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DE-102015206335-B4 - Procedure for warning a road user

DE102015206335B4DE 102015206335 B4DE102015206335 B4DE 102015206335B4DE-102015206335-B4

Abstract

Procedure for warning a road user (120, 126) and/or a driver of a motor vehicle (102, 116) with the following steps: - Driving a motor vehicle (102, 116) on a roadway; - Monitoring a first area (101) located next to the roadway and intended not to be driven on by a motor vehicle, by means of at least one sensor (114, 136) arranged in or on the motor vehicle; - Detection of a hazard (122, 124, 130) in the first area (101); - Determine whether - the hazard (122, 124, 130) could cause a road user (120, 126) in the first area (101) to move onto the roadway, - the road user (120, 126) could fall in the first area (101) due to the hazard (122, 124, 130); and/or - the hazard (122, 124, 130) significantly impairs the comfort of the road user in the first area; and - Determining the location and nature of the hazard (122, 124, 130); - Detecting a hazard (118, 134) in a second area (104) located on the roadway on which the motor vehicle (102, 116) is traveling, by means of an optical, electromagnetic and/or acoustic sensor (114, 136) that scans the roadway; - Detection of a hazard (118, 134) in the second area (104) based on a temporary change in the tire diameter (216) and/or a temporary reaction of the chassis (204, 206); - furthermore, exhibiting at least one of the following steps: - Determining the location and nature of the hazard (118, 134) in the second area (104); - furthermore, exhibiting at least one of the following steps: - Storing the location and type of hazard (118, 134) in a database (302) which can be accessed by a plurality of motor vehicles (102, 116); - Sending the location and nature of the hazard (118, 134) to another motor vehicle (102, 116).

Inventors

  • Claudia Langner
  • Daniel Liebau

Assignees

  • BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20150409

Claims (9)

  1. Method for warning a road user (120, 126) and/or a driver of a motor vehicle (102, 116) comprising the following steps: - Driving a motor vehicle (102, 116) on a roadway; - Monitoring a first area (101) located next to the roadway and intended not to be entered by a motor vehicle, by means of at least one sensor (114, 136) arranged in or on the motor vehicle; - Detecting a hazard (122, 124, 130) in the first area (101); - Determine whether - the hazard (122, 124, 130) could cause a road user (120, 126) in the first area (101) to move onto the roadway, - the road user (120, 126) in the first area (101) could fall due to the hazard (122, 124, 130); and/or - the hazard (122, 124, 130) significantly impairs the comfort of the road user in the first area; and - determine the location and nature of the hazard (122, 124, 130); - Detecting a hazard (118, 134) in a second area (104) located on the roadway on which the motor vehicle (102, 116) is traveling, by means of an optical, electromagnetic, and/or acoustic sensor (114, 136) scanning the roadway; - Detecting a hazard (118, 134) in the second area (104) based on a temporary change in the tire diameter (216) and/or a temporary reaction of the chassis (204, 206); - further comprising at least one of the following steps: - Determining the location and nature of the hazard (118, 134) in the second area (104); - furthermore comprising at least one of the following steps: - Storing the location and type of hazard (118, 134) in a database (302) that can be accessed by multiple motor vehicles (102, 116); - Sending the location and type of hazard (118, 134) to another motor vehicle (102, 116).
  2. Procedure according to Claim 1 , characterized in that the first area (101) is a footpath, a cycle path and/or an entrance and/or the road user in the first area is a pedestrian, a cyclist, a wheelchair user, a roller skater, a skateboarder and/or a road user with a wheeled sports device.
  3. Procedure according to Claim 1 or 2 characterized in that the hazard (122, 124, 130) is at least one of the following: - a narrowing (115) of the first area (101); - damage (122, 124, 130) to the traffic surface of the first area; - an end point of the first area (101); - a slope of the first area (101); - a high curb edge in the first area (101); - an overgrown sidewalk with limited width and height; - an overgrown cycle path with limited width and height; - a raised slab of a sidewalk; - a raised slab of a cycle path; - a manhole cover; - a distribution box; - a fire hydrant - a garbage can; - an advertising board; - a sales stand; - an information stand.
  4. Procedure according to one of the Claims 1 until 3 , characterized by the following steps: - storing the location and type of hazard (118, 122, 124, 130, 134) in a database (302) which can be accessed by multiple motor vehicles (112, 116) and/or a mobile electronic device of a road user (120, 126) in the first area (101); further comprising at least one of the following steps: - sending the location and type of hazard (118, 122, 124, 130, 134) to another motor vehicle (112, 116); - sending the location and type of hazard (118, 122, 124, 130, 134) to a road user (120, 126) in the first area (102); - Reading of locations and types of hazards (122, 124, 130) in the first area by a motor vehicle from the database; - Reading of locations and types of hazards (122, 124, 130) in the first area (101) by a road user (120, 126) who intends to pass through the first area (101) from the database (302).
  5. Procedure according to one of the Claims 1 until 4 , characterized by the following steps: - Determining whether a road user (120, 126) located in the first area (102) could move towards the roadway due to the hazard (122, 124, 130); and - Warning the driver of the motor vehicle (112, 116) if it is determined that a road user (120, 126) located in the first area (101) could move towards the roadway due to the hazard (118, 122, 124, 130, 134).
  6. Procedure according to one of the Claims 1 until 5 , characterized by the following steps: - Determine whether a road user (120, 126) is moving in the first area (101) towards the danger point (122, 124, 130); and - Warn the road user (120, 126) in the first area (101) if it is determined that the road user is moving in the first area towards the danger point.
  7. Procedure according to one of the Claims 1 until 6 , characterized by the following steps: - Detecting a value at a detection location (111, 115) using the sensor (114, 136); - Comparing the value detected using the sensor (114, 136) with a limit value; and - Marking the detection location (111, 115) as a hazard if the detected value violates the limit value.
  8. Procedure according to one of the Claims 1 until 7 , characterized by at least one of the following steps: - Receiving the location and type of a hazard (118, 122, 124, 130, 134) from a plurality of motor vehicles (112, 116) in a central facility (300); - Storing the location and type of the hazards (118, 122, 124, 130, 134) in the central facility (300); and - Sending the location and type of the hazards (118, 122, 124, 130, 134) to a plurality of motor vehicles (112, 116) and/or to a plurality of road users (120, 126) in the first area (101).
  9. A computer program product which, when loaded into a computer with a processor and memory and executed by the processor, performs the procedure according to one of the Claims 1 until 8 executes.

