Advanced road traffic systems and methods for improving road safety, methods for road users, and electronic devices

Abstract

This invention provides an advanced road traffic system and method for improving road safety. [Solution] The present invention relates to an electronic device and a computer program. It is provided that events detected by road users and / or road infrastructure are broadcast to the environment via a direct communication signal that includes cloud upload information indicating whether or not the event is being uploaded to a backend server. Based on the cloud upload information, surrounding road users receiving the direct communication signal know whether or not it is necessary to upload the detected event to the backend server. Thus, redundant uploads of detected events to the backend server by other road users who are connected to or can connect to the backend server may be prevented.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an advanced road traffic system and method for improving road safety. Further, the present invention relates to a method for a first road user and a method for a second road user. Moreover, the present invention relates to an electronic device and a computer program.

[0002] Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication is set to be one of the important pillars for enhancing safety and efficiency in road traffic. In V2X communication, various types of technologies are available, especially for exchanging hazard information.

[0003] An example of V2X communication is the concept of direct communication (or ad hoc communication) where information is transmitted only between vehicles in the immediate vicinity (e.g., up to a radius of 1 km) of the sender of the communication signal. These communication signals and their associated data can be received only by vehicles within this radius if they support direct communication technology, and if the received data is not considered relevant to the receiving vehicle, it is discarded by the vehicle.

[0004] Another example of vehicle-to-vehicle communication is network communication. In a network-based implementation, a vehicle is connected to, for example, a cloud network and exchanges data with the cloud network. A vehicle that detects an event uploads it to the cloud network. Then, other vehicles can download the event and be warned of the event.

[0005] Background Art French Patent Application Publication No. 3100203 A1 relates to a method and a device for warning a vehicle, in which information representing the road conditions within a determined area of the road environment is received and compared with a history of information representing the road conditions associated with the determined area. A warning is output based on the result of the comparison.

[0006] European Patent Application Publication No. 4307269A1 proposes a Cooperative Intelligent Road Traffic System (C-ITS). In response to the detection of a situation involving an object detected within an area monitored by the ITS, a Collective Recognition Message (CPM) is generated and transmitted. The CPM includes a reference to the object and instructions to indicate that the object is involved in the situation.

[0007] International Publication No. 2015 / 133181A1 relates to a communication device, a communication control method, and a program. A receiving unit receives messages transmitted from a source device, each containing information and identifiers of the respective source device. Depending on the type of message received by the receiving unit, a control unit performs a transmission operation to transmit a representative message containing the same information as a representative of specific messages containing the same information received from different source devices identified by different identifiers.

[0008] U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018 / 0184245A1 discloses a vehicle, server, and system for preventing the transmission of redundant information by communicating with a vehicle that can collect information about another vehicle that cannot communicate with a server.

[0009] Summary of the Invention In direct communication applications, events are shared with everyone via local broadcasting, but only within a limited scope, for example, immediately near the broadcaster. This means that external events can generally be collected by receiving vehicles, but these vehicles discard any events they deem irrelevant to their respective receiving vehicles. In network-based applications, the focus is on downloading events, and only events detected by the vehicles themselves are considered to be on the upload path.

[0010] Even when vehicles upload received events detected by other vehicles to the cloud, the communication network becomes excessively congested, and the cloud contains a large amount of redundant data related to the events, resulting in a slow and congested database. Therefore, further improvements to road safety are generally required.

[0011] This problem is solved by the intelligent road traffic systems and methods for improving road safety described in the independent claims, methods for first road users, methods for second users, electronic devices, and computer programs. Further advantages and embodiments will become apparent from the dependent claims and the following description.

[0012] According to one aspect of the present invention, an intelligent transportation system (ITS) for improving road safety is provided. An ITS can generally use various technologies to monitor, evaluate, and manage a road traffic system to improve safety and efficiency, such as traffic flow. For example, they use information and communication technology, computers, electronic devices, and sensors to connect road infrastructure and vehicles.

[0013] The ITS includes backend servers, road infrastructure, and / or first road users, second road users, and third road users. Each road user includes an electronic device. The backend servers include at least one remotely located server that is accessible at any time from any location via a secure and protected internet connection. In other words, the backend servers represent a cloud storage location outside of the user's location where data, applications, and computing power can be moved and these data can be processed.

[0014] Road infrastructure can be a Roadside Unit (RSU). A Roadside Unit (RSU) is a device that can be used within an ITS and connected vehicle environment. RSUs may be positioned along roads or highways to facilitate communication between vehicles and road traffic infrastructure, for example, to enable vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) and V2X communications. An RSU includes a communication module configured to exchange information with nearby vehicles. For example, the communication module may be configured to provide communications such as dedicated narrow-area communication (DSRC) or cellular vehicle-to-all (C-V2X) communication.

[0015] The first road user's (first) electronic device and / or road infrastructure are configured to detect events in their environment relating to threats to road safety and to upload at least a portion of the information associated with the detected events to the backend server, based on whether a connection to the backend server is possible. In other words, the road infrastructure and / or the first road user's first electronic device may be configured to determine whether a connection between the road infrastructure and / or the first road user's first electronic device and the backend server is possible. If a connection is determined to be possible, the road infrastructure and / or the first road user's first electronic device uploads the information associated with the detected events to the backend server; otherwise, the road infrastructure and / or the first road user's first electronic device does not upload the information associated with the detected events to the backend server.

[0016] The first electronic device and / or road infrastructure of the first road user is further configured to broadcast (the first) road user to all (R2X) direct communication signals and / or infrastructure to road user (I2R) direct communication signals containing information associated with the detected event. More specifically, the first electronic device may include an R2X communication module, a sensor unit configured to at least partially scan the environment of the first electronic device for events relating to threats to road safety, such as at least one camera or surround-view camera system, and a processor configured to detect events in its environment relating to threats to road safety by using the sensor unit (and processing the corresponding sensor data), and to broadcast R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals containing information associated with the detected event by using the R2X communication module. The R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals may include the event type, the event location, the event time at which the event was detected, and / or the type of detection means for detecting the event, such as a (forward and / or rear) camera or surround-view camera system. Direct communication allows road users and / or road infrastructure, as well as other road users, to communicate directly with each other. In other words, communication between road users and / or road infrastructure is not performed via external communication servers or communication nodes. For example, some or each of the road users may be (each) vehicle, for example, a vehicle control unit and electronic devices incorporated as part of various sensors. In this case, vehicle-to-all (V2X) communication and infrastructure-to-vehicle (I2V) communication are referred to. V2X communication enables the exchange of information between a vehicle and other nodes and / or may include, for example, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), vehicle-to-network (V2N), and / or vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P).

