US 11,852,490 B2
Method and system for determining a model of the environment of a vehicle
Moritz Schack, Braunschweig (DE); and Christian Merfels, Braunschweig (DE)
Assigned to VOLKSWAGEN AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT, Wolfsburg (DE)
Appl. No. 17/286,690
Filed by Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft, Wolfsburg (DE)
PCT Filed Oct. 2, 2019, PCT No. PCT/EP2019/076784
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Apr. 19, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/078727, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 23, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 10 2018 217 840.2 (DE), filed on Oct. 18, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2021/0341293 A1, Nov. 4, 2021
Int. Cl. G01C 21/00 (2006.01); G01C 21/28 (2006.01); G06T 7/70 (2017.01); G06V 20/56 (2022.01)
CPC G01C 21/28 (2013.01) [G01C 21/3867 (2020.08); G06T 7/70 (2017.01); G06V 20/56 (2022.01); G06T 2207/30252 (2013.01)] 17 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for generating an environmental model for a vehicle, comprising:
acquiring an initial position estimate for the vehicle;
acquiring map data based on the acquired initial position estimate, wherein the map data include information about a spatial arrangement of multiple geographical areas and the assignment of the geographical areas to one or more area categories;
acquiring, using at least one sensor, environmental data within an acquisition space;
detecting, using a processor, objects using the environmental data, wherein an object position and at least one object category are assigned to each detected object; and
generating, using the processor, the environmental model using the detected objects and based on assignment rules, which assignment rules define one or more plausibility relationships between one or more object categories and one or more area categories; and
controlling the vehicle using the environmental model; wherein
generating the environmental model comprises:
determining, using the one or more assignment rules, whether for at least one given object of the detected objects, a positive assignment or a negative assignment exists between the assigned object category of the given object and an area category at the assigned object position of the given object; and
including the given object in the environmental model in case the positive assignment exists for the given object; otherwise
not including the given object in the environmental model.