Advisory system for previewing local conditions on a highway

• US 7,986,247 B2
• Filed: 08/12/2007
• Issued: 07/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Motor Corporation
• Original Assignee: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Incorporated (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Okuda, Masato, Bauer, James Anthony
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Benjamin C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pham; Lam P
• Application Number:
  US11/837,530
• Publication Number:
  US 20080042876A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,444 Days
• Field of Search: 340435-436, 340463-479, 340901-905, 701300-302
• US Class Current: 340/905
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/162 event-triggered

Abstract

A driver advisory system for previewing the local traffic conditions on a highway is described. Apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an advisory system that transmits information regarding the status of the host vehicle to drivers of other vehicles, in particular when the status of the host vehicle presents a hazardous condition to other vehicles. The advisory system may also receive information from other vehicles, and provide an alert to the driver of the host vehicle if a hazardous condition exists.

Claims

1. A driver advisory system in a first host vehicle on a highway transmitting information regarding the status of said first host vehicle and its occupants to a second host vehicle on a highway, said driver advisory system comprising:

a sensor monitoring a vehicle parameter of said first host vehicle;

a first processor operable to receive a sensor output from said sensor, calculate a risk factor for collision with other approaching vehicles and provide an output signal related to the risk factor;

a communication unit operable to receive said output signal from said first processor and transmit an outgoing advisory message relating to the risk factor, said communication unit also operable to receive an incoming advisory message relating to calculated risk factor based on a vehicle parameter sensor output from said second host vehicle and provide said incoming message to a second processor; and

said second processor operable to receive said incoming advisory message from said communication unit, determine if the first host vehicle is approaching the second host vehicle on the same highway and in the same direction of travel, and determine if said advisory message should be provided to the driver of said first host vehicle based on said determination.

2. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1, further comprising a human-machine interface operable to receive said advisory from said second processor and provide said advisory to the driver of said first host vehicle.

3. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1, further comprising a plurality of sensors monitoring a plurality of vehicle parameters of said first host vehicle.

4. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said vehicle parameter is selected from a group of vehicle parameters consisting of:

vehicle speed and stability thresholds, acceleration, yaw rate, transmit power, RSSI, airbag deployment status, transmission mode selection, emergency brake status, hazard light status, head/tail/parking lights status, seat occupancy, door open/close status, forward looking vision and radar data, vehicle make/model/color, vehicle location and highway identification.

5. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said sensor is selected from the group consisting of switch-based sensors, force/weight sensors, inductive sensors, vision-based sensors, radar sensors, capacitive sensors, and sensors that detect digital data stored on microprocessor memory.

6. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said outgoing advisory message has information related to said first host vehicle selected from the group of information consisting of vehicle speed and stability thresholds, acceleration, yaw rate, transmit power, RSSI, airbag deployment status, transmission mode selection, emergency brake status, hazard light status, head/tail/parking lights status, seat occupancy, door open/close status, forward looking vision and radar data, vehicle make/model/color, vehicle location, highway identification and combinations thereof.

7. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said second processor is operable to receive said incoming advisory message from said communication unit and calculate a position and differential location change of said first host vehicle relative to said second host vehicle.

8. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 7, wherein said second processor is operable to provide an advisory to said human-machine interface based on said position and differential location change of said first host vehicle relative to said second host vehicle.

9. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said outgoing advisory message is a periodic message including the typical or known width of the highway and information related to a power at which said outgoing advisory message is transmitted.

10. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said incoming message to said second processor is a periodic message including information related to a power at which said incoming was transmitted, an RSSI of said incoming signal and a heading of said second host vehicle.

11. A driver advisory system as set forth in claim 10, wherein said second processor is operable to analyze the transmit power, RSSI and vehicle heading information within said incoming message and determine if said first host vehicle and said second host vehicle are on the same highway and traveling in the same direction.

