CN120439932A - Vehicle warning method and device and corresponding warning vehicle, vehicle, device and medium - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a warning method and device for a vehicle and a corresponding warning vehicle, computer device and storage medium. The warning method comprises the steps of enabling the warning vehicle to execute warning related operation in response to the fact that a warning trigger event indicating that the vehicle needs to be warned is monitored, sending a signal indicating that a warning vehicle associated with the vehicle is enabled, and enabling the warning vehicle to execute the warning related operation in response to the fact that the signal is received, wherein the warning related operation comprises the warning vehicle independently travelling to a warning position behind the vehicle as a warning sign. By utilizing the scheme of the invention, the vehicle can warn the coming vehicle at the rear in a safer way without limitation under the condition of warning.

Description

Vehicle warning method and device and corresponding warning vehicle, device and medium

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of vehicle technology, and more particularly, to a warning method and a warning device for a vehicle, and a corresponding warning vehicle, computer device, and computer-readable storage medium.

Background

With the higher and higher material living standard of people, the domestic automobile conservation amount is also larger and larger, but at the same time, the automobile traffic accidents are also more and more. In the conventional traffic accident treatment, a driver is usually required to replace an emergency reflective waistcoat, and a triangular warning frame is placed at a position which is different from 50 meters to 200 meters behind a vehicle so as to remind the vehicle behind to decelerate in advance, thereby preventing secondary accidents. However, this conventional approach has some problems. For example, the driver may be impaired or even unconscious due to injuries from traffic accidents, and this conventional practice may not be possible. In addition, the traditional method also has a certain hidden trouble for causing secondary accidents. For example, in case of a highway accident in bad weather such as heavy fog, heavy rain, ice and snow, at night, it is extremely dangerous for the driver to walk off to place and retract the tripod. In addition, the common triangular warning rack may not be sufficiently conspicuous due to limited ambient light, so that the warning effect on the rear vehicles is significantly reduced.

One known alternative is to equip the vehicle with a V2X function so that the vehicle communicates wirelessly from vehicle to vehicle via a V2X signal, thereby informing the rear of the vehicle of an accident ahead, taking care of driving, etc. However, this approach also has some drawbacks. For example, this method works only if both the host vehicle and the following vehicle, which need to be alerted, are equipped with V2X functions. At present, the loading rate of V2X is lower, and even if the vehicle sends a V2X warning signal, the rear vehicle is likely to be unable to receive the signal, so that warning information cannot be transmitted to the rear. In addition, even if the vehicle and the rear vehicle are equipped with the V2X function, the V2X communication distance may be greatly reduced due to the influence of terrain (such as shielding of curves, uphill slopes, downhill slopes, trees, etc.), weather (such as rainy and snowy weather, etc.), and then the warning information cannot be timely transmitted to the rear.

Accordingly, there is a need for a solution to the above-described problems.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide an alert solution for a vehicle to at least partially solve or alleviate the above-mentioned problems.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an alert method for a vehicle, comprising:

an enabling step of sending a signal indicating that an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle is enabled in response to monitoring an alert trigger event indicating that the vehicle needs to be alerted;

And in response to receiving the signal, enabling the warning vehicle to execute warning related operation, wherein the warning related operation comprises that the warning vehicle independently moves to a warning position behind the vehicle as a warning sign.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an alert method for a vehicle, comprising:

an instruction receiving step of receiving an instruction to enable an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle, wherein the instruction is received from the vehicle in a case where an alert trigger event for which the vehicle needs to be alerted is detected;

And in response to receiving the indication, enabling the warning vehicle to execute warning related operation, wherein the warning related operation comprises the warning vehicle independently travelling to a warning position behind the vehicle as a warning sign.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an alert apparatus for a vehicle, comprising:

An indication receiving device configured to receive an indication to enable an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle, wherein the indication is received from the vehicle if an alert trigger event is detected that the vehicle needs to be alerted;

and an alert execution device configured to cause the alert vehicle to execute an alert-related operation including the alert vehicle independently traveling to an alert position behind the vehicle as an alert flag in response to receiving the indication.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided an alert vehicle for a vehicle comprising an alert device according to the third aspect of the present invention.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention there is provided a vehicle comprising a warning vehicle according to the fourth aspect of the present invention.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention there is provided a computer device comprising a memory and a processor, the memory having stored thereon computer instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the alert method according to the first or second aspect of the present invention to be performed.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention there is provided a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause an alert method according to the first or second aspect of the present invention to be performed.

