Telematics Unit Collision Avoidance Using Wireless Vehicle Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current telematics systems do not provide adequate information to avoid collisions, as they rely on direct sensing of nearby vehicles, which may not alert drivers in time to prevent close proximity at high speeds, leading to potential collisions.
Innovation Solution
A telematics unit that wirelessly receives location and velocity information from other vehicles, calculates relative positions, and provides hazard alerts to the user, allowing for evasive maneuvers or automatic deceleration to prevent collisions, while also transmitting data to a call center in case of an accident.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If direct sensing of nearby vehicles is used, then proximity information is obtained, but alert time is insufficient to prevent close proximity at high speeds
Solution Approach 1:
The telematics unit receives and processes location and velocity information from other vehicles in advance, calculating potential collision risk before the vehicles actually enter close proximity. This preliminary detection and warning system provides early alert to the driver, enabling sufficient time to take evasive action before the dangerous situation develops.
2Device complexity
If telematics systems provide basic location information, then system complexity is low, but collision avoidance capability is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The telematics unit, which already exists for basic vehicle location and emergency reporting functions, is enhanced to perform collision avoidance by integrating reception of other vehicles' telematics data and calculation of relative position and velocity. This multi-functional use of the existing telematics system provides collision avoidance capability without requiring a completely separate detection system.
Solution Approach 2:
The telematics unit acts as an intermediary that receives location and velocity information from other vehicles' telematics units, processes this data to calculate relative motion parameters, and generates collision warnings. This intermediary processing layer transforms basic telematics data into actionable collision avoidance information.
Data Source
AI summary
The various examples disclosed herein relate to systems, methods, and equipment that provide location and velocity monitoring of both a user's vehicle and another vehicle to avoid collision. The examples are applicable for using on-board telematics units to process that information and provide additional information based thereon such as the probability of collision. In some examples, if the chances of collision are high based on information received, warnings may be given to the vehicle's user. Based on these warnings, the user may take evasive maneuvers to reduce the probability of collision and prevent it. In other examples, if the chances of collision are high, the vehicle may decelerate without prompting from the user to minimize the impact of the collision. Any emergency reporting by the telematics unit, e.g. if a collision still occurred, may be enhanced with the relative location and velocity data from some interval the prior to emergency.