Autonomous Vehicle Interior Safety Alerts for Predicted Collisions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous vehicles lack effective internal safety systems to alert passengers of impending collisions or unexpected maneuvers, potentially harming them due to lack of advance notice.
Innovation Solution
Implementation of an active safety system that uses sensor data to predict collisions and activate interior and exterior safety measures, such as acoustic alerts, visual alerts, and bladder deployment, to mitigate potential impacts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If autonomous vehicles operate without internal safety systems, then device complexity is reduced, but passenger safety deteriorates due to lack of collision alerts and protection
Solution Approach 1:
The safety system performs preliminary actions by detecting potential collision scenarios using sensors and predicting collision probability before actual impact occurs. The system activates safety functions in advance, such as alerting passengers and preparing protective measures, thereby preventing harm before it happens.
Solution Approach 2:
The processor acts as an intermediary that receives sensor data from various sensors, processes this information to determine collision probability, and then activates appropriate safety functions. This intermediary processing layer integrates multiple sensor inputs and coordinates the safety response, managing system complexity through centralized intelligence.
2Reliability
If safety systems activate multiple alert functions and protective measures, then passenger safety improves, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The safety system applies partial action by activating only the specific safety functions necessary for the detected threat level. Rather than continuously operating all safety systems, the processor selectively activates alert functions and protective measures based on the calculated collision probability, consuming energy only when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs periodic sensing and evaluation, continuously monitoring the environment through sensors and recalculating collision probability at regular intervals. This periodic operation allows the system to remain vigilant while consuming minimal energy during low-risk periods, activating full safety functions only when threats are detected.
Data Source
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AI summary
Systems, apparatus and methods implemented in algorithms, hardware, software, firmware, logic, or circuitry may be configured to process data and sensory input to determine whether an object external to an autonomous vehicle (e.g., another vehicle, a pedestrian, road debris, a bicyclist, etc.) may be a potential collision threat to the autonomous vehicle. The autonomous vehicle may be configured to implement interior active safety systems to protect passengers of the autonomous vehicle during a collision with an object or during evasive maneuvers by the autonomous vehicle, for example. The interior active safety systems may be configured to provide passengers with notice of an impending collision and/or emergency maneuvers by the vehicle by tensioning seat belts prior to executing an evasive maneuver and/or prior to a predicted point of collision.