KR102030459B1 - LIDAR signal processing apparatus, method and LIDAR - Google Patents

Abstract

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a lidar signal processing apparatus capable of accurately measuring a distance to a measurement object using optical means, a processing method, and a lidar apparatus, comprising: a first laser light transmitted obliquely from a vehicle toward a road; A distance value deriving unit for deriving a distance value; A vehicle tilt estimator for estimating a road reference vehicle tilt from the distance value; A reliability determination unit that determines the reliability of the detected information based on the road reference vehicle inclination; And a data processor that processes or prioritizes the detected information as valid data when it is determined that the reliability is determined, and processes the detected information as invalid data or outputs a warning message when it is determined that the reliability is not determined. Can be.

Description

Lidar signal processing apparatus, processing method and lidar apparatus

The present invention relates to a lidar signal processing device, a processing method and a lidar device, and more particularly, to a lidar signal processing device capable of accurately measuring a distance to a measurement object using optical means, and It relates to a method and a lidar device.

LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) is a type of sensor that calculates the distance to the obstacle through the laser's traveling time by receiving the reflected wave reflected by the obstacle after shooting the laser light.

Such a radar is similar to a radar (Radar Detection And Ranging) in terms of function, but unlike a radar using radio waves, there is a difference in using light, and in this regard, it is also referred to as an 'image radar'. Due to the difference in the Doppler effect between the light and the microwave, the rider has a characteristic that the azimuth resolution, distance resolution, etc. are superior to the radar.

Lider's key performance indicators can include maximum and minimum measurement distances, distance resolution, horizontal viewing angle, vertical viewing angle, and angular resolution.

Recently, in order to increase the steering angle of the laser to improve the viewing angle performance of the lidar, technologies such as motor rotation, a micro mirror, an optical phased array, and a VCSEL array have been developed.

It is easy to widen the horizontal field of view for the most widely used motor rotation technology, but in order to widen the vertical field of view, it is necessary to use several laser diodes or prism optics.

Prism optics have a large number of multi-channel laser diodes because the distance measurement performance is limited due to laser power dispersion.

Such a conventional lidar device can secure a wide viewing angle by adopting various motor drive systems in the horizontal direction when considering the mounting position of the lidar sensor, but the viewing angle in the vertical direction, that is, the height direction of the vehicle may be limited. have.

In order to secure the viewing angle in the vertical direction, conventionally, a laser diode of a separate channel transmitting the laser light and a photodiode receiving the same are applied to be inclined in the vertical direction toward the road.

However, there is a limit to increasing the number of channels, and when the vehicle is inclined to change the actual tilt attitude of the vehicle relative to the road due to obstacles on the road, it is difficult to guarantee the reliability of the obstacle detection information.

Thus, for example, when a vehicle passes a boulder, a hill, or a dig on the road, there is a problem in that the irradiation range of the laser light is changed so that the obstacle to approach cannot be accurately determined.

The idea of the present invention is to solve these problems, the road reference vehicle is subtracted from the actual inclination measured from the ideal inclination of the existing vehicle by using the sensor and the distance value through which the laser beam is inclined toward the road A lidar signal processing apparatus, a processing method, and a lidar apparatus for securing a slope in real time to confirm the reliability of detected information are provided. However, these problems are exemplary, and the scope of the present invention is not limited thereby.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a signal processing apparatus of a LiDAR, comprising: a distance value deriving unit for deriving a distance value of a first laser light transmitted obliquely toward a road from a vehicle; A vehicle tilt estimator for estimating a road reference vehicle tilt from the distance value; A reliability determination unit that determines the reliability of the detected information based on the road reference vehicle inclination; And a data processor that processes the detected information as valid data when it is determined that the reliability is determined, and processes the detected information as invalid data or outputs a warning message when it is determined that there is no reliability.

In addition, according to the present invention, the distance value deriving unit, using the reflected light received from the first position of the road with respect to the first laser light transmitted to be inclined at a first angle toward the road based on the height direction of the vehicle. By converting the time of flight (TOF), it can be used to derive the distance value of the first laser light.

Further, according to the present invention, the vehicle tilt estimating unit calculates an actual tilt by referring to the mounting height of the sensor transmitting the first laser light and the derived distance value, and subtracts the actual tilt from the ideal tilt. The inclination of the road reference vehicle may be estimated.

