AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE SYSTEM FOR DETECTING SAFETY DRIVING MODEL COMPLIANCE STATUS OF ANOTHER VEHICLE, AND PLANNING ACCORDINGLY

• US 20200130711A1
• Filed: 12/28/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2019
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation, MobilEye Vision Technologies Ltd. (Intel Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Turek, Javier, Alvarez, Ignacio J., Elli, Maria Soledad, Felip Leon, Javier, Gonzalez Aguirre, David I.
• Granted Patent: US 11,713,056 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/4046 Behavior, e.g. aggressive or erratic
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2754/20 Lateral distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/0956 the prediction being responsive to traffic or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/105 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/0016 of the vehicle or its occupants
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/0018 by employing degraded modes, e.g. reducing speed, in response to suboptimal conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00

Abstract

An Autonomous Vehicle (AV) system, including: a tracking subsystem configured to detect and track relative positioning of another vehicle that is behind or lateral to an AV configured to comply with a safety driving model, and to check a safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle; and a risk reduction subsystem configured to plan, based on the safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle, an AV action, wherein if the safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle is unknown or is known to be non-compliant, the AV action is administration of a safety driving model compliance test to the other vehicle, or is a maneuver by the AV to reduce risk of collision with a leading vehicle positioned in front of the AV.

Claims

1. An Autonomous Vehicle (AV) system, comprising:

a tracking subsystem configured to detect and track relative positioning of another vehicle that is behind or lateral to an AV configured to comply with a safety driving model, and to check a safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle; and

a risk reduction subsystem configured to plan, based on the safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle, an AV action,

wherein if the safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle is unknown or is known to be non-compliant, the AV action is administration of a safety driving model compliance test to the other vehicle, or is a maneuver by the AV to reduce risk of collision with a leading vehicle positioned in front of the AV.

2. The AV system of claim 1, wherein the safety driving model compliance test comprises:

requesting a control system of the AV to perform an AV action; and

monitoring a reaction by the other vehicle to the AV action.

3. The AV system of claim 2, wherein the AV action comprises requesting the control system to perform a braking action, and the monitoring comprises comparing a response time of the reaction by the other vehicle with a threshold response time.

4. The AV system of claim 2, wherein the AV action comprises request the control system of the AV to reduce a distance between the AV and the other vehicle, and the monitoring comprises comparing a response time of the other vehicle reaction with a threshold response time.

5. The AV system of claim 1, further comprising:

a memory configured to store a list of known other vehicles and corresponding safety driving model compliance status.

6. The AV system of claim 5, wherein the tracking subsystem is configured to add the other vehicle and corresponding safety driving model compliance status to the list of known other vehicles.

7. The AV system of claim 5, further comprising:

a transceiver,

wherein the tracking subsystem is configured to provide, via the transceiver, the list of known vehicles and corresponding safety driving model compliance status, to another AV system of another vehicle.

8. The AV system of claim 1, wherein the tracking subsystem is configured to determine if the AV in relation to the other vehicle is in a dangerous situation, wherein a dangerous situation is when a risk of collision between the AV and the other vehicle is higher than a threshold risk.

9. The AV system of claim 8, wherein if the tracking subsystem determines that the AV in relation to the other vehicle is in a dangerous situation, the tracking subsystem is configured to determine whether the other vehicle is safety driving model compliant by monitoring the other vehicle'"'"'s reaction to the dangerous situation, or by comparing the other vehicle'"'"'s response time, which is from a beginning of the dangerous situation to the other vehicle'"'"'s reaction to the dangerous situation, with a threshold response time.

10. The AV system of claim 1, wherein the other vehicle is assumed to be non-compliant unless the tracking subsystem determines otherwise.

11. The AV system of claim 1, wherein the maneuver to reduce the risk of collision with the leading vehicle positioned in front of the AV is requesting the control system of the AV to increase a distance between the AV and the other vehicle, change lanes, re-route the AV to allow the other vehicle to pass the AV, decrease speed, increase a distance between the AV and the leading vehicle, or honk a horn.

12. The AV system of claim 1, wherein if the control system of the AV is actuating a priority maneuver, the risk reduction subsystem is configured to delay or cancel the plan of the AV action.

13. The AV system of claim 1, wherein the tracking subsystem is configured to assign the other vehicle a safety risk grade.

14. The AV system of claim 1, wherein the tracking subsystem is configured to detect and track a plurality of other vehicles.

15. The AV system of claim 14, wherein the tracking subsystem is configured to assign the plurality of other vehicles respective safety risk grades, and to rank the plurality of other vehicles in accordance with the respective safety risk grades.

16. The AV system of claim 15, wherein the risk reduction subsystem is configured to plan the maneuver by the AV to prioritize avoidance of another vehicle of the plurality of other vehicles having a highest safety risk grade and provide the planned maneuver to the control system of the AV.

17. An Autonomous Vehicle (AV), comprising:

an AV system, comprising;

a tracking subsystem configured to detect and track relative positioning of another vehicle that is behind or lateral to an AV configured to comply with a safety driving model, and to check a safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle; and

a risk reduction subsystem configured to plan, based on the safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle, AV action,

wherein if the safety driving model compliance status of the other vehicle is unknown or is known to be non-compliant, the AV action is administration of a safety driving model compliance test to the other vehicle, or is a maneuver by the AV to reduce risk of collision with a leading vehicle positioned in front of the AV; and

a control system configured to perform the AV action.

18. The AV of claim 17, wherein the safety driving model compliance test comprises:

requesting a control system of the AV to perform an AV action; and

monitoring a reaction by the other vehicle to the AV action.

19. The AV of claim 18, wherein the AV action comprises requesting the control system to perform a braking action, and the monitoring comprises comparing a response time of the reaction by the other vehicle with a threshold response time.

20. The AV of claim 18, wherein the AV action comprises request the control system of the AV to reduce a distance between the AV and the other vehicle, and the monitoring comprises comparing a response time of the other vehicle reaction with a threshold response time.

21. The AV of claim 17, wherein the maneuver to reduce the risk of collision with the leading vehicle positioned in front of the AV is requesting the control system of the AV to increase a distance between the AV and the other vehicle, change lanes, re-route the AV to allow the other vehicle to pass the AV, decrease speed, increase a distance between the AV and the leading vehicle, or honk a horn.

22. A non-transitory machine-readable media, comprising instructions, which when executed, cause a processor of an Autonomous Vehicle (AV) system to:

detect and track, by a tracking subsystem, relative positioning of another vehicle that is behind or lateral to an AV configured to comply with a safety driving model;

check, by the tracking subsystem, a safety driving model compliance status of the surrounding vehicle; and

plan, by a risk reduction subsystem, an AV action based on the safety driving model compliance status of the surrounding vehicle,

wherein if the safety driving model compliance status of the surrounding vehicle is unknown or is known to be non-compliant, the AV action is administration of a safety driving model compliance test to the surrounding vehicle, or is a maneuver by the AV to reduce risk of collision with a leading vehicle positioned in front of the AV.

23. The non-transitory machine-readable media of claim 22, wherein the safety driving model compliance test comprises:

requesting a control system of the AV to perform an AV action; and

monitoring a reaction by the other vehicle to the AV action.

24. The non-transitory machine-readable media of claim 23, wherein the AV action comprises requesting the control system to perform a braking action, and the monitoring comprises comparing a response time of the reaction by the other vehicle with a threshold response time.

25. The non-transitory machine-readable media of claim 22, wherein the other vehicle is assumed to be non-compliant unless the tracking subsystem determines otherwise.