Automated Longitudinal Control With Deferred Signaling Updates
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle guidance systems lack the ability to reliably and robustly integrate signaling units, such as traffic lights and stop signs, into automated longitudinal guidance functions, affecting safety, comfort, and availability, especially in urban areas.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle guidance system that incorporates sensors and map data to detect and interpret signaling units, allowing for automated speed and distance control, and provides a user interface for manual override, enabling the system to adjust its operation based on the presence and state of signaling units.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the driving function automatically takes signaling units into consideration, then safety and reliability are improved, but the device complexity increases due to additional sensors and processing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple detection approaches (sensor-based detection of signaling units and map data-based identification) into a unified driving function. The control device integrates signals from various sensors (camera, radar, lidar) with pre-stored map data to reliably identify signaling units, thereby improving safety while managing system complexity through coordinated integration rather than separate independent systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The driving function is designed to handle multiple types of signaling units (traffic lights, stop signs, yield signs) and various detection methods through a single multi-functional control device. This universal approach allows the system to adapt to different signaling scenarios without requiring separate dedicated systems for each type, improving reliability while controlling complexity.
2Reliability
If the system detects and responds to signaling units in real-time, then the availability of automated guidance is improved, but the processing time and computational load increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-storing map data containing information about signaling units along planned routes. Before the vehicle reaches a signaling unit, the control device has already identified its location and characteristics from the map data, allowing for advance planning of the driving response. This reduces real-time processing requirements and improves availability without significant time loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback from sensors to verify the actual presence and state of signaling units against the pre-stored map data. This feedback mechanism allows the system to confirm detections and make real-time adjustments without requiring complete real-time analysis from scratch, thereby improving availability while minimizing processing time through comparison with expected values.
3Reliability
If the driving function operates in automatic mode with signaling unit detection, then comfort is improved, but the ease of operation decreases due to reduced manual control
Solution Approach 1:
The driving function implements dynamic operation modes that can switch between automatic and manual control based on driving conditions and user preferences. The system can automatically respond to signaling units in comfort-oriented modes while allowing manual override when users prefer direct control. This dynamic adaptability provides comfort through automation while maintaining ease of operation through flexible mode selection and override capabilities.
4Measurement precision
If the system uses multiple sensors and data sources to detect signaling units, then measurement precision is improved, but the loss of information increases due to data integration challenges
Solution Approach 1:
The control device acts as an intermediary that receives and integrates data from multiple sensors (camera, radar, lidar) and compares it with pre-stored map data. This intermediary function reconciles information from different sources, resolving conflicts and filling gaps to maintain measurement precision while preventing information loss through systematic data fusion rather than simple aggregation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces complex mechanical verification processes with electronic and optical sensor-based detection. Instead of physical inspection of signaling units, the system uses camera images, radar returns, and lidar point clouds processed through algorithms to identify and verify signaling units. This substitution improves measurement precision through multiple detection modalities while managing information loss through digital data processing and comparison with map data.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle control system provides a driving function for the automated longitudinal control of a vehicle. The vehicle control system is configured to detect that the user of the vehicle causes a change in the configuration of a property of the driving function at a configuration time or in a configuration position of the vehicle. The vehicle control system is additionally configured to ascertain that a first signaling unit lying ahead in the direction of travel of the vehicle is already taken into account during the automated longitudinal control of the vehicle at the configuration time or in the configuration position, and to take into account the change in the configuration during the automated longitudinal control of the vehicle only in a signaling unit that follows the first signaling unit.