# US 2021/0333380 A1 · Method for Determining a Collision Free Space > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2021/0333380 A1 - Document ID: US20210333380A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 17/199,358 - Filed: 2021-03-11 - Published: 2021-10-28 - Earliest claimed: 2020-04-27 - Assignees: Aptiv Technologies AG - Applicants: Aptiv Technologies Limited - Inventors: Adam Mats John Lilja; Markus Pär Oscar Carlander - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20210333380A1 ## CPC - G01S 13/04: Systems determining presence of a target (based on relative movement of target G01S13/56) - G06V 20/588: {Recognition of the road, e.g. of lane markings; Recognition of the vehicle driving pattern in relation to the road} - G01S 13/931: of land vehicles - G06V 20/58: Recognition of moving objects or obstacles, e.g. vehicles or pedestrians; Recognition of traffic objects, e.g. traffic signs, traffic lights or roads - G01S 2013/93271: {in the front of the vehicles} - G01S: RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES - G06V: IMAGE OR VIDEO RECOGNITION OR UNDERSTANDING ## Abstract A computer implemented method is provided for determining a collision free space in front of a host vehicle. A plurality of limiting points is detected via a detection system of the host vehicle, wherein each limiting point is located at a respective obstacle free distance with respect to the vehicle. A dynamic grid is formed in front of the host vehicle, wherein the dynamic grid is based on the course of a lane being determined in front of the host vehicle via the detection system of the host vehicle, and wherein the dynamic grid comprises a plurality of cells. An obstacle free subset of the cells is determined based on the plurality of limiting points, wherein the obstacle free subset of the cells defines the collision free space in front of a host vehicle. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method, comprising: determining a collision free space in front of a host vehicle by at least: detecting a plurality of limiting points via a detection system of the host vehicle, wherein each limiting point is located at a respective obstacle free distance with respect to the vehicle; forming a dynamic grid in front of the host vehicle via the detection system and via a computer system of the host vehicle, the dynamic grid being based on the course of a lane determined via the detection system to be in front of the host vehicle, the dynamic grid comprising a plurality of cells; and determining, via the computer system, an obstacle free subset of the cells based on the plurality of limiting points, the obstacle free subset of the cells defining the collision free space in front of the host vehicle. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein: the host vehicle comprises a vehicle coordinate system; each of the plurality of limiting points has a predefined angle with respect to the vehicle coordinate system; and the predefined angles are different for each of the plurality of limiting points. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method according to claim 2, wherein a difference between the angles of neighboring limiting points has a constant value for the plurality of limiting points. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The method according to claim 2, wherein: a plurality of line segments is defined for the plurality of limiting points; each line segment of the plurality of line segments starts from an origin of the vehicle coordinate system and ends between two neighboring limiting points; and determining the obstacle free subset of the cells comprises determining the obstacle free subset of the cells based on the plurality of line segments. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, wherein each line segment has an angle with respect to the vehicle coordinate system, the angle being between the predefined angles of the two corresponding neighboring limiting points. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method according to claim 5, wherein the angle of a respective line segment is the mean value of two angles of the corresponding neighboring limiting points. ### Claim 7 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, wherein each line segment ends at a distance with respect to the origin of the vehicle coordinate system that is equal to the maximum distance of the two neighboring limiting points with respect to the host vehicle. ### Claim 8 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, wherein a cell of the dynamic grid belongs to the obstacle free subset of cells if a line segment of the plurality of line segments traverses the cell entirely. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method according to claim 8, wherein a line segment of the plurality of line segments traverses the cell entirely if the line segment intersects an outer contour of the cell at least twice. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein forming the dynamic grid in front of the host vehicle comprises: detecting an indicator for the course of a lane in front of the host vehicle via the detection system of the host vehicle; determining, via the computer system of the host vehicle, based on the indicator for the course of a lane, a base area; defining, via the computer system, the plurality of cells by dividing the base area in longitudinal and lateral directions with respect to the host vehicle. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, further comprising: defining, via the computer system, based on the indicator, a reference line along the lane, the reference line being divided into segments, for each of the segments a respective row of cells is defined perpendicularly to the reference line. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method according to claim 11, further comprising: for each segment, defining two respective straight lines perpendicularly to the reference line at a beginning and at an end of the segment, respectively; and dividing each straight line into a predefined number of sections, wherein end points of the respective sections define corners of a respective one of the plurality of cells. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein a length and a width of every cell of the dynamic grid are smaller than a minimum distance between all limiting points of the plurality of limiting points. ### Claim 14 A system, comprising: a computer system for a host vehicle, the computer system configured to determine a collision free space in front of the host vehicle by at least: detecting, via a detection system of the host vehicle, a plurality of limiting points, wherein each limiting point is located at a respective obstacle free distance with respect to the vehicle; forming, via the detection system, a dynamic grid in front of the host vehicle, the dynamic grid being based on the course of a lane determined to be in front of the host vehicle, the dynamic grid comprising a plurality of cells; and determining an obstacle free subset of the cells based on the plurality of limiting points, the obstacle free subset of the cells defining the collision free space in front of the host vehicle. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The system of claim 14, further comprising the host vehicle. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The system of claim 14, wherein: the host vehicle comprises a vehicle coordinate system; each of the plurality of limiting points has a predefined angle with respect to the vehicle coordinate system; and the predefined angles are different for each of the plurality of limiting points. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein a difference between the angles of neighboring limiting points has a constant value for the plurality of limiting points. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein: a plurality of line segments is defined for the plurality of limiting points; each line segment of the plurality of line segments starts from an origin of the vehicle coordinate system and ends between two neighboring limiting points; and the obstacle free subset of the cells is determined based on the plurality of line segments. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The system of claim 18, wherein each line segment has an angle with respect to the vehicle coordinate system, the angle being between the predefined angles of the two corresponding neighboring limiting points. ### Claim 20 A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, configure the at least one processor to determine a collision free space in front of a host vehicle by at least: detecting, via a detection system of the host vehicle, a plurality of limiting points, wherein each limiting point is located at a respective obstacle free distance with respect to the vehicle; forming, via the detection system, a dynamic grid in front of the host vehicle, the dynamic grid being based on the course of a lane determined to be in front of the host vehicle, the dynamic grid comprising a plurality of cells; and determining an obstacle free subset of the cells based on the plurality of limiting points, the obstacle free subset of the cells defining the collision free space in front of the host vehicle.