In addition, according to the present invention, the reliability determination unit, based on the ideal value measured in a state in which both the vehicle and the road in parallel is determined that the road reference vehicle slope is within the normal range, the reliability is determined, out of the normal range It can be determined that there is no reliability.

On the other hand, the lidar signal processing method according to the idea of the present invention for solving the above problems, the distance value derivation step of deriving the distance value of the first laser light transmitted inclined at a first angle toward the road from the vehicle; A vehicle tilt estimation step of estimating a road reference vehicle slope from the distance value; A reliability determination step of determining reliability of information detected by a sensor based on the road reference vehicle inclination; And a data processing step of processing the information detected from the sensor as valid data when it is determined that the reliability is determined, and processing the information detected by the sensor as invalid data or outputting a warning message. It may include.

Further, according to the present invention, the step of deriving the distance value, the reflected light received from the first position of the road with respect to the first laser light transmitted inclined at a first angle toward the road with respect to the height direction of the vehicle. A time of flight (TOF) is used to calculate the distance value of the first laser light.

Further, according to the present invention, the vehicle tilt estimating step may calculate an actual tilt by referring to a mounting height of the sensor transmitting the first laser light and the derived distance value, and subtract the actual tilt from an ideal tilt. The inclination of the road reference vehicle can be estimated.

Further, according to the present invention, the reliability determination step, if the inclination of the road reference vehicle is within the normal range based on the ideal value measured in the state where both the vehicle and the road parallel to determine that the reliability, and the normal range If you deviate, you can judge that there is no reliability.

On the other hand, a lidar apparatus according to the spirit of the present invention for solving the above problems, the sensor that transmits the first laser light inclined at a first angle toward the road from the vehicle, and can receive the reflected wave; A distance value deriving unit for deriving a distance value of the first laser light; A vehicle tilt estimator for estimating a road reference vehicle tilt from the distance value; A reliability determination unit determining reliability of information detected by a sensor based on the road reference vehicle inclination; And a data processing unit for processing the information detected from the sensor as valid data when it is determined that the reliability is determined, and processing the information detected by the sensor as invalid data or outputting a warning message. can do.

In addition, according to the present invention, the sensor includes a plurality of laser diodes installed in a vehicle to transmit laser light of various channels at various angles; And a plurality of photodiodes capable of receiving the laser beams in various channels for each of the laser diodes.

According to some embodiments of the present invention made as described above, it is possible to confirm the reliability of the detected information by real-time secured the road reference vehicle slope subtracted from the actual slope measured from the ideal slope of the existing vehicle, By processing only valid data, the reliability of the obstacle detection information can be improved, and the accuracy of the detection information can be improved by correcting the obstacle detection information. Of course, the scope of the present invention is not limited by these effects.

1 is a schematic diagram schematically illustrating a lidar signal processing device and a lidar device according to some embodiments of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a signal processing apparatus of the lidar of FIG. 1.
3 is a schematic diagram showing an actual tilt state of a vehicle in which the lidar apparatus of FIG. 1 is installed.
4 is a schematic diagram showing an ideal tilt state of a vehicle in which the lidar apparatus of FIG. 1 is installed.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a tilt measurement principle of FIG. 3 or FIG. 4.
6 is a flowchart illustrating a method of processing a lidar according to some embodiments of the present invention.
7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a signal processing method of the lidar of FIG. 6.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The embodiments of the present invention are provided to more fully explain the present invention to those skilled in the art, and the following examples can be modified in various other forms, and the scope of the present invention is It is not limited to an Example. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In addition, the thickness or size of each layer in the drawings is exaggerated for convenience and clarity of description.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" may include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Also, as used herein, "comprise" and / or "comprising" specifies the presence of the mentioned shapes, numbers, steps, actions, members, elements and / or groups of these. It is not intended to exclude the presence or the addition of one or more other shapes, numbers, acts, members, elements and / or groups.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings, which schematically illustrate ideal embodiments of the present invention. In the figures, for example, variations in the shape shown may be expected, depending on manufacturing techniques and / or tolerances. Accordingly, embodiments of the inventive concept should not be construed as limited to the specific shapes of the regions shown herein, but should include, for example, changes in shape resulting from manufacturing.

