US 12,134,410 B2
Method for checking a surroundings detection sensor of a vehicle and method for operating a vehicle
Thomas Gottbehüt, Weil der Stadt (DE); and Rihab Laarousi, Sindelfingen (DE)
Assigned to MERCEDES-BENZ GROUP AG, Stuttgart (DE)
Appl. No. 17/600,655
Filed by DAIMLER AG, Stuttgart (DE)
PCT Filed Mar. 18, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/057486
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 1, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/200792, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 8, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 10 2019 002 487.7 (DE), filed on Apr. 4, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0177005 A1, Jun. 9, 2022
Int. Cl. B60W 60/00 (2020.01); G06V 20/58 (2022.01)
CPC B60W 60/0053 (2020.02) [B60W 60/0059 (2020.02); G06V 20/58 (2022.01); B60W 2420/403 (2013.01); B60W 2554/4049 (2020.02)] 7 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for checking at least one surroundings detection sensor of a vehicle, the method comprising:
receiving, by the vehicle from a central storage unit external to the vehicle, a digital map including an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) specific overlay storing information for a plurality of stationary objects in the digital map so that the plurality of stationary objects and features of the plurality of stationary objects are encoded sensor-specifically in the digital map such that which of the plurality of stationary objects must be recognized is readable directly from the digital map, wherein the information for the plurality of stationary objects includes reference measurements to be expected and corresponding sensor-specific measurement properties for a plurality of different types of surroundings detection sensors, wherein the at least one surroundings detection sensor is a first type of the plurality of types of surroundings detection sensors, and wherein the plurality of stationary objects in the digital map are objects expected to be recognized by the at least one surroundings detection sensor in surroundings of the vehicle;
localizing the vehicle on the digital map;
identifying features of one of the plurality of stationary objects in the digital map;
detecting at least one of the plurality of stationary objects in the surroundings of the vehicle by the at least one surroundings detection sensor performing a measurement of the at least one of the plurality of stationary objects;
determining, using the measurement by the at least one surroundings detection sensor of the at least one of the plurality of stationary objects, reference measurements to be expected of the at least one of the plurality of stationary objects and corresponding sensor-specific measurement properties for the first type of the plurality of types of surroundings detection sensors, there is a degradation of the at least one surrounding detection sensor responsive to the identified features of the one of the plurality of stored stationary objects not being recognized by the surroundings detection sensor or responsive to features actually detected by the at least one surroundings detection sensor deviating more than a threshold amount from the identified features of the one of the plurality of stationary objects, wherein the method further comprises
receiving, from the vehicle and a plurality of additional vehicles, measurements made by surroundings detection sensors of the vehicle and the plurality of vehicles of at least one of the plurality of stationary objects; and
continuously updating the OEM specific overlay of the digital map on the central storage unit external to the vehicle using the received measurements.