12. A driver advisory system in a first host vehicle on a highway transmitting information regarding the status of said first host vehicle and its occupants to a second host vehicle on a highway, said driver advisory system comprising:

a sensor monitoring a vehicle parameter of said first host vehicle;

a first processor operable to receive a sensor output from said sensor, calculate a risk factor for collision with other approaching vehicles and provide an output signal related to the risk factor;

a communication unit operable to receive said output signal from said first processor, transmit an outgoing advisory message related to a width of said highway and said output signal, said communication unit also operable to receive an incoming advisory message from said second host vehicle and provide said incoming message to a second processor; and

a human-machine interface;

said second processor operable to;

receive said incoming advisory message from said communication unit and calculate a position and differential location change of said first host vehicle relative to said second host vehicle; and

provide an advisory to said human-machine interface based on said position and differential location change of said first host vehicle relative to said second host vehicle,

for the purpose of a first host vehicle on a highway transmitting information regarding the status of said first host vehicle and its occupants to a second host vehicle on a highway.

13. A method of providing information related to a first host vehicle on a highway to a second host vehicle on a highway regarding the status of the first host vehicle and its occupants, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a sensor, the sensor sensing a condition of the first host vehicle and its occupants and providing a sensor output;

providing a first microprocessor, the microprocessor receiving the sensor output from the sensor, quantifying the condition of the host vehicle and its occupants in the form of an output, calculating a risk factor for collision with other approaching vehicles related to the output and providing an output signal related to the risk factor;

providing a communication unit, the communication unit receiving the output signal from the first microprocessor, transmitting an outgoing advisory message to and receiving an incoming advisory message relating to calculated risk factor based on a vehicle condition sensor output from the second host vehicle; and

providing a second microprocessor, the second microprocessor receiving the incoming advisory message from the communication unit and providing an advisory to the driver if the first host vehicle is approaching the second host vehicle on the same highway and in the same direction of travel.

14. A method as set forth in claim 13, including the step of providing a plurality of sensors monitoring a plurality of the conditions of the host vehicle and its occupants, including vehicle speed/stability thresholds, directional heading (compass), yaw rate, transmit power, RSSI, airbag deployed, transmission shift mode, emergency brake applied, hazard lights and head/tail/parking light status, occupant sensing, door open/close status, vision and radar data, vehicle make/model/color, vehicle location and highway identification.

15. A method as set forth in claim 13 including the step of the communication unit transmitting information concerning a location and status of the first host vehicle and its occupants for retrieval by other vehicles in the vicinity of the first host vehicle, in response to the risk factor exceeding a predetermined threshold value.

16. A method as set forth in claim 13 including the step of the communication unit receiving messages transmitted from the second host vehicle regarding the condition of the second host vehicle and its occupants.

17. A method as set forth in claim 13 including a step of the second microprocessor determining if the first host vehicle is approaching or moving away from the second host vehicle.

18. A method as set forth in claim 13 including the step of the second microprocessor providing to a driver of the first host vehicle an advisory signal in response to the first host vehicle'"'"'s movement toward the second host vehicle.

19. A method as set forth in claim 13 including the step of the second microprocessor determining if information regarding the status of the second host vehicle has been retransmitted by another vehicle in the vicinity of the first vehicle, the second microprocessor retransmitting the information regarding the status of the second host vehicle and its occupants to the communication unit for transmitting to other vehicles in the vicinity of the first vehicle when the status of the second host vehicle has not been retransmitted by another vehicle.

20. A method as set forth in claim 13 including the step of the second microprocessor detecting when a transmitting vehicle passes by the first host vehicle by monitoring the RSSI peak of the transmitting vehicle.

21. A method as set forth in claim 13 including the step of the second microprocessor determining if the second host vehicle is on a highway by monitoring the history of speed, compass heading and yaw rate of the second host vehicle and comparing the monitored history of speed, compass heading and yaw rate of the second host vehicle with an estimated highway path of the second host vehicle determined from data transmitted to the first host vehicle by other transmitting vehicles.