Mapping and localization system for autonomous vehicles
US11790542B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 29, 2020 |
| Grant date | Oct 17, 2023 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 1, 2040 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T2207/30252
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Accurate vehicle localization is arguably the most critical and fundamental task for autonomous vehicle navigation. While dense 3D point-cloud-based maps enable precise localization, they impose significant storage and transmission burdens when used in city-scale environments. A highly compressed representation for LiDAR maps, along with an efficient and robust real-time alignment algorithm for on-vehicle LiDAR scans, is proposed here. The proposed mapping framework, requires less than 0.1% of the storage space of the original 3D point cloud map. In essence, mapping framework emulates an original map through feature likelihood functions. In particular, the mapping framework models planar, pole and curb features. These three feature classes are long-term stable, distinct and common among vehicular roadways. Multiclass feature points are extracted from LiDAR scans through feature detection. A new multiclass-based point-to-distribution alignment method is also proposed to find the association and alignment between the multiclass feature points and the map.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.