Unknown driving hazard detection and response system
A system installed on an autonomous vehicle (AV) is described and includes an unknown driving hazard detection module configured to detect an unusual driving behavior of at least one road participant operating in proximity to the AV, wherein the unusual driving behavior comprises a deviation from a behavior of the at least one road participant as predicted by the AV; and an unknown driving hazard response module configured to cause an action to be performed in connection with the AV based on the detected unusual driving behavior.
1 . One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media comprising instructions for execution that, when executed by a processor, are operable to cause the processor to perform operations in connection with an autonomous vehicle (AV) comprising:
detecting an unusual driving behavior of a plurality of road participants operating in proximity to the AV, wherein for each of the road participants, the unusual driving behavior comprises a deviation from a behavior of the plurality of road participants as predicted by the AV, the deviation indicating a collective response to a potential hazard not yet detected by the AV;
evaluating the detected unusual driving behavior, wherein the evaluating comprises at least one of determining a number of the road participants and quantifying the detected unusual driving behavior; and
initiating a responsive action in connection with the AV based on the detected unusual driving behavior of the road participants and results of the evaluation, wherein the responsive action comprises mimicking a driving behavior of a majority of the road participants.
2 . The one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of road participants has associated therewith a projected trajectory and a realized trajectory, and wherein the detected unusual driving behavior comprises a discrepancy between the projected trajectory and the realized trajectory.
3 . The one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media of claim 1 , wherein the responsive action further comprises at least one of triggering a remote assistance (RA) session or initiating a safe stop of the AV.
4 . The one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of road participants comprises at least one of an automobile, a motorcycle, a bicycle, or a pedestrian.
5 . A method for implementation by an onboard computer installed on an autonomous vehicle (AV), the method comprising:
predicting short term trajectories of a plurality of road participants operating in proximity to the AV;
comparing the predicted short term trajectories of the plurality of road participants with realized trajectories of the plurality of road participants operating in proximity to the AV to detect a collective unusual driving behavior of the plurality of road participants, wherein the collective unusual driving behavior comprises detected discrepancies between the predicted short term trajectories of a subset of the plurality of road participants and the realized trajectories of the subset of the plurality of road participants, the detected collective unusual driving behavior indicating a collective response to a potential hazard not yet detected by the AV; and
initiating a responsive action in connection with the AV based on the detected collective unusual driving behavior, wherein the responsive action comprises mimicking a driving behavior of a majority of the road participants.
6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the subset of the plurality of road participants comprises a majority of the plurality of road participants.
7 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the responsive action further comprises at least one of triggering a remote assistance (RA) session or initiating a safe stop of the AV.
8 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the responsive action further comprises a combination of triggering a remote assistance (RA) session and mimicking the driving behavior of the majority of the road participants.
9 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising evaluating the detected collective unusual driving behavior, and wherein the responsive action to be performed in connection with the AV is based on results of the evaluation.
10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the evaluating comprises at least one of determining a number of the plurality of road participants and quantifying the detected collective unusual driving behavior.
11 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising logging data regarding at least one of the detected collective unusual driving behavior or the responsive action.
12 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising using the logged data to train a module for use in controlling operation of the AV.
13 . A system installed on an autonomous vehicle (AV), the system comprising:
an unknown driving hazard detection module configured to detect an unusual driving behavior of a plurality of road participants operating in proximity to the AV, wherein the unusual driving behavior comprises a deviation from a behavior of the plurality of road participants as predicted by the AV, the deviation indicating a collective response to a potential hazard not yet detected by the AV; and
an unknown driving hazard response module configured to determine a responsive action to be performed in connection with the AV based on the detected unusual driving behavior and to cause the AV to perform the responsive action, wherein the responsive action comprises at least mimicking a driving behavior of a majority of the road participants.
14 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the unknown driving hazard detection module resides on the AV.
15 . The system of claim 13 , wherein each of the plurality of road participants has associated therewith a projected trajectory and a realized trajectory, and wherein the detected unusual driving behavior comprises a discrepancy between the projected trajectory and the realized trajectory.
16 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the responsive action further comprises at least one of triggering a remote assistance (RA) session or initiating a safe stop of the AV.
17 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the responsive action further comprises a combination of triggering a remote assistance (RA) session and mimicking the driving behavior of the majority of the road participants.
18 . The system of claim 13 , wherein each of the plurality of road participants comprises at least one of an automobile, a motorcycle, a bicycle, or a pedestrian.
19 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the unknown driving hazard detection module is further configured to evaluate the detected unusual driving behavior, and wherein the responsive action to be performed in connection with the AV is based on results of the evaluation.
20 . The system of claim 19 , wherein evaluating the detected unusual driving behavior comprises at least one of determining a number of the plurality of road participants and quantifying the detected unusual driving behavior.