Roundabout Driver Assistance Using V2V Priority And Risk Alerts

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) are not specifically designed to assist drivers in negotiating roundabouts, relying on infrastructure-based solutions or short-range sensors, which limits their effectiveness in managing priorities and collision avoidance at roundabouts.

Innovation Solution

A vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) wireless communication-based system using GNSS positioning and digital map-matching to establish priorities and provide real-time alerts for drivers, eliminating the need for roadside units and relying on onboard sensors, allowing vehicles to communicate and compute their own negotiation priorities and collision risks.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If infrastructure-based solutions with roadside units are used, then collision avoidance capability is improved, but device complexity and infrastructure requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecollision avoidance capabilityVSAvoidinfrastructure requirements
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

Each vehicle independently determines its own priority and performs collision risk assessment using its own onboard sensors and V2V communication data, without requiring external roadside units to make decisions. The system serves itself by distributing the computational burden to individual vehicles rather than centralizing it in infrastructure.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts the collision avoidance functionality from centralized roadside units and relocates it to individual vehicles. By removing the infrastructure-based control component and implementing the priority determination logic within each vehicle's onboard system, the solution eliminates dependency on complex roadside infrastructure while maintaining safety capabilities.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Device complexity

If short-range sensors are used, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision and detection range deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesystem simplicityVSAvoiddetection range
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple information sources including V2V communication data (providing distant vehicle position and trajectory information), onboard short-range sensors (radar, cameras for immediate vicinity monitoring), and digital map data. This fusion allows the system to achieve both long-range detection capability through V2V/GNSS and precise short-range measurement through onboard sensors, eliminating the need to choose between them.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses V2V communication to obtain preliminary information about distant vehicles and their intended trajectories before they enter the immediate detection range of onboard sensors. This advance information allows the system to prepare for potential conflicts and use onboard sensors more effectively for final collision risk assessment when vehicles are in closer proximity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Loss of information

If vehicle-to-vehicle communication is implemented, then information exchange capability is improved, but loss of information increases due to communication overhead

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinformation exchange efficiencyVSAvoidcommunication system requirements
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a selective information exchange mechanism where vehicles communicate only the specific data elements necessary for roundabout priority determination and collision risk assessment (such as position, speed, trajectory, and intended maneuver). Rather than exchanging all possible vehicle data, the system transmits only the partial set of information relevant to the current context, reducing communication overhead while maintaining effectiveness.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentEP3387385B1Assisting a motor vehicle driver in negotiating a roundabout
Publication Date: 2024.05.15 CENTRO RICERCHE FIAT SCPA
  • EP3387385B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3387385B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3387385B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

An advanced driver assistance system designed to receive and process motor-vehicle position-related data and motor-vehicle motion-related data of a host motor vehicle and of neighbour motor vehicles detected in the vicinity of the host motor vehicle and which have been determined as entering the same roundabout in which the host motor vehicle will enter, to provide assistance to the driver of the host motor vehicle for negotiating the roundabout. A degree of proximity of the host motor vehicle and the neighbour motor vehicle to the roundabout based on motor-vehicle position-related data is determined and a determined alert level is provided the driver.