An ultrasonic radar array, obstacle detection method and system

Abstract

This application provides an ultrasonic radar array, an obstacle detection method, and a system. The method includes acquiring obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays of the ultrasonic radar array in an obstacle scene; judging false detections and missed detections based on preset rules for the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays; performing error correction processing on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays based on the judgment results; determining the obstacle positions based on the error-corrected obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays, and then fusing the results. This method can effectively judge false detections and missed detections of each ultrasonic radar in the ultrasonic radar array, accurately determine the obstacle positions, reduce blind spots, and improve the driving safety of autonomous vehicles.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This application relates to the field of automatic control, and in particular to an ultrasonic radar array, an obstacle detection method and system. [Background Technology]

[0002] Autonomous vehicles are a type of intelligent car, also known as wheeled mobile robots. They primarily rely on an intelligent driving system, mainly composed of computer systems, to achieve driverless operation. Autonomous vehicles integrate numerous technologies such as automatic control, system architecture, artificial intelligence, and computer vision. They are a product of the advanced development of computer science, pattern recognition, and intelligent control technology, and are an important indicator of a country's scientific research strength and industrial level. They have broad application prospects in the fields of national defense and the national economy.

[0003] Ultrasonic waves possess excellent directionality, strong adaptability, and high penetration capabilities, making them ideal for obstacle avoidance in autonomous vehicles. Currently, traditional ultrasonic radar arrays used in autonomous vehicles are typically mounted on the front / rear bumpers, with four arrays in total. However, their obstacle measurement is unstable, prone to false positives and false negatives; they cannot accurately pinpoint obstacle locations; and they often have large blind spots in both lateral and longitudinal directions, posing safety hazards. Furthermore, in applications requiring high precision, such as autonomous vehicles, they struggle to meet perception requirements, thus reducing the safety of autonomous vehicle operation. [Summary of the Invention]

[0004] This application provides an ultrasonic radar array, an obstacle detection method, and a system to improve the accuracy and reliability of ultrasonic obstacle detection, cover the lateral and longitudinal blind spots of autonomous vehicles, and improve driving safety.

[0005] One aspect of this application provides an ultrasonic radar array, comprising: an upper array and a lower array; wherein,

[0006] The upper array includes N ultrasonic radars evenly installed on the upper part of the bumper of the autonomous vehicle. The N ultrasonic radars rotate outward from the center to the outside with an increasing angle.

[0007] The lower array includes M ultrasonic radars evenly installed on the upper part of the bumper of the autonomous vehicle. The M ultrasonic radars rotate outward from the center to the outside, and the M ultrasonic radars are tilted downward to cover the blind spot of the upper array.

[0008] Where N and M are positive integers.

[0009] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided in which, if the number of ultrasonic radars in the upper or lower array is even, the first ultrasonic radar is horizontally mounted on the left side of the center of the bumper, and the second ultrasonic radar is horizontally mounted on the right side of the center of the bumper; (number of ultrasonic radars - 2) / 2 ultrasonic radars are mounted on the left side of the first ultrasonic radar, rotating counterclockwise by α from the center to the outside, with the previous ultrasonic radar as the reference; (number of ultrasonic radars - 2) / 2 ultrasonic radars are mounted on the right side of the second ultrasonic radar, rotating clockwise by α from the center to the outside, with the previous ultrasonic radar as the reference.

[0010] If the number of ultrasonic radars in the upper or lower array is odd, then the first ultrasonic radar is horizontally installed in the center of the bumper, and (number of ultrasonic radars - 1) / 2 ultrasonic radars are installed to the left of the first ultrasonic radar. From the center to the outside, using the previous ultrasonic radar as a reference, they are rotated counterclockwise by α. Alternatively, (number of ultrasonic radars - 1) / 2 ultrasonic radars are installed to the right of the first ultrasonic radar. From the center to the outside, using the previous ultrasonic radar as a reference, they are rotated clockwise by α.

[0011] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided in which the number of ultrasonic radars and the rotation angle α are determined based on a mathematical model of the detection range and detection shape of each ultrasonic radar, so as to ensure that the coverage of the ultrasonic radars has triple redundancy.

[0012] This invention provides an obstacle detection method based on the above-described ultrasonic radar array, comprising:

[0013] Obtain obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays of the ultrasonic radar array in an obstacle scene;

[0014] According to preset rules, the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array are respectively judged for false detection and false detection.

[0015] Based on the judgment results, error correction processing is performed on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array.

[0016] The obstacle positions are determined and fused based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the lower array after error correction processing.

[0017] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, wherein the preset rule is to determine whether the ultrasonic radar to be judged has false detections and missed detections based on whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return obstacle coordinates.

[0018] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided in which the adjacent ultrasonic radars are ultrasonic radars on both sides of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and ultrasonic radars spaced apart by one.

[0019] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided in which the preset rules for false detection judgment include:

[0020] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then there is no false detection if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar or the coverage area of ​​two ultrasonic radars overlaps; if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has only the coverage area of ​​three ultrasonic radars overlaps, then there is a false detection.

[0021] If an adjacent ultrasonic radar of the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection.

[0022] When two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection.

[0023] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, wherein the preset rules for determining missed detections include:

[0024] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then the ultrasonic radar to be judged has no missed detection.

[0025] If, when the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of an obstacle from an adjacent ultrasonic radar, there is an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is a missed detection; if there is only an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is no missed detection.

[0026] If two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of an obstacle, and the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radars that returned the obstacle coordinates are covered by three ultrasonic radars, then there is a missed detection; if there are no three overlapping ultrasonic radar coverage areas, then there is no missed detection.

[0027] If three or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, there is a possibility of missed detection.

[0028] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, wherein error correction processing is performed on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array according to the judgment result, including:

[0029] If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar contains false detections, then the falsely detected obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is deleted.

[0030] If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is missed, the obstacle information collected by the missed ultrasonic radar is obtained based on the obstacle information returned by the adjacent ultrasonic radar.

