IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,618,959
Granted Patent B2
US 12,618,959 · App. 18/558,344 · Granted May 5, 2026

Detection system, sensor system, detection method, and recording medium

Inventor: Kenichi Inoue (Osaka, JP)
Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
G01S13/32G01S7/354G01S7/418G01S13/726
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,618,959
App. No.
18/558,344
Granted
May 5, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A detection system includes an obtainer, a generator, a classifier, a centroid calculator, associator, and combiner. The obtainer obtains a reception signal from a radio wave sensor. The generator generates a scattered point including positional information of a target, based on the reception signal. The classifier classifies a scattered point group into one or more clusters. The scattered point group is a set of scattered points generated by the generator during a predetermined length of time. The centroid calculator calculates a centroid for each of the one or more clusters classified by the classifier. The associator associates any of the one or more clusters classified by the classifier with the target. The combiner combines, as the scattered point, the centroid calculated by the centroid calculator during a preceding or earlier period with the scattered point group.

Claims (41)

1 . A detection system comprising:

a processor configured to perform operations comprising:

obtaining a reception signal from a radio wave sensor, the radio wave sensor being a sensor that emits a radio wave from a transmitting antenna to a target and receives a reflected radio wave from the target via a plurality of receiving antennas;

generating a scattered point including positional information of the target, defined in a coordinate system having the radio wave sensor as an origin point, based on the reception signal obtained in the obtaining;

classifying a scattered point group into one or more clusters, the scattered point group being a set of scattered points each of which is the scattered point generated in the generating during a predetermined length of time;

calculating a centroid for each of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying by calculating a weighted average of coordinates of the scattered points included in the cluster using, as weights, strengths of reflected radio waves of the scattered points by the classifier;

associating any of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying with the target; and

combining the centroid calculated in the calculating during a preceding or earlier period with the scattered point group, wherein

the associating comprises associating any of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying with the target, based on whether the centroid calculated during the preceding or earlier period is included in the one or more clusters.

2 . The detection system according to claim 1 , wherein

the scattered point includes information about a strength of the reflected radio wave, and information about at least one of a distance between the target and the radio wave sensor or a direction of the target relative to the radio wave sensor.

3 . The detection system according to claim 1 , wherein

the associating comprises associating any of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying with the target, based on whether the centroid calculated during the preceding or earlier period is included in the one or more clusters.

4 . The detection system according to claim 1 , wherein

the classifying comprises classifying classifies the scattered point group into the one or more clusters using an algorithm that eliminates an isolated point based on a density of the set of scattered points.

5 . The detection system according to claim 1 , wherein

the combining comprises adjusting a combination amount or a delay amount of the centroid that was calculated during the preceding or earlier period and is to be combined with the scattered point group.

6 . The detection system according to claim 5 , wherein

for each of the one or more clusters, the combining comprises incrementing a counter when the cluster does not include the scattered point other than the centroid, resetting the counter when the cluster includes the scattered point other than the centroid, and discarding the centroid when the counter reaches a threshold.

7 . The detection system according to claim 5 , wherein

for each of the one or more clusters, the combining comprises reducing the combination amount of the centroid when the cluster does not include the scattered point other than the centroid, and restoring the combination amount of the centroid when the cluster includes the scattered point other than the centroid.

8 . The detection system according to claim 5 , wherein

the radio wave sensor can switch an operation between a normal mode and a specific mode in which the radio wave is concentratedly emitted in a specific direction or is selectively received, and

the combining comprises increasing the combination amount of the centroid when the radio wave sensor is operating in the specific mode, as compared to when the radio wave sensor is operating in the normal mode.

9 . The detection system according to claim 1 , the operations further comprising:

estimating, for each of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying, a centroid to be calculated during a following or later period, wherein

the combining comprises combining, as the scattered point, the centroid that is to be calculated during the following or later period and is estimated by the estimating with the scattered point group.

10 . A sensor system comprising:

the detection system according to claim 1 ; and

the radio wave sensor controlled by the detection system.

11 . A detection method comprising:

obtaining a reception signal from a radio wave sensor disposed at a fixed position within a detection space, the radio wave sensor being a sensor that emits a radio wave from a transmitting antenna to a target and receives a reflected radio wave from the target via a plurality of receiving antennas;

generating a scattered point including positional information of the target defined in a coordinate system having the radio wave sensor as an origin point, based on the reception signal obtained in the obtaining;

classifying a scattered point group into one or more clusters, the scattered point group being a set of scattered points each of which is the scattered point generated in the generating during a predetermined length of time;

calculating a centroid for each of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying by calculating a weighted average of coordinates of the scattered points included in the cluster using, as weights, strengths of reflected radio waves of the scattered points;

associating any of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying with the target; and

combining the centroid calculated in the calculating during a preceding or earlier period with the scattered point group, wherein

the associating comprises associating any of the one or more clusters classified in the classifying with the target, based on whether the centroid calculated during the preceding or earlier period is included in the one or more clusters.

12 . A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for causing one or more processors to execute the detection method according to claim 11 .

13 . The detection system according to claim 1 , wherein

in response to detecting that the centroid calculated during the preceding or earlier period is included in one cluster among the one or more clusters, the associating comprises associating the one cluster with the target.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 10, 2024
From: INOUE, KENICHI
To: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 067368/0121 →
Priority Claims (1)
JP 2021-088002 · May 25, 2021 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20240219550A1 · Jul 4, 2024
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