[0017] The (broadcasted) R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals further include cloud upload information indicating whether the event has been uploaded to the backend server. This cloud upload information may include whether the event has been uploaded to the backend server by the sender of the direct communication signal ("yes"), whether the event has not been uploaded to the backend server ("no"), and / or whether the event has been uploaded to the backend server by someone other than the sender of the direct communication signal ("not needed"). The additional cloud upload information included in the direct communication signal prevents unnecessary repeated uploads based on multiple redundant messages from the received direct communication signal from the road user to the backend server, which typically occur due to the broadcast principle of direct communication. Events from road users and / or road infrastructure that cannot or are not currently connected to the backend server (no cloud connection, cloud connection not currently available) can still be uploaded to the backend server, but without the risk of congesting the backend server database with unnecessary and redundant information about the detected events. In other words, the resulting backend server database is relatively lean and contains a high level of information.

[0018] The second road user's (second) electronic device is configured to receive R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals (broadcast by the first road user and / or road infrastructure) and, based on the cloud-uploaded information, upload at least a portion (e.g., all) of the information associated with the detected event to a backend server. In other words, the second electronic device is configured to connect to a backend server for data exchange. Instead of (automatically) discarding received information about detected events due to (spatial and / or temporal) irrelevance to the second electronic device, the second electronic device can generally provide received information about detected events to the backend server, thereby enriching its database. The uploaded data may be relevant to other road users. Therefore, uploading data received from the environment via direct communication signals can help improve road safety through the presence of a more enhanced database with a more accurate knowledge of the surrounding environment of road users and / or road infrastructure. Advantageously, this can significantly reduce the number of road user collisions and associated fatalities. However, if the cloud upload information indicates that information about the detected event has already been uploaded to the backend server, the second electronic device does not upload the received information about the detected event to the backend server to prevent redundant uploads of the same information about the detected event to the backend server. Advantageously, the resulting backend server database is relatively lean and contains information of a high quality level. Events may be recognized as the same or equivalent events based on information about the event, such as event location, direction of travel of road users, and / or road infrastructure, time of event detection, and matching with event history. Some or each of the electronic devices and / or road infrastructure disclosed herein may be configured to recognize the same or equivalent events based on information about the event, for example, as described above.Event matching can prevent redundant uploads to the backend server of information about the same or equivalent events that have been detected.

[0019] The third road user's (third) electronic device is configured to download at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event from a backend server and to determine the relevance of the detected event to the third road user based on the information associated with the detected event. The third electronic device is further configured to output the determined relevance and / or prepare countermeasures based on the determined relevance of the detected event. For example, the portion of the downloaded information may include at least one of the following: event type, event location, event time when the event was detected, type of detection means for detecting the event, and warnings associated with the detected event. Some or each of the enumerated pieces of information may be used to determine the relevance of the detected event to the third road user. Warnings may be output to the third road user based on the determined relevance, for example, if the determined relevance exceeds a predetermined threshold. Accordingly, the third road user may receive a warning and respond appropriately to the event in response to the warning, or the prepared countermeasures may mitigate or substantially negate the risk associated with the detected event to the third road user. Accordingly, the risk of collisions with third road users due to events may be reduced, and road safety for third road users (as well as surrounding road users) can be advantageously improved.

[0020] According to one embodiment, a threat to road safety may relate to road obstacles, the driving environment, and / or traffic conditions within the environment of the road infrastructure and / or the first electronic device. In particular, a threat to road safety may relate to abnormal traffic conditions. “Abnormal” may mean that the traffic conditions deviate (significantly) from average or expected traffic conditions. Average or expected traffic conditions may be calculated based on historical data of traffic conditions. Examples of road obstacles include, for example, slow vehicles, drivers driving the wrong way, people, animals, and / or obstacles on the road, or stationary vehicles due to breakdown or (illegal) parking. Examples of driving environment are weather conditions such as snow, rain, glare from the sun, or icy roads. Examples of traffic conditions are traffic congestion, road construction, accidents, or the passage of special emergency vehicles. For example, a specific threat to road safety may be used to determine the event type. The determined event type may be included in the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals. Accordingly, other road users can recognize the event type, appropriately determine the relevance of the event to their respective road users, and / or prepare appropriate countermeasures.

[0021] According to another embodiment, the second electronic device of the second road user may be configured to upload at least a portion of the information associated with a detected event to the backend server if cloud upload information indicates that the event has not been uploaded to the backend server. The second electronic device of the second road user may be configured to broadcast a second R2X direct communication signal that includes the information associated with the detected event and cloud upload information configured to indicate that the event has been uploaded to the backend server. Advantageously, a road user in the environment of the second road user receiving the second R2X direct communication signal, for example, the first road user, is informed that the information associated with the detected event that had not been previously uploaded has been uploaded to the backend server by the second road user, and as a result, no further upload by any of the road users in the environment of the second road user is required. Thus, redundant uploads of the same information regarding the detected event to the backend server may be prevented.

[0022] In another embodiment, a first electronic device of a first road user may be configured to identify that information associated with a detected event was stored in the first electronic device's memory prior to the detection of the event, and to set cloud upload information included in the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal to indicate that uploading the event to a backend server is not required. In other words, the event detected by the first road user is already known, for example, due to a previous direct communication signal exchanged with a road user and / or road infrastructure that detected the event before the first road user, and / or due to communication with a backend server in which the detected event already existed in its database. Advantageously, this may prevent redundant uploading of the same information about the detected event to the backend server. As an addition or alternative, a second electronic device of a second road user may be configured to identify that information associated with a detected event was stored in the second electronic device's memory prior to the reception of the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal, and to broadcast a second R2X direct communication signal including the information associated with the detected event and cloud upload information set to indicate that uploading the event to a backend server is not required. Similarly, redundant uploads of the same information about detected events (by other road users) to the backend server may be prevented.

