US 12,434,704 B2
Method for supporting an automatically driving vehicle
Christoph Gustav Keller, Stuttgart (DE); and Holger Mielenz, Ostfildern (DE)
Assigned to Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Stuttgart (DE)
Appl. No. 17/907,277
Filed by Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Stuttgart (DE)
PCT Filed Feb. 8, 2021, PCT No. PCT/EP2021/052911
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 26, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/190812, PCT Pub. Date Sep. 30, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 10 2020 108 480.3 (DE), filed on Mar. 27, 2020; and application No. 10 2020 118 664.9 (DE), filed on Jul. 15, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0111226 A1, Apr. 13, 2023
Int. Cl. B60W 30/00 (2006.01); B60W 30/095 (2012.01); B60W 30/18 (2012.01); B60W 60/00 (2020.01)
CPC B60W 30/18163 (2013.01) [B60W 30/0956 (2013.01); B60W 60/0015 (2020.02); B60W 2554/4041 (2020.02); B60W 2554/80 (2020.02); B60W 2556/45 (2020.02)] 7 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for supporting an automatically driving vehicle, comprising:
if it is not possible for the automatically driving vehicle to make an automatic lane change to a fast lane in order to pass an obstacle located in a roadway in front of the automatically driving vehicle,
the automatically driving vehicle stops before reaching the obstacle,
the automatically driving vehicle sends a support query to a center outside of the vehicle, wherein together with the support query, the automatically driving vehicle sends the center a current position of the automatically driving vehicle and the current range extent of a surroundings detection sensor system of the automatically driving vehicle,
the center outside of the automatically driving vehicle designates another vehicle in the area of the automatically driving vehicle, and
the center outside of the automatically driving vehicle instructs the designated other vehicle to move in the direction of the automatically driving vehicle and change to the fast lane before reaching it, wherein the other vehicle adapts its driving maneuvers and driving style to the range extent of the automatically driving vehicle's sensor system,
wherein the center outside of the automatically driving vehicle instructs the designated other vehicle to adjust a speed of the designated other vehicle such that following traffic located behind the designated other vehicle in the fast lane is slowed or blocked so that the automatically driving vehicle can safely execute the lane change to the fast lane,
wherein the automatically driving vehicle is recognized by the other vehicle and/or the other vehicle is recognized by the automatically driving vehicle using data from an onboard sensor array on each vehicle and classification methods or based on the assessment of signals from light emitters on each vehicle.