Dual Sensing Circuit for Autonomous Vehicle Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current autonomous vehicle systems lack reliable and cost-effective solutions for continuous safe operation and maneuvering, particularly in scenarios where sensor failures or power loss occur, which can compromise safety and functionality.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a dual sensing circuit system, where each circuit is independently powered and capable of providing data for safety maneuvers such as braking, deceleration, or lane changes, ensuring the vehicle can perform necessary safety actions even if one circuit fails, with the primary circuit handling full autonomous driving and the secondary circuit focusing on safety functions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single sensing circuit is used for autonomous driving, then device complexity is reduced, but reliability deteriorates because the system cannot perform safety maneuvers if the circuit fails
Solution Approach 1:
The sensing system is divided into two independent sensing circuits, each capable of independently providing data for safety maneuvers. This segmentation ensures that if one circuit fails, the other can still maintain critical safety functions, thereby improving reliability without requiring a fully redundant complex system.
Solution Approach 2:
The second sensing circuit is configured with selective functionality focused specifically on safety maneuvers rather than full autonomous driving capabilities. This local quality approach allows the system to have targeted redundancy where it matters most (safety functions) while keeping overall device complexity manageable.
2Reliability
If redundant sensing circuits are implemented, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The second sensing circuit implements selective functionality focused specifically on safety maneuvers rather than full autonomous driving capabilities. This local quality approach allows the system to have targeted redundancy where it matters most (safety functions) while keeping overall device complexity manageable.
Solution Approach 2:
The second sensing circuit provides partial functionality - enough to handle safety maneuvers but not full autonomous driving capabilities. This partial action approach achieves the necessary reliability improvement for safety-critical functions without implementing excessive redundancy that would unnecessarily increase device complexity.
3Extent of automation
If high-end hardware infrastructure is used, then autonomous driving capability is improved, but cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The second sensing circuit implements selective functionality focused specifically on safety maneuvers rather than full autonomous driving capabilities. This local quality approach allows the system to have targeted redundancy where it matters most (safety functions) while keeping overall device complexity manageable.
Solution Approach 2:
The second sensing circuit uses less sophisticated, more cost-effective sensors compared to the first circuit. This approach accepts that the secondary circuit may be simpler and potentially shorter-lived, but it provides sufficient functionality for safety maneuvers at a lower cost, making the overall system more economically viable.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus, fitted to a vehicle, for sensing a vehicular environment, includes acquiring with a first sensing circuit at least one first vehicular environment scene data. The first sensing circuit comprises at least one sensor, and is powered by a first power supply. A second sensing circuit is used to acquire at least one second vehicular environment scene data, and it comprises at least one sensor. The second sensing circuit is powered by a second power supply. The at least one first and second vehicular scene data is provided to a processing unit. The processing unit correspondingly determines first and second vehicular control data based on the first and second vehicular scene data. The first and second vehicular control data are each independently useable by a vehicle to automatically perform at least one safety maneuver comprising one or more of: braking; deceleration; movement to a slow lane or hard shoulder.