By adopting the scheme of the invention, when the vehicle needs to be warned, the warning vehicle associated with the vehicle can be triggered to independently execute the warning related operation, so that the warning of the rear vehicle is realized without depending on a vehicle user such as a driver, the problem that the warning operation is limited or even can not be realized due to depending on manpower to execute the warning related operation can be avoided, and the risk related to the execution of the warning related operation by the vehicle user can be avoided. By using the invention, the vehicle can warn the coming vehicle at the rear in a safer way without limitation under the condition of warning.

Drawings

Non-limiting and non-exhaustive embodiments of the present invention are described by way of example with reference to the following drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a flow chart schematically illustrating a warning method for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing a warning apparatus for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart schematically illustrating a warning method for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a block diagram schematically showing a warning apparatus for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a storage mechanism for a warning vehicle positioned below a trunk of an associated vehicle in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 schematically illustrates an alert vehicle and its associated components according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

To further clarify the above and other features and advantages of the present application, a further description of the application will be rendered by reference to the appended drawings. The accompanying drawings form a part hereof, and are incorporated in and serve to illustrate the application in accordance with embodiments thereof. For the purposes of clarity and simplicity, detailed descriptions of well-known functions and configurations incorporated herein by reference will be omitted when it may obscure the subject matter of the present application. It should be understood that the specific embodiments presented herein are for purposes of explanation to those skilled in the art and are intended to be illustrative only and not limiting.

The features described herein may be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, the embodiments described herein are provided merely to illustrate some of the many possible ways to implement the devices and/or systems described herein that will be apparent upon an understanding of the present disclosure.

As used herein, the term "and/or" includes any one of the listed items associated and any combination of any two or more of the listed items associated.

Although terms such as "first," "second," and "third" may be used herein to describe various elements, components, portions, or elements, these elements, components, portions, or elements are not limited by these terms. Rather, these terms are only used to distinguish one element, component, section or feature from another element, component, section or feature. Thus, a first member, component, section or element mentioned herein could also be termed a second member, component, section or element without departing from the teachings of the present invention.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing various embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure. Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include plural forms as well. The terms "comprises," "comprising," and "having" specify the presence of stated features, operations, components, elements, and/or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, operations, components, elements, and/or groups thereof.

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the specific details need not be employed to practice the present invention. In other instances, well-known steps or operations have not been described in detail in order to avoid obscuring the invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a warning method 100 for a vehicle is shown in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The method 100 may include enabling step S101 and alert performing step S102. The enabling step S101 may be performed by a vehicle-side warning device of the present invention (to be described with reference to fig. 2 hereinafter), and the warning performing step S102 may be performed by a warning vehicle-side warning device of the present invention (to be described with reference to fig. 4 hereinafter).

In enabling step S101, a signal indicating that an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle is enabled may be sent in response to monitoring an alert trigger event indicating that the vehicle needs to be alerted. Herein, an "alert triggering event" may be understood broadly as a variety of possible events that result in or indicate that the vehicle needs to be alerted. As examples, the alert triggering event may include, for example, but not limited to, an accident (e.g., a collision) of the vehicle, an airbag of the vehicle being turned on, a safety warning light of the vehicle being turned on, a health condition abnormality (e.g., exhibiting a physical discomfort condition, coma, etc.) of a driver of the vehicle being present, the vehicle receiving user input indicating that the vehicle needs to be alerted, etc. For example, in one embodiment, an alert trigger event may be deemed to be detected when the vehicle receives input from a vehicle user indicating that an alert is required, which may include, for example, but not limited to, a vehicle driver operating a safety warning light, a driver clicking on consent with a center console window of the vehicle asking if an alert vehicle is enabled, and the like. The occurrence or existence of an alert trigger event may be monitored in various possible ways. For example, the presence or occurrence of an alert trigger event may be detected by various possible vehicle components (e.g., a controller of the vehicle, a center control system or a center control vehicle, cameras, acceleration or other sensors on the vehicle, other vehicle components, etc.), without limitation.

In addition, it is possible that the alert trigger event is expected to include a predetermined alert trigger event. The predetermined alert trigger event may be appropriately determined according to circumstances. In this way, false detection of alert triggering events is facilitated to be reduced or avoided. For example, in one embodiment, the turning on of the safety warning light of the vehicle is not regarded as a predetermined warning trigger event, and the vehicle center console popup window inquires whether the driver starts the warning vehicle when the safety warning light of the vehicle is turned on, and when the driver clicks the agreed operation information, the driver can be regarded as monitoring the predetermined warning trigger event.

