Reduce speed ahead information delivery

• US 9,035,796 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2011
• Issued: 05/19/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Pilutti, Thomas Edward, Kashi, Amin, Roeber, Marc
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Hai
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bousono, Orlando
• Application Number:
  US13/290,274
• Publication Number:
  US 20130113633A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,289 Days
• Field of Search: 340901-905, 340988-996, 701/1, 701117-119, 701/31.4, 701 323- 324, 701 332- 334, 701400-431, 701538-541
• US Class Current: 340/905
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0967 Systems involving transmission of highway information, e.g. weather, speed limits transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096758 where no selection takes place on the transmitted or the received information
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096783 where the origin of the information is a roadside individual element

Abstract

A navigation system provides a position of the vehicle on a segment of a roadway and identifies a change in speed limit relative to the current segment of the roadway. A traffic sign recognition system determines a speed limit information presentation zone of the current segment of the roadway after determining that a speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway is lower than a speed limit of the current segment of the roadway and/or a current speed of the vehicle. Thereafter, the traffic sign recognition system assesses the position of the vehicle relative to the speed limit information presentation zone. In response to determining that the vehicle is within the speed limit information presentation location, the traffic sign recognition system displays a visual representation of a speed limit sign designating the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining a position of a vehicle on a segment of a roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling;

identifying a change in speed limit for a segment of the roadway that the vehicle is approaching relative to the current segment of the roadway;

assessing speed limit information of the current segment of the roadway and the approaching segment of the roadway;

determining a speed limit information presentation zone of the current segment of the roadway within which speed limit information for the approaching segment of the roadway is to be presented to a driver of the vehicle after determining that a speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway is lower than at least one of a speed limit of the current segment of the roadway and a current speed of the vehicle;

assessing a position of the vehicle relative to the speed limit information presentation zone;

determining a speed limit warning zone on the roadway within which a notification indicating that the current speed of the vehicle is greater than the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway is presented to the driver, the speed limit warning zone having a warning notification distance, defining a distance at which the driver is initially notified of the change in speed limit, that is a function of the current speed of the vehicle, the speed limit for the approaching segment of the roadway and a vehicle deceleration factor including a measured deceleration of the vehicle corresponding to an actual deceleration of the vehicle at a point in time such that the measured deceleration of the vehicle influences a magnitude of the warning notification distance;

assessing the position of the vehicle relative to the speed limit warning zone; and

providing the speed limit information for the approaching segment of the roadway to the driver in response to determining that the vehicle is within the speed limit information presentation zone.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the speed limit information includes displaying a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway includes displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway adjacent to a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the current segment of the roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway includes displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign on a visual display of a traffic sign recognition system of the vehicle.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the speed limit information includes displaying a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway includes displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway adjacent to a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the current segment of the roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway includes displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign on a visual display of a traffic sign recognition system of the vehicle.

8. A vehicle, comprising:

a navigation system configured to provide a position of the vehicle on a segment of a roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling and identify a change in speed limit for a segment of the roadway that the vehicle is approaching relative to the current segment of the roadway; and

a traffic sign recognition system configured to determine a speed limit information presentation zone of the current segment of the roadway within which speed limit information for the approaching segment of the roadway is to be presented to a driver of the vehicle after determining that a speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway is lower than at least one of a speed limit of the current segment of the roadway and a current speed of the vehicle;

wherein

the traffic sign recognition system is configured to determine a speed limit warning zone on the roadway within which a warning notification indicating that the current speed of the vehicle is greater than the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway is to be presented to the driver, the speed limit warning zone having a warning notification distance, defining a distance at which the driver is initially notified of the change in speed limit, that is a function of the current speed of the vehicle, the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway and a vehicle deceleration factor including a measured deceleration of the vehicle corresponding to an actual deceleration of the vehicle at a point in time such that the measured deceleration of the vehicle influences a magnitude of the warning notification distance; and

wherein

the traffic sign recognition system is configured to assess the position of the vehicle relative to the speed limit information presentation zone, and display a visual representation of a speed limit sign designating the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway in response to determining that the vehicle is within the speed limit information presentation zone.

9. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein:

the traffic sign recognition system includes a visual display

for displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign on the visual display of the traffic sign recognition system.

10. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein the visual representation of the speed limit sign includes the visual representation of the speed limit sign adjacent to a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the current segment of the roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling.

11. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein:

the traffic sign recognition system includes a visual display

for displaying the visual representation of the speed limit sign on the visual display of the traffic sign recognition system.

12. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein the visual representation of the speed limit sign includes the visual representation of the speed limit sign adjacent to a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the current segment of the roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling.

13. A processor-readable medium having tangibly embodied thereon and accessible therefrom a set of instructions interpretable by at least one data processing device, the processor-readable medium being non-transitory, and the set of instructions configured for causing the at least one data processing device to carry out operations for:

determining a position of a vehicle on a segment of a roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling;

identifying a change in speed limit for a segment of the roadway that the vehicle is approaching relative to the current segment of the roadway;

assessing speed limit information of the current segment of the roadway and the approaching segment of the roadway;

determining a speed limit information presentation zone of the current segment of the roadway within which speed limit information for the approaching segment is to be presented to a driver of the vehicle after determining that a speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway is lower than at least one of a speed limit of the current segment of the roadway and a current speed of the vehicle;

assessing a position of the vehicle relative to the speed limit information presentation zone;

determining a speed limit warning zone on the roadway within which a warning notification indicating that the current speed of the vehicle is greater than the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway is to be provided to the driver, the speed limit warning zone having a warning notification distance, defining a distance at which the driver is initially notified of the change in seed limit, that is a function of the current speed of the vehicle, the speed limit of the approaching roadway and a deceleration factor including a measured deceleration of the vehicle corresponding to an actual deceleration of the vehicle at a point in time such that the measured vehicle deceleration influences a magnitude of the warning notification distance;

assessing the position of the vehicle relative to the speed limit warning zone;

causing the warning notification to be provided to the driver in response to determining that the vehicle is within the speed limit warning zone; and

causing the speed limit information for the approaching segment of the roadway to be presented to the driver in response to determining that the vehicle is within the speed limit information presentation zone.

14. The processor-readable medium of claim 13 wherein causing the speed limit information for the approaching segment to be presented to the driver includes causing a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed.

15. The processor-readable medium of claim 14 wherein causing a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed includes causing the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed adjacent to a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the current segment of the roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling.

16. The processor-readable medium of claim 14 wherein causing the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed includes causing the visual representation of the speed limit sign to be displayed on a visual display of a traffic sign recognition system of the vehicle.

17. The processor-readable medium of claim 13 wherein causing the speed limit information for the approaching segment of the roadway to be presented to the driver includes causing a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed.

18. The processor-readable medium of claim 17 wherein causing a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed includes causing the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed adjacent to a visual representation of a speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the current segment of the roadway over which the vehicle is currently travelling.

19. The processor-readable medium of claim 17 wherein causing the visual representation of the speed limit sign showing the speed limit of the approaching segment of the roadway to be displayed includes causing the visual representation of the speed limit sign to be displayed on a visual display of a traffic sign recognition system of the vehicle.