[0031] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, which determines the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the lower array after error correction processing, and performs fusion including:

[0032] Distance data returned by multiple ultrasonic radars from the upper or lower array are fused to obtain the coordinates of obstacles, and the obstacle positions determined by the upper array are superimposed with those determined by the lower array.

[0033] This invention provides an obstacle detection system based on the above-described ultrasonic radar array, comprising:

[0034] The acquisition module is used to acquire obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays of the ultrasonic radar array in an obstacle scene.

[0035] The judgment module is used to judge the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array according to preset rules, and to judge the false detection and false detection respectively.

[0036] The processing module is used to perform error correction processing on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array according to the judgment result.

[0037] The determination module is used to determine the obstacle position based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the lower array after error correction processing, and then fuse them.

[0038] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, wherein the preset rule is to determine whether the ultrasonic radar to be judged has false detections and missed detections based on whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return obstacle coordinates.

[0039] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided in which the adjacent ultrasonic radars are ultrasonic radars on both sides of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and ultrasonic radars spaced apart by one.

[0040] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided in which the preset rules for false detection judgment include:

[0041] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then there is no false detection if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar or the coverage area of ​​two ultrasonic radars overlaps; if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has only the coverage area of ​​three ultrasonic radars overlaps, then there is a false detection.

[0042] If an adjacent ultrasonic radar of the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection.

[0043] When two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection.

[0044] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, wherein the preset rules for determining missed detections include:

[0045] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then the ultrasonic radar to be judged has no missed detection.

[0046] If, when the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of an obstacle from an adjacent ultrasonic radar, there is an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is a missed detection; if there is only an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is no missed detection.

[0047] If two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of an obstacle, and the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radars that returned the obstacle coordinates are covered by three ultrasonic radars, then there is a missed detection; if there are no three overlapping ultrasonic radar coverage areas, then there is no missed detection.

[0048] If three or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, there is a possibility of missed detection.

[0049] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, wherein the processing module is specifically used for:

[0050] If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar contains false detections, then the falsely detected obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is deleted.

[0051] If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is missed, the obstacle information collected by the missed ultrasonic radar is obtained based on the obstacle information returned by the adjacent ultrasonic radar.

[0052] In addition to the aspects and any possible implementations described above, a further implementation is provided, wherein the determining module is specifically used for:

[0053] Distance data returned by multiple ultrasonic radars from the upper or lower array are fused to obtain the coordinates of obstacles, and the obstacle positions determined by the upper array are superimposed with those determined by the lower array.

[0054] In another aspect, the present invention provides a computer device including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the processor, when executing the program, implements the method described above.

[0055] In another aspect, the present invention provides a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, implements the method described above.

[0056] As can be seen from the technical solution described above, the embodiments of this application can effectively determine the false detections and missed detections of each ultrasonic radar in the ultrasonic radar array, accurately determine the location of obstacles, reduce detection blind spots, and improve the driving safety of unmanned vehicles. [Attached Image Description]

[0057] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0058] Figure 1 This is a front view of the structure of the ultrasonic radar array provided in Embodiment 1 of this application;

[0059] Figure 2This is a top view of the upper array of the ultrasonic radar array provided in Embodiment 1 of this application;

[0060] Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the ultrasonic radar array obstacle detection method provided in Embodiment 2 of this application;

[0061] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the ultrasonic radar array obstacle detection system provided in Embodiment 3 of this application;

[0062] Figure 5 A block diagram of an exemplary computer system / server 012 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present invention is shown. [Specific implementation method]

[0063] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0064] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the ultrasonic radar array provided in Embodiment 1 of this application, as shown below. Figure 1 Shown, including:

[0065] The ultrasonic radar array includes an upper array and a lower array. The upper array is located on the upper part of the front bumper of the autonomous vehicle and is used to collect obstacle information in front of the vehicle. The lower array is located on the lower part of the front bumper of the autonomous vehicle and is used to collect obstacle information in the longitudinal blind spot of the upper array to fill in the blind spot.

[0066] In practical applications, because the vertical beam angle of ultrasonic radar is generally small, such as 30°, the coverage area of ​​the emitted ultrasonic waves is a cone-shaped three-dimensional area. The farther away from the ultrasonic radar, the larger the horizontal coverage area. However, at a relatively close distance in front of the vehicle, obstacles within ±15° of the ultrasonic radar on the same horizontal cross section can be detected. For relatively low obstacles, such as ground stakes or dogs, due to their low height, they are in the blind spot of the ultrasonic radar, which may cause missed detection and lead to collision risks.

[0067] The upper array includes 10 ultrasonic radars, such as Figure 2As shown, each ultrasonic radar consists of an ultrasonic transmitting circuit and an ultrasonic receiving circuit. Ultrasonic radars nine, seven, five, three, one, two, four, six, eight, and ten are evenly installed on the front bumper of the unmanned vehicle. The installation angle starts from ultrasonic radar nine, which is installed on the far left, and rotates counterclockwise by 4α with the horizontal as the reference. Each ultrasonic radar rotates clockwise by α in turn until ultrasonic radar ten, which is installed on the far right, rotates clockwise by 4α with the horizontal as the reference.

[0068] Specifically, ten ultrasonic radars are evenly installed on the upper part of the front bumper of the autonomous vehicle. Ultrasonic radar one is horizontally installed on the left side of the center of the front bumper; ultrasonic radar two is horizontally installed on the right side of the center of the front bumper; ultrasonic radar three is installed to the left of ultrasonic radar one, rotating counterclockwise by α with the horizontal as the reference; ultrasonic radar four is installed to the right of ultrasonic radar two, rotating clockwise by α with the horizontal as the reference; ultrasonic radar five is installed to the left of ultrasonic radar three, rotating counterclockwise by 2α with the horizontal as the reference; ultrasonic radar six is ​​installed to the right of ultrasonic radar four, rotating clockwise by 2α with the horizontal as the reference; ultrasonic radar seven is installed to the left of ultrasonic radar five, rotating counterclockwise by 3α with the horizontal as the reference; ultrasonic radar eight is installed to the right of ultrasonic radar six, rotating clockwise by 3α with the horizontal as the reference; ultrasonic radar nine is installed to the left of ultrasonic radar five, rotating counterclockwise by 4α with the horizontal as the reference; and ultrasonic radar ten is installed to the right of ultrasonic radar eight, rotating clockwise by 4α with the horizontal as the reference; wherein, α is preferably 5°. The ultrasonic radar has a horizontal beam angle of 45° and a coverage range of 0-3.5m.

