Patent Description:
Increasingly, various sensor technologies are being utilized in vehicles, for improving the safety of the vehicle as well as for assisting or controlling different automatic driving operations such as steering, breaking, and acceleration. In similar regards, publication <CIT> relates to methods for optimizing the energy consumption of a plug-in hybrid vehicle by predicting the future speed of the vehicle based on a map constructed from environment information obtained from multiple vehicles, and publication <CIT> relates to methods for generating driving recommendations to a vehicle based on environmental information collected from one or more agents.

Automatic or assisted driving technologies at various levels provide a potential for enhancing the safety of transportation by reducing the dependency on human factors, and replacing or complementing the human control of the vehicle with an electronic or machine control of the vehicle, relying on sensor information for accurately detecting the position of the vehicle and mapping the surrounding environment of the vehicle for objects that may affect the driving operation. As used herein, the term "automatic driving" may be interchangeable with the term "assisted driving" and indicates a technology wherein some or all of the driving operation of a vehicle is controlled to a certain extent by a control unit, i.e., by a programmable device.

It is appropriate that the safety requirements of such automatic driving technologies are rigorous, as a failure to provide proper control of the vehicle, may lead to adverse situations for occupants of the vehicle, or to people and objects surrounding the vehicle. These safety requirements rely on the quality of the sensor data provided to the control unit responsible for the automatic driving functionality, as well as the timeliness and quality of the analysis performed on the sensor data. Additionally, to provide failure proofing, sensor redundancies are designed in the vehicles, such that if an error occurs in one of the sensors, automatic driving may still be provided. Vehicle driving control, ranging from driver assist functionalities up to different degrees of automatic driving, requires accurate measurement of the surrounding environment of the vehicle for detecting road features, road signs and billboards, neighboring vehicles, pedestrians, animals or other objects that could affect the automatic driving operation of the vehicle. Commonly, a controller obtains signals from the sensors, and generates or updates an environment mapping surrounding the vehicle, based on which driving instructions are derived.

Some of the properties that determine the sensor data quality and characteristics include:.

Thus, providing an increased range and coverage, as well as an increased spatial and temporal resolution, requires more processing power for analyzing the signals for facilitating the automatic driving of the vehicle. Furthermore, vehicles may utilize different sensor technologies simultaneously, where different sensor technologies may provide different properties, such as resolution, range, coverage, and susceptibility for external affecting factors. Some of the sensor technologies used for the purpose of controlling the driving of vehicles include artificial vision, such as cameras in different configurations, Radar, LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging), as well as ultrasonic technology. Accordingly, maintaining sufficient safety criteria is associated with an increase of power consumption related operating the sensors and analyzing the data obtained therefrom.

The operation of various sensors and the processing of the signals obtained therefrom can consume significant amounts of energy, which may drain the battery of the vehicle and affect the driving range or other functionalities. Hence, there is a need for enhancing the power consumption profile related to the sensors, while maintaining safety criteria for controlling driving operations of the vehicles.

It is thus an object of the present disclosure to overcome or reduce at least some of the drawbacks of the prior art and to provide a method for operating a directional sensor of a vehicle that allows for optimizing the energy consumption of the vehicle.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for controlling the operation of a directional sensor in a vehicle. The method includes the step of obtaining information indicative of a location of a second vehicle. Preferably, the information indicative of a location of a second vehicle is obtained via at least one sensor. However, it could also be obtained by at least one communication module.

The method further comprises the step of determining a position of the second vehicle relative to the vehicle, i.e., a relative position of the second vehicle. As used herein, the term "relative position" refers to a position of the second vehicle relative to the first vehicle, or vehicle. The relative position may include a distance value and a direction value. Preferably, the position of the second vehicle relative to the vehicle is determined based on the obtained information indicative of a location of a second vehicle. Further, information regarding a position of the vehicle, e.g., GPS date, is preferably used for determining the position of the second vehicle. According to a preferred embodiment, the vehicle may further determine a relative velocity of the second vehicle, for assessing or predicting changes in the relative position of the second vehicle. As used herein, the term "relative velocity" refers to a rate of change in position of the second vehicle relative to the first vehicle, or vehicle. The relative velocity may include a speed value and a direction value.

Another step of the method refers to, based on the second vehicle being within a critical range/distance of the vehicle, receiving driving-related information from the second vehicle. In other words, the driving-related information is received from the second vehicle, if the determined relative position of the second vehicle indicates that it is within a critical range/distance of the vehicle. In other words, the vehicle is configured to determine whether the second vehicle is within a critical range. Preferably, a critical range is defined as a range in which an operation of a directional sensor in the vehicle may be adjusted based on driving-related information from the second vehicle. A critical range may be a predetermined range surrounding the vehicle, such as an elliptical, circular, or rectangular range surrounding the vehicle. The critical range may be symmetrical around the vehicle, such that the vehicle is positioned in the center of the critical. Alternatively, the critical range may be further distanced from the vehicle in the front/driving direction compared to the rear direction. Alternatively or additionally, the critical range may be dynamically determined based on factors related to the driving of the vehicle, such as visibility, speed of driving, road conditions, and the like.

