Obstacle State Estimation For Imminent Crash Prediction & Countermeasure Deployment Decision-Making

This paper describes how predictive crash sensing and deployment control of safety systems require reliable and accurate kinematic information about potential obstacles in the host vehicle environment. The projected trajectories of obstacles in the path of the vehicle assist in activation of safety systems either before, or just after collision, for improved occupant protection. An analysis of filtering and estimation techniques applied to imminent crash conditions are presented in this paper. Optimization of design criteria used to achieve required response performance, and noise minimization, are evaluated based on the safety system to be activated. The predicted target information is applied in the coordinated deployment of injury mitigation safety systems.