[0069] The lower array comprises eight ultrasonic radars, each consisting of an ultrasonic transmitting circuit and an ultrasonic receiving circuit. Ultrasonic radars seventeen, fifteen, thirteen, twelve, eleven, fourteen, sixteen, and eighteen are evenly installed on the lower part of the front bumper of the autonomous vehicle. Their installation angles begin with the leftmost ultrasonic radar seventeen, which is rotated counterclockwise by 3β from a horizontal reference. Each ultrasonic radar then rotates clockwise by β until the rightmost ultrasonic radar eighteen, which is also rotated clockwise by 3β from a horizontal reference. Simultaneously, each ultrasonic radar is tilted downwards by θ. β is preferably 5°, the horizontal beam angle of the ultrasonic radar is 60°, θ is preferably 30 degrees, and the coverage range of the ultrasonic radar is 0-0.5m. This ensures that the ultrasonic waves emitted by the lower array cover the blind spots of the upper array's ultrasonic radars.

[0070] Because the coverage areas of the ten ultrasonic radars in the upper array overlap, they possess a certain degree of fault tolerance. It is necessary to determine the overlapping coverage area of ​​these ultrasonic radars to facilitate error detection and correction during subsequent obstacle detection. Furthermore, the ten ultrasonic radars in the lower array fill in blind spots, enabling the identification of low-lying obstacles in the blind spots in front of the vehicle, thus improving driving safety.

[0071] Preferably, the coverage area of ​​each ultrasonic radar in its own coordinate system is determined based on the mathematical model of the detection range and detection shape of each ultrasonic radar.

[0072] The coordinate systems of each ultrasonic radar are unified into a reference coordinate system. In this embodiment, the reference coordinate system is the vehicle coordinate system. A matrix transformation is performed based on the relationship between the initial spatial configuration of each ultrasonic radar on the autonomous vehicle and the vehicle coordinate system. The initial spatial configuration of the ultrasonic radars is known in advance and can be obtained based on the measurement data of the multiple ultrasonic radars on the autonomous vehicle body.

[0073] The coverage areas of each ultrasonic radar in the upper array, unified to a reference coordinate system, are superimposed within a preset detection area. Preferably, the gridded preset detection area is within 15-350cm in front of and to the side of the vehicle body.

[0074] Through the above steps, the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar array and the overlap of the coverage areas of each ultrasonic radar can be obtained. For example, the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar, the overlapping coverage areas of two ultrasonic radars, the overlapping coverage areas of three ultrasonic radars, etc.

[0075] Determining the overlap of ultrasonic radar coverage areas is essential. For example, if an obstacle appears within the coverage area of ​​ultrasonic radar nine, there could be several scenarios: the obstacle is within the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar, the coverage areas of two ultrasonic radars overlap, or the coverage areas of three ultrasonic radars overlap. In this embodiment, since the function of ultrasonic radar is to measure obstacles, the tolerance for false detections is higher than that for false detections. Therefore, even if only ultrasonic radar nine returns obstacle information, it is considered that the obstacle is within the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar, rather than being missed by its adjacent ultrasonic radar seven or ultrasonic radar five.

[0076] Within a 2-meter radius in front of the autonomous vehicle, the coverage areas of three ultrasonic radars can overlap, allowing the decision-making system to vote based on obstacle information returned by the three ultrasonic radars.

[0077] By fusing the obstacle recognition results from the upper array with those from the lower array, the accuracy of obstacle recognition can be further improved.

[0078] The ultrasonic radar array provided in this embodiment achieves fault tolerance in obstacle detection by superimposing the coverage of multiple ultrasonic radars in the upper array; and further improves the accuracy of obstacle identification by filling blind spots with multiple ultrasonic radars in the lower array.

[0079] Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the ultrasonic radar array obstacle detection method provided in Embodiment 2 of this application, as shown below. Figure 3 Shown, including:

[0080] Step S31: Obtain obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays of the ultrasonic radar array as described in Embodiment 1 in the obstacle scene, and transform each coordinate to the vehicle coordinate system;

[0081] The initial spatial configuration of the ultrasonic radar is known in advance and can be obtained based on the measurement data of multiple ultrasonic radars in the upper and lower arrays on the vehicle body. The coordinates of obstacles in the coordinate systems of each ultrasonic radar are transformed to the vehicle coordinate system.

[0082] Step S32: According to preset rules, the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array are judged for false detection and false detection respectively.

[0083] The basic principle of the preset rules is that when an ultrasonic radar falsely detects an obstacle, if its adjacent ultrasonic radars do not falsely detect it, the obstacle coordinates will not be returned; when an ultrasonic radar misses an obstacle, if its adjacent ultrasonic radars do not miss it, the obstacle coordinates will be returned. The preset rules for judging false detections and missed detections are the same for obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays. In this embodiment, the judgment of false detections and missed detections for obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array is taken as an example.

[0084] Specifically, the rules for determining false positives are as follows:

[0085] If the obstacle coordinates are received from the ultrasonic radar, determine whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged have returned obstacle coordinates.

[0086] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then it is determined whether the ultrasonic radar to be judged has a coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar, such as ultrasonic radar nine and ultrasonic radar ten located at the edge of the ultrasonic radar array.

[0087] If the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged includes the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar, then the obstacle is considered to have appeared within the coverage area of ​​that single ultrasonic radar; the ultrasonic radar to be judged has not made a false detection.