Description

The present invention relates to a method for warning a road user, in particular of a road user who is located on a traffic area next to a roadway or street and where there is a risk of a collision with the motor vehicle because the road user could move towards the roadway. Vehicles equipped with sophisticated measuring technology, such as cameras and laser sensors, are known to precisely examine road damage. These vehicles inspect the roadway accessible to vehicles, focusing particularly on vertical damage. The results are displayed on condition maps and serve as the basis for maintenance plans developed by cities and municipalities. Because such vehicles are very expensive to manufacture due to the necessary measuring technology, only a few are in operation. Consequently, the road network is surveyed only irregularly and to a limited extent. Furthermore, motor vehicles are known in the prior art which, for example, have a stereo camera and check the road surface in front of the vehicle for unevenness in order to increase the comfort of the occupant by adjusting the suspension and damping of the vehicle. Collisions between pedestrians and other road users who normally use a traffic area next to a roadway, such as a sidewalk or cycle path, and a motor vehicle occur when these road users are forced to move from the traffic area next to the roadway onto the roadway. This can happen, for example, if the traffic area next to the roadway is damaged or ends. WO 02 / 101 328 A1 discloses a specialized vehicle and a method for recording the surface condition of a roadway using a laser scanner. The DE 10 2010 045 162 A1 discloses a pothole assistant for measuring the road surface in front of the vehicle in the direction of travel using environmental sensors and for determining an avoidance trajectory for a pothole, whereby the avoidance trajectory avoids wheel contact with the detected pothole. The DE 10 2012 101 085 A1 discloses a method for detecting the condition of a road surface using a 3D camera. JP 2009 - 175 814 A This describes a vehicle driver assistance system that uses a camera and an image processing unit to detect objects in front of the vehicle and determine their direction of movement. Based on changes in the distance between a moving and a stationary object, the system predicts whether a pedestrian or two-wheeler might move from the sidewalk into the roadway. If a collision risk is detected, the driver is warned via a display or an audible signal. US patent 2006/0109095A1 discloses a vehicle-mounted alarm system that uses map data to identify so-called hazardous locations, such as intersections or areas with poor visibility. As the vehicle approaches such a hazard, it transmits radio signals that can be received by mobile devices belonging to pedestrians or cyclists, triggering a warning to the driver or other road users. DE 10 2013 208 190 A1 This refers to a method for monitoring tire and road surface conditions, in which unevenness, depressions, or raised areas in the road surface are detected from tire and chassis signals. The information gathered can be used to assess the road surface condition or to warn the driver. DE 103 34 013 A1 describes a safety system to improve road safety, which uses vehicle and environment sensors to detect critical situations between vehicles or between a vehicle and other road users and to avoid them through warning signals or automatic interventions. The invention aims to warn a road user on a traffic area next to a roadway and the driver of a motor vehicle. The object of the invention is achieved by a method according to claim 1 and a computer program product according to claim 9. The dependent claims describe preferred embodiments. A method for warning a road user and/or a driver of a motor vehicle comprises the step of driving a motor vehicle on a roadway, monitoring a first area located next to the roadway and intended to be kept clear of motor vehicles by means of a sensor arranged in or on the vehicle, and detecting a hazard in the first area. The method according to the invention The procedure determines whether the hazard could cause a road user in the first area to move onto the roadway, whether the road user in the first area could fall due to the hazard, and/or whether the hazard significantly impairs the comfort of the road user in the first area. The procedure then determines the location and nature of the hazard. The first area can be a sidewalk, a cycle path, and/or a vehicle entrance. The road user in the first area can be a pedestrian, a cyclist, a wheelchair user, a roller skater, a skateboarder, and/or a road user with a wheeled sports device. A hazard can be a narrowing of the first section, damage to the road surface of the first section, a slope in the first section, a high curb in the first section, the end of the first section, an overgrown sidewalk with insufficient width and/or clearance, an overgrown bike path, a raised slab of a sidewal