The driving-related information received from the second vehicle may include measurements and information provided by sensors on the second vehicle, such as raw sensor data, and/or mapped information derived at least partially therefrom, such as mapped detected objects and features. Furthermore, driving-related information of the second vehicle may include a position of the second vehicle, a velocity of the second vehicle, and/or planned route of the second vehicle. The driving-related information of the second vehicle may include data from a plurality of directional sensors in the second vehicle. Optionally, the vehicle may determine the position and/or velocity of the second vehicle by analyzing information obtained from a sensor on the vehicle, by utilizing the received driving related-information of the second vehicle, or a combination thereof.

The driving-related information from the second vehicle is preferably received via vehicle-to-vehicle communication, that is via at least one communication interface. Such communication interface between different vehicles, or between vehicles and other entities such as roadside units, RSUs, and are referred to as vehicle to vehicle, V2V, communication or a vehicle to everything, V2X, communication, respectively. In V2V communication, the communication interface may include communication between two or more vehicles. Both V2V and V2X communication may be carried out either as point-to-point (unicast) communication or as point-to-multipoint (multicast/broadcast) communication. V2V communication may be carried out in a LTE or <NUM> network with sidelink carries at the PHY layer (PC5 sidelink) or based on WLAN communication according to IEEE <NUM>. 11p standard.

The method of the present disclosure further comprises the step of adjusting an operation of the directional sensor in the vehicle based on the determined position of the second vehicle relative to the vehicle and the received driving-related information from the second vehicle. Therein the driving-related information includes a directional sensor measurement, or information derived from a sensor measurement.

In other words, a V2V communication may be established between the (first) vehicle and the second vehicle, wherein driving-related information is communicated from the second vehicle to the first vehicle, such that, based on the driving-related information received from the second vehicle, the first vehicle may adjust or control an operation of a directional sensor therein. As used herein, the term "directional sensor" is interchangeably used with the terms "sensors", "sensor system", and/or "directional sensor system", and refers to a sensor with directional properties, e.g., to:.

Adjusting an operation of the directional sensor may be achieved by adjusting the sensor directly, and/or adjusting an analysis conducted on the data received from the sensor. According to some embodiments, adjusting the sensor directly may be conducted by one or more of the following means:.

Alternatively, or in combination to adjusting the sensor directly, adjusting an operation of a sensor may include adjusting an analysis conducted on the data received from the sensor, which may include changing one or more of an analysis rate, analysis latency, noise reduction functions, and the like.

The dependent claims define additional embodiments.

Examples illustrative of embodiments are described below with reference to figures attached hereto. In the figures, identical structures, elements or parts that appear in more than one figure are generally labeled with a same numeral in all the figures in which they appear. Alternatively, elements or parts that appear in more than one figure may be labeled with different numerals in the different figures in which they appear. Dimensions of components and features shown in the figures are generally chosen for convenience and clarity of presentation and are not necessarily shown in scale.

In the following description, various aspects of the disclosure will be described. For the purpose of explanation, specific configurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the different aspects of the disclosure. However, it will also be apparent to one skilled in the art that the disclosure may be practiced without specific details being presented herein. Furthermore, well-known features may be omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the disclosure.

Reference is now made to <FIG>, which schematically illustrates a method for controlling an operation of a sensor, according to some embodiments.

The method for adjusting or controlling an operation of a sensor in a vehicle (first vehicle) is disclosed, wherein the vehicle obtains information indicative of a location of a second vehicle s102, then the vehicle determines the relative position of the second vehicle s104 and optionally also determines the relative velocity of the second vehicle s106 for assessing whether the second vehicle is within a critical range of the vehicle s108.

If the second vehicle is not within a critical range of the vehicle, further monitoring of the location of the second vehicle s102 is conducted as well as relative position s104 and, optionally, relative velocity s106.

If the second vehicle is within a critical range of the vehicle, or alternatively, if the second vehicle is expected to be within a critical range of the vehicle, for example based on the relative position and relative velocity of the second vehicle, the vehicle receives driving-related data is from the second vehicle s110, which is analyzed and assessed for adjusting an operation of a sensor, such as a directional sensor, in the vehicle s112.

Reference is now made to <FIG>, which schematically illustrates a vehicle <NUM> with multiple directional sensors having various characteristics, according to some embodiments.

