Autonomous Driving Route Planning for Fewer Intersection Lane Changes

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Autonomous vehicles face difficulties in navigating intersections due to global routes generated without considering traffic conditions, leading to excessive lane changes, potential accidents, and discomfort for occupants.

Innovation Solution

An autonomous driving route generation system that utilizes real-time traffic information and travel change distances to determine local routes, adjusting global routes based on traffic flow phases and weather conditions, allowing for safer and more comfortable navigation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If the navigation system generates a global route without considering traffic conditions and lane location, then the route can be generated quickly, but the autonomous vehicle requires excessive lane changes to follow the route

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveroute generation speedVSAvoidlane change frequency

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary analysis of traffic conditions, lane locations, and intersection characteristics before generating the global route. By pre-evaluating these factors and selecting appropriate lanes in advance, the system reduces the number of lane changes needed during actual route following, thus resolving the contradiction between quick route generation and excessive lane changes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If the autonomous vehicle attempts extra hard to change lanes to follow the global route, then the vehicle can stay on the planned route, but it disturbs traffic in the lanes

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveroute following accuracyVSAvoidtraffic disturbance

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system dynamically adjusts lane change strategies based on real-time traffic conditions. When traffic is dense, the system modifies its lane change behavior to avoid disturbing other vehicles, even if it means temporarily deviating from the optimal global route. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction between maintaining route accuracy and avoiding traffic disturbance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously monitors traffic conditions and feedback from other vehicles to adjust its lane change decisions. By incorporating real-time feedback about traffic density and vehicle responses, the system can determine when to prioritize route following and when to prioritize traffic flow, thus resolving the contradiction between route accuracy and traffic disturbance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Object-affected harmful factors

If the autonomous vehicle fails to change lanes and deviates from the global route, then traffic flow is maintained, but a greater amount of time is used to re-enter the global route

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetraffic disruptionVSAvoidtime to re-enter route

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system pre-calculates alternative routes and lane change opportunities along the global route. By having backup plans ready in advance, when the vehicle needs to deviate to maintain traffic flow, it can quickly re-enter the global route or switch to a pre-planned alternative, thus minimizing the time loss from route deviation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

4Device complexity

If the navigation system generates a global route without considering the location of the autonomous vehicle, then route generation is simplified, but the vehicle requires more lane changes from its current lane

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveroute generation complexityVSAvoidlane change distance

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies local quality analysis by considering the specific characteristics of the current lane and its proximity to intersections. Instead of using a uniform route generation approach, the system tailors the route planning to the local lane configuration and traffic patterns, selecting lanes that minimize the distance to intersections and reduce the number of lane changes needed, thus resolving the contradiction between simplified route generation and excessive lane changes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS12559105B2Autonomous driving control method and an autonomous driving vehicle

Publication Date: 2026.02.24 HYUNDAI MOTOR CO LTD

AI summary

An autonomous driving route generation method includes under control of an autonomous driving system of the autonomous vehicle, transmitting a current location of the autonomous vehicle provided by a global positioning system to a navigation system, providing the current location to a traffic server, and receiving first traffic information related to a global route, generating second traffic information related to surroundings of the autonomous vehicle traveling on the global route, generating traffic flow information by collecting and determining the first traffic information and the second traffic information to determine at least one traffic flow phase on the global route, determining a travel change distance required for the autonomous vehicle to travel on a current lane before changing into a neighboring lane based on the traffic flow information, and generating at least one local route by applying the travel change distance and the traffic flow information to the global route.