System and method for aligning sensors on a vehicle

• US 7,681,448 B1
• Filed: 01/31/2008
• Issued: 03/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Eagle Harbor Holdings, L.L.C., AutoBrilliance, LLC (Jeffrey M. Gross)
• Original Assignee: Medius Inc
• Inventors: Preston, Dan Alan, Olmstead, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams, Hezron
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bellamy, Tamiko D
• Application Number:
  US12/024,058
• Time in Patent Office: 782 Days
• Field of Search: 73/13.8, 734/321, 356/399, 356/400, 356/614, 356/620, 356/623, 356/138, 356/139.03, 356/139.1, 356/140, 356/141.1, 356/141.2, 356/147, 356/3.01, 356/3.1, 356 313- 314, 250/330
• US Class Current: 73/432.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0013 Optimal controllers
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0085 Setting or resetting initial positions
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/107 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/109 Lateral acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/11 Pitch movement
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/112 Roll movement
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/114 Yaw movement
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/045 Monitoring control system parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/02 by making use of inertia forces using solid seismic massesG01P15/14 takes precedence

Abstract

A vehicle sensor system consisting of video, radar, ultrasonic or laser sensors, oriented to obtain a 360 degree view around the vehicle for the purpose of developing a situation or scene awareness. The sensors may or may not have overlapping field of views, or support the same applications, but data will be shared by all. Orientation of the sensor to the vehicle body coordinates is critical in order to accurately assess threat and respond. This system describes methods based on measuring force and rotation on each sensor and computing a dynamic alignment to first each other, then second to the vehicle.

Claims

1. A sensor alignment system for establishing and maintaining accurate alignment of automotive sensors comprising:

a sensor mounted on an automotive vehicle for gathering target data around the vehicle using optical information;

a micro inertial sensor included with the sensor that measures rotation rate and acceleration along two or more axes of the sensor for the establishment of a sensor reference frame;

a separate micro inertial sensor independently mounted on the vehicle that measures rotation rate and acceleration along two or more axes of the vehicle for the establishment of a vehicle navigation reference frame; and

a processor for determining an amount of misalignment of the sensor reference frame with the vehicle navigation reference frame and aligning the sensor target data with the vehicle navigation reference frame according to the amount of misalignment.

2. The system according to claim 1 wherein the processor is collocated with the sensor and the micro-inertial sensor.

3. The system according to claim 2 wherein the alignment of the sensor target data to the vehicle navigation reference frame is done at the sensor.

4. The system according to claim 1 wherein the processor is located within a vehicle system processor, which includes a micro-inertial sensor.

5. The system according to claim 4 wherein the alignment of the sensor target data to the vehicle navigation reference frame is done within the vehicle system processor.

6. The system according to claim 1 wherein multiple sensors for gathering target data around the vehicle are mounted on the vehicle, each with micro-inertial sensors that are used to determine an amount of misalignment between the multiple sensors.

7. The system according to claim 6 wherein each sensor aligns itself to the vehicle navigation reference frame in a distributed process.

8. The system according to claim 6 wherein each sensor is aligned to the vehicle navigation reference frame in a vehicle system processor in a centralized process.

9. The system according to claim 6 wherein only one of the sensors aligns itself to the vehicle navigation reference frame.

10. The system according to claim 1 wherein the sensor includes a camera.

11. The system according to claim 10 wherein the amount of misalignment is determined according to a number of pixels of an image separating two of the axes.

12. The system according to claim 1 wherein the vehicle body and a vehicle hood are used to compute the amount of misalignment.

13. The system according to claim 12 wherein the vehicle hood is used to determine one of the two or more axes of the vehicle navigation reference frame.