The vehicle <NUM> supports automatic driving technology, which requires mapping the surrounding environment of the vehicle. As illustrated, multiple long-range directional sensors are used, such as first, second, third, and fourth directional sensor 220a, 220b, 220c, 220d, which include LiDAR sensors, each configured to provide information related to a different direction in the space, for example first, second, third, and fourth long-range directional sensor ranges 230a, 230b, 230c, 230d. Advantageously, a redundancy is achieved by an overlap in the ranges of each of the directional sensors.

Additionally, multiple short-range directional sensors are utilized in the vehicle, such as first, second, third, and fourth short-range directional sensors 240a, 240b, 240c, 240d, which include ultrasonic sensors or cameras, for obtaining information related to a closer range in the surrounding of the vehicle compared with the long-range directional sensors, such as first, second, third, and fourth short-range directional sensor ranges 250a, 250b, 250c, 250d.

The vehicle further includes alternative directional sensors, such as first, second, third, and fourth alternative mid-range directional sensors 240a, 240b, 240c, 240d, which includes camera sensors, configured for providing sensor redundancy for an enhanced safety and failure proofing profile.

According to some embodiments, an electronic apparatus operable in a vehicle is introduced, configured for controlling the operation of a directional sensor in the vehicle.

Reference is now made to <FIG>, which illustrates a block diagram of an electronic apparatus <NUM> configured for controlling an operation of a sensor <NUM>, <NUM>, according to some embodiments.

Electronic apparatus includes a sensors I/O module <NUM> configured for facilitating data and/or control communication with at least one sensor for adjusting an operation thereof. The electronic apparatus also includes a communication module <NUM> configured for facilitating communication with a second vehicle, for example through V2V communication, for obtaining driving-related information from the second vehicle. A processor <NUM> in the electronic apparatus <NUM> is electrically coupled with the sensors I/O module and communication module <NUM>.

The processor is configured to for executing instructions stored in a memory to obtain information indicative of a location of a second vehicle via the communication module, determine a position of the second vehicle relative to the vehicle, and based on the second vehicle being within a critical range of the vehicle, receive driving-related information from the second vehicle for adjusting an operation of at least one sensor in the vehicle based on the determined position of the second vehicle relative to the vehicle and the received driving-related information from the second vehicle.

According to some embodiment, based on the processor is further configured to adjust the operation of a first directional sensor in the vehicle by degrading the operation thereof, while enhancing the operation of a second directional sensor, based on the determined position of the second vehicle relative to the vehicle and the received driving-related information from the second vehicle.

Reference is now made to <FIG>, which schematically illustrates a setting wherein a first vehicle <NUM> obtains driving-related information <NUM> from a second vehicle <NUM>, and adjusts an operation of a directional sensor <NUM>, therein, according to some embodiments.

If a second vehicle <NUM> is detected within a critical range of the vehicle <NUM>, a relative position and velocity of the second vehicle is determined, and driving-related information <NUM> of the second vehicle are received by the first vehicle <NUM>. Based on the received driving-related information <NUM> of the second vehicle , the first vehicle determines that a operation of the directional sensor <NUM> can be adjusted, for example by degrading the operation of sensor directed towards the second vehicle <NUM>, if information from the sensor <NUM> in this direction is redundant due to receiving the driving-related information of the second vehicle <NUM>. According to some embodiments, the vehicle <NUM> derives a combined driving-related information or information range <NUM> from the adjusted driving-related information <NUM> of the vehicle in combination with the driving-related information or information range <NUM> of the second vehicle.

Determining whether to utilize the driving-related information of the second vehicle for adjusting the operation of the directional sensor <NUM> includes a context evaluation, wherein safety level requirements are assessed, and the driving-related information of the second vehicle is analyzed to determine if they match the assessed safety level requirements. If the safety level requirements are not met, the vehicle <NUM> utilizes the driving-related information of the second vehicle for various purposes, such as validation, increased redundancy, and the like, without adjusting the operation of the directional sensor <NUM>.

Determining whether to degrade the directional sensor or not, to what extent to degrade the directional sensor, and whether to shut down the directional sensor, is further based on one or more of the quality of the driving-related information of the second vehicle, the safety level requirements, relative position of the second vehicle <NUM>, or relative velocity of the second vehicle <NUM>.

The safety level requirements determine various criteria for determining whether the driving-related information of the second vehicle can be utilized for adjusting the operation of the directional sensor. These criteria include coverage of the driving-related information of the second vehicle range <NUM> taking into consideration the relative position and velocity of the second vehicle, quality of signals obtained by the directional sensor <NUM> and/or driving-related information of the second vehicle such as a signal to noise ratio, as well as the quality of communication between the vehicle, including latency, bandwidth, packet loss rate, and the like.

In cases where the vehicle <NUM> includes a plurality of directional sensors, determining the operation of which of the direction is adjusted is based on the relative direction of the second vehicle <NUM>, and the range or directionality of each of the directional sensors. For example, an operation of a directional sensor directed towards the second vehicle <NUM> is adjusted, while an operation of another directional sensor directed to the opposite direction remains unadjusted.