[0023] According to another embodiment, the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals may further include cloud reference time information indicating the time the event was uploaded to the backend server. Cloud reference time information may help in recognizing equivalent events. Furthermore, cloud reference time information may help in determining the relevance of a detected event to a particular road user, in determining whether the detected event is still relevant to a particular road user and / or whether the detected event can be considered terminated. Thus, the likelihood of redundant uploads of the same information about detected events to the backend server may be further reduced.

[0024] In another embodiment, the second electronic device may be configured to broadcast a third R2X direct communication signal that includes a Cooperative Recognition Message (CAM) to indicate the presence of the second road user to surrounding road users and / or the road infrastructure. The CAM is a message that is periodically generated at a frequency controlled by the originating road user's electronic device and may include the speed, position, and steering or direction of the road user's, e.g., vehicle, and optionally surrounding road users, e.g., the vehicle's, electronic device, as defined in ETSI standard EN302637-2V1.4.1 (2019-04). The CAM may be extended to include cloud connectivity information indicating whether the electronic device is connected to a backend server. Based on the cloud connectivity information, surrounding road users are informed of which road users are connected to their (or any) backend server. Furthermore, the CAM may be configured to allow a single transmission by the receiver of the third R2X direct communication signal. In other words, a CAM may be transmitted by its receiver within a single hop distance, i.e., within a 1-hop limit, to enable indirect communication with other road users within the hop distance of the CAM receiver via the CAM receiver.

[0025] The road infrastructure and / or the first electronic device may be further configured to receive and forward a third R2X direct communication signal via broadcast, and to receive and forward one or more R2X direct communication response signals, e.g., CAMs corresponding to the aforementioned CAMs (including cloud connectivity information and a hop limit set to 1), in response to the third R2X direct communication signal forwarded via broadcast. In other words, the road infrastructure and / or the first electronic device are used as nodes for exchanging direct communication signals between road users, who may not normally be within direct communication range of each other. Conveniently, information about the presence of road users connected to backend servers within direct communication range of the road infrastructure and / or the first electronic device is distributed among them.

[0026] A second electronic device may be further configured to receive one or more R2X direct communication response signals and determine whether multiple road users connected to the backend server are present in the environment of the first road user and / or road infrastructure. If it is determined that multiple road users connected to the backend server are present in the environment of the first road user and / or road infrastructure, information associated with the detected event may be further uploaded (from the second electronic device) to the backend server based on predetermined conditions. If it is determined that there are no multiple road users connected to the backend server, the second electronic device may upload the information associated with the detected event to the backend server. The predetermined conditions can prioritize which of the multiple road users connected to the backend server is entitled to upload the information associated with the detected event to the backend server. In other words, a consensus algorithm is provided for determining which of the multiple connected road users should upload the information about the detected event. Thus, even in complex situations where multiple road users are connected to the backend server, information about the detected event may be uploaded to the backend server, but redundant uploads of the same information about the detected event to the backend server may be prevented.

[0027] According to another embodiment, the predetermined conditions may refer to or correspond to the distance to the first road user and / or the connectivity to the backend server. For example, the road user with the shortest distance to the first road user may be eligible to upload information associated with the detected event to the backend server. The shortest distance can ensure that the quality of the direct communication signal is as high as possible so that signal degradation is kept as small as possible. Connectivity may be evaluated based on the stability and / or speed of the connection. For example, the road user with the most stable and / or fastest connection to the backend server may be eligible to upload information associated with the detected event. Advantageously, the resulting database of the backend server contains information at a high quality level.

[0028] According to another embodiment, the distance to the first road user and / or the road infrastructure is determined based on, for example, the location information present in the exchanged CAM such as global positioning system (GPS) coordinates and / or by the time-of-flight measurements of the direct communication signals exchanged between road users. Since the distance between road users may be calculated based on the exchanged CAM, prioritization of road users eligible to upload information associated with events detected based on the distance may be easily implemented, thereby providing a low-cost solution.

[0029] In another embodiment, the broadcasted R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal may include, or consist of, a distributed environment notification message (DENM) associated with a detected event, augmented with cloud-uploaded information. In other words, the road infrastructure and / or the first electronic device may be configured to broadcast an R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal that includes, or consists of, a DENM associated with a detected event, augmented with cloud-uploaded information. A DENM is a message about location and traffic data, as well as traffic conditions and obstacles, exchanged between road users, as defined in the ETSI standard EN302637-3V1.2.2 (2014-11). A DENM includes information about both the transmitting road user and the event, e.g., a hazardous area, in order to warn other road users. A DENM augmented with cloud-uploaded information may be sent as a standalone message. Using a standalone message for the (augmented) DENM allows for the use of a well-established and standardized protocol, thereby reducing communication effort and increasing the opportunity for other road users receiving the DENM to process or extract the information accordingly.

[0030] According to another embodiment, the second electronic device may be further configured to broadcast a second R2X direct communication signal including a CAM for indicating the presence of the second road user to surrounding road users and / or the road infrastructure. The road infrastructure and / or the first electronic device may be further configured to receive the second R2X direct communication signal and broadcast or repeatedly broadcast an R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal including information associated with the detected event in response to the received second R2X direct communication signal. Since the sender of the direct communication signal does not receive any response to confirm the reception of the communication signal, transmitting or retransmitting a direct communication signal in response to the received CAM message of the second road user provides a high probability that the second road user is still within the range of direct communication to receive the direct communication signal transmitted from the first road user and / or the road infrastructure. Thus, the information associated with the detected event is very likely to be received and uploaded by the second road user at the backend server.

[0031] According to another embodiment, the first R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal, the second R2X direct communication signal, and / or the third R2X direct communication signal (or each of the direct communication signals disclosed herein) may be based on connectionless communication. The upload from the second road user to the backend server and / or the download from the backend server to the third road user (or any communication of each electronic device with the backend server disclosed herein) may be based on connection-oriented communication. Advantageously, the information regarding the detected event can be exchanged by using or combining different communication techniques such as connectionless communication and connection-oriented communication as well as direct communication and cloud communication.

[0032] According to another embodiment, the second electronic device is configured to determine the relevance of a detected event to a second road user based on information associated with the detected event, output the determined relevance before uploading the information associated with the detected event to a backend server, and / or prepare countermeasures based on the determined relevance of the detected event. In other words, the receiving electronic device evaluates the relevance of the received information regarding the detected event to itself before uploading the information to the backend server. Advantageously, the second electronic device can prepare and execute countermeasures more quickly to mitigate the risks associated with the detected event to the second road user.