In the alert execution step S102, in response to receiving the signal, the alert vehicle is caused to execute an alert-related operation. The present invention contemplates that the warning vehicles independently perform warning-related operations. The warning-related operation may include the warning vehicle independently traveling to a warning position behind the vehicle as a warning sign. In this connection, the warning vehicle may have a communication module for receiving the signal from the vehicle side, and may also have an autopilot function, so that the warning vehicle can automatically travel to the warning position. In addition, it is possible to expect the warning vehicle to be able to determine the warning location by itself, and to plan a route for the warning vehicle to travel to the warning location by itself. Depending on the situation, the warning vehicle may have some of the features for implementing the autopilot related functions. Vehicles with autopilot functionality are known per se and are not described in detail here. In the following, only some of the features that the warning vehicle may optionally have are listed by way of example:

Sensors, such as cameras, radar, lidar, ultrasound sensors, etc., may be installed to sense by the sensors, such as detecting objects, obstacles, infrastructure, etc. of the surrounding environment;

Adapted for vehicle-to-vehicle communication and/or communication with an online server or database, e.g. accessible Highly Automated Driving (HAD) maps or the like;

the location function may be provided, for example its own position may be determined by one or a combination of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), HAD maps, sensor-sensed data;

The navigation function may be provided, for example, to an online server by means of which the navigation route is determined;

the system may have a path planning function, for example, route and path planning may be performed based on the sensing and self-positioning results of the sensor;

There may be a central controller, for example by which control signals may be sent to the power and drive systems (including the powertrain, steering system, driveline, etc.) based on the planned path to follow the planned path, receiving instructions to control other vehicle components or on-board components such as cameras, etc.

In one embodiment, the warning vehicle may include a power and travel system, an autopilot control unit, and sensors. The sensor is for sensing environmental information about the surroundings of the warning vehicle. The automatic driving control unit is used for determining the warning position and a route of the warning vehicle to the warning position based on the environmental information, and controlling the power and driving system based on the route so that the warning vehicle travels to the warning position along the route. In one embodiment, the power and travel system may include a drive motor for controlling the forward, reverse and braking of the warning vehicle, a steering motor for controlling the left and right turns of the warning vehicle, off-road wheels for contacting the ground to effect travel of the warning vehicle.

Optionally, the alert method may further include an environmental information receiving step and a using step (not shown). In the environmental information receiving step, environmental information about the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle is received from the warning vehicle, the environmental information including a picture or video of the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle. In the using step, the received environmental information is used for monitoring and/or sensing the surrounding environment of the vehicle. In this case, the alert-related operation may further include capturing the environmental information in real time through a sensor and transmitting the environmental information to the vehicle in real time. The environmental information from the warning vehicle may be used by the vehicle side in various possible ways depending on the situation, for example, the picture or video may be presented to the driver of the vehicle, or the picture or video and/or other environmental information about the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle may be fused with information sensed by sensors of the vehicle itself, etc.

In one embodiment, the alert related operations further include sending an alert signal to a rear vehicle located behind the vehicle and/or sending a wireless signal to the vehicle received from a rear vehicle located behind the vehicle, the alert signal and/or the wireless signal including a V2X signal. In this regard, the warning vehicle may have a wireless communication module with a wireless communication function, in particular a V2X communication function. In one embodiment, the warning vehicle has an LED assembly, at which time a warning signal may be sent by illuminating an LED of the LED assembly. In one embodiment, the warning vehicle selectively transmits a V2X warning signal through a wireless communication module having a V2X communication function and/or transmits a warning signal in the form of visible light by illuminating an LED of the LED assembly.

Referring to fig. 2, an alert device 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The alerting device 200 may comprise a listening means 201 and an enabling means 202. The warning device 200 may be included in a vehicle, and in this sense may be referred to as a "vehicle-side warning device".

The listening device 201 may be configured to listen for the presence of an alert trigger event indicating that the vehicle needs to be alerted. The enabling means 202 may be configured to, in response to monitoring the alert trigger event, send a signal indicating that an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle is enabled to cause the alert vehicle to be enabled, wherein in response to being enabled, the alert vehicle performs an alert related operation including the alert vehicle independently traveling to an alert location behind the vehicle as an alert flag.

