Automatic emergency braking method and device

Abstract

The invention relates to an automatic emergency braking method which comprises the following steps: receiving sensing information of a radar and a camera, and determining a current road condition / an environment around a vehicle; judging whether the sensing information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information or not; switching an automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode in which a camera and a radar sensor are combined on the basis of a result of determining whether the perception information is fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, thereby performing object recognition by using information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor; or, switching to a configuration mode of only using the radar sensor, so that object recognition is performed by only using the radar sensor instead of using information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor; and activating an automatic emergency braking function according to the object recognition. The invention also relates to an automatic emergency braking device, a computer storage medium, a computer program product and a vehicle.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of active safety technology, and in particular to an automatic emergency braking method and device. The present invention also relates to a computer storage medium, a computer program product and a vehicle. Background Art

[0002] Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEBR) is an active safety function that uses environmental perception sensors (such as cameras and / or radar sensors) to sense the risk of collision with vehicles, pedestrians or other traffic participants in front, and automatically triggers actuators (such as the Electronic Stability Program (ESP)) to apply brakes to avoid collision or reduce the severity of collision.

[0003] Unlike traditional passive safety technologies, which aim to protect people inside and outside the vehicle from or reduce collision injuries after a collision occurs, AEB is a preventive active safety technology that aims to identify collision risks in advance, completely avoid collisions or reduce the intensity of collisions as much as possible, thereby avoiding rear-end collisions or collisions with pedestrians and other traffic participants.

[0004] Currently, under normal light conditions, the AEB function can avoid collisions without active driver intervention, but in conditions such as dim lighting, strong lighting, dense fog, and sudden changes in light intensity when entering or exiting a tunnel, the camera's video detection performance cannot guarantee its detection performance (it may fail to detect the target object). Since the radar sensor is unaware of the poor video performance, the radar sensor will continue to fuse the video object information obtained by the camera, resulting in an invalid target. In this case, the AEB function may not be activated when it should be, posing a safety hazard. Summary of the invention

[0005] According to one aspect of the present invention, an automatic emergency braking method is provided, comprising: receiving perception information from radar and camera, determining current road conditions / environment around the vehicle; judging whether the perception information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information; based on the judgment result of whether the perception information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information, switching the automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode using a combination of camera and radar sensor, thereby using the information fusion of camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; or, switching to a configuration mode using only radar sensor, thereby only using radar sensor without using the information fusion of camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; and activating the automatic emergency braking function according to the object recognition. The present invention also relates to an automatic emergency braking device, a computer storage medium, a computer program product and a vehicle.

[0006] According to another aspect of the present invention, an automatic emergency braking device is provided, characterized in that the device includes: an acquisition module, used to receive perception information of radar and camera, and determine the current road condition / environment around the vehicle; a judgment module, used to judge whether the perception information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information; a switching module, based on the judgment result of the judgment module, switches the automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode using a combination of camera and radar sensor, thereby using the information fusion of camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; or, switches to a configuration mode using only radar sensor, thereby using only radar sensor without using the information fusion of camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; and an activation module, used to activate the automatic emergency braking function according to the object recognition.

[0007] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a machine-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 13, which stores executable instructions, and when the instructions are executed, one or more processors execute the automatic emergency braking method as described above.

[0008] According to another aspect of the present invention, a computer program product is provided, comprising a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the method as described above is implemented.

[0009] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a vehicle is provided, comprising the device as described above.

[0010] The automatic emergency braking device and method of the embodiment of the present invention switches the automatic driving assistance function from the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor (e.g., 1R1V) to the configuration mode of only the radar sensor (e.g., 1R) according to the judgment result that the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, so that only the radar sensor is used without using the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition. In this way, since the radar sensor is not affected by the camera's malfunction or poor performance, switching from the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor to the configuration mode of only the radar sensor can make the output result of the environmental perception sensor more reliable. The automatic emergency braking method of the embodiment of the present invention does not require additional other sensors. Even in the case where the camera is malfunctioning or has poor performance, as long as the collision probability is high, the radar sensor can normally detect obstacles and start AEB to avoid collision. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a driving assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0012] Figure 2Schematic block diagram of the automatic emergency braking control device of the driving assistance system.