[0033] According to another embodiment, the first electronic device and / or road infrastructure of a first road user may not be connected to a backend server or may not support communication with a backend server. In other words, the first electronic device and / or road infrastructure cannot upload detected events to the backend server on its own. In this case, the first electronic device and / or road infrastructure is configured to broadcast an R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal containing information associated with the detected event, along with cloud upload information indicating that the event has not been uploaded to the backend server. Advantageously, a second electronic device can upload the detected event, and as a result of uploading the detected event via the second electronic device, information about the detected event is not lost, for example, due to lack of connection or lack of relevance to consider a particular electronic device, and may be used to warn other road users about the detected event.

[0034] According to another embodiment, the second electronic device may be configured to automatically upload information associated with detected events to a backend server based on cloud upload information. In other words, the second electronic device uploads received information associated with detected events to the backend server without requiring any user interaction. For example, the automatically uploaded information of events has a high level of reliability compared to manual cloud entries of third-party events, where the location information of manual entries in the cloud may be inaccurate due to time-delayed entries. Due to the high quality of the information, such events do not require further verification by the backend server, thereby significantly reducing the computational load for enriching the backend server's database.

[0035] According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for improving road safety is provided. The method may be used for the ITS described above. The features and advantages of ITS can also be applied to the method for improving road safety.

[0036] According to the steps of the method, an event relating to a threat to road safety by the road infrastructure and / or a first road user in that environment is detected, for example, by the first electronic device of the first road user and / or the road infrastructure of the ITS.

[0037] According to another step of the method, at least some of the information associated with the detected event is uploaded from the road infrastructure and / or the first road user to the backend server, based on whether a connection to the backend server is possible.

[0038] According to another step of the method, road user-to-all, R2X and / or infrastructure-to-road user, and I2R direct communication signals, containing information associated with the detected event, are broadcast by the road infrastructure and / or first road user. The R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals include cloud upload information indicating whether the event has been uploaded to the backend server.

[0039] According to another step of the method, the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals are received by a second road user.

[0040] In another step, at least some of the information associated with the detected event is uploaded to the backend server by a second road user based on the cloud upload information.

[0041] According to another step of the method, at least some of the information associated with the detected event is downloaded from the backend server by a third road user.

[0042] According to another step of the method, the relevance of the detected event to a third road user is determined based on information associated with the detected event (for example, by the third road user).

[0043] According to another step of the method, the determined relevance of the detected event is output, and / or countermeasures based on the determined relevance of the detected event are prepared (e.g., by a third road user).

[0044] According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for road infrastructure and / or first road users is provided. The features and advantages of the above-described method for improving road safety can also be applied to the method for road infrastructure and / or first road users.

[0045] According to the steps of the method for road infrastructure and / or first road users, an event relating to a threat to road safety is detected by the road infrastructure and / or first road users within that environment.

[0046] According to another step of the method for the road infrastructure and / or first road users, at least some of the information associated with the detected event is uploaded to the backend server based on whether a connection to the backend server is possible.

[0047] According to another step of the method for the road infrastructure and / or first road user, road user to all, R2X and / or infrastructure to road user, and I2R direct communication signals, including information associated with the detected event, are broadcast by the road infrastructure and / or first road user. The R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals include cloud upload information indicating whether the event has been uploaded to a backend server.

[0048] According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for a second road user is provided. The features and advantages of the above-described method for improving road safety can also be applied to the method for a second road user.

[0049] According to the steps of the method for the second road user, a road user to all, R2X and / or infrastructure to road user, I2R direct communication is received by the second road user, which includes information associated with the event detected by another road user and / or road infrastructure, and includes cloud upload information indicating whether or not the event has been uploaded to the backend server.

[0050] According to another step of the method for the second road user, at least some of the information associated with the detected event is uploaded from the second road user to the backend server based on the cloud upload information.

[0051] According to another aspect of the present invention, an electronic device is provided configured to perform the above-described method for a road infrastructure and / or a first road user, and / or for a second road user. The electronic device may be implemented as part of a control unit for a vehicle. The control unit may be configured to perform the above-described method for a road infrastructure and / or a first road user, and / or for a second road user. The features and advantages of the above-described method for a road infrastructure and / or a first road user can also be applied to the electronic device and the control unit. For example, a road user may include the above-described electronic device configured to perform the above-described method for a road infrastructure and / or a first road user, and / or for a second road user. The road user may be a vehicle including a V2X communication module and the above-described control unit. The features and advantages of the above-described electronic device can also be applied to the road user.

[0052] Each of the electronic devices and / or control units described above may be implemented by electrical or electronic components or components (hardware) or firmware (ASIC). Additionally or alternatively, the functionality of electronic devices and / or control units may be realized by running appropriate programs (software). Furthermore, electronic devices and / or control units may be realized by a combination of hardware, firmware, and / or software. For example, the individual components of an electronic device and / or control unit that provide individual functions may be designed as separate integrated circuits or they may be arranged on a common integrated circuit.

[0053] Individual components of electronic devices and / or control units may be designed as one or more processes generated during the execution of one or more computer programs, running on one or more processors within one or more electronic computing devices. Computing devices may be configured to work in conjunction with other components to implement the functions described herein. Instructions for computer programs may be stored in memory, such as RAM elements. However, computer programs may also be stored in non-volatile storage media, such as CD-ROMs or flash memory.

[0054] It will be further apparent to those skilled in the art that the functions of multiple computing units (data processing devices) may be combined, or combined within a single device, or that the functions of a particular data processing device may be distributed across multiple devices in order to implement the functions of an electronic device and / or control unit.

[0055] Further embodiments relate to a computer program that, when executed by a computer such as an electronic device and / or control unit, includes instructions causing the computer to execute any of the methods according to the present invention, in particular a method for improving road safety, and / or a method for road infrastructure and / or a first road user, and / or a method for a second road user.

[0056] Further preferred embodiments of the present invention arise from further features referred to in the dependent claims.

[0057] The various embodiments of the invention referred to herein can be advantageously combined with one another unless otherwise specified within individual cases.