Optionally, the vehicle-side warning apparatus of the present invention may further include an environmental information receiving device and a using device. The environmental information receiving means may be configured to receive environmental information about the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle from the warning vehicle, the environmental information including a picture or video of the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle. The usage device may be configured to use the received environmental information for monitoring and/or sensing the surroundings of the vehicle. In this case, the alert-related operation may further include capturing the environmental information in real time through a sensor and transmitting the environmental information to the vehicle in real time. Depending on the situation, the usage device may be configured to present the picture or video to the driver of the vehicle, or to fuse the picture or video and/or other environmental information about the surroundings of the warning vehicle with information sensed by sensors of the vehicle itself, etc.

The activation steps and details thereof described above in connection with the alert method 100 of the present invention may be applicable to the vehicle side alert device (e.g., alert device 200) of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, a warning method 300 for a vehicle is shown in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The method 300 may include an indication receiving step S301 and an alert executing step S302, which may be executed by an alert vehicle side alert device of the present invention (to be described later with reference to fig. 4).

In an indication receiving step S301, an indication to enable an alert car associated with the vehicle may be received. The indication may be received from the vehicle in the event that an alert triggering event is detected that the vehicle needs to alert. In this regard, the warning vehicle may have a communication module for receiving the indication from the vehicle side.

In the alert executing step S302, the alert vehicle may be caused to execute an alert-related operation including the alert vehicle independently traveling to an alert position behind the vehicle as an alert flag in response to receiving the indication.

In one embodiment, the automated driving control unit of the warning vehicle is configured to determine the warning location and a route the warning vehicle travels to the warning location based on environmental information about the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle, and to control the power and travel system of the warning vehicle based on the route such that the warning vehicle travels to the warning location along the route. In one embodiment, the power and travel system of the warning vehicle includes a drive motor for controlling the forward, reverse and braking of the warning vehicle and a steering motor for controlling the left and right turns of the warning vehicle.

In one embodiment, the alert related operations may further include the alert vehicle capturing environmental information about the alert vehicle's surrounding environment in real time via a sensor. The environmental information may include, for example, but not limited to, a picture or video of the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle. In this regard, the warning vehicle may have a sensor for capturing the environmental information in real-time. The alert related operations may optionally further include transmitting the environmental information to the vehicle in real time. In one embodiment, the alert related operations further include sending an alert signal to a rear vehicle located behind the vehicle and/or sending a wireless signal to the vehicle received from a rear vehicle located behind the vehicle, the alert signal and/or the wireless signal including a V2X signal. In this regard, the warning vehicle may have a wireless communication module with a wireless communication function, in particular a V2X communication function. In one embodiment, the warning vehicle has an LED assembly, at which time a warning signal may be sent by illuminating an LED of the LED assembly. In one embodiment, the warning vehicle selectively transmits a V2X warning signal through a wireless communication module having a V2X communication function and/or transmits a warning signal in the form of visible light by illuminating an LED of the LED assembly.

Referring to fig. 4, an alert device 400 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The alert device 400 may comprise an indication receiving means 401 and an alert executing means 402. The warning device 400 may be included in a warning vehicle and may be referred to in this sense as a "warning vehicle side warning device".

The indication receiving means 401 may be configured to receive an indication to enable an alert car associated with the vehicle. The indication may be received from the vehicle in the event that an alert triggering event is detected that the vehicle needs to alert. Alert performing device 402 may be configured to cause the alert vehicle to perform an alert related operation including the alert vehicle independently traveling to an alert location behind the vehicle as an alert flag in response to receiving the indication.

The various operations and details described above in connection with the alert method 300 of the present invention may be applicable to the alert vehicle side alert device (e.g., alert device 400) of the present invention.