[0013] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 The automatic emergency braking control device in the embodiment of the present invention implements a flow chart of an automatic emergency braking method.

[0014] Figure 4 A schematic flow chart of an automatic emergency braking method according to another embodiment of the present invention is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] In view of this, an embodiment of the present invention provides a method for controlling automatic emergency braking.

[0016] According to the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, through the reminder of the speed control mode and the switch prompt given by the driving assistance system, the speed control of the driving assistance system can follow the driver's acceleration intention, thereby improving the comfort and friendliness of the vehicle.

[0017] Specific embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0018] Figure 1 The automatic emergency brake control device 20 according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown, which is arranged on a vehicle. The driving assistance system 100 includes a detection unit 10 and an automatic emergency brake control device 20 communicatively connected to the detection unit 10 .

[0019] The detection unit 10 is disposed on the vehicle and is used to detect information about the surrounding environment of the vehicle, the information including a list of mobile / fixed targets and traffic event information existing within the sensing range of the detection unit 10, the list of mobile / fixed targets including, for example, the number of mobile / fixed targets, the position, orientation, type, shape, size, moving speed, etc. of each mobile / fixed target, and the traffic event information including, for example, at least one of a list and number of traffic events, etc. The detection unit 10 includes a radar 11 (for example, at least one of a millimeter wave radar and a laser radar) and a camera 12.

[0020] The driving assistance system 100 is, for example, an advanced driving assistance system that performs "automatic driving assistance functions". The advanced driving assistance system (ADAS) uses various sensors installed on the car (millimeter wave radar, laser radar, single / binocular camera and satellite navigation) to sense the surrounding environment at any time during the driving process of the car, collect data, identify, detect and track static and dynamic objects, and combine navigation map data to perform systematic calculations and analysis, so as to make the driver aware of possible dangers in advance, effectively increasing the comfort and safety of car driving.

[0021] Cameras and radars are the most widely used ADAS sensors. We usually use V (video) and R (Radar) to refer to cameras and radars (such as millimeter-wave radars), and use numbers to indicate the number of configurations. For example, 1R1V is an ADAS function configuration consisting of a radar and a camera, while 1R is an ADAS function configuration consisting of a radar sensor.

[0022] The automatic emergency braking control device 20 is arranged in any electronic control unit (ECU) of the vehicle, or in the vehicle body control unit (VCU), or in the domain controller. The automatic emergency braking control device 20 can be implemented in software or hardware or a combination of software and hardware. For the hardware-implemented part, it can be implemented in one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), data signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, electronic units designed to perform their functions, or combinations thereof. For the part implemented in software, it can be implemented with the aid of microcodes, program codes, or code segments, and they can also be stored in machine-readable storage media such as storage components.

[0023] In one embodiment, the automatic emergency brake control device 20 is implemented as including a memory and a processor. The memory contains instructions, which, when executed by the processor, enable the processor to execute a speed control strategy / control method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] See also Figure 2 , Figure 2 FIG. 2 shows a schematic structural diagram of an automatic emergency braking device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The automatic emergency braking device 20 is configured to control the deceleration of the vehicle based on the detection signal of the detection unit. Figure 2 ,like Figure 2As shown, the automatic emergency braking device 20 includes: an acquisition module 21, a judgment module 23, a switching module 25 and an activation module 27. The acquisition module 21 is used to receive the perception information of the radar 11 and the camera 12, and determine the current road condition / environment around the vehicle. The judgment module 23 is used to determine whether the perception information is the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information. The switching module 25 is used to switch the automatic driving assistance function between the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor (for example, 1R1V) and the configuration mode of only the radar sensor (for example, 1R) based on the judgment result, so as to use the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition, or only use the radar sensor without using the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition; and the activation module 27 is used to activate the automatic emergency braking function. The naming of the automatic emergency braking control device 20 and its modules should be understood as a logical (functional) description, and should not be understood as a limitation on the physical location or setting method. For example, the acquisition module 21, the judgment module 23, the switching module 25 and the activation module 27 can be implemented on the same circuit or the same chip, or on multiple circuits or multiple chips.