[0058] The various objectives and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of embodiments, when read in reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0059] [Figure 1] This figure schematically illustrates an intelligent road traffic system in an exemplary traffic situation according to one embodiment. [Figure 2] This figure schematically illustrates an intelligent road traffic system in another exemplary traffic situation according to one embodiment. [Figure 3] This figure schematically illustrates the intelligent road traffic system shown in Figure 2, according to another embodiment. [Figure 4] This diagram schematically shows a flowchart of a method for improving road safety according to one embodiment. [Figure 5] This figure schematically illustrates an electronic device for road users according to one embodiment.

[0060] In the following, the same reference number is given to similar features repeated in this expression and subsequent expressions, and their repeated explanations are omitted.

[0061] Figure 1 schematically illustrates an Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) 10 for improving road safety in an exemplary traffic situation according to one embodiment. Figures 2 and 3 schematically illustrate the ITS 10 in two different embodiments in other exemplary traffic situations. Methods for improving road safety, methods for a first road user 16, and methods for a second road user 20 are described with reference to Figure 4. The traffic situations shown in Figures 1 to 3 should be understood as merely representative examples of a number of potential traffic situations, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0062] ITS10 includes a backend server 12, a road infrastructure 14, a first road user 16, a second road user 20, and a third road user 22. Each of the road users 16, 20, and 22 includes an electronic device 26, which will be described in more detail with reference to Figure 5. In one embodiment, the road users 16, 20, and 22 are implemented as vehicles, as shown in Figure 1. However, at least one, part, or each of the road users 16, 20, and 22 may be, for example, a pedestrian, or a cyclist, or any other type of road user carrying an electronic device 26.

[0063] The backend server 12 is shown as a cloud in Figures 1 to 3 to illustrate that the backend server 12 provides cloud-based applications. For example, the backend server 12 includes multiple remotely located servers that can be accessed from any location at any time via a secure and protected internet connection. In other words, the backend server 12 represents a cloud storage location outside of the user's location (e.g., road users 16, 20, 22, 24) where data, applications, and computing power can be moved and these data can be processed.

[0064] The road infrastructure 14 is implemented as a roadside unit (RSU). The road infrastructure 14 is positioned along a road or highway (as shown in Figures 1 to 3) to facilitate communication between road users 16, 20, 22, 24 and any road traffic infrastructure, for example, to enable vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle-to-all (V2X) communication. The road traffic infrastructure may include sensors configured to detect roadway traffic and / or traffic signal status. The road infrastructure 14 includes a communication module configured to exchange information with nearby road users 16, 20, 22, 24 via direct communication. In some embodiments, the communication module of the road infrastructure 14 may be further configured to communicate with a backend server 12, for example, to upload data to the backend server 12 and / or download data from the backend server 12.

[0065] In Figure 1, the first road user 16 represents a vehicle traveling towards the end of a traffic jam, indicated by a line of three stationary vehicles ahead of it. This situation requires the first road user 16 to slow down to avoid causing an accident, such as a rear-end collision with the vehicle in front. However, if other road users, such as a third road user 22 traveling in the same lane as the first road user 16 but with a long gap between them, are unaware of the end of the traffic jam and are not paying sufficient attention to the traffic, the first road user may have to brake suddenly to avoid an accident. However, sudden braking can catch following road users off guard, potentially creating a significant risk of an accident.

[0066] In the example in Figure 1, the road infrastructure 14 and the first road user 16 are not connected to the backend server 12, but the second road user 20 and the third road user 22 are connected to the backend server 12. Therefore, events 18 detected by the road infrastructure 14 and / or the first road user 16 cannot be directly uploaded to the backend server 12, and as a result, for example, the third road user 22 cannot download the detected events 18 and recognize the risks associated with them.

[0067] However, the road infrastructure 14 is configured to detect events 18 in its environment related to threats to road safety, such as traffic congestion as shown in Figure 1, and to broadcast an infrastructure-to-road user (I2R) direct communication signal containing information associated with the detected event 18. In addition, the electronic device of the first road user 16 is also configured to detect an event 18 and to broadcast a road user-to-all (R2X) direct communication signal containing information associated with the detected event 18. The broadcasted direct communication signal has a limited range, and only road users in the immediate vicinity of the road infrastructure 14 and the electronic device of the first road user 16, for example, within a radius of 1 km, can receive the direct communication signal. As shown in the example in Figure 1, the second road user 20, traveling in the opposite lane to the first road user 16, is within the range of the direct communication signal. The third road user 22 is not within the range of the direct communication signal and is too far away to receive it. The electronic device of the second road user 20 is configured to receive R2X and I2R direct communication signals from the road infrastructure 14 and the first road user 16, so that the second road user 20 can receive and process information about the detected event 18. Instead of discarding the received information about the detected event 18 due to its irrelevance to the second road user 20, the electronic device of the second road user 20 uploads the received information about the detected event 18 to the backend server 12, thereby enriching its database. As shown in Figure 1, the uploaded data about the detected event 18 is relevant to other road users, for example, the third road user 22. Therefore, uploading data received from the environment via direct communication signals can help improve road safety through the presence of a more enhanced database with more accurate knowledge of the environment surrounding road users 16 and the road infrastructure 14. Advantageously, the number of road user collisions and associated fatalities can be significantly reduced.

[0068] The electronic device of the third road user 22 is configured to download information associated with the detected event 18 from the backend server 12 and to determine the relevance of the detected event 18 to the third road user 22 based on the information associated with the detected event 18. The electronic device of the third road user 22 can output the determined relevance to the vehicle driver and / or prepare countermeasures based on the determined relevance of the detected event 18. The electronic device of the third road user 22 can conclude that the vehicle needs to be smoothly decelerated to reduce the risk of a rear-end collision with the first road user 16 and can issue a warning to the driver of the vehicle representing the third road user 22. Accordingly, the risk of collision of the third road user 22 due to event 18 can be reduced, and road safety for the third road user 22 (and following road users) can be favorably improved.

[0069] In contrast to the traffic situation shown in Figure 1, there may be traffic situations shown in Figures 2 and 3 in which multiple road users 20, 22, and 24 can receive R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals, and each can upload information associated with the detected event 18 to the backend server 12. In this case, the communication network becomes excessively congested, and the database of the backend server 12 contains many redundant data points related to the event 18, resulting in a slow and congested database of the backend server 12.

