Stationary Vehicle Impact Detection With Autonomous Evasive Movement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current autonomous vehicle systems cannot autonomously avoid impending collisions when a vehicle is stationary and unoccupied, as they require a driver or an active powertrain to function, limiting their ability to detect and respond to impacts from a distance.
Innovation Solution
The system determines if a stationary vehicle is at risk for an impending impact by monitoring its environment using GPS, vehicle sensor data, and remote data sources, and generates instructions to activate the powertrain and execute an evasive route to a safe location, even when the vehicle is unoccupied and in a low-power state.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If autonomous collision avoidance features are enabled, then collision avoidance capability is improved, but the vehicle requires a driver or active powertrain to function
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically transitions the vehicle between different operational states (monitor state, accessory state, ignition state) based on detected impact risk. The vehicle can activate autonomous driving features on-demand when an impending impact is detected, rather than requiring continuous driver presence or powertrain activation.
Solution Approach 2:
The vehicle autonomously detects impending impacts and executes evasive maneuvers without requiring driver intervention. The system self-activates the powertrain and autonomous driving features when needed, and self-manages the transition between operational states to handle collision avoidance scenarios.
2Use of energy by moving object
If the vehicle remains in a low-power monitor state, then energy consumption is reduced, but the vehicle cannot autonomously respond to impending impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The vehicle performs preliminary monitoring of the environment in a low-power state, detecting objects and their trajectories before impacts occur. When an impending impact is detected, the system pre-activates the powertrain and autonomous driving features to enable timely evasive maneuvers.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the powertrain activation parameter dynamically - keeping it inactive during normal monitoring to save energy, and activating it when impact risk is detected. This parameter change enables the vehicle to balance energy consumption with autonomous response capability.
3Ease of operation
If the vehicle activates the powertrain and autonomous mode, then evasive maneuvers can be executed, but the vehicle transitions from a stationary low-power state
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors environmental data and provides feedback on impact risk. When feedback indicates an impending impact, the system triggers powertrain activation and autonomous mode. After the threat is mitigated, the system feedback-driven deactivates these features to return to low-power state.
Solution Approach 2:
The vehicle periodically monitors the environment in low-power state and only activates the powertrain when necessary. This periodic monitoring approach with event-driven activation reduces overall energy consumption while maintaining the ability to execute evasive maneuvers when needed.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods are presented herein for enabling a vehicle, configured to support autonomous vehicle operation, to change a location of the vehicle based on the detection of an impending impact with the vehicle. A starting location of the vehicle is determined while the vehicle is parked, unoccupied, and comprises an inactive powertrain. In response to determining a watchdog state is enabled, data corresponding to the location is accessed from within a threshold distance of the vehicle. An identifier and a trajectory of an object is determined. In response to determining that the trajectory corresponds to an impact path with the vehicle, an evasive route for the vehicle is determined that terminates at a safe location not subjected to the impending impact. An instruction to activate the vehicle powertrain and an autonomous mode of the vehicle to execute the identified evasive route is transmitted for the vehicle to process.