[0025] The reason why the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information is usually that the camera may not work properly or perform poorly, such as in dim lighting, strong lighting, thick fog, sudden changes in light intensity when entering or exiting a tunnel, etc.

[0026] Therefore, the switching module 25 is configured to switch the ADAS function from the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor (e.g., 1R1V) to the configuration mode of only the radar sensor (e.g., 1R) according to the judgment result that the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, so as to perform object recognition by only using the radar sensor without using the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor. Since the radar sensor is not affected by the light intensity, switching the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor to the configuration mode of only the radar sensor can make the output result of the environment perception sensor more reliable.

[0027] In one or more embodiments, both the camera and radar sensor configuration (e.g., 1R1V) and the radar sensor configuration (e.g., 1R) are subject to long-term durability operation (e.g., 5000 hours) verification to ensure that no false activation occurs.

[0028] In one embodiment, optionally, the device 20 further includes: a fusion module disposed between the acquisition module 21 and the judgment module 23 , and the fusion module 22 is used to fuse the camera information with the radar sensor information.

[0029] In this embodiment, the switching module 25 can be configured to: switch both the road structure analysis module SIT and the automatic emergency braking function from the configuration mode of the camera and radar sensor combined to the configuration mode of the radar sensor only, wherein the road structure analysis function SIT is used to analyze the roads and objects around the vehicle to facilitate (for example, two-dimensional or three-dimensional) object recognition (and / or object filtering) and decision-making, and the automatic emergency braking function is used to issue a collision warning message to the driver and / or automatically trigger the actuator to implement braking when the possibility of collision is high.

[0030] In one embodiment, the activation module 27 is configured to: determine that the collision probability of the vehicle is high based on the object recognition; and when the collision probability is high, activate the automatic emergency braking function, thereby sending a collision warning message to the driver and / or automatically triggering the actuator to implement braking. In one embodiment, the automatic emergency braking function AEB includes partial automatic partial braking AEB-P and medium-speed automatic emergency braking AEB-M. Among them, AEB-P is triggered earlier, and its main function is to buy more reaction time for the driver. If the driver does not react, it will also reduce the danger of the accident. AEB-M is activated at medium speeds-when the system calculates that a large and uncomfortable deceleration must be used to avoid a collision, the system will trigger this function and automatically brake to reduce the relative speed of the two vehicles as much as possible.

[0031] The automatic emergency braking device of the embodiment of the present invention switches the automatic driving assistance function from the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor (e.g., 1R1V) to the configuration mode of only the radar sensor (e.g., 1R) according to the judgment result that the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, so that only the radar sensor is used without using the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition. In this way, since the radar sensor is not affected by the camera not working properly or having poor performance, the output result of the environment perception sensor can be more reliable by switching from the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor to the configuration mode of only the radar sensor. The automatic emergency braking method of the embodiment of the present invention does not require additional sensors. Even in the case where the camera does not work properly or has poor performance, as long as the collision probability is high, the radar sensor can normally detect obstacles and start AEB to avoid collision.

[0032] Figure 3 FIG. 2 is a flow chart of an automatic emergency braking method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 As shown, the automatic emergency braking method includes the following steps:

[0033] In step S110, the sensing information of the radar 11 and the camera 12 is received to determine the current road condition / environment around the vehicle;

[0034] In step S120, it is determined whether the perception information is fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information;

[0035] In step S130, based on the judgment result of whether the perception information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information, the automatic driving assistance function is switched to a configuration mode of using a combination of camera and radar sensor, so as to use the information fusion of camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; or, it is switched to a configuration mode of using only radar sensor, so as to use only radar sensor without using the information fusion of camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; and

[0036] In step S140 , an automatic emergency braking function is activated according to the object recognition.

[0037] In step S130, if the judgment result is that the perception information is the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the automatic driving assistance function is controlled to use the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor, so as to use the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition; specifically, the configuration mode of the road structure analysis module SIT is set to the configuration mode (1R1V) of combining the camera and the radar sensor; and the configuration mode of the functional module (such as the AEB function) is set to the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor. At this time, the radar sensor can reliably fuse the video object information, so as long as the collision probability is high and the conditions for activating the AEB function are met, it will respond to the target.