[0070] To prevent redundant uploads of the same information regarding the detected event 18 to the backend server 12, the road infrastructure 14 and the first electronic device of the first road user 16 are configured to broadcast R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals containing cloud upload information indicating whether or not the event 18 has been uploaded to the backend server 12.

[0071] A road user receiving R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals, such as a second road user 20, uploads information associated with the detected event 18 to the backend server 12 based on the cloud upload information. For example, if the cloud upload information indicates that information regarding the detected event 18 has already been uploaded to the backend server 12 by, for example, the road infrastructure 14 and / or the electronic device of the first road user 16, the electronic device of the second road user 20 does not upload the received information regarding the detected event 18 to the backend server 12 to prevent redundant uploads of the same information regarding the detected event 18 to the backend server 12. Advantageously, the resulting database on the backend server 12 is relatively lean and contains information of a high quality level.

[0072] The traffic conditions shown in Figures 2 and 3 differ from each other in that the electronic device of the first road user 16 in Figure 2 is connected to the backend server 12, while the electronic device of the first road user 16 in Figure 3 is not connected to the backend server 12, or is not connectable to it.

[0073] As shown in Figure 2, the electronic device of the first road user 16 detects an event 18 that does not exist in its memory, such as traffic congestion, and uploads the information associated with the detected event 18 to the backend server 12. Furthermore, the electronic device of the first road user 16 broadcasts an R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information (cloud upload: "yes") indicating that the event 18 has been uploaded to the backend server 12.

[0074] The electronic devices of the second road user 20, the third road user 22, and the fourth road user 24 are also connected to the backend server 12 and receive R2X direct communication signals containing information associated with the detected event 18 and cloud upload information. Due to the cloud upload information ("yes"), the information associated with the detected event 18 is stored in the associated memory of the electronic device but is not uploaded to the backend server 12.

[0075] For example, a third road user 22 may also detect event 18, i.e., traffic congestion already reported by the first road user 16. However, since event 18 already exists in the memory of the third road user 22's electronic device, the third road user 22's electronic device does not upload the information associated with event 18 to the backend server 12. In addition, the third road user 22's electronic device broadcasts an R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information (cloud upload: "unnecessary") indicating that event 18 has already been uploaded to the backend server 12 by another road user. For example, a road user who is not within range of the first road user 16 and is not connected to the backend server 12 cannot receive the information associated with the detected event 18. However, due to the different locations of the third road user 22 relative to the first road user 16, the R2X direct communication signal containing the cloud upload information ("unnecessary") broadcast by the third road user 22 may be received by the mentioned road user, and as a result, road users who are not within range of the first road user 16 may also be warned about the detected event 18 and may be prevented from redundantly uploading the detected event 18.

[0076] If the third road user 22 shown in Figure 2 is not connected to the backend server 12 and has not received an R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("yes") from the first road user 16, then when the third road user 22 detects event 18, i.e., traffic congestion, it can broadcast an R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("no") indicating that the information associated with the detected event 18 has not been uploaded. The fourth road user 24 receives an R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("yes") from the first road user 16 and an R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("no") from the third road user 22, so the electronic device of the fourth road user 24 matches event 18 and broadcasts a forwarding R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("yes"). A forwarding R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("yes") is received by a third road user 22, and the third road user 22 broadcasts a repeating R2X direct communication signal containing the cloud upload information modified (from "no" to "unnecessary") to prevent any redundant uploads of information associated with the detected event 18 to the backend server 12 by other road users who have received the R2X direct communication signal.

[0077] Furthermore, upon detecting the end of event 18 detected via the electronic device of the first road user 16, this electronic device of the first road user 16 can upload the detected event 18's end to the backend server 12 and broadcast a termination R2X direct communication signal containing information associated with the detected event 18's end and cloud upload information ("yes"). The electronic devices of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 can receive the termination R2X direct communication signal containing information associated with the detected event 18's end and cloud upload information. Due to the cloud upload information ("yes"), the information associated with the detected event 18's end is stored in the electronic device's associated memory but is not uploaded to the backend server 12.

[0078] In contrast to the embodiment shown in Figure 2, the electronic device of the first road user 16 shown in Figure 3 cannot connect to the backend server 12. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the electronic device of the first road user 16 detects that event 18, i.e., traffic congestion, does not exist in its memory and broadcasts an R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information (cloud upload: "No") indicating that event 18 has not been uploaded to the backend server 12. The electronic devices of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 receive the R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("No").

[0079] In an exemplary case where the road infrastructure 14 detects event 18 and uploads it to the backend server 12 (see dotted arrow in Figure 3), the electronic devices of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 may download the detected event 18 from the backend server 12 and, due to the match of event 18, decide not to upload the detected event 18 to the backend server 12, even though the received R2X direct communication signal contained cloud upload information ("no"). The electronic devices of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 can broadcast a forward R2X direct communication signal containing cloud upload information ("yes" or "not needed") to prevent redundant uploads of information associated with the detected event 18. For example, the first road user 16 may receive at least one of the broadcast forward R2X direct communication signals from one of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 containing cloud upload information "not needed". Next, the first road user 16 can change the cloud upload information in the subsequent R2X direct communication signal for event 18 from "no" to "unnecessary" in order to prevent any redundant uploads of information by other road users receiving the R2X direct communication signal of the first road user 16.

[0080] In a different scenario where the road infrastructure 14 has not detected event 18 and has not uploaded it to the backend server 12, i.e., the detected event 18 is not stored in the backend server 12, none of the electronic devices of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 have stored the corresponding event 18 in their memory. Therefore, any of the electronic devices of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 can upload information associated with the detected event 18. To prevent redundant uploads of this information, the electronic devices of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 may be configured to broadcast a third R2X direct communication signal containing a Cooperative Recognition Message (CAM) to indicate the presence of road users 20, 22, and 24 to the surrounding road users 16, 20, 22, and 24, and, for example, to the road infrastructure 14. The CAM is extended to include cloud connectivity information indicating whether each electronic device is connected to the backend server 12.

[0081] Based on cloud connectivity information, surrounding road users 16, 20, 22, and 24 are informed of which of the road users 20, 22, and 24 are connected to the backend server 12. Furthermore, the CAM is configured to be forwarded once by the receiver of a third R2X direct communication signal, enabling indirect communication with other road users 20, 22, and 24 within the hop distance of the first road user 16. For example, based on the exchanged CAMs, the first road user 16 can aggregate the CAM information received from each of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 into a single list and broadcast a CAM containing that list. The second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 can receive the CAM containing the list and recognize each other road users. In other words, each of the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 electronic devices may be further configured to determine whether multiple road users 20, 22, and 24 connected to the backend server 12 are present in the environment of the first road user 16 and / or the road infrastructure 14.