[0088] If the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar includes two ultrasonic radar coverage areas, such as ultrasonic radar seven and ultrasonic radar eight, and their detection range overlaps with at least one adjacent ultrasonic radar coverage area, for example, ultrasonic radar seven returns obstacle coordinates, while the adjacent ultrasonic radar nine and adjacent ultrasonic radar five do not return obstacle coordinates, several possibilities arise. If the obstacle is located within two ultrasonic radar coverage areas of ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area with ultrasonic radar nine), it could be a missed detection by ultrasonic radar nine or a false detection by ultrasonic radar seven. If the obstacle is located within three ultrasonic radar coverage areas of ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area with ultrasonic radar nine and ultrasonic radar five), since ultrasonic radar nine and ultrasonic radar five have not returned obstacle coordinates, it could be a false detection by ultrasonic radar seven. For safety reasons, it is assumed that if the obstacle is located within two ultrasonic radar coverage areas of ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area with ultrasonic radar nine), it is a missed detection by ultrasonic radar nine. This is because a false detection would only cause the autonomous vehicle to stop and wait for the next detection result, while a missed detection could potentially lead to a collision.

[0089] If the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar has only three overlapping ultrasonic radar coverage areas, such as ultrasonic radar five, ultrasonic radar three, ultrasonic radar one, ultrasonic radar two, ultrasonic radar four, and ultrasonic radar six, and its detection range overlaps with the coverage area of ​​two adjacent ultrasonic radars, and neither of the two adjacent ultrasonic radars returns an obstacle detection result, then the ultrasonic radar to be judged is considered to have a false detection.

[0090] If the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle is one, determine whether there are two ultrasonic radar coverage areas within the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be determined.

[0091] If not, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar array has missed detections. For example, the coverage area of ​​ultrasonic radar one is the overlapping coverage area of ​​three ultrasonic radars. If only one adjacent ultrasonic radar two returns the coordinates of the obstacle, then its adjacent ultrasonic radar three or ultrasonic radar four should return the coordinates of the obstacle. If it does not return, then its adjacent ultrasonic radar three or ultrasonic radar four has missed detections.

[0092] If so, further determine whether the coverage area of ​​the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returns the obstacle coordinates is one of two ultrasonic radar coverage areas with the ultrasonic radar to be determined.

[0093] If so, there are no false detections; for example, if the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar nine to be determined overlap with those of the adjacent ultrasonic radar seven, then the obstacle is located in the overlapping area.

[0094] If not, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar array has missed detections. For example, if ultrasonic radar seven returns the coordinates of an obstacle, and the adjacent ultrasonic radar five also returns the coordinates of an obstacle, and ultrasonic radar seven and ultrasonic radar five only have overlapping coverage areas of three ultrasonic radars, then it proves that the adjacent ultrasonic radar nine or ultrasonic radar three has missed detections.

[0095] If there are two adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle, then the radar under test is not considered to have made a false detection.

[0096] The rules for determining missed detections are as follows:

[0097] If the obstacle coordinates are not received from the ultrasonic radar, determine whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged have returned the obstacle coordinates.

[0098] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then it is determined that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has no missed detection.

[0099] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of the obstacle.

[0100] Determine the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle;

[0101] If the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle is one, determine whether there are two ultrasonic radar coverage areas between the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returns the coordinates of the obstacle.

[0102] If two ultrasonic radars have coverage areas, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection. For example, if an obstacle is located within the coverage areas of two ultrasonic radars within the coverage area of ​​ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area of ​​ultrasonic radar nine), and ultrasonic radar nine does not return the obstacle's coordinates, while the adjacent ultrasonic radar seven does return the obstacle's coordinates, for safety reasons, it is considered that ultrasonic radar nine has missed detection. This is because a false detection would only cause the autonomous vehicle to stop and wait for the next detection result, while a missed detection could very likely cause a collision.

[0103] If there are no two ultrasonic radar coverage areas, but only three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, and only one of the three ultrasonic radars returns the obstacle coordinates, then the ultrasonic radar that truthfully returned the obstacle coordinates is considered to have made a false detection, while the ultrasonic radar to be judged does not have a missed detection. For example, ultrasonic radar 1 did not return the obstacle coordinates, but its adjacent ultrasonic radar 3 and ultrasonic radar 2 both returned the obstacle coordinates. Ultrasonic radar 1, ultrasonic radar 3, and ultrasonic radar 2 have three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, so ultrasonic radar 1 is a missed detection.

[0104] If there are two adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle, determine whether there are three ultrasonic radar coverage areas between the ultrasonic wave to be detected and the two adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle; if there are three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection; if there are no three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, it is not considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection.

[0105] If the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of an obstacle is three or more, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection.

[0106] Through the above steps, based on the overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and adjacent ultrasonic radars, as well as the obstacle coordinates returned by each ultrasonic radar in the array, the false detection or missed detection of the ultrasonic radar to be judged was determined.

[0107] Step S33: Based on the judgment result, perform error correction processing on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array.

[0108] Preferably, if the detection result contains false detections, the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar that was falsely detected is deleted.

[0109] Preferably, if the detection result shows a missed detection, the obstacle information collected by the missed ultrasonic radar can be obtained based on the obstacle information returned by its adjacent ultrasonic radar. If one adjacent ultrasonic radar of the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns obstacle coordinates, the obstacle coordinates returned by the adjacent ultrasonic radar are used as the obstacle coordinates of the ultrasonic radar to be judged. If two or more adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return obstacle coordinates, a fusion method based on triangulation is used to fuse the distance data returned by the two ultrasonic radars, and this fusion is used as the obstacle coordinates of the ultrasonic radar to be judged.

[0110] For example, if ultrasonic radar 1 does not return obstacle coordinates, but its adjacent ultrasonic radar 3 and ultrasonic radar 2 both return obstacle coordinates, then the obstacle coordinates corresponding to ultrasonic radar 1 are determined based on the obstacle coordinates returned by ultrasonic radar 3 and ultrasonic radar 2.

[0111] If the detection results do not contain any false detections or missed detections, then the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the ultrasonic radar array will not be processed.

[0112] Step S34: Determine the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the lower array after error correction processing, and fuse them. Make decisions for the unmanned vehicle based on the position of the fused obstacle.

[0113] Preferably, the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system is first determined based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the upper array after error correction processing; then, the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system is determined based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the lower array after error correction processing; and the positions of the obstacles in the vehicle coordinate system obtained separately are fused.

