Patent Application
20180283880
The technical field generally relates to the field of vehicles and, more specifically, to methods and systems for utilizing infrastructure to vehicle communications to verify a position of the vehicle.
Today's vehicles often utilize techniques for ascertaining a position of the vehicle, for example using global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) and/or dead reckoning techniques. However, existing techniques may not always provide optimal position results, for example when the vehicle is in a location in which GNSS signals are blocked and/or in which calibration of dead reckoning sensors may be difficult (e.g., in a tunnel, a parking garage, and so on).
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide improved methods and systems for ascertaining a position of a vehicle. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, a method is provided. The method includes obtaining, via a receiver onboard a vehicle, location information from a infrastructure element in proximity to the vehicle; and determining, via a processor onboard the vehicle, a position of the vehicle using the location information from the infrastructure element.
In accordance with another exemplary embodiment, a system is provided. The system includes a receiver and a processor. The receiver is configured to be installed onboard a vehicle, and to receive location information from a infrastructure element in proximity to the vehicle. The processor is configured to be installed onboard the vehicle, and to determine a position of the vehicle using the location information from the infrastructure element.
In accordance with a further exemplary embodiment, a vehicle is provided. The vehicle includes one or more wheels; a drive system configured to power the one or more wheels; a receiver installed onboard the vehicle, the receiver configured to receive location information from a infrastructure element in proximity to the vehicle; and a processor installed onboard the vehicle, the processor configured to determine a position of the vehicle using the location information from the infrastructure element.
The present disclosure will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote like elements, and wherein:
The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the disclosure or the application and uses thereof. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory presented in the preceding background or the following detailed description.
As described in greater detail further below, the vehicle 100 includes various components that assist in ascertaining a position of the vehicle 100, utilizing information provided by the infrastructure element 102, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment. Also as described further below, in certain embodiments such components may collectively comprise a position system 140 for ascertaining the position of the vehicle 100, for example as discussed further below in connection with
In various embodiments, the vehicle 100 comprises an automobile. The vehicle 100 may be any one of a number of different types of automobiles, such as, for example, a sedan, a wagon, a truck, or a sport utility vehicle (SUV), and may be two-wheel drive (2WD) (i.e., rear-wheel drive or front-wheel drive), four-wheel drive (4WD) or all-wheel drive (AWD), and/or various other types of vehicles in certain embodiments. In certain embodiments, the vehicle 100 may also comprise a motorcycle or other vehicle.
The vehicle 100 includes a body 106 that is arranged on a chassis 110. The body 106 substantially encloses other components of the vehicle 100. The body 106 and the chassis 110 may jointly form a frame. The vehicle 100 also includes a plurality of wheels 108. The wheels 108 are each rotationally coupled to the chassis 110 near a respective corner of the body 106 to facilitate movement of the vehicle 100. In one embodiment, the vehicle 100 includes four wheels 108, although this may vary in other embodiments (for example for trucks and certain other vehicles).
A drive system 112 is mounted on the chassis 110, and drives the wheels 108 (including the wheels 108). In various embodiments, the drive system 112 comprises one of a number of different types of propulsion system. In certain exemplary embodiments, the drive system 112 comprises an internal combustion engine and/or an electric motor/generator, coupled with a transmission thereof. In certain embodiments, the drive system 112 may vary, and/or two or more drive systems 112 may be used. By way of example, the vehicle 100 may also incorporate any one of, or combination of, a number of different types of propulsion systems, such as, for example, a gasoline or diesel fueled combustion engine, a “flex fuel vehicle” (FFV) engine (i.e., using a mixture of gasoline and alcohol), a gaseous compound (e.g., hydrogen and/or natural gas) fueled engine, a combustion/electric motor hybrid engine, and an electric motor.
As depicted in
In various embodiments, the short range antenna 114 and the short range receiver 118 receive short range wireless communications. In various embodiments, the short range antenna 114 and the short range receiver 118 receive wireless communications (including wireless, electronic messages including information as to a position and a heading of the vehicle 100) from the infrastructure element 102 via the communication network 103. In one embodiment, the short range antenna 114 comprises a digital short range communication (DSRC) antenna, and the short range receiver 118 comprises a DSRC receiver; however, this may vary in other embodiments.
In various embodiments, the GNSS antenna 116 and the GNSS receiver 119 receive wireless communications from one or more satellite-based GNSS systems, such as a global positioning system (GPS) system and/or one or more other types of GNSS systems, for determining a position of the vehicle 100. In one embodiment, the GNSS antenna 116 comprises a GPS antenna, and the GNSS receiver 119 comprises a GPS receiver; however, this may vary in other embodiments.
