Waymo patents self-driving cars that hear sirens and pull over
This patent describes how an autonomous vehicle uses multiple microphones to hear an emergency siren and figure out which direction it is coming from. The car then combines this sound data with its map and camera systems to identify the emergency vehicle and decide how to move out of the way.
In the filing’s own words
The technology relates to detecting and responding to emergency vehicles. This may include using a plurality of microphones to detect a siren noise corresponding to an emergency vehicle and to estimate a bearing of the emergency vehicle. This estimated bearing is compared to map information to identify a portion of roadway on which the emergency vehicle is traveling. In addition, information identifying a set of objects in the vehicle's environment as well as characteristics of those objects is received from a perception system is used to determine whether one of the set of objects corresponds to the emergency vehicle. How to respond to the emergency vehicle is determined based on the estimated bearing and identified road segments and the determination of whether one of the set of objects corresponds to the emergency vehicle. This determined response is then used to control the vehicle in an autonomous driving mode.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
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.
Facts
- Company
- Google (Waymo LLC)
- Official title
- Detecting and responding to sirens
- Patent number
- US12731485B2
- Application number
- 18966262
- Filed
- Dec 3, 2024
- Granted
- Sep 8, 2026
- Inventors
- 5
- Claims
- 20
Classified under
G08G 1/0965 Physics & computingG06F 16/683 Physics & computingG06F 16/686 Physics & computingG08G 1/166 Physics & computingH04R 3/005 Electricity & electronicsG08G 1/09623 Physics & computingMore from Google in Cars & transport
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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.