Sensor Arrangement Fallback Ranking for Vehicle Stability

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Solution Overview

Problem

Modern vehicles require highly reliable sensor architectures for driver assistance and safety, but existing systems fail to maintain functionality when individual sensors malfunction or provide inaccurate data, often necessitating vehicle repair and service intervention.

Innovation Solution

A method that ranks sensor data based on a stored evaluation metric, allowing fallback to alternative sensors that provide similar data, with parameters including accuracy, frequency of updates, and user trust values, enabling dynamic selection and use of the best available sensor data to maintain system stability and functionality.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If sensor arrangements use multiple sensors for driver assistance and safety functions, then system reliability improves, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesensor arrangement reliabilityVSAvoidsensor arrangement complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system pre-ranks sensors based on evaluation metrics before failures occur. This preliminary ranking allows the control unit to quickly switch to alternative sensors when failures happen, improving reliability without adding complex real-time decision-making logic during critical moments.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously monitors sensor status and dynamically adjusts rankings based on current performance data. This feedback mechanism ensures that the most reliable sensors are always selected, maintaining high system reliability while using a systematic approach that manages complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Stability of the object's composition

If the system implements real-time sensor ranking and fallback mechanisms, then system stability improves, but processing requirements and computational load increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesensor arrangement stabilityVSAvoidcomputational energy consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

Sensors are ranked in advance using stored evaluation metrics before runtime failures occur. This preliminary ranking reduces the computational burden during critical failure moments, as the control unit simply needs to select from pre-ranked alternatives rather than performing complex real-time analysis.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically adjusts sensor rankings based on current performance data while maintaining a balanced approach to computational load. The dynamic nature allows the system to adapt to changing conditions without requiring excessive processing power at any single moment.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

3Reliability

If the system uses fallback sensors when primary sensors fail, then system availability improves, but data accuracy may vary across different sensor sources

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesystem availabilityVSAvoidsensor data accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system uses evaluation metrics that incorporate data accuracy assessments to rank sensors. When selecting fallback sensors, the control unit chooses from ranked alternatives based on their proven accuracy performance, ensuring that even backup sensors meet quality standards.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The system changes the selection criteria for sensors based on their operational status. Primary sensors are selected based on normal operating parameters, while fallback selection uses different parameters including historical accuracy data and evaluation metrics, allowing the system to maintain data quality across different operational states.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentEP3270567B1Method, system and computer program for fail-proof sensor arrangement
Publication Date: 2019.07.03 BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE AG
  • EP3270567B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3270567B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3270567B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The present invention is directed towards a method for improving stability of sensor arrangements and a respective control device along with a computer program. The present invention allows a robust operation of sensor arrangements as upon failures of single sensors further sensors providing similar data are addressed.