[0082] When it is determined that the second to fourth road users 20, 22, and 24 are present within the environment of the first road user 16 and / or the road infrastructure 14, the information associated with the detected event 18 is uploaded from the second electronic device of the second road user 20 to the backend server 12 based on predetermined conditions. The predetermined conditions prioritize which of the multiple road users 20, 22, and 24 connected to the backend server 12 is eligible to upload the information associated with the detected event 18 to the backend server 12. In Figure 3, the predetermined condition is the shortest distance, and the second road user 20 is the shortest distance to the first road user 16. Therefore, the second road user 20 is eligible to upload the information associated with the detected event 18 to the backend server 12. The second road user 20 broadcasts a forwarding R2X direct communication signal containing the information associated with the detected event 18 and the cloud upload information ("yes"). Therefore, the third and fourth road users 22, 24, and subsequent road users traveling within range of the direct communication signal are prevented from uploading information associated with the detected event 18 to the backend server 12. For example, the first road user 16 can receive a forward R2X direct communication signal broadcast from the second road user 20, which includes the cloud upload information "yes". The first road user 16 can then change the cloud upload information in the subsequent R2X direct communication signal for event 18 from "no" to "yes" to prevent any redundant uploads of information by other road users receiving the first road user 16's R2X direct communication signal.

[0083] Any of the R2X direct communication signals referred to herein may further include at least one or more pieces of information relating to event type, event quality, timestamp, action ID, station ID, location, direction of travel, and hop limit.

[0084] Figure 4 schematically shows a flowchart of a method for improving road safety according to one embodiment, which may be used in any of the ITS10s in Figures 1 to 3.

[0085] According to the first step 50 of the method, an event 18 relating to a threat to road safety by the road infrastructure 14 and / or a first road user 16 in that environment is detected, for example, by the first electronic device of the first road user 16 and / or the road infrastructure 14 of the ITS 10.

[0086] According to the second step 52, at least a portion of the information associated with the detected events 18 from the road infrastructure 14 and / or the first road user 16 is uploaded to the backend server 12 by the road infrastructure 14 and / or the first road user 16, based on whether a connection to the backend server 12 is possible.

[0087] According to the third step 54, an R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal containing information associated with the detected event 18 is broadcast by the road infrastructure 14 and / or the first road user 16. The R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal includes cloud upload information indicating whether or not the event 18 has been uploaded to the backend server 12.

[0088] According to the fourth step 56, the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals are received by the second road user 20.

[0089] According to step 58 of the fifth method, at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event 18 is uploaded from the second road user 20 to the backend server 12 based on the cloud upload information.

[0090] According to the sixth step 60, at least some of the information associated with the detected event 18 is downloaded from the backend server 12 by the third road user 22.

[0091] According to step 62 of the seventh step, the relevance of the detected event 18 to the third road user 22 is determined based on the information associated with the detected event 18.

[0092] According to step 64 of the eighth step, the determined relevance of the detected event 18 is output, and / or countermeasures based on the determined relevance of the detected event 18 are prepared, for example, by the electronic device of the third road user 22.

[0093] The method steps relating to the first road user 16 may be considered a further method according to the present invention, and the method steps relating to the second road user 20 may be considered a different method according to the present invention. That is, Figure 4 also schematically shows flowcharts of the method for the first road user 16 and the method for the second road user 20. The method for the first road user 16 includes the first step 50 to the third step 54, and the method for the second road user 20 includes the fourth step 56 and the fifth step 58.

[0094] Figure 5 schematically illustrates an electronic device 26 for road users according to the present invention. The electronic device 26 may correspond to an electronic device for a first road user 16 and / or a second road user 20. However, the disclosure is not limited thereto, and some or each of the road users 16, 20, 22, and 24 shown in Figures 1 to 3 may each include the electronic device 26 shown in Figure 5.

[0095] The electronic device 26 includes an R2X communication module 28, a sensor unit 30 configured to scan the environment of the electronic device 26 at least partially for events 18 relating to threats to road safety, a processor 32, and a memory 34. The sensor unit 30 may include a camera system including at least one camera or multiple cameras, for example, a surround-view camera system. The processor 32 is configured to detect events 18 relating to threats to road safety in its environment by using the sensor unit 30 (and processing the corresponding sensor data), and to broadcast and / or receive an R2X direct communication signal by using the R2X communication module 28, which includes information associated with the detected event 18, including cloud upload information indicating whether the event 18 has been uploaded to the backend server 12. The R2X direct communication signal may include the event type, the event location, the event time at which the event 18 was detected, and / or the type of detection means for detecting the event 18.

[0096] Direct communication between road users 16, 20, 22, 24 and / or road infrastructure 14, and / or communication with backend server 12, may be based on exchanged radio frequency (RF) signals, such as Bluetooth, ultra-wideband, wireless LAN, 4G and / or 5G mobile communication technologies. However, the present invention is not limited to these. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0097] 10. Advanced Road Traffic Systems 12 backend servers 14 Road infrastructure 16. First road users 18. Events concerning threats to road safety 20 Second road users 22 Third road users 24. Fourth road user 26 Electronic Devices 28 Communication Module 30 Sensor Units 32 processors 34 memory 50 First Method Step - Detecting an Event 52. Step 2 of Method - Upload the Event 54. Third Method Step - Broadcast the Direct Communication Signal 56. Fourth Method Step - Receiving a Direct Communication Signal 58. Method 5: Step - Upload the detected events. 60. Step 6 of Method - Download the detected events 62. Method 7 Step - Determine the relevance of the events. 64. Step 8 of Method - Output the determined association.

