Advanced Radar Sensors: These sensors use radar to detect objects, should be attached to the rear bumper, and can estimate distance to detected objects. A radar sensor is chosen over alternatives like infrared due to more reasonable cost, all-weather detection capability, high detection range, and resolution.
Rear camera
Should be high definition (720p).
The position may vary depending on the type of the vehicle but the camera should be mounted at the middle of the back of the car.
Has a self-cleaning mechanism.
Operates at 24 frames per second
Has a 180 degree field of view
The same positional configuration of various hardware will not suffice for all types of vehicles. There will need to be trials to determine optimal configuration of position for the camera and sensors.
LED Screen: This screen must be able to display camera video in high definition (720p).
The LED screen is a part of the vehicle’s existing media center
The screen contains an authorization module to prevent any malicious attacker from issuing erroneous or unauthorized commands to other ECU’s.
Smart cabin lights with the ability to flash on and off in medium frequency (.5 second intervals).
Override Button on the dash to will disable automatic braking and acceleration controls.
Hardware to control brakes and acceleration.
Software for LED screen and cabin lights.
Software to engage brakes and accelerators.
A Backup Accident Prevention ECU (BAP) to run proximity analysis software and signal warnings
Software to determine approximate impact time and probability based on radar input, current vehicle speed, braking and acceleration.
The BAP can signal the warning hardware (lights, audio, horn) to activate
The BAP should be activated once the car is put in reverse gear.
Once activated, the BAP should immediately activate the radar and sense for any obstacle in the path of the reversing car. The feedback of the radar is analyzed on-board the BAP.
The rear camera should be activated and start taking video of the vehicle rear. The screen in the dashboard is signaled to start displaying the video.
When an obstacle is detected, the response should start at any of the 3 stages as described below and continue with the described escalation procedure until the car is stationary or the BAP determines that there is no chance of a collision.
Stage 1
The BAP should determine a Stage 1 situation if the radar detects an obstacle at a location up to the WKL demarcation.
A beeping sound of low frequency (220Hz) and volume (20db) should play in the cabin and an approximate distance to obstacle should be displayed on the LED screen.
The beeping sound should keep increasing in frequency and volume as the car backs and the obstacle remains directly at the path of the backing car as determined by radar and control software in conjunction with hardware.
The rear lights should flash to warn the obstacle.
The above progression should continue until the obstacle has reached the SWL, when stage 2 initiates. At this state the frequency should be 600Hz and the volume should be 35db.
Stage 2
When the obstacle has been determined to be on the SWL or nearer and the speed of the car is sufficient to cover a distance more than the distance to the obstacle without further acceleration, the sound frequency and volume keep increasing.
As the obstacle approaches the CL, the cabin lights should start flashing in addition to the above warnings and the horn should start sounding to alert the obstacle.
As the location of the obstacle is nearer to the CL than the SWL, the gas pedal should automatically disengage.
The braking should progressively start applying.
The above progression should continue until the obstacle reached the CL, when stage 3 initiates. At this point the beep volume should be 40db and the frequency should be 1000Hz.
Stage 3
When the obstacle has been determined to be on the CL or nearer and the speed of the car is sufficient to run it over without further acceleration and application of full braking, Stage 3 should be activated along with deployment of countermeasures.
In addition to the warnings already present, full brakes should be applied by the car control software.
At any stage of automatic brake application, if the BAP receives a signal from the override switch, then braking and acceleration control must be set to manual mode, auditory warnings are deactivated.
Stage 3 situations should always override other non-critical stages. For example, if there is an obstacle in stage 3 and a bigger obstacle at stage 1, then the vehicle should react to Stage 3 obstacle(s).
Braking should use the vehicle’s existing control logic, so that any Automatic Braking System is used during slippery conditions.
The BAP has an authorization module to prevent external actors from issuing unauthorized commands.