As depicted in
The computer system 128 provides instructions and executes processes for determining a position of the vehicle 100. In various embodiments, the computer system 128 provides these functions using information provided by the short range antenna 114, the GNSS antenna, the short range receiver 118, the GNSS receiver 119, the sensor array 120, the user interface 130, and the mapping database 132. In various embodiments, the computer system 128 provides these functions in accordance with the process 200 described further below in connection with
Also as depicted in
The memory 138 can be any type of suitable memory. For example, the memory 138 may include various types of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) such as SDRAM, the various types of static RAM (SRAM), and the various types of non-volatile memory (PROM, EPROM, and flash). In certain examples, the memory 138 is located on and/or co-located on the same computer chip as the processor 136. In the depicted embodiment, the memory 138 stores the above-referenced program 142 along with one or more stored values pertaining to possible locations of the vehicle 100.
The interfacing hardware 140 allows communication to the computer system of the computer system 128, for example from a system driver and/or another computer system, and can be implemented using any suitable method and apparatus. In one embodiment, the interfacing hardware 140 obtains the various data from the sensors of the sensor array 120 and/or the receivers 118, 119. The interfacing hardware 140 can include one or more network interfaces to communicate with other systems or components. The interfacing hardware 140 may also include one or more network interfaces to communicate with technicians, and/or one or more storage interfaces to connect to storage apparatuses, such as the storage device 146.
In certain embodiments, the computer system 128 may also include other features, such as a bus 144 and storage device 146. The bus 144 serves to transmit programs, data, status and other information or signals between the various components of the computer system of the computer system 128. The bus 144 can be any suitable physical or logical means of connecting computer systems and components. This includes, but is not limited to, direct hard-wired connections, fiber optics, infrared and wireless bus technologies.
The storage device 146 can be any suitable type of storage apparatus, including direct access storage devices such as hard disk drives, flash systems, floppy disk drives and optical disk drives. In one exemplary embodiment, the storage device 146 comprises a program product from which memory 138 can receive a program 142 that executes one or more embodiments of one or more processes of the present disclosure, such as the steps of the process 200 (and any sub-processes thereof) described further below in connection with
It will be appreciated that while this exemplary embodiment is described in the context of a fully functioning computer system, those skilled in the art will recognize that the mechanisms of the present disclosure are capable of being distributed as a program product with one or more types of non-transitory computer-readable signal bearing media used to store the program and the instructions thereof and carry out the distribution thereof, such as a non-transitory computer readable medium bearing the program and containing computer instructions stored therein for causing a computer processor (such as the processor 136) to perform and execute the program. Such a program product may take a variety of forms, and the present disclosure applies equally regardless of the particular type of computer-readable signal bearing media used to carry out the distribution. Examples of signal bearing media include: recordable media such as floppy disks, hard drives, memory cards and optical disks, and transmission media such as digital and analog communication links. It will be appreciated that cloud-based storage and/or other techniques may also be utilized in certain embodiments. It will similarly be appreciated that the computer system of the computer system 128 may also otherwise differ from the embodiment depicted in
In various embodiments, the user interface 130 enables a driver, operator, or other user of the vehicle 100 to communicate with the computer system 128. In certain embodiments, the user may provide instructions or requests (e.g., pertaining to the location of the vehicle 100) to the computer system 128 via the user interface 130. Also in certain embodiments, the user interface 130 may provide information (e.g., as to the position of the vehicle 100) to the user, for example based on instructions provided by the processor 136. In various embodiments, the user interface 130 comprises one or more display screens, buttons, knobs, keyboards, microphones, speakers, smart phones, tablets, other electronic devices, and/or other devices for communicating with a user of the vehicle 100. In certain embodiments, the user interface 130 may also represent the user's personal electronic device.
In various embodiments, the mapping database 132 includes information from maps and/or other data sources pertaining to geographic areas in which the vehicle 100 may travel, including roadways, infrastructure elements pertaining thereto, and the like. In certain embodiments, the mapping database 132 may be part of the computer system 128 (e.g., as part of the memory 138) and/or may be coupled thereto.
In various embodiments, the power source 134 provides power for one or more components of the vehicle 100, and/or for the position system 140. In the depicted embodiment, the power source 134 provides power for the GNSS receiver 118 and the computer system 128.