[0038] In step S130, if the judgment result is that the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the automatic driving assistance function is switched to the configuration mode of using only the radar sensor, so that only the radar sensor is used without using the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition. Specifically, the configuration mode of the road structure analysis module SIT is set to the configuration mode of using only the radar sensor (1R), and the configuration mode of the functional module (such as the AEB function) is also set to the configuration mode of using only the radar sensor (1R). That is to say, when the camera information is not very reliable due to various reasons (such as: dim light, strong light, rain, snow and fog, dirty camera lens, sudden change of light intensity when entering and exiting the tunnel, etc.), the camera information cannot form fusion information with the radar sensor information, and the radar sensor will not consider the object information related to the video, but only rely on the radar sensor to detect the target.

[0039] In step S140, it includes: determining that the possibility of collision is high based on the object recognition; and, when the possibility of collision is high, activating the automatic emergency braking function, thereby issuing a collision warning message to the driver and / or automatically triggering an actuator to implement braking.

[0040] Figure 4 The process 40 of the automatic emergency braking method implemented by the automatic emergency braking control device 20 according to one embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown. Figure 4 The process 40 is introduced.

[0041] In step 400, at the beginning, the acquisition module 21 receives the perception information of the radar 11 and the camera 12 to determine the current road condition / environment around the vehicle;

[0042] Optionally, before step 400, the configuration mode combining the camera and the radar sensor is set as the default configuration mode of the automatic driving assistance function of the vehicle, that is, the default configuration mode is the configuration mode combining the radar sensor and the visual sensor, that is, when the driver does not intervene in the vehicle, the driving assistance system 100 controls the normal driving of the vehicle with the perception signal fused by the radar sensor and the visual sensor, for example, driving in an adaptive cruise state, and sending a collision warning message to the driver and / or automatically triggering the actuator to implement emergency braking when the possibility of collision is high.

[0043] In step 401, the determination module 23 determines whether the perception information is fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information;

[0044] If the judgment result in step 401 is that the perception information is the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the process 40 enters step 402. In step 402, the switching module 25 controls the automatic driving assistance function to use the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor based on the judgment result of the judgment module 23, so as to use the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition; when the default configuration mode of the automatic driving assistance function is the configuration mode of combining the radar sensor and the visual sensor, in step 402, the switching module 25 controls the automatic driving assistance function to continue to use the configuration mode of combining the camera and the radar sensor based on the judgment result of the judgment module 23. Next, in step 421, the configuration mode of the road structure analysis module SIT is set to 1R1V; then, in step 422, the configuration mode of the function module (such as the AEB function) is set to 1R1V. At this time, the radar sensor can reliably fuse the video object information, so as long as the collision probability is high, and combined with the road structure analysis module SIT check, the AEB function is activated to respond to the target.

[0045] If the judgment result in step 401 is that the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the process 40 enters step 403. In step 403, the switching module 25 switches the automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode that uses only the radar sensor based on the judgment result of the judgment module 23, so that only the radar sensor is used without using the information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition. When the default configuration mode of the automatic driving assistance function is a configuration mode that combines the radar sensor and the visual sensor, in step 403, the switching module 25 switches the automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode that uses only the radar sensor based on the judgment result of the judgment module 23. In the subsequent step 431, the configuration mode of the road structure analysis module SIT is set to 1R, and in step 432, the configuration mode of the functional module (such as the AEB function) is also set to 1R. That is to say, due to various reasons (for example: dim lighting, strong lighting, thick fog, sudden changes in light intensity when entering and exiting tunnels, etc.), the camera information is not very reliable, and the camera information cannot form fusion information with the radar sensor information. The radar sensor will not consider the object information related to the video, but only rely on the radar sensor to detect the target.

[0046] In step 404, it is determined whether the collision possibility reaches a threshold value. If so, the control device activates the automatic emergency braking function AEB in step 405, and ends the entire process in 406. If the collision possibility does not reach the threshold value, the process returns to step 400 to continue to obtain the perception information of the camera and / or radar sensor.