Hereinafter, a lidar signal processing apparatus, a processing method, and a lidar apparatus according to various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a lidar signal processing apparatus 100 and a lidar apparatus 1000 including the lidar signal processing apparatus 100 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, and FIG. 2 is a signal processing apparatus of the lidar of FIG. 1. 100 is a block diagram showing FIG. 3, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an actual inclination state of the vehicle 1 in which the lidar apparatus 1000 of FIG. 1 is installed, and FIG. 4 is provided with the lidar apparatus 1000 of FIG. 1. It is a schematic diagram which shows the ideal inclination state of the vehicle 1. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a tilt measurement principle of FIG. 3 or FIG. 4.

First, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lidar apparatus 1000 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure may largely include a sensor 10 and a signal processing apparatus 100.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the sensor 10 is a kind of lidar sensor capable of transmitting the first laser light L1 inclined from the vehicle 1 toward the road 2 and receiving the reflected wave. Can be.

More specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, the sensor 10 may transmit the vehicle 1 to transmit laser light L1, L2, and L3 of various channels at various angles in the vertical direction. ) May include a plurality of laser diodes 11 and a plurality of photodiodes 12 that may receive the laser lights L1, L2, and L3 through various channels for each laser diode. Here, the installation angle or the number of the laser diode 11 may be applied in various ways without being limited to the drawings.

In addition, the laser diode may be a semiconductor laser having two electrodes for laser operation. More specifically, the laser diode is composed of three layers, and the active layer GaAs may be formed in a form sandwiched by AlxGa1-xAs. The refractive index n 1 of the GaAs and the refractive index n 2 of Al x Ga 1-x As may be designed to store light generated in the active layer, and the generated light may be emitted from the side of the active layer. In addition, the thickness of the active layer may be smaller than the wavelength of light that is normally generated, and unlike the excitation caused by light or electrons, the inversion distribution can be achieved by simply flowing a current, which is easy to handle. have.

For example, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 5, the signal processing apparatus 100 may include a distance value deriving unit 110 for deriving a distance value FL of the first laser light L1; The vehicle tilt estimator 120 estimating the road reference vehicle tilt K from the distance value FL and the reliability of the information detected by the sensor 10 based on the road reference vehicle tilt K are determined. If it is determined that the reliability determination unit 130 and the reliability is determined, the information detected from the sensor 10 is processed as valid data, and if it is determined that there is no reliability, the information detected from the sensor 10 is invalid data. It may include a data processor 140 to process or output a warning message.

More specifically, for example, as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the distance value deriving unit 110 may have a first angle A toward the road 2 based on the height direction of the vehicle 1. Time of Flight (TOF) is converted using the reflected light received from the first position P1 of the road 2 with respect to the first laser light L1 transmitted obliquely to the second laser light L1, and the first laser light L1 is converted into a time of flight. The distance value FL of the laser light L1 may be derived.

That is, as shown in FIG. 5, the vehicle tilt estimator 120 includes the mounting height H of the sensor 10 that transmits the first laser light L1 and the derived distance value FL. The actual slope A may be calculated and the road reference vehicle tilt K may be estimated by subtracting the actual slope A from the ideal slope A. FIG.

Here, the inclination A refers to the inclination angle inclined in the vertical direction with respect to the vehicle 1, which may be obtained using a cosine value.

That is, since cosine A is the mounting height H / distance value FL, since the value of cosine A is known, the value of A can also be known.

When the value of A is known, the road reference vehicle tilt K of FIG. 3 based on the road may be estimated by subtracting the actual slope A from the ideal tilt A.

On the other hand, for example, the reliability determination unit 130, if the road reference vehicle tilt K is within the normal range based on the ideal value measured in a state where both the vehicle 1 and the road 2 are parallel. It can be determined that there is reliability, and if it is outside the normal range, it can be determined that there is no reliability.

Therefore, when the operation of the signal processing apparatus 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention will be described, first, the first laser light L1 transmitted at an inclination toward the road 2 from the vehicle 1 will be described. The distance value FL can be derived.

At this time, the first position of the road 2 with respect to the first laser light (L1) transmitted to be inclined at the first angle (A) toward the road (2) on the basis of the height direction of the vehicle ( TOF may be converted using the reflected light received from P1, and the distance value FL of the first laser light L1 may be derived using the reflected light.

