Cooperative vehicle collision warning system

• US 8,907,814 B2
• Filed: 12/19/2011
• Issued: 12/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Chen, Wei-Peng
• Primary Examiner(s): Wu, Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Haile, Benyam
• Application Number:
  US13/330,093
• Publication Number:
  US 20130154853A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,086 Days
• Field of Search: 340/901, 340/902, 340/903, 340/904, 340/905, 701/2, 701/23, 701/70, 701/117
• US Class Current: 340/905
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0075 Automatic parameter input, automatic initialising or calibrating means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/65 Data transmitted between vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/06 Road conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/01 Detecting movement of traffic to be counted or controlled G08G1/07 - G08G1/14 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0116 from roadside infrastructure, e.g. beacons
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/015 with provision for distinguishing between two or more types of vehicles, e.g. between motor-cars and cycles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/093 Data selection, e.g. prioritizing information, managing message queues, selecting the information to be output
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/094 Hardware aspects; Signal processing or signal properties, e.g. frequency bands
• 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 1/096708 where the received information might be used to generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096725 where the received information generates an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096791 where the origin of the information is another vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/162 event-triggered

Abstract

According to an aspect of the invention, a traffic information communication system includes a receiver and a transmitter. The receiver may be configured to receive a message relating to traffic conditions along a thoroughfare from a communication node. The transmitter may be communicatively coupled to the receiver and may be configured to rebroadcast the message within a predetermined amount of time after receiving the message. The traffic information communication system may be implemented in a vehicle traveling along the thoroughfare.

Claims

1. A traffic information communication system comprising:

a receiver configured to receive a message relating to traffic conditions along a thoroughfare from a communication node, wherein the message is received in a single wireless carrier wave;

a processor configured to determine;

that the message is an urgent message or a non-urgent message; and

from the single wireless carrier wave at least one of a speed of the communication node and a distance between the traffic information communication system and the communication node;

a transmitter communicatively coupled to the receiver and configured to rebroadcast the message within a predetermined amount of time after receiving the message, wherein;

when the message is a non-urgent message, the transmitter is configured to rebroadcast the message at a default transmission power that indicates the message is a non-urgent message and/or using a resource block from a first set of resource blocks reserved for non-urgent messages;

when the message is an urgent message, the transmitter is configured to rebroadcast the message at an initial transmission power that is greater than the default transmission power and that indicates the message is an urgent message and/or using a resource block from a second set of resource blocks reserved for urgent messages; and

the traffic information communication system is implemented in a vehicle traveling along the thoroughfare; and

a sensor installed in the vehicle and configured to detect a trigger, wherein the transmitter is further configured to generate and broadcast a warning message relating to a potential safety threat to other vehicles in response to detecting the trigger, wherein at least one of;

the sensor comprises a brake sensor configured to detect emergent braking in the vehicle;

or

the sensor comprises a component sensor configured to detect failure of a particular vehicle component in the vehicle.

2. The traffic information communication system according to claim 1, further comprising a directional antenna coupled to the transmitter, wherein the rebroadcast message is included in a wireless carrier signal emitted by the directional antenna and the directional antenna is positioned to emit the wireless carrier signal primarily toward a rearward travel path of the traffic information communication system.

3. The traffic information communication system according to claim 1, wherein the receiver comprises:

a code division multiple access (CDMA) receiver;

a frequency division multiple access (FDMA) receiver;

or

an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) receiver.

4. The traffic information communication system according to claim 1, further comprising a deceleration module configured to determine a deceleration of the communication node by measuring a change over time in Doppler shift of a wireless carrier wave of the received message.

5. The traffic information communication system according to claim 1, further comprising a distance module executable by the processor to determine the distance between the communication node and the traffic information communication system by measuring attenuation of the single wireless carrier wave of the received message, wherein an initial transmit power of the single wireless carrier wave is known.

6. The traffic information communication system according to claim 1, further comprising an accelerometer or a Global Positioning System (GPS) unit configured to detect abrupt changes in speed in the vehicle, wherein the transmitter is further configured to generate and broadcast a warning message relating to a potential safety threat to other vehicles in response to detecting a trigger by the accelerometer or GPS unit.