[0047] In addition, it is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the automatic emergency braking method provided by one or more embodiments of the present invention can be implemented by a computer program. For example, the computer program is included in a computer program product, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the automatic emergency braking method of one or more embodiments of the present invention is implemented. For another example, when a computer storage medium (such as a USB flash drive) storing the computer program is connected to a computer, the automatic emergency braking method of one or more embodiments of the present invention can be executed by running the computer program.

[0048] Although some embodiments have been described above, these embodiments are given by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The appended claims and their equivalents are intended to cover all modifications, substitutions and changes made within the scope and spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. An automatic emergency braking method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Receives perception information from radar and cameras to determine the current road conditions / environment around the vehicle; Determining whether the perception information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information; Based on a determination result of whether the perception information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information, switching the automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode that uses a combination of camera and radar sensor, thereby using the information fusion of the camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; or switching to a configuration mode that uses only the radar sensor, thereby using only the radar sensor without using the information fusion of the camera and radar sensor to perform object recognition; and An automatic emergency braking function is activated based on the object recognition.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein: If the judgment result is that the perception information is fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the automatic driving assistance function is controlled to use the configuration method of combining the camera and the radar sensor.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein: In the configuration method of controlling the automatic driving assistance function using the combination of the camera and the radar sensor, the configuration method of the road structure analysis module SIT is set to the configuration method of using the combination of the camera and the radar sensor; and the configuration method of the automatic emergency braking function is set to the configuration method of using the combination of the camera and the radar sensor.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein: If the judgment result is that the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the automatic driving assistance function is switched to a configuration mode using only the radar sensor.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein: In the configuration method of controlling the automatic driving assistance function using the combination of the camera and the radar sensor, the configuration method of the road structure analysis module SIT is set to a configuration method using only the radar sensor; and the configuration method of the automatic emergency braking function is also set to a configuration method using only the radar sensor.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein: include: Based on the object recognition, it is determined that the possibility of collision is high; and when the possibility of collision is high, an automatic emergency braking function is activated, thereby issuing a collision warning message to the driver and / or automatically triggering an actuator to implement braking.

7. An automatic emergency braking device, characterized in that: The device comprises: The acquisition module is used to receive the perception information of the radar and camera to determine the current road conditions / environment around the vehicle; A judgment module, used to judge whether the perception information is fusion information of camera information and radar sensor information; a switching module, based on the determination result of the determination module, switching the automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode of using a camera in combination with a radar sensor, thereby using information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition; or switching to a configuration mode of using only the radar sensor, thereby using only the radar sensor without using information fusion of the camera and the radar sensor to perform object recognition; and An activation module is used to activate an automatic emergency braking function according to the object recognition.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein: The switching module is configured as follows: If the judgment result of the judgment module is that the perception information is fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the switching module controls the automatic driving assistance function to use the configuration method of combining the camera and the radar sensor.

9. The device according to claim 7, wherein: The switching module is configured as follows: If the judgment result of the judgment module is that the perception information is not the fusion information of the camera information and the radar sensor information, the switching module switches the automatic driving assistance function to a configuration mode of using only the radar sensor.

10. The device according to claim 7, wherein: The activation module is configured as follows: Based on the object recognition, it is determined that the collision possibility of the vehicle is high; and when the collision possibility is high, the automatic emergency braking function is activated to issue a collision warning message to the driver and / or automatically trigger an actuator to implement braking.

11. The device according to claim 7, comprising a fusion module arranged between the acquisition module and the judgment module, wherein the fusion module is used to fuse the camera information with the radar sensor information.

12. The device as claimed in claim 7, comprising: the acquisition module, the judgment module, the switching module and the activation module can be implemented on the same circuit or the same chip, or can be implemented on multiple circuits or multiple chips.

13. A machine-readable storage medium storing executable instructions, which, when executed, cause one or more processors to perform the automatic emergency braking method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

14. A computer program product comprising a computer program, characterized in that When the computer program is executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is implemented.

15. A vehicle, characterized in that: The vehicle comprises a device as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 12.

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