As depicted in
A first position value and a first heading value for the vehicle are calculated at step 206. In one embodiment, position data from the GNSS antenna 116 and the GNSS receiver 119 of
Communications are received at the vehicle 100 from one or more infrastructure elements at step 208. In various embodiments, electronic messages are received, via the short range antenna 114 and the short range receiver 118 of
A determination is made at step 210 as to whether the current position received at 208 is different from the calculated first position value of 206. In one embodiment, this determination is made by the processor 136 of
If it is determined that the current position received at step 208 is not different from the calculated first position value of step 206, then in one embodiment the process 200 terminates at step 224. In one embodiment, as the process 200 terminates, the vehicle 100 continues to use the first position value from step 206 (and, in certain embodiments, as further updated using dead-reckoning techniques, for example using the vehicle data of step 204 and the mapping database 132 of
Conversely, if it is determined that the current position received at step 208 is different from the calculated first position value of step 206, then in one embodiment at step 212 the vehicle position is set equal to the received current position value of step 208. In one embodiment, this is performed via the processor 136 of
A determination is made at step 214 as to whether the current heading received at 208 is different from the calculated first heading value of step 206. In one embodiment, this determination is made by the processor 136 of
If it is determined that the current heading received at step 208 is not different from the calculated first heading value of step 206, then in one embodiment the process 200 terminates at step 224. In one embodiment, as the process 200 terminates following step 214, the vehicle 100 continues to use the first heading value from step 206, but also uses the substituted position value of step 212, (and, in certain embodiments, as further updated using dead-reckoning techniques, for example using the vehicle data of step 204 and the mapping database 132 of
Conversely, if it is determined that the current heading received at step 208 is different from the calculated first position value of step 206, then in one embodiment at step 216 the vehicle heading is set equal to the received heading value of step 206. In one embodiment, this is performed via the processor 136 of
A determination is made at step 218 as to whether there are any other parameters in the received data. In one embodiment, this determination is made by the processor 136 of
If it is determined that there are no other parameters in the received data, then in one embodiment the process 200 terminates at step 224. In one embodiment, as the process 200 terminates following step 218, the vehicle 100 continues to use the substituted position value of step 212 and the substituted heading value of step 216, (and, in certain embodiments, as further updated using dead-reckoning techniques, for example using the vehicle data of step 204 and the mapping database 132 of
Conversely, if it is determined that there are no other parameters in the received data, then in step 220 in various embodiments one or more vehicle parameters are set equal to the received values from the infrastructure to vehicle communications of step 208. For example, in certain embodiments, vehicles parameters may be updated to indicate exactly where within a parking garage, tunnel, and/or other infrastructure element 102 the vehicle 100 is location and/or is travelling, and so on).
In one embodiment, following step 220, the process 200 terminates at step 224. In one embodiment, as the process 200 terminates following step 220, the vehicle 100 continues to use the substituted position value of step 212, the substituted heading value of step 216, and the substituted (or new) parameter values of step 220 (and, in certain embodiments, as further updated using dead-reckoning techniques, for example using the vehicle data of step 204 and the mapping database 132 of
As noted above,
First,
By way of example, in one embodiment the tunnel 300 comprises a tunnel having not just multiple lanes, but specifically different tubes, with each tube having at least one lane (such as the Lincoln Park Tunnel is New York, which has three different tubes, two lanes in each tube, but different end points between the end and center tubes. In certain embodiments (e.g., in the case of the Lincoln Park Tunnel) the tubes may have different exit points (e.g., if a vehicle 100 is in one tube then the vehicle 100 will exit the tunnel 300 in a South direction; and if the vehicle 100 is in another tube then the vehicle 100 will exist the tunnel 300 in a North direction, or the like). It will be appreciated that the number of lanes, tubes, and/or exits may vary in different embodiments. In either case, the information provided from the tunnel 300 to the vehicle 100 is utilized by the vehicle 100 for determining the current position and heading for the vehicle 100, among possible other parameters for the vehicle 100.
Next,
In certain embodiments, different lanes and/or locations of the parking garage 400 may lead to respective exits that are in different directions. For example, similar to the earlier discussion, without the process 200, the heading orientation of a particular vehicle may be compromised in certain situations, for example after the vehicle travels down several ramps of a parking structure. For example, in one embodiment, without the process 200, a vehicle system may compute the vehicle as heading South when the actual heading out of the garage is East, by way of example. However, in accordance with the process 200 and the vehicle 100 (including the position system 140 thereof) of the present Application, when this occurs, then in various embodiments the position of the vehicle 100 is corrected by the processor 136 of
Accordingly, methods, systems, and vehicles are provided for determining a position of a vehicle. In various embodiments, electronic messages are received from infrastructure elements in proximity to the vehicle, with the electronic messages including information as to a current position and a current heading of the vehicle, among other possible parameters. Also in various embodiments, a processor of the vehicle determines a position of the vehicle, and in certain embodiments also a heading of the vehicle and other parameters of the vehicle, using the information obtained in the electronic messages from the infrastructure element.
It will be appreciated that the systems, vehicles, and methods may vary from those depicted in the Figures and described herein. For example, the vehicle 100, the position system 140, and/or various components thereof may vary from that depicted in
While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in the foregoing detailed description, it should be appreciated that a vast number of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the disclosure in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that various changes can be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the scope of the disclosure as set forth in the appended claims and the legal equivalents thereof.