According to the invention, in the event of an alarm triggering event being heard, the vehicle side sends an enabling signal to enable the alarm vehicle. Thus, the automatic activation of the warning vehicle can be realized. The vehicle with which the warning vehicle is associated may have a storage mechanism for the warning vehicle. According to the invention, the storage mechanism may be configured to store the warning vehicle in an inactive state, to allow the warning vehicle to move out of the storage mechanism to the ground to perform a warning-related operation when the warning vehicle is activated, and to allow the warning vehicle to move into the storage mechanism from the ground after the warning vehicle finishes performing the warning-related operation. In addition, the storage mechanism may be configured to have other optional additional functions such as, but not limited to, charging the warning vehicle, monitoring some status related information of the vehicle, particularly information related to a warning trigger event, such as whether the vehicle is crashed, whether the vehicle is suddenly decelerated, whether the vehicle is stopped, etc., communicating with the warning vehicle. In one embodiment, the storage mechanism is configured to allow the warning vehicle to move out of the storage mechanism to the ground and into the storage mechanism from the ground by itself, at which time enabling the warning vehicle may include sending an enabling signal to the warning vehicle. In another embodiment, the storage mechanism has an operating arm configured to perform a lowering operation including retrieving, lowering, and particularly placing on the ground, an alert vehicle located in the storage mechanism, and a retrieving operation including retrieving, and retrieving, an alert vehicle located outside the storage mechanism, and particularly on the ground, the storage mechanism, at which time, enabling the alert vehicle may include sending an enabling signal to the storage mechanism to control the operating arm to perform the lowering operation. Depending on the circumstances, the storage mechanism may be disposed in a variety of possible suitable locations of the vehicle, including, for example, but not limited to, under a trunk of the vehicle.

Referring to FIG. 5, an example storage mechanism 500 for a warning vehicle is shown below a trunk of a vehicle with which the warning vehicle is associated, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The storage mechanism 500 may provide charging and storage functions for the warning vehicle. Additionally, the storage mechanism 500 may optionally be used to monitor some status-related information of the vehicle in which it is located, particularly information related to alert triggering events. When the warning vehicle is not activated, the storage mechanism 500 may be charged by the vehicle battery, including charging the warning vehicle located therein, if desired. When the warning vehicle is activated, the storage mechanism opens a cover plate (not shown) below the storage mechanism and extends an operating arm (not shown) to place the warning vehicle on the ground. When the warning vehicle finishes the warning related operation and returns, the storage mechanism opens the lower cover plate, and the operation arm stretches out to retract the warning vehicle into the storage mechanism.

Referring to fig. 6, an alert vehicle 600 and its associated components in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention are shown. As shown in fig. 6, the warning vehicle 600 may include a power and driving system 1, an automatic driving system 2, an led warning system 3, a communication system 4 for V2X information transmission, video streaming transmission, remote control, and a high definition camera 5.

The power and running system 1 may include a driving motor for controlling the forward, backward, braking, etc. movements of the warning vehicle, a steering motor for controlling the left and right turning, etc. movements of the warning vehicle, a battery for supplying power to the power-consuming parts of the warning vehicle, and off-road wheels for completing running in contact with the ground.

The autopilot system 2 may include an autopilot control unit for controlling autopilot of the warning vehicle, and sensors including cameras, short range radars for sensing ambient conditions and providing input information for autopilot. The autopilot control unit may form a central controller of the warning vehicle.

The LED warning system 3 may comprise a polygonal frame, a plurality of LED light modules, and an LED light form control module for controlling LEDs of the LED light modules to enable the LED light to be in one of a plurality of preset light modes, such as long-light, short-light, long-light, galloping and the like.

The communication system 4 may include a wireless antenna for wirelessly transmitting information, a V2X processing module for processing V2X signals, a video stream processing module for processing real-time video streams, and a warning vehicle remote control module for a driver to remotely control the warning vehicle, such as to control the movement of the warning vehicle, such as to move backward, turn around, etc. According to circumstances, the warning vehicle remote control module may be configured to be adapted to communicate with a remote control or APP mountable in a user mobile terminal such as a cell phone, thereby allowing a driver to remotely control the warning vehicle via the remote control or cell phone. By remotely controlling the warning vehicle, the driver may in any case manually take over the warning vehicle, control the warning vehicle, including activating the warning vehicle or controlling the warning vehicle in other desired ways.

The high-definition camera 5 may be used to capture pictures or videos of the surroundings of the warning vehicle in real time and may be used as one of the sensor input sources of the automatic driving system 2. The pictures or videos captured by the high definition camera 5 may be processed via the communication system 4 and transmitted in real time to a vehicle associated with the warning vehicle, for example in the form of a real-time video stream.

