Non-solid object monitoring

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11262762-B2
Application number	US-201615762531-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 22, 2016
Priority date	Sep 25, 2015
Publication date	Mar 1, 2022
Grant date	Mar 1, 2022

Abstract

An autonomous navigation system may autonomously navigate a vehicle through an environment in which one or more non-solid objects, including gaseous and/or liquid objects, are located. Sensors, including sensors which can detect chemical substances in a region of the environment, may detect non-solid objects independently of an opacity of the objects. Non-solid objects may be determined to present an obstacle or interference based on determined chemical composition, size, position, velocity, concentration, etc. of the objects. The vehicle may be autonomously navigated to avoid non-solid objects based on positions, trajectories, etc. of the non-solid objects. The vehicle may be navigated according to avoidance driving parameters to avoid non-solid objects, and a navigation system may characterize a non-solid object as a solid object having dimensions and position which encompasses the non-solid object, so that the vehicle is navigated in avoidance of non-solid objects as if the non-solid objects were solid.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus, comprising:
an autonomous navigation system configured to be installed in a vehicle and autonomously navigate the vehicle through an environment in which the vehicle is located, wherein the autonomous navigation system is configured to:
detect a non-solid object comprising a gaseous substance in the environment, based on processing sensor data generated by one or more sensors configured to monitor the environment to detect one or more features of the non-solid object comprising at least one non-visible feature of the gaseous substance that is detectable at one or more of an infrared light wavelength, a near-infrared light wavelength, or an ultraviolet light wavelength;
determine that the non-solid object presents an obstacle or interference to operation of the vehicle based on a determination of whether a density of the non-solid object exceeds a threshold level, wherein the density is determined according to an analysis of the sensor data; and
based on the determination that the non-solid object presents the obstacle or interference, navigate the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting with the non-solid object.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein
a spectroscopic sensor configured to detect the non-solid object based at least in part upon spectroscopic monitoring of the non-solid object.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
to detect the non-solid object in the environment, the autonomous navigation system is configured to:
detect the gaseous substance in the environment, based on processing the sensor data generated by one or more sensors, wherein the non-solid object is determined to be an obstacle based at least in part upon the non-solid object comprising the gaseous substance.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more features of the non-solid object further comprises one or more visible features, and wherein to detect the non-solid object, the one or more sensors are further configured to detect one or more visible features of the non-solid object.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
to navigate the vehicle along the driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object, the autonomous navigation system is configured to:
incorporate, into a virtual representation of the environment, a virtual representation of the non-solid object which characterizes the non-solid object as a solid object in the virtual representation of the environment; and
navigate the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting solid object representations incorporated into the virtual representation of the environment.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
to detect the non-solid object in the environment, the autonomous navigation system is configured to:
determine a predicted trajectory of the non-solid object through the environment according to an analysis of the sensor data; and

to navigate the vehicle along the driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object, the autonomous navigation system is configured to:
navigate the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object at any point along the predicted trajectory of the non-solid object.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
to detect the non-solid object in the environment, the autonomous navigation system is configured to associate a proximity region with the non-solid object, wherein the proximity region extends at least a certain proximity distance from the non-solid object;
to navigate the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object, the autonomous navigation system is configured to navigate the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting the proximity region; and
the autonomous navigation system is configured to selectively engage a set of avoidance driving parameters, such that the vehicle is selectively navigated according to the set of avoidance driving parameters, based on a determination that the vehicle is presently located within the proximity region.

8. A method, comprising:
performing, by one or more computer systems:
autonomously navigating a vehicle through an environment in which the vehicle is located, wherein the autonomously navigating comprises:
detecting a non-solid object comprising a gaseous substance in the environment, based on processing sensor data generated by one or more sensors configured to the environment to detect one or more features of the non-solid object comprising at least one non-visible feature of the gaseous substance that is detectable at one or more of an infrared light wavelength, a near-infrared light wavelength, or an ultraviolet light wavelength;
determine that the non-solid object presents an obstacle or interference to operation of the vehicle based on a determination of whether a density of the non-solid object exceeds a threshold level, wherein the density is determined according to an analysis of the sensor data; and
based on the determination that the non-solid object presents an obstacle or interference, navigating the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the one or more sensors comprises:
a spectroscopic sensor configured to detect the non-solid object based at least in part upon spectroscopic monitoring of the non-solid object.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
detecting the non-solid object in the environment comprises:
detecting the gaseous substance in the environment, based on processing the sensor data generated by one or more sensors, wherein determining that the non-solid object presents an obstacle or interference is further based at least in part upon the non-solid object comprising the gaseous substance.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the one or more features of the non-solid object further comprises one or more visible features, and wherein to detect the non-solid object, the one or more sensors are further configured to detect one or more visible features of the non-solid object.

12. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
navigating the vehicle along the driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object comprises:
incorporating, into a virtual representation of the environment, a virtual representation of the non-solid object which characterizes the non-solid object as a solid object in the virtual representation of the environment; and
navigating the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting solid object representations incorporated into the virtual representation of the environment.

13. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
detecting the non-solid object in the environment comprises:
determining a predicted trajectory of the non-solid object through the environment according to an analysis of the sensor data; and

navigating the vehicle along the driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object comprises:
navigating the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object at any point along the predicted trajectory of the non-solid object.

14. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
detecting a non-solid object in the environment comprises associating a proximity region with the non-solid object, wherein the proximity region extends at least a certain proximity distance from the non-solid object;
navigating the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting the non-solid object comprises navigating the vehicle along a driving route which avoids intersecting the proximity region; and
the method comprises selectively engaging a set of avoidance driving parameters, and

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Han Byron B
• Seo Young Woo
• Wan Kit-Man

Classifications

• G01C21/26 Primary

  specially adapted for navigation in a road network · CPC title

• B60W30/0956 Primary

  the prediction being responsive to traffic or environmental parameters · CPC title

• B60W60/0027

  using trajectory prediction for other traffic participants · CPC title

• B60W2554/4044

  Direction of movement, e.g. backwards · CPC title

• B60W60/0016

  of the vehicle or its occupants · CPC title