System and method for detecting physical infrastructure related to navigation of an autonomous vehicle

Abstract

Systems and methods for detecting physical infrastructure related to navigation of an autonomous vehicle are disclosed. In one aspect, the autonomous vehicle includes a perception sensor configured to generate perception data, a non-transitory computer readable medium, and a processor. The processor is configured to determine a minimal risk condition (MRC) maneuver for the autonomous vehicle to execute, identify a safe zone in which the autonomous vehicle is able to execute the MRC maneuver by coming to a stop based on the perception data, identify one or more exclusion zones within the safe zone based on the perception data, and control the autonomous vehicle to execute the MRC maneuver including stopping outside of the exclusion zone.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An autonomous vehicle comprising:
 at least one perception sensor configured to generate perception data indicative of physical infrastructure on or near a roadway;   a processor; and   a non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
 determine a minimal risk condition (MRC) maneuver for the autonomous vehicle to execute, 
 identify a safe zone in which the autonomous vehicle is able to execute the MRC maneuver by coming to a stop based at least in part on the perception data, 
 identify one or more exclusion zones within the safe zone based on the perception data, and 
 control the autonomous vehicle to execute the MRC maneuver including stopping outside of the one or more exclusion zones. 
   
     
     
         2 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more exclusion zones comprise areas that are within a predetermined distance from an emergency vehicle. 
     
     
         3 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein controlling the autonomous vehicle to execute the MRC maneuver includes controlling the autonomous vehicle to avoid entering the one or more exclusion zones while executing the MRC maneuver. 
     
     
         4 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more exclusion zones comprise areas that are within a predetermined distance from a construction zone. 
     
     
         5 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to avoid completing the MRC maneuver within a threshold distance from a crosswalk at an intersection. 
     
     
         6 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a cab including a human machine interface (HMI),   wherein the processor is further configured to provide a visual and/or audio notification via the HMI.   
     
     
         7 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 hazard lights that are externally visible from the autonomous vehicle,   wherein controlling the autonomous vehicle to execute the MRC maneuver includes:   controlling the autonomous vehicle to maneuver to a right-most lane, and   in response to moving towards and/or reaching the right-most lane, activating the hazard lights.   
     
     
         8 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 7 , wherein the processor is further configured to keep the hazard lights activated until deactivated by a human operator. 
     
     
         9 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 a plurality of turn indicators,   wherein the processor is further configured to set a usage of the plurality of turn indicators to supersede a usage of the hazard lights while executing the MRC maneuver.   
     
     
         10 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
 control the autonomous vehicle to maintain a minimum lateral distance between an outer most point of the autonomous vehicle and a lane line that separates a driving lane from the safe zone at a closest point of approach when the autonomous vehicle comes to a stop during the MRC maneuver.   
     
     
         11 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein controlling the autonomous vehicle to execute the MRC maneuver includes controlling the autonomous vehicle to come to a stop when the autonomous vehicle is completely within the safe zone and no part of the autonomous vehicle is intruding into a driving lane. 
     
     
         12 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to cause the autonomous vehicle to yield to any approaching emergency vehicle that has activated its siren and/or emergency lights while the autonomous vehicle is executing the MRC maneuver. 
     
     
         13 . The autonomous vehicle of  claim 1 , wherein determining that the autonomous vehicle is to execute the MRC maneuver is further in response to determining that the autonomous vehicle is approaching a boundary of a map. 
     
     
         14 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:
 determine a minimal risk condition (MRC) maneuver for an autonomous vehicle to execute;   identify a safe zone in which the autonomous vehicle is able to execute the MRC maneuver by coming to a stop based on perception data received from at least one perception sensor of the autonomous vehicle, the at least one perception sensor configured to generate the perception data to be indicative of physical infrastructure on or near a roadway;   identify one or more exclusion zones within the safe zone based on the perception data; and   control the autonomous vehicle to execute the MRC maneuver including stopping outside of the one or more exclusion zones.   
     
     
         15 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 14 , wherein the instructions further cause the processor to reduce speed of the autonomous vehicle to maintain a lateral acceleration of the autonomous vehicle. 
     
     
         16 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 14 , wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:
 detect an equipment failure of the autonomous vehicle based on the perception data;   determine a severity level of the equipment failure; and   determine whether the autonomous vehicle is to execute the MRC maneuver or plan to visit a service station based on the severity level.   
     
     
         17 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 16 , wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:
 determine that the severity level is less than a predetermined level;   determine that the service station is within a predetermined distance from the autonomous vehicle based on the perception data; and   determine a re-routing for the autonomous vehicle to visit the service station in response to determining that the severity level is less than the predetermined level, and determining that the service station is within the predetermined distance of the autonomous vehicle.   
     
     
         18 . A method comprising:
 determining a minimal risk condition (MRC) maneuver for an autonomous vehicle to execute;   identifying a safe zone in which the autonomous vehicle is able to execute the MRC maneuver by coming to a stop based on perception data received from at least one perception sensor of the autonomous vehicle, the at least one perception sensor configured to generate the perception data to be indicative of physical infrastructure on or near a roadway;   identifying one or more exclusion zones within the safe zone based on the perception data; and   controlling the autonomous vehicle to execute the MRC maneuver including stopping outside of the one or more exclusion zones.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising:
 detecting a vertical clearance on a current path of the autonomous vehicle based on the perception data; and   determining that the vertical clearance is greater than a vertical-clearance threshold value,   wherein determining that the autonomous vehicle is to execute the MRC maneuver is further in response to determining that the vertical clearance is greater than the vertical clearance threshold value.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising:
 detecting a toll-booth facility based on the perception data;   identifying a start point of the toll-booth facility based on detecting where highway lines start to spread out into a plurality of toll lanes; and   identifying an end point of the toll-booth facility based on detecting where the plurality of toll lanes starts to merge back into the highway lanes.