After being activated, the warning vehicle 600 is capable of performing environmental awareness, path planning, and automatic travel to a warning location behind the vehicle independently of its associated vehicle. During driving and/or after reaching the warning position, the warning vehicle can independently and selectively send V2X warning signals to a rear vehicle positioned behind the vehicle as required, and the LED light module of the LED warning system 3 is controlled to send light as warning signals, and independently send V2X signals to surrounding vehicles, surrounding roadbed equipment and cloud road network for required communication and interaction. Therefore, the safety warning object can be timely, effectively and safely placed by the warning vehicle under the condition that the vehicle needs to be warned (for example, under the condition of traffic accidents), and the rear vehicle is warned to the maximum extent, so that secondary accidents are prevented. The vehicle driver can warn the rear vehicle on the premise of being the safest, so that secondary accidents are prevented, one or more of V2X communication, LED light emission and automatic driving realized by the warning vehicle is beneficial to enabling the rear vehicle to receive warning information at a relatively long safety distance, particularly in severe weather environments, so that secondary accidents are prevented, and the real-time video stream capturing and transmitting function realized by the warning vehicle can help the vehicle driver to clearly know the environment related information of the rear, such as traffic conditions, rescue vehicle conditions and the like.

It will be appreciated by persons of ordinary skill in the art that the schematic diagrams depicted in fig. 2, 4-6 are merely exemplary explanatory block diagrams of portions of structures associated with aspects of the present invention, and are not intended to limit computer devices, processors, or computer programs embodying aspects of the present invention. A particular computer device, processor, or computer program may include more or fewer components or modules than those shown in the figures, or may combine or split certain components or modules, or may have a different arrangement of components or modules.

The present invention also provides a vehicle that may include a warning vehicle and a vehicle-side warning device (e.g., warning device 200) of the present invention.

The invention also provides a warning vehicle which comprises the warning vehicle side warning device (such as the warning device 400) provided by the invention.

In one embodiment, a computer device is provided that includes a memory and a processor, the memory having stored thereon computer instructions executable by the processor, which when executed by the processor, instruct the processor to perform the steps of the method of the present invention. The computer device may be broadly a server, or any other electronic device having the necessary computing and/or processing capabilities. In one embodiment, the computer device may include a processor, memory, network interface, communication interface, etc. connected by a system bus. The processor of the computer device may be used to provide the necessary computing, processing and/or control capabilities. The memory of the computer device may include a non-volatile storage medium and an internal memory. The non-volatile storage medium may have an operating system, computer programs, etc. stored therein or thereon. The internal memory may provide an environment for the operation of the operating system and computer programs in the non-volatile storage media. The network interface and communication interface of the computer device may be used to connect and communicate with external devices via a network. Which when executed by a processor performs the steps of the method of the invention.

The invention may be implemented as a computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program which when executed by a processor causes the steps of the method of the invention to be performed. In one embodiment, the computer program is distributed over a plurality of computer devices or processors coupled by a network such that the computer program is stored, accessed, and executed by one or more computer devices or processors in a distributed fashion. A single method step/operation, or two or more method steps/operations, may be performed by a single computer device or processor, or by two or more computer devices or processors. One or more method steps/operations may be performed by one or more computer devices or processors, and one or more other method steps/operations may be performed by one or more other computer devices or processors. One or more computer devices or processors may perform a single method step/operation or perform two or more method steps/operations.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that all or part of the operations of the methods of the present invention may be performed by a computer program, which may be stored in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, to instruct related hardware such as a computer device or a processor, which when executed causes the operations of the methods of the present invention to be performed. Any reference herein to memory, storage, database, or other medium may include non-volatile and/or volatile memory, as the case may be. Examples of nonvolatile memory include Read Only Memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), electrically Programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically Erasable Programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, magnetic tape, floppy disk, magneto-optical data storage, hard disk, solid state disk, and the like. Examples of volatile memory include Random Access Memory (RAM), external cache memory, and the like. The technical features described above may be arbitrarily combined.

The technical features described above may be arbitrarily combined. Although not all possible combinations of features are described, any combination of features should be considered to be covered by the description provided that such combinations are not inconsistent.

While the invention has been described in conjunction with embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing description and drawings are illustrative only and that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Claims (18)

1. A warning method for a vehicle, comprising:

an enabling step of sending a signal indicating that an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle is enabled in response to monitoring an alert trigger event indicating that the vehicle needs to be alerted;

And in response to receiving the signal, enabling the warning vehicle to execute warning related operation, wherein the warning related operation comprises that the warning vehicle independently moves to a warning position behind the vehicle as a warning sign.

2. The alert method according to claim 1, further comprising:

An environmental information receiving step of receiving environmental information on the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle from the warning vehicle, the environmental information including a picture or video of the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle;

the using step is to use the received environmental information for monitoring and/or sensing the surroundings of the vehicle,

The warning related operation further comprises capturing the environmental information in real time through a sensor and sending the environmental information to the vehicle in real time.