7. A method of providing communications regarding traffic conditions, the method comprising:

receiving, at a first vehicle traveling along a thoroughfare, a message from a second vehicle relating to traffic conditions along the thoroughfare, wherein the message is received in a single wireless carrier wave;

determining that the message is an urgent message or a non-urgent message;

determining from the single wireless carrier wave at least one of a speed of the second vehicle and a distance between the first vehicle and the second vehicle;

determining that the traffic conditions may affect other vehicles traveling along the thoroughfare;

in response to the determination that the traffic conditions may affect other vehicles traveling along the thoroughfare, rebroadcasting the message within a predetermined amount of time after receiving the message, wherein;

when the message is a non-urgent message, the message is rebroadcast at a default transmission power that indicates the message is a non-urgent message and/or using a resource block from a first set of resource blocks reserved for non-urgent messages; and

when the message is an urgent message, the message is rebroadcast at an initial transmission power that is greater than the default transmission power and that indicates the message is an urgent message and/or using a resource block from a second set of resource blocks reserved for urgent messages;

detecting a trigger by a sensor installed in the first vehicle, wherein the sensor comprises a brake sensor configured to detect emergent braking in the first vehicle or a component sensor configured to detect failure of a particular vehicle component in the first vehicle; and

generating and broadcasting a warning message relating to a potential safety threat to other vehicles in response to detecting the trigger.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

determining that the traffic conditions represent an imminent threat to the first vehicle; and

at least one of;

initiating a warning to a driver of the first vehicle regarding the imminent threat;

or

initiating autonomous control of an aspect of operation of the first vehicle.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein:

the imminent threat comprises at least one of;

an abrupt stop by one or more vehicles on the thoroughfare ahead of the first vehicle;

an emergency vehicle approaching the first vehicle along the thoroughfare;

or

a traffic light behind a bend in the thoroughfare ahead of the first vehicle, where the traffic light is about to transition to or has already transitioned to red;

the warning comprises at least one of a verbal warning or a visual warning; and

initiating autonomous control of an aspect of operation of the first vehicle comprises automatically causing the first vehicle to decelerate.

10. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

determining that the traffic conditions represent an imminent threat to other vehicles traveling along the thoroughfare; and

at least one of;

rebroadcasting the message using at least two different resource blocks;

rebroadcasting the message using a resource block reserved for urgent warnings;

repeatedly rebroadcasting the message using a same resource block;

or

rebroadcasting the message with a transmission power greater than a default transmission power.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein determining that the traffic conditions may affect other vehicles traveling along the thoroughfare comprises at least one of:

determining that the first vehicle is within a predetermined distance of an original source of the message;

determining that at least a predetermined number of messages relating to the traffic conditions were received at the first vehicle from other vehicles in front of the first vehicle on the thoroughfare;

or

determining that a driver of the first vehicle who was warned about an imminent threat represented by the traffic conditions applied brakes in the first vehicle.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein determining the distance between the first vehicle and the second vehicle comprises measuring attenuation of the single wireless carrier of the received message, wherein an initial transmit power of the single wireless carrier wave is known.

13. A processor configured to execute computer instructions to cause a system to perform operations for providing communications regarding traffic conditions, the operations comprising:

receiving a single carrier signal from a first vehicle;

determining from the single carrier signal at least one of a speed of the first vehicle and a distance between the processor and the first vehicle;

extracting, from the single carrier signal, a message relating to traffic conditions along a thoroughfare;

determining that the message is an urgent message or a non-urgent message;

determining that the traffic conditions may affect other vehicles traveling along the thoroughfare;

in response to the determination that the traffic conditions may affect other vehicles traveling along the thoroughfare, rebroadcasting the message within a predetermined amount of time after receiving the message, wherein;

when the message is a non-urgent message, the message is rebroadcast at a default transmission power that indicates the message is a non-urgent message and/or using a resource block from a first set of resource blocks reserved for non-urgent messages; and

when the message is an urgent message, the message is rebroadcast at an initial transmission power that is greater than the default transmission power and that indicates the message is an urgent message and/or using a resource block from a second set of resource blocks reserved for urgent messages;

detecting a trigger by a sensor, wherein the sensor comprises a brake sensor configured to detect emergent braking or a component sensor configured to detect failure of a particular vehicle component; and

generating and broadcasting a warning message relating to a potential safety threat to other vehicles in response to detecting the trigger.

14. The processor according to claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise determining the deceleration of the first vehicle.

15. The processor according to claim 13, wherein determining the distance between the processor and the first vehicle comprises measuring attenuation of the single carrier signal of the received message, wherein an initial transmit power of the single carrier signal is known.

16. The processor according to claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise, based on one or more of:

content of the message, a deceleration of the first vehicle, and the distance between the first vehicle and a second vehicle in which the processor is installed, at least one of;

initiating a warning to a driver of the second vehicle regarding the imminent threat;

or

initiating autonomous control of an aspect of operation of the second vehicle.

17. The processor according to claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise adding lane positioning information of a second vehicle in which the processor is installed to the rebroadcast message.

18. The processor according to claim 13, wherein the message specifies a particular traffic condition, comprising at least one of:

a vehicle failure, traffic congestion, or activated hazard flashers.

19. The processor according to claim 13, wherein the first vehicle is traveling along the thoroughfare in front of a second vehicle in which the processor is installed, the message comprising at least one of:

a current speed of the first vehicle, a deceleration of the first vehicle, a number of propagated hops of the message from an original source, a location of the first vehicle or another vehicle, or an identification of a particular traffic condition on the thoroughfare ahead of the second vehicle.