Navigation and control system for autonomous vehicles

• US 8,050,863 B2
• Filed: 03/16/2006
• Issued: 11/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Gray & Company, Inc.
• Inventors: Schneider, Carl Reimers Jr., Wilson, Bruce Mackie, Dooner, Matthew Taylor, Kinney, Powell McVay, Goeller, Keith Brian, Trepagnier, Paul Gerard, Nagel, Jorge Emilio
• Primary Examiner(s): Keith; Jack
• Assistant Examiner(s): Khatib; Rami
• Application Number:
  US11/376,160
• Publication Number:
  US 20070219720A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,056 Days
• Field of Search: 3593411-3415, 701/200, 701/207, 701/216, 701/220, 701/223, 701/300, 701/301, 701/302, 42119-142, 89/410.4, 89/410.5, 89/410.7, 434/20, 434/26, 342/42, 342/61, 342/69, 342/70, 340/425.5, 340/435, 340/436, 340/438, 340/901, 340/903, 180167-170
• US Class Current: 701/223
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/20 including control of steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/35 Road bumpiness, e.g. potholes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/00 Purposes of road vehicle drive control systems not related to the control of a particular sub-unit, e.g. of systems using conjoint control of vehicle sub-units
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/095 Predicting travel path or likelihood of collision
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/4817 relating to scanning
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/00 Control of position, course, altitude or attitude of land, water, air or space vehicles, e.g. using automatic pilots drive control systems specially adapted for autonomous road vehicles B60W60/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0238 using obstacle or wall sensors G05D1/0246 and G05D1/0289 take precedence; lidar systems designed for anti-collision purposes G01S17/93
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/024 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0242 using non-visible light signals, e.g. IR or UV signals
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0278 using satellite positioning signals, e.g. GPS

Abstract

A navigation and control system including a sensor configured to locate objects in a predetermined field of view from a vehicle. The sensor has an emitter configured to repeatedly scan a beam into a two-dimensional sector of a plane defined with respect to a first predetermined axis of the vehicle, and a detector configured to detect a reflection of the emitted beam from one of the objects. The sensor includes a panning mechanism configured to pan the plane in which the beam is scanned about a second predetermined axis to produce a three dimensional field of view. The navigation and control system includes a processor configured to determine the existence and location of the objects in the three dimensional field of view based on a position of the vehicle and a time between an emittance of the beam and a reception of the reflection of the emitted beam from one of the objects.

Claims

1. A method for identification of an object in a path of a vehicle for subsequent navigation and control of the vehicle, comprising:

scanning repeatedly an emitted beam from an emitter into a two-dimensional sector of a plane defined with respect to a first predetermined axis of the vehicle;

detecting at the vehicle a part of the emitted beam scattered to a detector by the object in the path of the vehicle;

producing a three dimensional field of view including contour elevation of the object in the path of the vehicle by mechanically panning the plane in which the beam is scanned about a second predetermined axis during said scanning into a two-dimensional sector, said mechanically panning oscillating a housing having attached inside both the emitter and the detector so that the housing, the emitter, and the detector oscillate about the second predetermined axis of the vehicle while moving the vehicle; and

determining whether the object in the three dimensional field of view obtained during vehicle movement is an obstacle for vehicle avoidance based on the contour elevation of the object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the scanning comprises:

scanning the beam into a two-dimensional sector of a substantially vertical plane.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining an angular coordinate of the beam relative to the second predetermined axis for the direction to the object.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

offsetting the angular coordinate by an amount indicative of a time delay in sending a signal, indicative of the angular coordinate measured at a sensor detecting the reflection of the emitted beam, from the sensor to a processor configured to calculate the location of the objects; and

calculating an angular direction to said object in the path of the vehicle based on the offset angular coordinate.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

obtaining positioning data from a global positioning system device disposed on the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

obtaining orientation data for the second predetermined axis of the vehicle.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

providing wheel speed data to correlate with the positioning and orientation data.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

processing at least one of the angular coordinate, the positioning data, and the orientation data to determine the location of the object in geospatial coordinates.

9. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

directing the beam into respective angular sectors at respective panning rates.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining at least one of the respective angular sectors and the respective panning rates based on at least one of a vehicle speed, an identified obstacle location, a projected path of the vehicle, a resolution required to resolve a complex obstacle or a collection of obstacles to be resolved, sensory input other than from the beam, an identified priority sector in which an obstacle has been identified, and auxiliary information indicating the presence of an obstacle, a moving obstacle, another vehicle, a landmark, or an area of interest.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

ascertaining an altitude of the vehicle;

determining an elevation of the object by correlating the location of the object relative to the vehicle with the geospatial position of the vehicle and the altitude of the vehicle.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

providing at least one of direction and speed control to the vehicle in order to avoid the obstacle.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

obtaining a destination of the vehicle; and

directing the vehicle in order to avoid the obstacle and to return on course to the destination.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining if the object is an obstacle.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

storing in memory indicators of whether an obstacle exists in a subsector of said three dimensional field of view.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

determine if a projected path of the vehicle intersects one of the subsectors containing the indicators.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein determining if the object is an obstacle comprises:

determining from the contour elevation if there exists a first point on a contour map of the object that is farther away from the vehicle than a second point on the contour map, if a slope between the first point and the second point is greater than a predetermined slope, and if a height between the first point and the second point is greater than a predetermined height.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

determining if the obstacle is to be avoided by determining if a geospatial position of the obstacle and a projected path of the vehicle provide lateral clearance between the obstacle and the vehicle.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing data from an auxiliary sensing beam that is at least one of scanned in a plane rotated from the plane defined with respect to the first predetermined axis of the vehicle and scanned in a predetermined sector known to have an obstacle therein.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein scanning repeatedly an emitted beam into a two-dimensional sector comprises:

producing slope and height data for the object in the three dimensional field of view.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a maximum height or depth and a maximum slope for the object in the three dimensional field of view.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the object in the three dimensional field of view is an obstacle for vehicle avoidance further comprises:

determining a field of view sector where said obstacle exists; and

storing an obstacle indicator indicative that an obstacle exists in the field of view sector.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

tracking which field of view sectors have obstacles and which field of view sectors do not have obstacles in order to facilitate avoidance of an obstacle collision.

24. A method for navigation and control of an autonomous vehicle along a predetermined path, comprising:

scanning repeatedly an emitted beam about a first predetermined axis and through a first angular sector;

panning the emitted beam about a second predetermined axis different from the first predetermined axis and through a second angular sector;

detecting at the vehicle a returned part of the emitted beam scattered by an object;

associating the returned part of the emitted beam with a first angular position α

in the first angular sector and a second angular position β

in the second angular sector of the emitted beam;

determining a geospatial coordinate of the vehicle, a speed of the vehicle, and a heading of the vehicle,

determining a geospatial coordinate of the object based on the first angular position α

, the second angular position β

, the speed of the autonomous vehicle, the geospatial coordinate of the vehicle, and the heading of the vehicle; and

controlling movement of the vehicle to avoid collision with the object based at least in part on the geospatial coordinates of the object and of the vehicle and the speed of the vehicle.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

storing in a memory the predetermined path of the vehicle between first and second locations; and

controlling the vehicle to travel between the first and second locations, including adjusting the predetermined path to avoid collision with detected objects meeting predetermined criteria.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the step of determining a geospatial coordinate of the vehicle comprises:

using at least one of a global positioning based system and an inertial navigation based system to determine the geospatial coordinate of the vehicle.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein the step of determining a geospatial coordinate of the vehicle comprises:

using at least one of a global positioning based system and an inertial navigation based system to determine the geospatial coordinate of the vehicle.

28. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

determining if the object is in the predetermined path of the vehicle.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

controlling the vehicle to avoid collision with the object.

30. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

determining the predetermined path for the vehicle to travel based on at least one of a speed and a heading of the vehicle and based on detection of any object in the predetermined path.

31. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

based on the geospatial coordinate of the object, determining whether the object is an obstacle requiring vehicle avoidance.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein determining whether the object is an obstacle comprises:

determining a field of view sector where said obstacle exists; and

storing an obstacle indicator indicative that an obstacle exists in the field of view sector.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

tracking which field of view sectors have obstacles and which field of view sectors do not have obstacles in order to facilitate avoidance of an obstacle collision.