METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR BEYOND-THE-HORIZON THREAT INDICATION FOR VEHICLES

• US 20170327035A1
• Filed: 05/10/2016
• Published: 11/16/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2016
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Keiser, Lynn Valerie
• Application Number:
  US15/151,318
• Publication Number:
  US 20170327035A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 9/008 for anti-collision purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9316 combined with communication equipment with other vehicles or with base stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/932 using own vehicle data, e.g. ground speed, steering wheel direction
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0009 Transmission of position information to remote stations involving assistance data G01S5/0236
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0116 from roadside infrastructure, e.g. beacons
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/012 from other sources than vehicle or roadside beacons, e.g. mobile networks
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0133 for classifying traffic situation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0141 for traffic information dissemination
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/04 using optical or ultrasonic detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09623 Systems involving the acquisition of information from passive traffic signs by means mounted on the vehicle G08G1/0967 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096725 where the received information generates an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/164 Centralised systems, e.g. external to vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

Methods and systems for Beyond-the-Horizon Threat Indication (BHTI) for vehicles are described. A system and a method may involve receiving motion information of a first vehicle. The system and the method may also involve receiving vicinity data corresponding to a vicinity of the first vehicle. The system and the method may also involve determining whether the first vehicle is subject to a potential hazard within the vicinity based on the motion information and the vicinity data. The system and the method may further involves alerting the first vehicle about the potential hazard in response to the determining of the potential hazard.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a processor of a Beyond the Horizon Threat Indication (BHTI) system implemented in a roadside traffic control structure, motion information of a first vehicle;

receiving, by the processor from a plurality of sensors of the BHTI system that are disposed in and associated with a geographic region, vicinity data corresponding to a vicinity of the first vehicle in the geographic region;

determining, by the processor, whether the first vehicle is subject to a potential hazard, which is within the vicinity and out of a line of sight of the first vehicle, based on the motion information and the vicinity data; and

alerting, by the processor, the first vehicle about the potential hazard in response to the determining of the potential hazard.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the motion information of the first vehicle comprises a location, a moving direction, a speed, or a combination thereof, of the first vehicle.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the receiving of the motion information of the first vehicle comprises receiving the motion information from a global positioning system (GPS) transceiver disposed in the first vehicle, from a cell phone network tracking a communication device disposed in the first vehicle, or a combination thereof.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the vicinity data comprises receiving the vicinity data from one or more sensors disposed within the vicinity of the first vehicle, wherein the one or more sensors comprise one or more cameras, and wherein the vicinity data comprises one or more videos, each of the one or more videos corresponding to a respective view of the vicinity and indicating one or more moving objects and one or more stationary objects located within the respective view of the vicinity.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the determining of the potential hazard comprises:

estimating a first trajectory of the first vehicle based on the motion information of the first vehicle;

analyzing the one or more videos to estimate one or more second trajectories each being a respective trajectory of each of the one or more moving objects;

analyzing the one or more videos to identify a respective location of each of the one or more stationary objects;

determining that the first vehicle is subject to the potential hazard in response to the first trajectory intersecting at least one of the one or more second trajectories within a predetermined period of time; and

determining that the first vehicle is subject to the potential hazard in response to the first trajectory intersecting at least one of the locations of the one or more stationary objects within the predetermined period of time.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the one or more cameras comprise at least one camera mounted on the first vehicle, on one or more other vehicles within the vicinity, on one or more traffic control structures within the vicinity, or by or near one or more roads within the vicinity.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the processor, motion information of one or more other vehicles within the vicinity,

wherein the determining of the potential hazard comprises determining the potential hazard based on the vicinity data and the motion information of the first vehicle and the motion information of the one or more other vehicles.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the processor, first proximity information of the first vehicle; and

receiving, by the processor, second proximity information of one or more other vehicles within the vicinity,