[0114] If only a single ultrasonic radar returns the coordinates of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system, then the obstacle is located on the part of the single ultrasonic radar's coverage area, with the single ultrasonic radar as the origin and the distance to the obstacle as the radius.

[0115] Preferably, if two or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, a triangulation-based fusion method is used to fuse the distance data returned by the two ultrasonic radars to obtain the edge positioning information of the obstacle.

[0116] Preferably, if three or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, since the triangulation fusion method requires many fusion operations, the circumcircle method can be used for fusion processing. Theoretically, for the same edge point of the obstacle, the arcs drawn by multiple ultrasonic radars with the ultrasonic radar as the origin and the obstacle distance as the radius should intersect at a single point. However, in reality, due to measurement errors, noise interference, and other factors, the multiple arcs do not intersect at a single point. Therefore, three ultrasonic radars are grouped together, with three arcs intersecting at three points in each group. The center of the circumcircle of these three points is taken as the final measurement result of these three ultrasonic radars. Finally, the average value of the final measurement results of each group of ultrasonic radars is calculated as the final fusion result.

[0117] Since the ultrasonic radars in the lower array are used to fill blind spots for the ultrasonic radars in the upper array, there are situations where the ultrasonic radars in the lower array determine the location of an obstacle in the blind spot of the upper array, but the upper array fails to detect the obstacle. Therefore, the positions of the obstacles determined by the upper and lower arrays in the vehicle coordinate system can be superimposed.

[0118] The embodiments described in this application can effectively determine the false detections and missed detections of each ultrasonic radar in the ultrasonic radar array, accurately determine the location of obstacles, and improve the driving safety of unmanned vehicles.

[0119] It should be noted that, for the sake of simplicity, the foregoing method embodiments are all described as a series of actions. However, those skilled in the art should understand that this application is not limited to the described order of actions, as some steps may be performed in other orders or simultaneously according to this application. Furthermore, those skilled in the art should also understand that the embodiments described in the specification are preferred embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily essential to this application.

[0120] The above is an introduction to the method embodiments. The following describes the solution of the present invention further through device embodiments.

[0121] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the ultrasonic radar array obstacle detection system provided in Embodiment 2 of this application, as shown below. Figure 4 Shown, including:

[0122] The acquisition module 41 is used to acquire obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays of the ultrasonic radar array as described in Embodiment 1 in the obstacle scene, and to transform each coordinate to the vehicle coordinate system.

[0123] The initial spatial configuration of the ultrasonic radar is known in advance and can be obtained based on the measurement data of multiple ultrasonic radars in the upper and lower arrays on the vehicle body. The coordinates of obstacles in the coordinate systems of each ultrasonic radar are transformed to the vehicle coordinate system.

[0124] The judgment module 42 is used to judge the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array according to preset rules, and to judge the false detection and false detection respectively.

[0125] The basic principle of the preset rules is that when an ultrasonic radar falsely detects an obstacle, if its adjacent ultrasonic radars do not falsely detect it, the obstacle coordinates will not be returned; when an ultrasonic radar misses an obstacle, if its adjacent ultrasonic radars do not miss it, the obstacle coordinates will be returned. The preset rules for judging false detections and missed detections are the same for obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays. In this embodiment, the judgment of false detections and missed detections for obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array is taken as an example.

[0126] The rules for determining false positives are as follows:

[0127] If the obstacle coordinates are received from the ultrasonic radar, determine whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged have returned obstacle coordinates.

[0128] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then it is determined whether the ultrasonic radar to be judged has a coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar, such as ultrasonic radar nine and ultrasonic radar ten located at the edge of the ultrasonic radar array.

[0129] If the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged includes the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar, then the obstacle is considered to have appeared within the coverage area of ​​that single ultrasonic radar; the ultrasonic radar to be judged has not made a false detection.

[0130] If the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar includes two ultrasonic radar coverage areas, such as ultrasonic radar seven and ultrasonic radar eight, and their detection range overlaps with at least one adjacent ultrasonic radar coverage area, for example, ultrasonic radar seven returns obstacle coordinates, while the adjacent ultrasonic radar nine and adjacent ultrasonic radar five do not return obstacle coordinates, several possibilities arise. If the obstacle is located within two ultrasonic radar coverage areas of ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area with ultrasonic radar nine), it could be a missed detection by ultrasonic radar nine or a false detection by ultrasonic radar seven. If the obstacle is located within three ultrasonic radar coverage areas of ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area with ultrasonic radar nine and ultrasonic radar five), since ultrasonic radar nine and ultrasonic radar five have not returned obstacle coordinates, it could be a false detection by ultrasonic radar seven. For safety reasons, it is assumed that if the obstacle is located within two ultrasonic radar coverage areas of ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area with ultrasonic radar nine), it is a missed detection by ultrasonic radar nine. This is because a false detection would only cause the autonomous vehicle to stop and wait for the next detection result, while a missed detection could potentially lead to a collision.

[0131] If the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar has only three overlapping ultrasonic radar coverage areas, such as ultrasonic radar five, ultrasonic radar three, ultrasonic radar one, ultrasonic radar two, ultrasonic radar four, and ultrasonic radar six, and its detection range overlaps with the coverage area of ​​two adjacent ultrasonic radars, and neither of the two adjacent ultrasonic radars returns an obstacle detection result, then the ultrasonic radar to be judged is considered to have a false detection.

[0132] If the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle is one, determine whether there are two ultrasonic radar coverage areas within the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be determined.

[0133] If not, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar array has missed detections. For example, the coverage area of ​​ultrasonic radar one is the overlapping coverage area of ​​three ultrasonic radars. If only one adjacent ultrasonic radar two returns the coordinates of the obstacle, then its adjacent ultrasonic radar three or ultrasonic radar four should return the coordinates of the obstacle. If it does not return, then its adjacent ultrasonic radar three or ultrasonic radar four has missed detections.

[0134] If so, further determine whether the coverage area of ​​the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returns the obstacle coordinates is one of two ultrasonic radar coverage areas with the ultrasonic radar to be determined.