Subsequently, the road reference vehicle tilt K may be estimated from the distance value FL. In this case, the actual tilt A is calculated by referring to the mounting height H of the sensor 10 that transmits the first laser light L1 and the derived distance value FL, and the ideal tilt is ideal. The road reference vehicle tilt K may be estimated by subtracting the actual tilt A from A).

Subsequently, the reliability of the information detected by the sensor 10 may be determined based on the road reference vehicle tilt. At this time, if the road reference vehicle tilt K is within the normal range based on the ideal value measured in a state where both the vehicle 1 and the road 2 are in parallel, it is determined that there is reliability, and it is out of the normal range. It can be determined that there is no reliability.

Subsequently, when it is determined that the reliability is determined, the information detected by the sensor 10 is processed or prioritized as valid data, and when it is determined that the reliability is not determined, the information detected by the sensor 10 is regarded as invalid data. You can handle it or print a warning message.

Therefore, the actual inclination A measured from the ideal inclination of the existing vehicle using the sensor 10 for transmitting the first laser light L1 to be inclined toward the road 2 and the distance value FL through the same. It is possible to confirm the reliability of the detected information by securing the road reference vehicle tilt K, which is subtracted from the signal in real time, thereby processing only valid data to improve the reliability of the obstacle detection information, and correcting the obstacle detection information. The accuracy of the information can be improved.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the lidar apparatus 1000 according to some embodiments of the present invention may include an optical system 13 formed of a combination of a lens, a prism, a reflecting mirror, or the like, which guides a path of laser light, A low noise amplifier 14 for amplifying the signal received by the photodiode 12, a comparator 15 for comparing and selecting the received signals, a time to digital converter 16 for calculating a transmission / reception time, and the laser diode 11 The drive control unit 17, the other connector, the communication unit 18, such as a wireless transmission and reception device for driving the) may be installed. However, the Radia apparatus 1000 of the present invention is not necessarily limited to the drawings, and various kinds or types of electronic components may be applied.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a method of processing a lidar according to some embodiments of the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, the method for processing a lidar according to some embodiments of the present invention includes a first laser light L1 transmitted obliquely from a vehicle 1 toward a road 2. A distance value deriving step (S1) of deriving a distance value of the vehicle, a vehicle tilt estimation step (S2) of estimating a road reference vehicle inclination from the distance value, and the sensor 10 detected based on the road reference vehicle inclination If it is determined that there is a reliability determination step (S3) and the reliability of the information, and process the information detected from the sensor 10 as the valid data or give priority, if it is determined that there is no reliability, the sensor It may include a data processing step (S4) for processing the information detected from (10) as invalid data or output a warning message.

Here, the distance value deriving step S1 may be performed for the first laser light L1 transmitted to be inclined at a first angle A toward the road 2 based on the height direction of the vehicle 1. Converting a time of flight (TOF) using the reflected light received from the first position P1 of the roadway 2 and deriving a distance value FL of the first laser light L1 using the reflected light; Can be.

In addition, the vehicle tilt estimation step S2 may refer to the mounting height H of the sensor 10 that transmits the first laser light L1 and the derived distance value FL, with reference to the actual tilt A. FIG. ), And subtracting the actual inclination A from the ideal inclination A to estimate the road reference vehicle inclination K.

In addition, the reliability determination step (S3), if the road reference vehicle tilt (K) is within the normal range based on the ideal value measured in a state where both the vehicle 1 and the road (2) is parallel to the reliability. If it is determined that it is outside the normal range may be determined that there is no reliability.

7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a signal processing method of the lidar of FIG. 6.

More specifically, for example, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 7, a signal processing method of a LiDAR according to some other embodiments of the present invention may first be used to derive the distance value FL. The laser beam FL may be transmitted (S11), and a reflected wave thereof may be received (S12).

Subsequently, the TOF may be calculated using the difference between the transmission time and the reception time, and the distance value FL may be derived through this (S13).

Subsequently, the road reference vehicle tilt K may be estimated with reference to the sensor mounting height H of the vehicle and the derived distance value FL (S14).

