Apparatus and method for use in a vehicle

• US 9,981,667 B2
• Filed: 02/03/2015
• Issued: 05/29/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jaguar Land Rover Limited (TATA Motors Limited)
• Original Assignee: Jaguar Land Rover Limited (TATA Motors Limited)
• Inventors: Hoare, Edward, Tran, Thuy-Yung, Daniel, Liam, Cherniakov, Mikhail
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Cuong H
• Application Number:
  US15/118,444
• Publication Number:
  US 20170174224A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,211 Days
• Field of Search: 701 23, 701 96, 701104, 701301, 701 70, 340435, 340557, 34099512, 34099513
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/408 Radar; Laser, e.g. lidar
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/54 Audio sensitive means, e.g. ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/14 Adaptive cruise control
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/105 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/028 Guided parking by providing commands to the driver, e.g. acoustically or optically
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0255 using acoustic signals, e.g. ultra-sonic singals sonar systems designed for anti-collision purposes G01S15/93
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0257 using a radar radar systems designed for anti-collision purposes between land vehicles or between land vehicle and fixed obstacles G01S13/931
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0278 using satellite positioning signals, e.g. GPS

Abstract

Apparatus for determining the ground speed of a vehicle comprising, two or more vehicle-mounted sensors including at least one radar sensor and at least one acoustic sensor, wherein the or each of the vehicle-mounted sensors is associated with a respective vehicle subsystem, a controller for calculating the ground speed of the vehicle, wherein the controller is configured to receive a data input from the or each vehicle-mounted sensor, to calculate a ground speed value based on the received data input and to provide ground speed output data signal to one or more client systems of the vehicle. The invention also resides in a method for determining the ground speed of a vehicle and a computer program product that embodies said method.

Claims

1. An apparatus for determining a ground speed of a vehicle, the apparatus comprising:

two or more vehicle-mounted sensors including at least one radar sensor and one acoustic sensor, wherein each of the vehicle-mounted sensors is associated with a respective vehicle subsystem; and

a controller for calculating the ground speed of the vehicle, wherein the controller is configured to receive a data input from each vehicle-mounted sensor, to calculate a ground speed value based on the received data input and to provide ground speed output data signal to one or more client systems of the vehicle.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the radar sensor is associated with an active cruise control subsystem and the acoustic sensor is associated with a parking assist subsystem of the vehicle.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the controller receives a plurality of data inputs from a plurality of vehicle-mounted sensors.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the controller is configured to arbitrate between the plurality of data inputs to prioritise one of the data inputs on which to base the ground speed calculation.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the controller arbitrates between the plurality of data inputs in dependence on a determined vehicle operating condition.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, including a GNSS sensor associated with a navigation subsystem of the vehicle.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the data input from the GNSS sensor is prioritised for the ground speed calculation when the vehicle is determined to be in a high speed vehicle operating condition, the high speed operating condition preferably corresponding to an indicated vehicle speed of at least 5 mph.

9. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the controller is configured to assess the reliability of one of said data inputs received from each of the plurality of vehicle-mounted sensors and to perform said arbitration and to determine the ground speed in dependence on the reliability assessment.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the assessment of reliability is based on a metric indicative of the confidence level of the data sources.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the client systems to which ground speed output data signal is provided are selected from one or more of i) a hill descent system, ii) a launch control system, iii) a controlled stop system, iv) a stability control system, v) a torque vectoring system, and vi) a terrain response system.

8. A method for determining a ground speed of a vehicle, wherein the vehicle includes two or more vehicle-mounted sensors including at least one radar sensor and one acoustic sensor, wherein each of the vehicle-mounted sensors are associated with a respective one of a plurality of vehicle subsystems, wherein the method comprises:

receiving a data input from each of the respective two or more vehicle-mounted sensors;

calculating a ground speed value based on the received data input; and

providing ground speed output data signal to one or more client systems of the vehicle.

13. A computer program product carriable on a computer readable medium which, when executed on a data processing apparatus is operable to perform the method of claim 8.

14. The method of claim 8, including receiving a plurality of data inputs from a plurality of vehicle-mounted sensors.

15. The method of claim 14, including arbitrating between the plurality of data inputs to prioritise one of the data inputs on which to base the ground speed calculation.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein arbitration between the plurality of data inputs is in dependence on a determined vehicle operating condition.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the data input from a GNSS sensor associated with a navigation subsystem of the vehicle is prioritised for the ground speed value when the vehicle is determined to be in a high speed operating condition, the high speed vehicle operating condition preferably corresponding to an indicated vehicle speed of at least 5 mph.

18. A non-transient computer readable medium loaded with the computer program product of claim 13.

19. The method of claim 14, including assessing the reliability of said data inputs received from each of the plurality of vehicle-mounted sensors, wherein the assessment of reliability is based on a metric indicative of the confidence level of the data sources.

20. The method of claim 8, wherein the client systems to which ground speed output data signal is provided are selected from one or more of i) a hill descent system, ii) a launch control system, iii) a controlled stop system, iv) a stability control system, v) a torque vectoring system, and vi) a terrain response system.

12. A vehicle comprising an apparatus for determining a ground speed of a vehicle, the apparatus comprising:

two or more vehicle-mounted sensors including at least one radar sensor and one acoustic sensor, wherein each of the vehicle-mounted sensors is associated with a respective vehicle subsystem;

a controller is configured to receive a data input from each vehicle-mounted sensor, to calculate a ground speed value based on the received data inputs and to provide ground speed output data signal to one or more client systems of the vehicle.