Vehicle Alert Activation Thresholds for Curved Target Paths
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle safety systems fail to accurately alert passengers of external hazards, particularly when exiting the vehicle, as they do not account for complex trajectories, leading to false alarms or missed hazards due to instantaneous heading projections.
Innovation Solution
A system that identifies and estimates the target path of nearby dynamic objects, adjusting activation thresholds based on curvature to provide earlier and more accurate alerts by extending the time-to-collision value and increasing the activation zone for curved paths.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the system uses instantaneous heading projection to determine alert activation, then the system responds quickly to apparent hazards, but it produces false alarms when targets are turning away or misses hazards when targets are turning toward the activation zone
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary path curvature analysis on detected targets before determining alert activation. By estimating the curvature of a target's path in advance and comparing it to a threshold, the system predicts whether the target will enter the activation zone, allowing for more reliable alert decisions without excessive complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the alert activation criteria based on the detected path curvature of the target. When curvature exceeds the threshold, the system modifies which conditions trigger alerts, making the activation criteria adaptive rather than static, thereby improving reliability without requiring complete path reconstruction
2Loss of time
If the system extends the time-to-collision value for curved paths, then the system provides earlier notification of approaching hazards, but it increases the activation zone area which may reduce alert specificity
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies different time-to-collision extension rules based on the local curvature characteristics of the target path. Rather than uniformly extending the activation zone, the system selectively extends TTC values for targets with significant curvature, maintaining alert specificity while providing earlier notification where needed
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the time-to-collision parameter dynamically based on path curvature detection. When a target's path curvature exceeds the threshold, the system adjusts the TTC value to provide earlier alert activation, effectively using parameter modification to balance early warning with alert accuracy
Data Source
AI summary
System, methods, and other embodiments described herein relate to improving alerts to a passenger about hazards when exiting a subject vehicle. In one embodiment, a method includes, in response to identifying a target in a surrounding environment of the subject vehicle, estimating a target path of the target. The method includes selectively adjusting an activation threshold for providing an alert according to a curvature of the target path. The method includes activating the alert to inform the passenger of a hazard associated with the target according to whether the target path satisfies the activation threshold.