VEHICLE CONTROL SYSTEM FOR AUTONOMOUSLY GUIDING A VEHICLE

• US 20170072967A1
• Filed: 11/28/2016
• Published: 03/16/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG), Conti Temic Microelectronic GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Fendt, Gunter Anton, Menzel, Marc, Sthlin, Ulrich, Schmid, Bernhard
• Application Number:
  US15/361,669
• Publication Number:
  US 20170072967A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/20 including control of steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0075 Automatic parameter input, automatic initialising or calibrating means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0215 Sensor drifts or sensor failures
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0292 Fail-safe or redundant systems, e.g. limp-home or backup systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/403 Image sensing, e.g. optical camera
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/408 Radar; Laser, e.g. lidar
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/65 Data transmitted between vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2756/10 Involving external transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/165 Automatically following the path of a preceding lead vehicle, e.g. "electronic tow-bar"
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0205 Diagnosing or detecting failures; Failure detection models
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0225 Failure correction strategy
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/023 Avoiding failures by using redundant parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/029 Adapting to failures or work around with other constraints, e.g. circumvention by avoiding use of failed parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/082 Selecting or switching between different modes of propelling
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/0053 from vehicle to occupant
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/0059 Estimation of the risk associated with autonomous or manual driving, e.g. situation too complex, sensor failure or driver incapacity
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0055 with safety arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/161 Decentralised systems, e.g. inter-vehicle communication
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/22 : Platooning, i.e. convoy of communicating vehicles

Abstract

The invention relates to a vehicle control system for autonomously guiding a vehicle, having a controller for autonomously guiding the vehicle on the basis of a sensor signal of a sensor of the vehicle, wherein the controller is designed to detect a malfunction of the sensor of the vehicle, and a communications interface, which is designed, in response to the detection of the malfunction of the sensor by the controller, to request an auxiliary sensor signal via a communications network and to receive the requested auxiliary sensor signal via the communications network, wherein the controller is designed to guide the vehicle autonomously on the basis of the received auxiliary sensor signal.

Claims

1. A vehicle control system for autonomously guiding a vehicle comprising:

a controller for autonomously guiding the vehicle on the basis of a sensor signal of a sensor of the vehicle, wherein the controller is designed to detect a malfunction of the sensor of the vehicle;

a communications interface, which in response to the detection of the malfunction of the sensor by the controller, requests an auxiliary sensor signal via a communications network and to receive the requested auxiliary sensor signal via the communications network; and

wherein the controller is designed to autonomously guide the vehicle on the basis of the received auxiliary sensor signal.

2. The vehicle control system of to claim 1, wherein the controller has a sensor interface for receiving the sensor signal and can detect the malfunction of the sensor of the vehicle in the absence of receipt of the sensor signal.

3. The vehicle control system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface sends a request the auxiliary sensor signal via the communications network from a guidance vehicle and to receive the auxiliary sensor signal via the communications network from the guidance vehicle.

4. The vehicle control system of claim 1, wherein the controller detects a plurality of geographical locations of a plurality of vehicles in the environment of the vehicle and to select a guidance vehicle from the plurality of vehicles on the basis of the plurality of geographical locations.

5. The vehicle control system of claim 4, wherein the communications interface receives a plurality of location indicators via the communications network, wherein the plurality of location indicators indicate the plurality of geographical locations of the plurality of vehicles, and wherein the controller detects the plurality of geographical locations on the basis of the plurality of location indicators.

6. The vehicle control system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface receives a driving route indicator from a guidance vehicle via the communications network, wherein the driving route indicator indicates a driving route of the guidance vehicle, and wherein the controller autonomously determines a driving route of the vehicle on the basis of the driving route indicator.

7. The vehicle control system of claim 1, wherein the controller detects a severity of the malfunction of the sensor, in order to obtain a malfunction severity indicator, and wherein the communications interface transmits the malfunction severity indicator via the communications network together with the request for the auxiliary sensor signal.

8. The vehicle control system of to claim 1, wherein the communications interface establishes an authenticated or encrypted communications link via the communications network, in particular between the vehicle and a guidance vehicle.

9. The vehicle control system of to claim 1, wherein the vehicle comprises an additional sensor, and wherein the controller autonomously guides the vehicle on the basis of an additional sensor signal of the additional sensor of the vehicle.

10. The vehicle control system of to claim 1, wherein the controller in response to the detection of the malfunction of the sensor, generates a malfunction indicator, indicating the malfunction of the sensor, and wherein the communications interface transmits the malfunction indicator via the communications network to a back-end server.

11. The vehicle control system of to claim 1, wherein in the sensor signal or the auxiliary sensor signal comprises one of:

a RADAR sensor signal, a LIDAR sensor signal, an ultrasound sensor signal, and an image camera sensor signal.

12. The vehicle control system of to claim 1, wherein the communications interface comprises one of:

an ITS-G5 communications interface, a mobile radio communications interface, a WLAN communications interface, a Bluetooth communications interface, and a UWB communications interface.

13. A method for autonomously guiding a vehicle comprising:

autonomously guiding of the vehicle on the basis of a sensor signal of a sensor of the vehicle;

detecting of a malfunction of the sensor of the vehicle;

requesting an auxiliary sensor signal via a communications network in response to the detection of the malfunction of the sensor;

receiving the requested auxiliary sensor signal via the communications network; and

autonomously guiding the vehicle on the basis of the received auxiliary sensor signal.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the auxiliary sensor signal is requested via the communications network from a guidance vehicle, and wherein the auxiliary sensor signal is received via the communications network from the guidance vehicle.

15. A vehicle control system comprising:

a communications interface;

a controller having a computer program with a program code with instructions for;

autonomously guiding of the vehicle on the basis of a sensor signal of a sensor of the vehicle;

detecting of a malfunction of the sensor of the vehicle;

requesting an auxiliary sensor signal via a communications network in response to the detection of the malfunction of the sensor;

receiving the requested auxiliary sensor signal via the communications network; and

autonomously guiding the vehicle on the basis of the received auxiliary sensor signal.

16. The vehicle control system of claim 15, wherein the auxiliary sensor signal is requested via the communications network from a guidance vehicle, and wherein the auxiliary sensor signal is received via the communications network from the guidance vehicle.