Patent ID: 7797107

Claim:
Method for transmitting a warning signal to a driver of a driven vehicle regarding an impending collision with a moving and/or stationary object in the vicinity of said driven vehicle, comprising: a) providing said driven vehicle with means for obtaining updated data regarding, position, velocity vector and predicted moving path of each one of said moving and/or stationary objects in the vicinity of said driven vehicle; b) determining a series of one or more time horizons according to the characteristics of said vehicle and driver and the neighboring traffic; c) for a selected time horizon of said determined series of time horizons: c.1) generating a linear velocity obstacle (LVO) and/or non-linear velocity obstacle (NLVO) of each of said moving and/or stationary objects; c.2) selecting a sampling time interval Δt, during which an LVO and/or NLVO is generated; c.3) determining a range of feasible velocity vector changes for said driven vehicle that are attainable within a performance time interval ΔT; c.4) providing the driver, after said sampling time interval, with information regarding the optimal feasible velocity vector changes for said performance time interval; c.5) obtaining dynamic parameters representing the movement of said driven vehicle within said performance time interval, and calculating an updated velocity vector for said driven vehicle; c.6) generating a warning signal with the lowest severity level that reflects the relative imminence of collision with said moving and/or stationary objects in the vicinity of said driven vehicle and that corresponds to said selected time horizon whenever the updated velocity vector parameters reach at least one LVO or NLVO; d) repeating steps c.1) to c.6) above for a subsequent time horizon of said series of time horizons which is shorter than the previously selected time horizon and generating a warning signal of higher severity level; and e) repeating steps d) above for the remaining time horizons, of said series of time horizons.