[0135] If so, there are no false detections; for example, if the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar nine to be determined overlap with those of the adjacent ultrasonic radar seven, then the obstacle is located in the overlapping area.

[0136] If not, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar array has missed detections. For example, if ultrasonic radar seven returns the coordinates of an obstacle, and the adjacent ultrasonic radar five also returns the coordinates of an obstacle, and ultrasonic radar seven and ultrasonic radar five only have overlapping coverage areas of three ultrasonic radars, then it proves that the adjacent ultrasonic radar nine or ultrasonic radar three has missed detections.

[0137] If there are two adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle, then the radar under test is not considered to have made a false detection.

[0138] The rules for determining missed detections are as follows:

[0139] If the obstacle coordinates are not received from the ultrasonic radar, determine whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged have returned the obstacle coordinates.

[0140] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then it is determined that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has no missed detection.

[0141] If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of the obstacle.

[0142] Determine the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle;

[0143] If the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle is one, determine whether there are two ultrasonic radar coverage areas between the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returns the coordinates of the obstacle.

[0144] If two ultrasonic radars have coverage areas, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection. For example, if an obstacle is located within the coverage areas of two ultrasonic radars within the coverage area of ​​ultrasonic radar seven (i.e., within the overlapping coverage area of ​​ultrasonic radar nine), and ultrasonic radar nine does not return the obstacle's coordinates, while the adjacent ultrasonic radar seven does return the obstacle's coordinates, for safety reasons, it is considered that ultrasonic radar nine has missed detection. This is because a false detection would only cause the autonomous vehicle to stop and wait for the next detection result, while a missed detection could very likely cause a collision.

[0145] If there are no two ultrasonic radar coverage areas, but only three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, and only one of the three ultrasonic radars returns the obstacle coordinates, then the ultrasonic radar that truthfully returned the obstacle coordinates is considered to have made a false detection, while the ultrasonic radar to be judged does not have a missed detection. For example, ultrasonic radar 1 did not return the obstacle coordinates, but its adjacent ultrasonic radar 3 and ultrasonic radar 2 both returned the obstacle coordinates. Ultrasonic radar 1, ultrasonic radar 3, and ultrasonic radar 2 have three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, so ultrasonic radar 1 is a missed detection.

[0146] If there are two adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle, determine whether there are three ultrasonic radar coverage areas between the ultrasonic wave to be detected and the two adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of the obstacle; if there are three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection; if there are no three ultrasonic radar coverage areas, it is not considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection.

[0147] If the number of adjacent ultrasonic radars that return the coordinates of an obstacle is three or more, it is considered that the ultrasonic radar to be judged has missed detection.

[0148] Through the above steps, based on the overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and adjacent ultrasonic radars, as well as the obstacle coordinates returned by each ultrasonic radar in the ultrasonic radar array, the false detection or missed detection of the ultrasonic radar to be judged was determined.

[0149] The processing module 43 is used to perform error correction processing on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array according to the judgment result.

[0150] Preferably, if the detection result contains a false detection, the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar that was falsely detected is deleted.

[0151] Preferably, if the detection result shows a missed detection, the obstacle information collected by the missed ultrasonic radar can be obtained based on the obstacle information returned by its adjacent ultrasonic radar. If one adjacent ultrasonic radar of the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns obstacle coordinates, the obstacle coordinates returned by the adjacent ultrasonic radar are used as the obstacle coordinates of the ultrasonic radar to be judged. If two or more adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return obstacle coordinates, a fusion method based on triangulation is used to fuse the distance data returned by the two ultrasonic radars, and this fusion is used as the obstacle coordinates of the ultrasonic radar to be judged.

[0152] For example, if ultrasonic radar 1 does not return obstacle coordinates, but its adjacent ultrasonic radar 3 and ultrasonic radar 2 both return obstacle coordinates, then the obstacle coordinates corresponding to ultrasonic radar 1 are determined based on the obstacle coordinates returned by ultrasonic radar 3 and ultrasonic radar 2.

[0153] If the detection results do not contain any false detections or missed detections, then the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the ultrasonic radar array will not be processed.

[0154] The determination module 44 is used to determine the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the lower array after error correction processing, and then fuse them.

[0155] Preferably, the autonomous vehicle makes decisions based on the positions of the obstacles obtained through fusion.

[0156] Preferably, the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system is first determined based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the upper array after error correction processing; then, the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system is determined based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the lower array after error correction processing; and the positions of the obstacles in the vehicle coordinate system obtained separately are fused.

[0157] Preferably, if only a single ultrasonic radar returns the coordinates of the obstacle, then the obstacle is determined to be located on the portion of the coverage area of ​​the single ultrasonic radar within an arc with the distance from the obstacle as the radius and the origin of the single ultrasonic radar.

[0158] Preferably, if two or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, a triangulation-based fusion method is used to fuse the distance data returned by the two ultrasonic radars to obtain the edge positioning information of the obstacle.

[0159] Preferably, if three or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, since the triangulation fusion method requires many fusion operations, the circumcircle method can be used for fusion processing. Theoretically, for the same edge point of the obstacle, the arcs drawn by multiple ultrasonic radars with the ultrasonic radar as the origin and the obstacle distance as the radius should intersect at a single point. However, in reality, due to measurement errors, noise interference, and other factors, the multiple arcs do not intersect at a single point. Therefore, three ultrasonic radars are grouped together, with three arcs intersecting at three points in each group. The center of the circumcircle of these three points is taken as the final measurement result of these three ultrasonic radars. Finally, the average value of the final measurement results of each group of ultrasonic radars is calculated as the final fusion result.

[0160] Since the ultrasonic radars in the lower array are used to fill blind spots for the ultrasonic radars in the upper array, there are situations where the ultrasonic radars in the lower array determine the location of an obstacle in the blind spot of the upper array, but the upper array fails to detect the obstacle. Therefore, the positions of the obstacles determined by the upper and lower arrays in the vehicle coordinate system can be superimposed.

