Navigational system with imposed liability constraints

1 . A navigation system for a host vehicle, the system comprising:

at least one processing device comprising circuitry and a memory, wherein the memory includes instructions executable by the circuitry to cause the at least one processing device to:

receive at least one image acquired by an image capture device, the at least one image being representative of an environment of the host vehicle;

determine, based on at least one driving policy, a plurality of potential navigational actions for the host vehicle;

analyze the at least one image to identify a target vehicle in the environment of the host vehicle;

based on analysis of the at least one image, determine one or more characteristics of a navigational state of the identified target vehicle;

test the plurality of potential navigational actions against at least one accident liability rule for determining potential accident liability for the host vehicle relative to the identified target vehicle, wherein testing the plurality of potential navigational actions includes, for each of the plurality of potential navigational actions, comparing the determined one or more characteristics of the navigational state of the identified target vehicle to the at least one accident liability rule;

select one of the potential navigational actions for which the test indicates that no accident liability would result for the host vehicle if the selected potential navigational action is taken; and

cause the host vehicle to implement the selected potential navigational action.

2 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the selected potential navigational action is selected from a subset of the plurality of potential navigational actions for which the test indicates that no accident liability would result for the host vehicle if any of the subset of the plurality of potential navigational action were taken.

3 . The navigation system of claim 2 , wherein the selected potential navigational action is selected according to a scoring parameter.

4 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the driving policy is implemented by a trained system.

5 . The navigation system of claim 4 , wherein the trained system includes a neural network.

6 . The navigation system of claim 4 , wherein the trained system is trained based on the at least one accident liability rule.

7 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one accident liability rule includes a following rule defining a distance behind the identified target vehicle within which the host vehicle may not proceed without a potential for accident liability.

8 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one accident liability rule includes a leading rule defining a distance forward of the identified target vehicle within which the host vehicle may not proceed without a potential for accident liability.

9 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one accident liability rule includes a lateral velocity rule.

10 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one accident liability rule includes a lateral position rule.

11 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one accident liability rule includes a driving direction priority rule.

12 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one accident liability rule includes a traffic light-based rule.

13 . The navigation system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one accident liability rule includes a traffic sign-based rule.

14 . A computer-implemented method for navigating a host vehicle, the method comprising:

receiving at least one image acquired by an image capture device, the at least one image being representative of an environment of the host vehicle;

determining, based on at least one driving policy, a plurality of potential navigational actions for the host vehicle;

analyzing the at least one image to identify a target vehicle in the environment of the host vehicle;

based on analysis of the at least one image, determining one or more characteristics of a navigational state of the identified target vehicle;

testing the plurality of potential navigational actions against at least one accident liability rule for determining potential accident liability for the host vehicle relative to the identified target vehicle, wherein testing the plurality of potential navigational actions includes, for each of the plurality of potential navigational actions, comparing the determined one or more characteristics of the navigational state of the identified target vehicle to the at least one accident liability rule;

selecting one of the potential navigational actions for which the test indicates that no accident liability would result for the host vehicle if the selected potential navigational action is taken; and

causing the host vehicle to implement the selected potential navigational action.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the selected potential navigational action is selected from a subset of the plurality of potential navigational actions for which the test indicates that no accident liability would result for the host vehicle if any of the subset of the plurality of potential navigational action were taken.

16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the selected potential navigational action is selected according to a scoring parameter.

17 . A non-transitory computer readable medium containing instructions that when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method for navigating a host vehicle, the method comprising:

receiving at least one image acquired by an image capture device, the at least one image being representative of an environment of the host vehicle;

determining, based on at least one driving policy, a plurality of potential navigational actions for the host vehicle;

analyzing the at least one image to identify a target vehicle in the environment of the host vehicle;

based on analysis of the at least one image, determining one or more characteristics of a navigational state of the identified target vehicle;

testing the plurality of potential navigational actions against at least one accident liability rule for determining potential accident liability for the host vehicle relative to the identified target vehicle, wherein testing the plurality of potential navigational actions includes, for each of the plurality of potential navigational actions, comparing the determined one or more characteristics of the navigational state of the identified target vehicle to the at least one accident liability rule;

selecting one of the potential navigational actions for which the test indicates that no accident liability would result for the host vehicle if the selected potential navigational action is taken; and

causing the host vehicle to implement the selected potential navigational action.

18 . The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17 , wherein the driving policy is implemented by a trained system.

19 . The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18 , wherein the trained system includes a neural network.

20 . The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18 , wherein the trained system is trained based on the at least one accident liability rule.