Granted Patent B2

US 12,731,485 · App. 18/966,262 · Granted Sep 8, 2026

Inventors: David Harrison Silver (Millbrae, CA); Angus Leigh (Mountain View, CA); Benjamin Ingram (Santa Clara, CA); Jennifer Taylor (Palo Alto, CA); Vaibhav Nangia (East Palo Alto, CA)

Assignee: Waymo LLC

G08G1/0965G06F16/683G06F16/686G08G1/166H04R3/005G08G1/09623G08G1/09626H04R2499/13

Abstract

Claims (36)

1 . A vehicle configured to operate in an autonomous driving mode, the vehicle comprising:

a perception system including plurality of synchronized microphones configured to detect a noise emanating from another vehicle; and

one or more processors operably coupled with the perception system, the one or more processors configured to:

use output from the plurality of synchronized microphones to generate probabilities of the noise emanating from a particular direction relative to the vehicle configured to operate in an autonomous driving mode;

estimate a bearing of the other vehicle based on the generated probabilities;

identify at least one road segment associated with the other vehicle; and

control the vehicle in the autonomous driving mode to perform a maneuver in response to the estimated bearing and the identified at least one road segment.

2 . The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the other vehicle is an emergency vehicle.

3 . The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the noise is a siren noise.

4 . The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to measure timing of the noise reaching each of the synchronized microphones to provide a probability distribution over possible bearings of the other vehicle.

5 . The vehicle of claim 4 , wherein the probability distribution is provided over a plurality of possible ranges of the other vehicle.

6 . The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to use a model to estimate a probability distribution over possible velocities of the other vehicle.

7 . The vehicle of claim 1 , where a range of directions with a highest probability corresponds to an estimated bearing for the other vehicle.

8 . The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to generate bearing data for different bearings within a 360 degree radius, the bearing data including a probability or a likelihood value associated with one or more of the different bearings.

9 . The vehicle of claim 1 , further comprising generating bearing data for different bearings within a 360 degree radius, the bearing data including a probability or a likelihood value associated with one or more of the different bearings.

10 . A vehicle configured to operate in an autonomous driving mode, the vehicle comprising:

a perception system including plurality of synchronized microphones configured to detect a noise emanating from another vehicle; and

one or more processors operably coupled with the perception system, the one or more processors configured to:

form, by beamforming an array of at least a subset of the plurality of synchronized microphones, a plurality of beams in different directions external to the vehicle; and

apply sound corresponding to each of the formed plurality of beams to a first model, wherein the first model focuses listening on one or more locations that are most relevant to the other vehicle.

11 . The vehicle of claim 10 , wherein the other vehicle is an emergency vehicle.

12 . The vehicle of claim 10 , wherein the noise is a siren noise.

13 . The vehicle of claim 10 , wherein the beamforming is used to ignore interfering sounds from locations other than a current location of the other vehicle.

14 . The vehicle of claim 10 , wherein a first beam of the plurality of beams is formed in front of the vehicle, and one or more additional beams of the plurality of beams that are offset a predetermined amount from the first beam of the plurality of beams.

15 . The vehicle of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of synchronized microphones are beamformed in order to focus on each direction in which there is a peak in probability of the noise emanating from that direction.

16 . The vehicle of claim 15 , wherein the peak in probability corresponds to an increased signal-to-noise ratio that provides a more accurate estimation of a bearing, velocity and a range of the other vehicle.

17 . A method for controlling a vehicle in an autonomous driving mode, the method comprising:

using, by one or more processors, output from a perception system including plurality of synchronized microphones configured to detect a noise emanating from another vehicle to generate probabilities of the noise emanating from a particular direction relative to the vehicle configured to operate in an autonomous driving mode;

estimating, by the one or more processors, a bearing of the other vehicle based on the generated probabilities;

identifying, by the one or more processors, at least one road segment associated with the other vehicle; and

controlling, by the one or more processors, the vehicle in the autonomous driving mode to perform a maneuver in response to the estimated bearing and the identified at least one road segment.

18 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising:

forming, by beamforming an array of at least a subset of the plurality of synchronized microphones, a plurality of beams in different directions external to the vehicle; and

applying sound corresponding to each of the formed plurality of beams to a first model, wherein the first model focuses listening on one or more locations that are most relevant to the other vehicle.

19 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising measuring timing of the noise reaching each of the synchronized microphones to provide a probability distribution over possible bearings of the other vehicle.

20 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising using a model to estimate a probability distribution over possible velocities of the other vehicle.

Assignments (2)

Continuity (8)

References Cited (137)