[0161] The embodiments described in this application can effectively determine the false detections and missed detections of each ultrasonic radar in the ultrasonic radar array, accurately determine the location of obstacles, reduce detection blind spots, and improve the driving safety of autonomous vehicles.

[0162] In the embodiments described, each embodiment has its own emphasis. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions in other embodiments.

[0163] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed methods and apparatus can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, or indirect coupling or communication connection between devices or units, and may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0164] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0165] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or in the form of hardware plus software functional units.

[0166] Figure 5 A block diagram of an exemplary computer system / server 012 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present invention is shown. Figure 5 The computer system / server 012 shown is merely an example and should not impose any limitations on the functionality and scope of use of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0167] like Figure 5 As shown, the computer system / server 012 is represented in the form of a general-purpose computing device. The components of the computer system / server 012 may include, but are not limited to: one or more processors or processing units 016, system memory 028, and a bus 018 connecting different system components (including system memory 028 and processing unit 016).

[0168] Bus 018 represents one or more of several bus architectures, including memory buses or memory controllers, peripheral buses, graphics acceleration ports, processors, or local buses using any of the various bus architectures. For example, these architectures include, but are not limited to, the Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, the Micro Channel Architecture (MAC) bus, the Enhanced ISA bus, the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus.

[0169] Computer system / server 012 typically includes a variety of computer system readable media. These media can be any available media that can be accessed by computer system / server 012, including volatile and non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.

[0170] System memory 028 may include computer system readable media in the form of volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 030 and / or cache memory 032. Computer system / server 012 may further include other removable / non-removable, volatile / non-volatile computer system storage media. By way of example only, storage system 034 may be used to read and write non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media (…). Figure 5 Not shown; usually referred to as a "hard drive"). Although Figure 5 Not shown, a disk drive for reading and writing to a removable non-volatile disk (e.g., a "floppy disk") and an optical disk drive for reading and writing to a removable non-volatile optical disk (e.g., a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or other optical media) may be provided. In these cases, each drive may be connected to bus 018 via one or more data media interfaces. Memory 028 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g., at least one) of program modules configured to perform the functions of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0171] A program / utility 040 having a set (at least one) of program modules 042 may be stored, for example, in memory 028. Such program modules 042 include—but are not limited to—an operating system, one or more application programs, other program modules, and program data. Each or some combination of these examples may include an implementation of a network environment. Program modules 042 typically perform the functions and / or methods described in the embodiments of the present invention.

[0172] The computer system / server 012 can also communicate with one or more external devices 014 (e.g., keyboard, pointing device, display 024, etc.). In this invention, the computer system / server 012 communicates with external radar equipment, and can also communicate with one or more devices that enable users to interact with the computer system / server 012, and / or with any device that enables the computer system / server 012 to communicate with one or more other computing devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.). This communication can be performed through the input / output (I / O) interface 022. Furthermore, the computer system / server 012 can also communicate with one or more networks (e.g., local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), and / or public networks, such as the Internet) through the network adapter 020. Figure 5 As shown, network adapter 020 communicates with other modules of computer system / server 012 via bus 018. It should be understood that, although... Figure 5As not shown, it can be used in conjunction with computer system / server 012 with other hardware and / or software modules, including but not limited to: microcode, device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays, RAID systems, tape drives, and data backup storage systems.

[0173] The processing unit 016 executes the functions and / or methods described in the embodiments of the present invention by running a program stored in the system memory 028.

[0174] The aforementioned computer program can be stored in a computer storage medium, that is, the computer storage medium is encoded with a computer program, which, when executed by one or more computers, causes one or more computers to perform the method flow and / or device operation shown in the above embodiments of the present invention.

[0175] With the development of time and technology, the meaning of "medium" has become increasingly broad. The dissemination of computer programs is no longer limited to tangible media; they can also be downloaded directly from the network. Any combination of one or more computer-readable media can be used. A computer-readable medium can be a computer-readable signal medium or a computer-readable storage medium. Computer-readable storage media can be, for example,—but not limited to—electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatuses, or devices, or any combination thereof. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media (a non-exhaustive list) include: electrical connections having one or more wires, portable computer disks, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), optical fiber, portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination thereof. In this document, a computer-readable storage medium can be any tangible medium that contains or stores a program that can be used by or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

[0176] Computer-readable signal media may include data signals propagated in baseband or as part of a carrier wave, carrying computer-readable program code. Such propagated data signals may take various forms, including—but not limited to—electromagnetic signals, optical signals, or any suitable combination thereof. Computer-readable signal media may also be any computer-readable medium other than computer-readable storage media, capable of transmitting, propagating, or transmitting programs for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

[0177] The program code contained on a computer-readable medium may be transmitted using any suitable medium, including—but not limited to—wireless, wire, optical fiber, RF, etc., or any suitable combination thereof.

[0178] Computer program code for performing the operations of this invention can be written in one or more programming languages ​​or a combination thereof, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Java, Smalltalk, and C++, as well as conventional procedural programming languages ​​such as "C" or similar programming languages. The program code can be executed entirely on the user's computer, partially on the user's computer, as a standalone software package, partially on the user's computer and partially on a remote computer, or entirely on a remote computer or server. In cases involving remote computers, the remote computer can be connected to the user's computer via any type of network—including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or it can be connected to an external computer (e.g., via the Internet using an Internet service provider).

