hazard and/or construction area.

7. A device for carrying out the method according to claim 1, characterized in that the environment sensor comprises a camera system.

8. A vehicle having a device according to claim 7.