Reference is now made to <FIG>, which schematically illustrates a setting wherein a vehicle <NUM> adjusts the operation of a first directional sensor <NUM> by degrading the activity thereof, while adjusting the operation of a second directional sensor <NUM> by enhancing the activity thereof, according to some embodiments.

When a second vehicle <NUM> is detected to be within a critical range of the vehicle <NUM>, an operation of the first directional sensor <NUM> is degraded from a first operation mode <NUM> to a standby operation mode <NUM> as driving-related information of the second vehicle <NUM> is used instead. While the second vehicle <NUM> is within the critical range of the first vehicle <NUM>, tracking the relative position and velocity of the second vehicle <NUM> could be vital, due to the physical proximity between the two vehicles. Accordingly, the operation of the second directional sensor <NUM> is adjusted from a normal mode <NUM> to an enhanced mode <NUM>, allowing for more accurate measurements to be obtained related to the position and velocity of the second vehicle. Such enhanced operation provides the ability to accurately assess changes in the relative position and/or velocity of the second vehicle <NUM>, and control the driving of the vehicle <NUM> or adjust the operation of the first directional sensor <NUM> in a timely manner.

Alternatively, or in addition to adjusting the operation of the second directional sensor <NUM>, in some embodiments, the operation of the first directional sensor <NUM> is adjusted by adjusting the range of the directional sensor <NUM> to be adapted to provide measurements related to the position of the second vehicle.

Reference is now made to <FIG>, which schematically illustrates a range coverage of sensor data in a vehicle <NUM>, according to some embodiments.

The vehicle <NUM> obtains driving related information from more than one vehicles within a critical range thereof, such that different driving related information ranges <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> are combined to provide a sufficient coverage of a combined driving-related information <NUM>.

Advantageously, the various ranges <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> overlap, resulting in spatial redundancies. These redundancies compensate for change in relative position of the surrounding vehicles, creating a safety buffer wherein an operation of a directional sensor <NUM> in the vehicle <NUM> is timely adjusted when needed.

Reference is now made to <FIG>, which schematically illustrates a setting wherein a plurality of vehicles <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> operate to share driving-related information <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and adjusting an operation of respective directional sensors therein <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, according to some embodiments.

A first vehicle <NUM>, a second vehicle <NUM>, and a third vehicle <NUM> are within a critical range of one-another and establish a V2V communication therebetween for sharing respective driving-related information. Advantageously, driving-related information from the first, second, and third vehicles <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> are shared and combined for deriving a combined driving-related information range <NUM>, allowing for adjusting the operation of directional sensors of each of the vehicles <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>.

Each of the vehicles operates the directional sensor <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, or a second directional sensor (not shown), for sensing information related to the position of the other surrounding vehicles, such as short-range sensor information <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM>.

Unless specifically stated otherwise, as apparent from the following discussions, it is appreciated that throughout the specification discussions utilizing terms such as "processing", "computing", "calculating", "determining", "estimating", or the like, refer to the action and/or processes of a computer or computing system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulate and/or transform data represented as physical, such as electronic, quantities within the computing system's registers and/or memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computing system's memories, registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices. In addition, the term "plurality" may be used throughout the specification to describe two or more components, devices, elements, parameters and the like.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may include apparatuses for performing the operations herein. This apparatus may be specially constructed for the desired purposes, or it may comprise a general-purpose computer selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in the computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a computer readable storage medium, such as, but is not limited to, any type of disk including floppy disks, optical disks, CD-ROMs, magnetic-optical disks, read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs) electrically programmable read-only memories (EPROMs), electrically erasable and programmable read only memories (EEPROMs), magnetic or optical cards, or any other type of media suitable for storing electronic instructions, and capable of being coupled to a computer system.

The disclosure may be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions, such as program modules, being executed by a computer. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, and so forth, which perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The disclosure may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote computer storage media including memory storage devices.

Claim 1:
A method for controlling the operation of a directional sensor (<NUM>) in a vehicle (<NUM>), the method comprising:
obtaining information indicative of a location of a second vehicle (<NUM>);
determining a position of the second vehicle (<NUM>) relative to the vehicle (<NUM>);
based on the second vehicle being within a critical range of the vehicle (<NUM>), receiving driving-related information from the second vehicle (<NUM>); and
adjusting an operation of the directional sensor in the vehicle (<NUM>) based on the determined position of the second vehicle (<NUM>) relative to the vehicle (<NUM>) and the received driving-related information from the second vehicle (<NUM>),
wherein the received driving-related information from the second vehicle (<NUM>) includes a sensor measurement, or information derived from a sensor measurement.