Vehicle Sensor Field-of-View Adjustment via Map Contours
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vehicle perception systems operate at maximum field-of-view, collecting and processing unnecessary data, which wastes resources and can lead to false positive object detections due to misinterpretation of road contours, such as slopes or curvatures, as obstacles.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle perception sensor adjustment system that dynamically adjusts its field-of-view based on the contour of the roadway indicated by a digital map, reducing data collection and processing by excluding irrelevant areas, using a controller circuit to output control signals to the perception sensors, such as cameras, radar, or lidar units, to focus on relevant data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the perception sensor operates at maximum field-of-view, then the sensor can detect all possible objects in the environment, but unnecessary data is collected and processed, wasting computational resources and energy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and excludes irrelevant areas from the sensor's field-of-view based on digital map contour data. By identifying road boundaries, slopes, and curvatures from map data, the system removes unnecessary regions (such as areas beyond road edges or irrelevant environmental features) from the perception sensor's active detection zone, thereby reducing data collection and processing requirements while maintaining detection accuracy for relevant objects.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different detection qualities to different spatial regions. High-resolution detection is applied only to areas relevant to vehicle operation (such as the roadway and immediate surroundings), while peripheral or irrelevant areas are excluded or detected at lower resolution. This local differentiation optimizes computational resources by concentrating processing power where it is most needed.
2Reliability
If the perception sensor operates at maximum field-of-view, then comprehensive environmental data is collected, but false positive object detections occur due to misinterpretation of road contours as obstacles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by using digital map contour data to pre-identify and exclude regions that would otherwise be misinterpreted as obstacles. Before the sensor collects data, the system uses map information about road contours, slopes, and curvatures to determine which areas are irrelevant or will cause false positives, and proactively excludes them from the field-of-view. This prevents false positive detections before they occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary action by pre-processing environmental understanding through digital map data. The system analyzes road contours, slopes, and curvatures from map information before the perception sensor operates, and uses this pre-acquired knowledge to configure the sensor's field-of-view. This preliminary configuration prevents the sensor from collecting misleading data about road features that would otherwise be misinterpreted as obstacles.
3Productivity
If the perception sensor operates at maximum field-of-view, then all areas are monitored, but the data processing load increases and unnecessary data is generated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes irrelevant data regions from the sensor's field-of-view based on digital map contour information. By identifying and excluding areas such as regions beyond road boundaries, irrelevant terrain features, or areas known to be safe based on map data, the system significantly reduces the volume of data that requires processing while maintaining comprehensive monitoring of relevant areas.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle perception sensor adjustment system includes a perception-sensor, a digital-map, and controller-circuit. The perception-sensor is configured to detect an object proximate to a host-vehicle. The perception-sensor is characterized as having a field-of-view that is adjustable. The digital-map indicates a contour of a roadway traveled by the host-vehicle. The controller-circuit in communication with the perception-sensor and the digital-map. The controller-circuit determines the field-of-view of the perception-sensor in accordance with the contour of the roadway indicated by the digital-map, and outputs a control-signal to the perception-sensor that adjusts the field-of-view of the perception-sensor.