Method for determining position data for use during the operation of a vehicle system of a motor vehicle, and position-data determining and distributing system

• US 10,157,544 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2015
• Issued: 12/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Audi AG (Volkswagen AG)
• Original Assignee: Audi AG (Volkswagen AG)
• Inventors: Altinger, Harald, Schuller, Florian, Ibisch, Andre
• Primary Examiner(s): Grant, II, Jerome
• Application Number:
  US15/316,812
• Publication Number:
  US 20180151072A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,334 Days
• Field of Search: 382104
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/52 Surveillance or monitoring of activities, e.g. for recognising suspicious objects recognising microscopic objects G06V20/69
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0116 from roadside infrastructure, e.g. beacons
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/04 using optical or ultrasonic detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/164 Centralised systems, e.g. external to vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]

Abstract

A method for determining positional data for use in the operation of a vehicle system (3) of a motor vehicle (2), wherein image data of at least one surveillance camera (9, 10, 11) recording at least a portion of the surroundings of the motor vehicle (2) and/or the motor vehicle (2), provided externally to the motor vehicle (2) for determining the positional data of at least one recorded object (13) are evaluated and made at least partially available to the vehicle system (3).

Claims

1. A method for determining positional data for use in operation of a vehicle system of a motor vehicle, comprising:

receiving position lists from a plurality of surveillance cameras, wherein the plurality of surveillance cameras are external to the motor vehicle, and each surveillance camera is configured to record image data of at least a portion of surroundings of the motor vehicle or the motor vehicle, and cause a generation of a position list based on the image data, wherein the position list includes positional data for at least one object;

combining the position lists from the plurality of surveillance cameras into a final position list, wherein the final position list comprises positional data for at least one moved object tracked by at least one surveillance camera among the plurality of surveillance cameras, and the combining comprises identifying identical objects in the plurality of position lists;

filtering the final position list using at least one relevance criterion, wherein the filtering comprises selecting positional data of objects not corresponding to the motor vehicle; and

transmitting the final position list to the vehicle system.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle system is a vehicle system designed for at least partially automatic operation of the motor vehicle.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one surveillance camera is configured to determine positional data of the motor vehicle.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the at least one surveillance camera is configured to identify the motor vehicle based on a distance traveled, an existing position information item sent from the motor vehicle, or at least one external feature of the motor vehicle in the image data of the at least one surveillance camera, wherein the external feature comprises a license plate or a model designation badge.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein the motor vehicle is configured to determine final position information for the motor vehicle based on the positional data of the motor vehicle.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the motor vehicle is configured to determine a collision probability with an object not corresponding to the motor vehicle based on the positional data of the objects not corresponding to the motor vehicle.

7. The method according to claim 1, the transmitting further comprising:

transmitting the image data or the positional data of the objects to the motor vehicle for evaluation.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the at least one surveillance camera is connected to a control device allocated to a driven area, wherein the control device is configured to communicate with the motor vehicle.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one object information item associated with the positional data of the objects is determined for the at least one moved object tracked by the at least one surveillance camera and at least partially transmitted to the motor vehicle.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the at least one object information item is determined as an object class, an identification information item, a speed, a movement history, or a movement prediction.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the relevance criterion considering a driving path of the motor vehicle is transmitted to a filtering device of the motor vehicle.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein positional data of an object is transmitted to the motor vehicle when it is in the driving path, wherein the driving path is extended by a safety zone or at a point in time corresponding to a passing of the motor vehicle with a probability exceeding a probability threshold.

13. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining, by evaluation of external features of the object, an orientation of the object, wherein the orientation of the object is part of the positional data of the object.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the external features comprise a license plate of the motor vehicle or an exterior mirror of the motor vehicle.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein absolute positions in a geodetic or a coordinate system related to a traveled area are determined as positional data.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein each surveillance camera removes a non-moved, static, acquired background from the image data.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein each surveillance camera is configured to detect objects in the image data that has had the non-moved, static, acquired background removed through clustering.

18. The method according to claim 1, wherein each surveillance camera tracks the detected object in the image data at different times using a Kalman filter.

19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the generation of the position list takes place at least partially on part of the at least one surveillance camera or a control device allocated to a driven area that is connected to the at least one surveillance camera.

20. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of surveillance cameras are allocated to a parking environment having several parking spaces.

21. The method according to claim 1, wherein the surveillance cameras perform a safety function.

22. The method according to claim 1, wherein the motor vehicle is configured to determine a future trajectory of the motor vehicle based on the positional data of the objects not corresponding to the motor vehicle.

23. The method according to claim 1, wherein the motor vehicle is configured to create an environmental model of the surroundings of the motor vehicle based on the positional data of the objects not corresponding to the motor vehicle.

24. A positional data determination and distribution system, comprising:

a plurality of surveillance cameras, wherein each surveillance camera is configured to;

record image data of at least a portion of surroundings of a motor vehicle; and

create, using an image processing unit, a position list based on the image data, wherein the position list includes positional data for at least one object; and

a control device configured to;

combine the position lists from the plurality of surveillance cameras into a final position list, wherein the final position list comprises positional data for at least one moved object tracked by at least one surveillance camera among the plurality of surveillance cameras, and the combining comprises identifying identical objects in the plurality of position lists;

filter the final position list, wherein the filtering comprises selecting positional data of objects not corresponding to the motor vehicle; and

transmit the final position list to a vehicle system of the motor vehicle.