Back-Propagating Collision Avoidance for Vehicle Intersections
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current intersection collision avoidance systems are complex and not adequately simple or reliable, as they require precise determination of vehicle positions, lane information, weather, and accident conditions, failing to effectively prevent collisions at intersections.
Innovation Solution
A back-propagating intersection collision avoidance system that uses a processing unit with a disturbance model to calculate a capture set for vehicles approaching an intersection, allowing for evasive maneuvers by determining if vehicles will enter a collision zone and instructing acceleration or de-acceleration to prevent collisions, even with uncertainties in vehicle dynamics and communication delays.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a positioning system determines absolute position of vehicles and uses multiple parameters (lane information, weather conditions, accident conditions) to prevent collisions, then collision avoidance capability is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates unnecessary parameters from the collision avoidance system. Instead of using absolute positioning, lane information, weather conditions, and accident conditions, the invention focuses solely on calculating the time-to-collision based on relative positions and velocities of vehicles approaching the intersection, significantly simplifying the system while maintaining effectiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The patent inverts the traditional collision detection approach by calculating time-to-collision in advance rather than detecting collisions in real-time. This backward-looking approach allows the system to determine when vehicles will reach the collision zone and trigger appropriate responses beforehand, improving reliability while reducing computational complexity
2Productivity
If the system calculates time-to-collision based on vehicle positions and velocities, then computational efficiency is improved, but measurement precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameters used in the calculation from absolute positions to relative positions and velocities. By using relative measurements (distance between vehicles and their relative speeds), the system achieves better computational efficiency while the required measurement precision is more manageable, as relative measurements can be derived from standard sensor data without requiring high-precision absolute positioning
Data Source
AI summary
A back-propagating intersection collision avoidance system is provided. The system can include a first vehicle and a second vehicle, the first and second vehicles each operable to approach an intersection at a definable velocity and acceleration. In addition, the intersection can have a collision zone in which the first and second vehicles will collide if they are present there at the same time. The first vehicle can have a processing unit with a controller and a microprocessor, the microprocessor having an algorithm with a disturbance model. The processing unit is operable to back-propagate from the collision zone a capture set as a function of a disturbance for the first and second vehicles.