[0179] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit them. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some of the technical features. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic radar array, characterized in that, include: Upper array and lower array; among which, The upper array includes N ultrasonic radars evenly installed on the upper part of the bumper of the autonomous vehicle. The N ultrasonic radars rotate outward from the center to the outside with an increasing angle. The lower array includes M ultrasonic radars evenly installed on the upper part of the bumper of the autonomous vehicle. The M ultrasonic radars rotate outward from the center to the outside, and the M ultrasonic radars are tilted downward to cover the blind spot of the upper array. Where N and M are positive integers; If the number of ultrasonic radars in the upper or lower array is even, then the first ultrasonic radar is horizontally installed on the left side of the center of the bumper, and the second ultrasonic radar is horizontally installed on the right side of the center of the bumper; (number of ultrasonic radars - 2) / 2 ultrasonic radars are installed to the left of the first ultrasonic radar, rotating counterclockwise by α from the center to the outside, using the previous ultrasonic radar as a reference; (number of ultrasonic radars - 2) / 2 ultrasonic radars are installed to the right of the second ultrasonic radar, rotating clockwise by α from the center to the outside, using the previous ultrasonic radar as a reference. If the number of ultrasonic radars in the upper or lower array is odd, then the first ultrasonic radar is horizontally installed in the center of the bumper, and (number of ultrasonic radars - 1) / 2 ultrasonic radars are installed to the left of the first ultrasonic radar. From the center to the outside, using the previous ultrasonic radar as a reference, they are rotated counterclockwise by α. Alternatively, (number of ultrasonic radars - 1) / 2 ultrasonic radars are installed to the right of the first ultrasonic radar. From the center to the outside, using the previous ultrasonic radar as a reference, they are rotated clockwise by α.

2. The ultrasonic radar array according to claim 1, characterized in that, Based on the mathematical model of the detection range and detection shape of each ultrasonic radar, the number of ultrasonic radars and the rotation angle α are determined to ensure triple redundancy in the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radars.

3. An obstacle detection method using an ultrasonic radar array according to any one of claims 1-2, characterized in that, include: Obtain obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays of the ultrasonic radar array in an obstacle scene; According to preset rules, the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array are respectively judged for false detection and false detection. Based on the judgment results of the false detection and false detection, the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array are respectively corrected. The obstacle positions are determined and fused based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the lower array after error correction processing.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The preset rule is to determine whether the ultrasonic radar to be judged has false detections or missed detections based on whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars return the coordinates of the obstacle.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The adjacent ultrasonic radars are the ultrasonic radars on both sides of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the ultrasonic radar separated by one space.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The preset rules for false positive detection include: If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then there is no false detection if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar or the coverage area of ​​two ultrasonic radars overlaps; if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has only the coverage area of ​​three ultrasonic radars overlaps, then there is a false detection. If an adjacent ultrasonic radar of the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection. When two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The preset rules for determining missed detections include: If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then the ultrasonic radar to be judged has no missed detection. If, when the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of an obstacle from an adjacent ultrasonic radar, there is an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is a missed detection; if there is only an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is no missed detection. If two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of an obstacle, and the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radars that returned the obstacle coordinates are covered by three ultrasonic radars, then there is a missed detection; if there are no three overlapping ultrasonic radar coverage areas, then there is no missed detection. If three or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, there is a possibility of missed detection.

8. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, Based on the judgment results of the false detection and false detection, error correction processing is performed on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array, including: If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar contains false detections, then the falsely detected obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is deleted. If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is missed, the obstacle information collected by the missed ultrasonic radar is obtained based on the obstacle information returned by the adjacent ultrasonic radar.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, Based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array after error correction processing, the position of the obstacle in the vehicle coordinate system is determined, and fusion is performed, including: Distance data returned by multiple ultrasonic radars from the upper or lower array are fused to obtain the coordinates of obstacles, and the obstacle positions determined by the upper array are superimposed with those determined by the lower array.

10. An obstacle detection system using an ultrasonic radar array according to any one of claims 1-2, characterized in that, include: The acquisition module is used to acquire obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper and lower arrays of the ultrasonic radar array in an obstacle scene. The judgment module is used to judge the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array according to preset rules, and to judge the false detection and false detection respectively. The processing module is used to perform error correction processing on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar in the lower array according to the judgment results of the false detection and false detection judgment. The determination module is used to determine the location of obstacles based on the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the upper array and the obstacle information collected by each ultrasonic radar of the lower array after error correction processing, and then fuse them.

11. The system according to claim 10, characterized in that, The preset rule is to determine whether the ultrasonic radar to be judged has false detections or missed detections based on whether the adjacent ultrasonic radars return the coordinates of the obstacle.

12. The system according to claim 11, characterized in that, The adjacent ultrasonic radars are the ultrasonic radars on both sides of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the ultrasonic radar separated by one space.

13. The system according to claim 12, characterized in that, The preset rules for false positive detection include: If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then there is no false detection if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has the coverage area of ​​a single ultrasonic radar or the coverage area of ​​two ultrasonic radars overlaps; if the coverage area of ​​the ultrasonic radar to be judged has only the coverage area of ​​three ultrasonic radars overlaps, then there is a false detection. If an adjacent ultrasonic radar of the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection. When two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of the obstacle, there is no false detection.

14. The system according to claim 12, characterized in that, The preset rules for determining missed detections include: If the adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged do not return the coordinates of the obstacle, then the ultrasonic radar to be judged has no missed detection. If, when the ultrasonic radar to be judged returns the coordinates of an obstacle from an adjacent ultrasonic radar, there is an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is a missed detection; if there is only an overlap between the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radar that returned the obstacle coordinates, then there is no missed detection. If two adjacent ultrasonic radars of the ultrasonic radar to be judged return the coordinates of an obstacle, and the coverage areas of the ultrasonic radar to be judged and the adjacent ultrasonic radars that returned the obstacle coordinates are covered by three ultrasonic radars, then there is a missed detection; if there are no three overlapping ultrasonic radar coverage areas, then there is no missed detection. If three or more adjacent ultrasonic radars return obstacle coordinates, there is a possibility of missed detection.

15. The system according to claim 10, characterized in that, The processing module is specifically used for: If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar contains false detections, then the falsely detected obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is deleted. If the obstacle information collected by the ultrasonic radar is missed, the obstacle information collected by the missed ultrasonic radar is obtained based on the obstacle information returned by the adjacent ultrasonic radar.

16. The system according to claim 15, characterized in that, The determining module is specifically used for: Distance data returned by multiple ultrasonic radars from the upper or lower array are fused to obtain the coordinates of obstacles, and the obstacle positions determined by the upper array are superimposed with those determined by the lower array.

17. A computer device comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, characterized in that, When the processor executes the program, it implements the method as described in any one of claims 3-9.

18. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that, When the program is executed by the processor, it implements the method as described in any one of claims 3-9.

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