3. The warning method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the warning vehicle includes a power and running system, an automatic driving control unit, and a sensor for sensing environmental information about a surrounding environment of the warning vehicle, the automatic driving control unit for determining the warning position and a route along which the warning vehicle travels to the warning position based on the environmental information, and controlling the power and running system based on the route such that the warning vehicle travels to the warning position along the route.

4. The warning method of claim 3, wherein the power and travel system includes a drive motor for controlling forward, reverse and braking of the warning vehicle, a steering motor for controlling left and right turns of the warning vehicle, off-road wheels for contacting the ground to effect travel of the warning vehicle.

5. A warning method for a vehicle, comprising:

an instruction receiving step of receiving an instruction to enable an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle, wherein the instruction is received from the vehicle in a case where an alert trigger event for which the vehicle needs to be alerted is detected;

And in response to receiving the indication, enabling the warning vehicle to execute warning related operation, wherein the warning related operation comprises the warning vehicle independently travelling to a warning position behind the vehicle as a warning sign.

6. The warning method of claim 5, wherein the warning-related operation further comprises the warning vehicle capturing, via a sensor, environmental information about the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle in real time, wherein the environmental information comprises a picture or video of the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle.

7. The warning method of claim 5, wherein the warning-related operation further comprises sending a warning signal to a rear vehicle located behind the vehicle and/or sending a wireless signal received from a rear vehicle located behind the vehicle to the vehicle, the warning signal and/or the wireless signal comprising a V2X signal.

8. The warning method according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the automated driving control unit of the warning vehicle is configured to determine the warning location and a route along which the warning vehicle travels to the warning location based on environmental information about the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle, and to control the power and travel system of the warning vehicle based on the route such that the warning vehicle travels to the warning location along the route.

9. The warning method of claim 8, wherein the power and travel system of the warning vehicle comprises a drive motor and a steering motor, wherein the drive motor is used to control the forward, reverse and braking of the warning vehicle, and the steering motor is used to control the left and right turns of the warning vehicle.

10. An alert device for a vehicle, comprising:

An indication receiving device configured to receive an indication to enable an alert vehicle associated with the vehicle, wherein the indication is received from the vehicle if an alert trigger event is detected that the vehicle needs to be alerted;

and an alert execution device configured to cause the alert vehicle to execute an alert-related operation including the alert vehicle independently traveling to an alert position behind the vehicle as an alert flag in response to receiving the indication.

11. An alert vehicle for a vehicle comprising the alert device according to claim 10.

12. The warning vehicle of claim 11, comprising a power and travel system, an autopilot control unit, and a sensor for sensing environmental information about the surroundings of the warning vehicle, the autopilot control unit for determining the warning location and a route for the warning vehicle to travel to the warning location based on the environmental information, and controlling the power and travel system based on the route such that the warning vehicle travels to the warning location along the route.

13. The warning vehicle of claim 12, wherein the power and travel system includes a drive motor for controlling forward, reverse and braking of the warning vehicle, a steering motor for controlling left and right turns of the warning vehicle, off-road wheels for contacting the ground to effect travel of the warning vehicle.

14. A vehicle comprising the warning vehicle according to any one of claims 11-13.

15. The vehicle of claim 14, further comprising:

Monitoring means configured to monitor whether an alert trigger event indicating that the vehicle needs to be alerted exists;

An enabling device configured to send a signal indicating that the warning vehicle is enabled to enable the warning vehicle in response to monitoring the warning trigger event, wherein in response to being enabled, the warning vehicle performs a warning-related operation including the warning vehicle independently traveling to a warning location behind the vehicle as a warning flag.

16. The vehicle of claim 15, further comprising:

An environmental information receiving device configured to receive environmental information about a surrounding environment of the warning vehicle from the warning vehicle, the environmental information including a picture or video of the surrounding environment of the warning vehicle;

A use device configured to use the received environmental information for monitoring and/or sensing the surrounding environment of the vehicle,

The warning related operation further comprises capturing the environmental information in real time through a sensor and sending the environmental information to the vehicle in real time.

17. A computer device comprising a memory and a processor, the memory having stored thereon computer instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the alert method according to any of claims 1-9 to be performed.

18. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the alert method according to any of claims 1-9 to be performed.