Claims

1. An intelligent transport system (ITS) (10) for improving road safety, - Backend server (12), - A first road user (16) including a road infrastructure (14) and / or a first electronic device, Detect events (18) in the environment relating to threats to road safety, Based on whether a connection to the backend server (12) is possible, at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) is uploaded to the backend server (12). Broadcasting road user-to-all, R2X and / or infrastructure-to-road user, and I2R direct communication signals, which include the information associated with the detected event (18), wherein the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals broadcast include cloud upload information indicating whether the event (18) has been uploaded to the backend server (12). A road infrastructure (14) and / or a first road user (16) are configured as follows: - A second road user (20) including a second electronic device, Receiving the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals, Based on the cloud upload information, at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) is uploaded to the backend server (12). The second road user (20) is configured in such a way, - A third road user (22) including a third electronic device, Download at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) from the backend server (12), Based on the information associated with the detected event (18), the relevance of the detected event (18) to the third road user (22) is determined. Output the determined association and / or prepare countermeasures based on the determined association of the detected event (18). A third road user (22) and ITS (10) is equipped with this.

2. The ITS (10) according to claim 1, wherein the threat to road safety relates to road obstacles, the driving environment, and / or the road infrastructure (14) and / or the first electronic device in the environment.

3. The second electronic device of the second road user (20) If the cloud upload information indicates that the event (18) has not been uploaded to the backend server (12), then at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) is uploaded to the backend server (12). A second R2X direct communication signal is broadcast, which includes the information associated with the detected event (18) and the cloud upload information configured to indicate that the event (18) has been uploaded to the backend server (12). ITS (10) according to claim 1 or 2, configured as follows.

4. The first electronic device of the first road user (16) It is identified that the information associated with the detected event (18) was stored in the memory of the first electronic device prior to the detection of the event (18), The cloud upload information included in the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal is configured to indicate that uploading the event (18) to the backend server (12) is not required. It is configured in such a way, and / or, The second electronic device of the second road user (20) Identifying that the information associated with the detected event (18) was stored in the memory of the second electronic device prior to the reception of the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signals, A second R2X direct communication signal is broadcast, which includes the information associated with the detected event (18) and the cloud upload information configured to indicate that uploading the event (18) to the backend server (12) is not required. ITS (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, configured as described above.

5. The ITS (10) according to claim 4, wherein the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal further includes cloud reference time information indicating the time when the event (18) was uploaded to the backend server (12).

6. The second electronic device is Broadcasting a third R2X direct communication signal, including a coordinated recognition message, CAM, to indicate the presence of the second road user (20) to surrounding road users (16, 22, 24) and / or road infrastructure (14), wherein the CAM is extended to include cloud connectivity information indicating whether the second electronic device is connected to the backend server (12) and configured to be transmitted once by the receiver of the third R2X direct communication signal. It is further configured in this way, The road infrastructure (14) and / or the first electronic device The third R2X direct communication signal is received and transmitted via broadcast. Receive and transmit one or more response R2X direct communication signals to the third R2X direct communication signal transmitted via broadcast. It is further configured in this way, The second electronic device is Upon receiving one or more R2X direct communication response signals, The process involves determining whether a plurality of road users (20, 22, 24) connected to the backend server (12) are present in the environment of the first road user (16) and / or the road infrastructure (14), and if it is determined that a plurality of road users (20, 22, 24) connected to the backend server (12) are present in the environment of the first road user (16) and / or the road infrastructure (14), then, based on predetermined conditions, the information associated with the detected event (18) is uploaded to the backend server (12). ITS (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further configured as follows.

7. The ITS (10) according to claim 6, wherein the predetermined conditions correspond to the distance to the first road user (16) and / or the road infrastructure (14), and / or connectivity to the backend server (12).

8. The ITS (10) according to claim 7, wherein the distance to the first road user (16) and / or the road infrastructure (14) is determined based on location information present in the exchanged CAM and / or by time-of-flight measurements of direct communication signals exchanged between the road users (16, 20, 22, 24).

9. The ITS (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the broadcasted R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal includes or comprises a distributed environment notification message, DENM, associated with the detected event (18), extended with the cloud upload information.

10. ITS (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the first R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal, the second R2X direct communication signal, and / or the third R2X direct communication signal are based on connectionless communication, and the upload from the second road user (20) to the backend server (12) and / or the download from the backend server (12) to the third road user (22) are based on connection-oriented communication.

11. A method for improving road safety, - A step (50) in which the road infrastructure (14) and / or a first road user (16) in that environment detect an event (18) relating to a threat to road safety, - A step (52) of uploading at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) from the road infrastructure (14) and / or the first road user (16) to the backend server (12) based on whether a connection to the backend server (12) is possible, - Step (54) of broadcasting a road user to all, R2X and / or infrastructure to road user, I2R direct communication signal by the road infrastructure (14) and / or a first road user (16), the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal including information associated with the detected event (18), wherein the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal includes cloud upload information indicating whether the event (18) has been uploaded to the backend server (12), - A second road user (20) receives the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal (56), - A step (58) of uploading at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) from the second road user (20) to the backend server (12) based on the cloud upload information, - A third road user (22) downloads at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) from the backend server (12) (60), - A step (62) to determine the relevance of the detected event (18) to the third road user (22) based on the information associated with the detected event (18), - A step (64) of outputting the determined association of the detected event (18) and / or preparing countermeasures based on the determined association of the detected event (18) Methods that include...

12. A method for road infrastructure (14) and / or for first road users (16), - A step (50) in which the road infrastructure (14) and / or the first road user (16) in that environment detect an event (18) relating to a threat to road safety, - Step (52) of uploading at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) to the backend server (12) by the road infrastructure (14) and / or the first road user (16), based on whether a connection to the backend server (12) is possible, - Step (54) of broadcasting a road user to all, R2X and / or infrastructure to road user, I2R direct communication signal by the road infrastructure (14) and / or the first road user (16), the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal including information associated with the detected event (18), wherein the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal includes cloud upload information indicating whether the event (18) has been uploaded to the backend server (12) and Methods that include...

13. A method for a second road user (20), - Step (56) of receiving a road user-to-all, R2X and / or infrastructure-to-road user, I2R direct communication by the second road user (20) including information associated with an event (18) detected by another road user (16), wherein the R2X and / or I2R direct communication signal includes cloud upload information indicating whether the event (18) has been uploaded to the backend server (12), - A step (58) of uploading at least a portion of the information associated with the detected event (18) from the second road user (20) to the backend server (12) based on the cloud upload information. Methods that include...

14. An electronic device (26) configured to perform the method according to claim 12 and / or 13.

15. A computer program, which, when the program is executed by a computer, includes an instruction causing the computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 11 to 13.

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