Vehicle Hazard Light Collision Warning System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Surrounding vehicles often lack situational awareness of potential collision hazards, which can lead to safety issues, as they do not receive information about occluded obstacles or threats from other vehicles, despite the subject vehicle having better situational awareness.
Innovation Solution
A collision warning system that identifies surrounding objects using sensor data, determines collision probabilities, and communicates alerts to these objects through light patterns if the probability meets a threshold, thereby enhancing situational awareness and safety for both the subject and surrounding vehicles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If the subject vehicle activates hazard communication lights to alert surrounding vehicles of collision hazards, then the situational awareness of surrounding vehicles is improved, but additional communication devices and control logic are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies multi-functionality by utilizing existing vehicle lighting infrastructure (hazard lights, brake lights, turn signals) for the new purpose of hazard communication to surrounding vehicles. This approach avoids requiring entirely new communication devices and leverages components that are already present in virtually all vehicles, thereby reducing overall system complexity while achieving universal applicability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the subject vehicle's own existing lighting systems and hazard detection capabilities to communicate with surrounding vehicles, rather than requiring separate dedicated communication hardware. The vehicle's existing sensors and lights serve dual purposes: their original functions plus the new hazard communication function, eliminating the need for additional specialized devices.
2Measurement precision
If the system continuously monitors surrounding objects and computes collision probabilities, then the accuracy of hazard detection is improved, but the processing requirements and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary processing by continuously monitoring and computing collision probabilities in advance, allowing it to detect potential hazards before they materialize into actual collision risks. This proactive approach enables the system to prepare hazard communication signals ahead of time, reducing the need for intensive real-time processing when hazards are actually detected, thereby managing energy consumption more efficiently.
Data Source
AI summary
System, methods, and other embodiments described herein relate to providing a warning from a subject vehicle to surrounding objects about a collision hazard. In one embodiment, a method includes identifying the surrounding objects of a subject vehicle according to sensor data about a surrounding environment of the subject vehicle. The method includes determining a collision probability indicating a likelihood of collision between a first object and a second object of the surrounding objects. The method includes, in response to the collision probability satisfying a collision threshold, communicating, by the subject vehicle, an alert to at least one of the surrounding objects about the collision hazard associated with the surrounding objects colliding.