Method for robotic vehicle communication with an external environment via acoustic beam forming

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9878664-B2
Application number	US-201514756993-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 4, 2015
Priority date	Nov 4, 2015
Publication date	Jan 30, 2018
Grant date	Jan 30, 2018

Abstract

Systems and methods implemented in algorithms, software, firmware, logic, or circuitry may be configured to process data to determine whether an object external to an autonomous vehicle is a person (e.g., such as a pedestrian) or other classification (e.g., such as a vehicle), and may be further configured to determine a position of the person relative to the autonomous vehicle. Logic may be configured to direct acoustic energy (e.g., via vehicular acoustic beam-forming) to an object external to the autonomous vehicle as an audible acoustic alert. The vehicle-related acoustic beam may be directed to a driver in another vehicle. Logic may be configured to track the motion of external objects, such as a pedestrian crossing from one side of the street to the other, and may correspondingly steer the direction of the vehicle-related acoustic beam(s) to track the person's movement.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
calculating a trajectory of an autonomous vehicle in an environment, the autonomous vehicle including an acoustic beam steering array, the acoustic beam steering array including at least a first speaker adjacent to a second speaker, wherein the first speaker is spaced from the second speaker by a wave front distance;
determining a location of an object disposed in the environment, the object having an object type;
predicting an object trajectory of the object based at least in part on the object type and the location of the object;
estimating a threshold location in the environment based at least in part on the object trajectory and the trajectory of the autonomous vehicle, the threshold location associated with an acoustic alert;
selecting an audio signal to associate with the acoustic alert;
detecting that the location of the object is coincident with the threshold location;
determining, based at least in part on the location of the object, a direction of propagation to emit a beam of steered acoustic energy;
calculating, based at least in part on the wave front distance and a speed of sound, a first signal delay associated with the first speaker;
calculating, based at least in part on the wave front distance and the speed of sound, a second signal delay associated with the second speaker; and
causing the acoustic beam steering array to emit the beam of steered acoustic energy by at least delaying-application of the audio signal to a signal input of one or more amplifiers coupled with the first speaker and the second speaker by one or more times based at least on one or more of the first signal delay or the second signal delay.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
identifying a change in a driving operation of the autonomous vehicle,
and wherein selecting the audio signal is based at least in part on the change in the driving operation.

3. The method of claim 2 , further comprising:
capturing sound associated with the driving operation of the autonomous vehicle, and
adjusting one or more characteristics of the audio signal based at least in part on the sound.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the threshold location comprises a plurality of threshold locations, and wherein selecting the audio signal comprises selecting the audio signal based at least in part on a threat level.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object comprises a first object, and wherein the method further comprises:
detecting a second object in the environment;
identifying an object type for the second object;
associating a first priority with the first object based at least in part on the object type for the first object;
associating a second priority with the second object based at least in part on the object type for the second object; and
determining to process data related to the first object before processing data related to the second object based at least in part on the first priority being a higher priority than the second priority.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein associating the first priority comprises determining one or more of a motion of the first object the location of the first object, a predicted motion of the first object and the trajectory of the autonomous vehicle.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising activating a system of the autonomous vehicle based at least in part on the object trajectory of the object, wherein the system is one or more of a braking system, a propulsion system, and a signaling system.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the acoustic beam steering array is a first acoustic beam steering array and the autonomous vehicle includes a second acoustic beam steering array, and wherein the method further comprises:
selecting one of the first acoustic beam steering array or the second acoustic beam steering array to emit the beam of steered acoustic energy based at least in part on a direction of travel of the autonomous vehicle, wherein the autonomous vehicle is configured to travel bi-directionally, and wherein the first acoustic beam steering array is disposed on a first half of the autonomous vehicle, and the second acoustic beam steering array is disposed on a second half of the autonomous vehicle.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
accessing drive operation sounds of the autonomous vehicle; and
modulating the audio signal using the drive operation sounds.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
generating, at a perception system, the location of the object;
receiving, at the acoustic beam steering array, the location of the object, the acoustic beam steering array being in communication with the perception system;
receiving, at a planner system in communication with the perception system, the location of the object, an object track, and data representing an object classification;
accessing, by the planner system, data representing object types;
comparing, at the planner system, the object classification and the object track with the data representing the object types to determine the object type;
accessing, by the planner system, object dynamics; and
comparing, at the planner system, the object type and the location of the object with the data representing the object dynamics to determine the object trajectory.

11. A system, comprising:
sensors operative to generate sensor data for an autonomous vehicle located within an environment;
an acoustic beam steering array operative to emit a beam of steered acoustic energy into the environment, the acoustic beam steering array including at least a first speaker adjacent to a second speaker, wherein the first speaker is spaced from the second speaker by a wave front distance;
one or more amplifiers coupled to the first speaker and the second speaker; and
one or more processors configured to perform acts comprising:
determining a location of an object disposed in the environment based at least in part on the sensor data;
selecting an audio signal to associate with an acoustic alert;
determining a direction of propagation to emit the beam of steered acoustic energy, wherein the direction is based at least in part on the location of the object;
calculating a signal delay based at least in part on the wave front distance; and
causing the acoustic beam steering array to emit the beam of steered acoustic energy by at least delaying application of the audio signal based at least in part on the signal delay.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the acts further comprise:
predicting a trajectory of the object based at least in part on an object type associated with the object and the location of the object; and
estimating a threshold location in the environment based at least in part on the trajectory of the object,
and wherein causing the acoustic beam steering array to emit the beam of steered acoustic energy is based at least in part on detecting that the object is coincident with the threshold location.

13. The system of claim 11 , further comprising one or more microphones operative to capture sound; and wherein the acts further comprise identifying a change in a driving operation of the autonomous vehicle based at least in part on the sound; and wherein selecting the audio signal is based at least in part on the change in the driving operation.

14. The system of claim 11 , further comprising one or more microphones operative to capture sound; and wherein the acts further comprise adjusting one or more characteristics of the audio signal based at least in part on the sound.

15. The system of claim 11 , wherein the acts furt

Assignees

• Zoox Inc

Inventors

• Kentley-Klay Timothy David
• Levinson Jesse Sol
• Lind Amanda Blair

Classifications

• G10K11/26

  Sound-focusing or directing, e.g. scanning · CPC title

• B60Q9/008 Primary

  for anti-collision purposes · CPC title

• G05D1/0088

  characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours (using knowledge based models G06N5/00) · CPC title

• G10L25/48

  specially adapted for particular use · CPC title

• G08G1/161

  Decentralised systems, e.g. inter-vehicle communication · CPC title