wherein the determining of the potential hazard comprises determining the potential hazard based on the first proximity information and the second proximity information.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the receiving of the first proximity information or the receiving of the second proximity information comprises receiving the first proximity information or the second proximity information from one or more radar transceivers or light-detection-and-ranging (LiDAR) transceivers disposed in the first vehicle, at least one of the one or more other vehicles, or a combination thereof, and wherein each of the first proximity information and the second proximity information represents a relative distance from the first vehicle to one or more objects in the vicinity and a relative distance from the one or more other vehicles to the one or more other objects in the vicinity, respectively.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the processor, a right-of-way status of the first vehicle, the right-of-way status of the first vehicle indicating whether the first vehicle has a right of way; and

receiving, by the processor, a right-of-way status of at least one other vehicle within the vicinity, the right-of-way status of the least one other vehicle indicating whether the least one other vehicle has a right of way,

wherein the determining of the potential hazard is further based on the right-of-way status of the first vehicle and the right-of-way status of each of the one or more other vehicles.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the receiving of the right-of-way status of the first vehicle and the right-of-way status of the at least one other vehicle comprises receiving the right-of-way status of the first vehicle and the right-of-way status of the at least one other vehicle from one or more traffic control structures within the vicinity.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the alerting of the first vehicle about the potential hazard comprises notifying a driver of the first vehicle about the potential hazard with a visual display, a head-up display (HUD), a warning tone, a voice alert, a vibration, another human-perceivable indication, or a combination thereof.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending, by the processor, one or more commands to remotely accelerate or decelerate the first vehicle in response to the determining of the potential hazard.

14. A Beyond the Horizon Threat Indication (BHTI) system implementable to a traffic control structure, comprising:

one or more sensors disposed in and associated with a geographic region;

one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more sensors; and

memory operably connected to the one or more processors, the memory storing a plurality of components executable by the one or more processors, the plurality of components comprising;

a vehicle module programmed to cause the one or more processors to receive motion information of one or more vehicles within a vicinity of the traffic control structure;

a sensor module programmed to cause the one or more processors to receive vicinity data generated by the one or more sensors disposed within the vicinity of the traffic control structure in the geographic region, the vicinity data corresponding to one or more moving objects and one or more stationary objects located within the vicinity;

an analysis module programmed to cause the one or more processors to determine whether a first vehicle of the one or more vehicles is subject to a potential hazard, which is out of a line of sight of the first vehicle, of colliding with a second vehicle of the one or more vehicles or at least one of the one or more moving objects and one or more stationary objects; and

an alert module programmed to cause the one or more processors to alert the first vehicle of the potential hazard.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the one or more sensors comprise one or more cameras, and wherein the vicinity data comprises one or more videos, each of the one or more videos corresponding to a respective view of at least one of the one or more moving objects and one or more stationary objects.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein, in determining the potential hazard, the one or more processors are configured to perform acts comprising:

estimating a respective trajectory of each of the one or more vehicles based on the motion information;

analyzing the one or more videos to estimate a respective trajectory of each of the one or more moving objects;

analyzing the one or more videos to identify a location of each of the one or more stationary objects;

determining that the first vehicle is subject to the potential hazard in response to a first trajectory of the first vehicle intersecting a second trajectory of the second vehicle or a trajectory of at least one of the one or more moving objects within a predetermined period of time; and

determining that the first vehicle is subject to the potential hazard in response to the first trajectory of the first vehicle intersecting at least one of the locations of the one or more stationary objects within the predetermined period of time.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the vehicle module is further programmed to cause the one or more processors to receive proximity information from at least one of the one or more vehicles, the proximity information representing a spatial relation between the at least one of the one or more vehicles and one or more other objects in the vicinity.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the vehicle module is further programmed to cause the one or more processors to receive from the traffic control structure a right-of-way status for at least one of the one or more vehicles, the right-of-way status indicating whether the at least one of the one or more vehicles has a right of way.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein, in alerting first vehicle of the potential hazard, the one or more processors are configured to notify a driver of the first vehicle about the potential hazard with a visual display, a head-up display (HUD), a warning tone, a voice alert, a vibration, another human-perceivable indication, or a combination thereof.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the plurality of components further comprising:

an intervention module programmed to cause the one or more processors to remotely accelerate or decelerate the first vehicle in response to the determining of the potential hazard.