Subsequently, the reliability of the sensor information may be determined based on the road reference vehicle tilt K (S15), and if it is determined that the reliability is determined, the sensor detection information may be transmitted as valid data (S16), or the priority may be given. If it is determined that there is no reliability (S18), information including a warning message may be transmitted (S17). However, this specific process is not necessarily limited to the drawings and may be performed in a wide variety of orders.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, this is merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention will be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

1: vehicle
2: road
10: sensor
11: laser diode
12: photodiode
13: optical system
14: low noise amplifier
15: Comparator
16: Time to digital converter
17: drive control unit
18: communication unit
100: Lida's signal processing device
110: distance value derivation unit
120: vehicle tilt estimation unit
130: reliability determination unit
140: data processing unit
1000: lidar device

Claims (10)

A distance value deriving unit for deriving a distance value of the first laser light transmitted obliquely from the vehicle toward the road;
A vehicle tilt estimator for estimating a road reference vehicle tilt from the distance value;
A reliability determination unit that determines the reliability of the detected information based on the road reference vehicle inclination; And
A data processor configured to process or give priority to the detected information as valid data when it is determined that the reliability is determined, and to process the detected information as invalid data or to output a warning message;
Including,
The distance value deriving unit,
Time of Flight (TOF) is converted by using the reflected light received from the first position of the road with respect to the first laser light transmitted to be inclined at a first angle toward the road based on the height direction of the vehicle, and using the same. To derive the distance value of the first laser light,
The vehicle tilt estimation unit,
A signal processing of a lidar which calculates an actual inclination by referring to the mounting height of the sensor transmitting the first laser light and the derived distance value, and estimates the inclination of the road reference vehicle by subtracting the actual inclination from an ideal inclination. Device. delete delete The method of claim 1,
The reliability determination unit,
Lida's signal processing determines that there is reliability when the road reference vehicle slope is within a normal range based on an ideal value measured while both the vehicle and the road are parallel, and that there is no reliability when outside the normal range. Device. A distance value deriving step of deriving a distance value of the first laser light transmitted obliquely at a first angle from the vehicle toward the road;
A vehicle tilt estimation step of estimating a road reference vehicle slope from the distance value;
A reliability determination step of determining reliability of information detected by a sensor based on the road reference vehicle inclination; And
When it is determined that the reliability is determined, processing or prioritizing the information detected from the sensor as valid data, and when it is determined that there is no reliability, the data that processes the information detected by the sensor as invalid data or outputs a warning message. Processing step;
Including,
The distance value deriving step,
Time of Flight (TOF) is converted by using the reflected light received from the first position of the road with respect to the first laser light transmitted to be inclined at a first angle toward the road based on the height direction of the vehicle, and using the same. To derive the distance value of the first laser light,
The vehicle tilt estimation step,
A signal of a lidar that calculates an actual slope by referring to a mounting height of the sensor transmitting the first laser light and the derived distance value, and estimates the road reference vehicle slope by subtracting the actual slope from an ideal slope Treatment method. delete delete The method of claim 5,
The reliability determination step,
Lida's signal processing determines that there is reliability when the road reference vehicle slope is within a normal range based on an ideal value measured while both the vehicle and the road are parallel, and that there is no reliability when outside the normal range. Way. A sensor capable of transmitting the first laser light inclined at a first angle from the vehicle toward the road and receiving the reflected wave;
A distance value deriving unit for deriving a distance value of the first laser light;
A vehicle tilt estimator for estimating a road reference vehicle tilt from the distance value;
A reliability determination unit determining reliability of information detected by a sensor based on the road reference vehicle inclination; And
When it is determined that the reliability is determined, processing or prioritizing the information detected from the sensor as valid data, and when it is determined that there is no reliability, the data that processes the information detected by the sensor as invalid data or outputs a warning message. Processing unit;
Including,
The distance value deriving unit,
Time of Flight (TOF) is converted by using the reflected light received from the first position of the road with respect to the first laser light transmitted to be inclined at a first angle toward the road based on the height direction of the vehicle, and using the same. To derive the distance value of the first laser light,
The vehicle tilt estimation unit,
And an actual inclination by calculating a mounting height of the sensor transmitting the first laser light and the derived distance value, and subtracting the actual inclination from an ideal inclination to estimate the road reference vehicle inclination. The method of claim 9,
The sensor,
A plurality of laser diodes installed in the vehicle to transmit laser light of various channels at various angles; And
A plurality of photodiodes capable of receiving the laser beams in various channels for each of the laser diodes;
Lida device comprising a.

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