Roundabout Entry Timing Using Rear-Vehicle Communication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous vehicles face challenges in determining a safe entry time into a roundabout, especially without additional guiding infrastructure, as they struggle to sense vehicles approaching the path they will travel, leading to potential collisions.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a position recognizer, front and rear sensors, a controller, and a communicator that calculates a possible entry time for vehicles entering a roundabout, considering the host vehicle's passage time, following vehicles' times, and weather conditions, and provides this information to incoming vehicles through warning devices to prevent collisions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If autonomous vehicles rely only on their own sensors to determine entry time into a roundabout, then the system complexity is reduced, but the measurement precision of entry time safety is insufficient because they cannot sense vehicles approaching their travel path
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a communicator as an intermediary device that receives information from rear sensors of other vehicles and transmits it to the autonomous vehicle. This mediator allows the autonomous vehicle to indirectly sense approaching vehicles without requiring complex omnidirectional sensing capabilities, thereby improving entry time detection precision while maintaining reasonable system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where information about following vehicles is continuously transmitted to the autonomous vehicle through the communicator. This feedback loop enables the autonomous vehicle to adjust its entry time determination based on real-time information about vehicles approaching from behind, improving the precision of safety assessment
2Reliability
If additional infrastructure for guiding entry time is constructed, then the reliability of entry time determination is improved, but the ease of manufacture and deployment is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables vehicles to self-service by equipping them with rear sensors and communicators that allow them to autonomously determine entry times based on information about following vehicles. This eliminates the need for external infrastructure like traffic management systems or guiding infrastructure, maintaining high reliability while ensuring ease of deployment
Solution Approach 2:
The rear sensor and communicator components serve multiple functions: they detect following vehicles, calculate their approach times, transmit this information to incoming vehicles, and enable coordinated entry. This multi-functionality achieves reliable entry time determination using standard vehicle components rather than specialized infrastructure
3Reliability
If the autonomous vehicle waits for a later entry time to ensure safety, then the reliability of collision prevention is improved, but the productivity of traffic flow is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by having following vehicles transmit their approach time information to the autonomous vehicle before the autonomous vehicle reaches the roundabout entry point. This advance information allows the autonomous vehicle to optimize its entry time rather than simply waiting, improving both collision prevention reliability and traffic flow productivity
Solution Approach 2:
The entry time determination is made dynamic rather than static. The autonomous vehicle adjusts its entry time based on real-time information about following vehicles' positions and speeds, allowing it to enter as soon as it is safe rather than adhering to a fixed waiting schedule, thereby maintaining high reliability while improving traffic flow efficiency
Data Source
AI summary
A system with control of vehicle driving through a roundabout includes: a position recognizer configured to recognize that a host vehicle is traveling around the roundabout; a front sensor disposed at a front of the host vehicle and configured to sense a vehicle that possibly enters the roundabout while the host vehicle is traveling around the roundabout; a rear sensor disposed at a rear of the host vehicle and configured to recognize a vehicle following the host vehicle while the host vehicle is traveling around the roundabout; a controller configured to calculate a possible entry time of the vehicle that possibly enters the roundabout, using information sensed by the rear sensor; and a communicator configured to provide the calculated possible entry time to the vehicle that possibly enters the roundabout.