阅读说明：本技术 基于车辆与乘客之间进行识别的接送服务 (Pick-up service based on identification between vehicle and passenger ) 是由 杨磊 余海 徐启杰 法提赫·波里克利 于 2019-01-23 设计创作，主要内容包括：车辆用于从乘客处接收接送请求,其中包括所述乘客的大致位置,在所述乘客到达所述乘客的所述大致位置后对所述乘客进行扫描,并确定所述乘客是否已通过将乘客属性信息与所述扫描的结果进行比较被识别,以及当所述乘客未被识别或不可接近进行接送时,向所述乘客发送所述车辆的大致位置和车辆识别信息。当所述乘客被识别并可接近进行接送时,所述乘客由所述车辆接送。此外,所述乘客还可以使用便携式电子设备基于所述接收到的所述车辆的大致位置和车辆识别信息来识别所述车辆。(The vehicle is configured to receive a pickup request from a passenger including an approximate location of the passenger, scan the passenger upon arrival of the passenger at the approximate location of the passenger, and determine whether the passenger has been identified by comparing passenger attribute information with results of the scan, and transmit the approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information to the passenger when the passenger is not identified or accessible for pickup. The passenger is picked up by the vehicle when the passenger is identified and accessible for pickup. Further, the passenger may also use a portable electronic device to identify the vehicle based on the received approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information.)

1. A vehicle, characterized by comprising:

a receiver for receiving a pickup request from a passenger, the pickup request including an approximate location of the passenger;

a camera coupled to the receiver, the camera for scanning the passenger upon arrival of the passenger at the approximate location of the passenger;

a processor coupled to the camera, the processor to identify the passenger based on a comparison between passenger attribute information and results of the scan of the camera;

a transmitter coupled to the processor for transmitting an approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information to the occupant when the occupant is not identified,

wherein the passenger is picked up by the vehicle when the passenger is identified and accessible for pickup.

2. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit a pickup confirmation in response to the pickup request and to transmit the approximate location of the vehicle and the vehicle identification information to the passenger when the passenger is identified but inaccessible for pickup.

3. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the camera comprises a monocular camera system or a stereo camera system.

4. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the approximate location of the occupant and the approximate location of the vehicle each comprise one of Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates, BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) coordinates, cellular triangulation information, or wireless fidelity (WiFi) information.

5. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the passenger attribute information is retrieved from a memory of the vehicle, the memory coupled to the processor.

6. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the pickup request and the passenger attribute information are received from an application server associated with an application on the passenger's electronic device.

7. The vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that the passenger attribute information contains rough information including at least one of age, gender, race, and height of the passenger, a photograph of the passenger taken at the time of the pickup request, a current hairstyle, a current hair color, or a description of clothes of the passenger at the time of the pickup request.

8. The vehicle of claim 7, characterized in that the passenger attribute information contains fine information that includes a three-dimensional (3D) model based on at least one of a face, a body, or a gait of the passenger, and the fine information is used only when the coarse information fails to identify the passenger.

9. The vehicle of claim 1, characterized in that the passenger attribute information includes at least one of an image containing a face of the passenger, a photograph of the passenger taken on the day of the pickup request, a video of the passenger, or a portrait of the passenger.

10. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the vehicle identification information comprises at least one of a three-dimensional (3D) model of the vehicle, a barcode located on an exterior of the vehicle, a license plate of the vehicle, a color pattern located on the exterior of the vehicle, or a light-emitting diode (LED) strip located on the exterior of the vehicle.

11. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the vehicle identification information is for scanning by a camera of the passenger's electronic device to identify the vehicle.

12. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the camera and the processor are coupled to a display for displaying a personal image of a passenger who may be initiating the pickup request to a driver of the vehicle.

13. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the vehicle is an autonomous vehicle.

14. An electronic device of a passenger, comprising:

a transmitter for transmitting a pick-up request to a vehicle, the pick-up request including an approximate location of the passenger;

a receiver coupled to the transmitter, the receiver for receiving an approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information;

a camera coupled to the receiver, the camera for scanning the vehicle using the vehicle identification information in response to receiving an indication that the passenger is not identified by the vehicle and that the passenger is identified by the vehicle but is inaccessible for pickup;

a processor coupled to the camera, the processor to identify the vehicle based on a result of the scan of the camera;

a display coupled to the processor, the display for displaying the vehicle identified for the passenger.

15. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the pickup request is sent to the vehicle through an application server associated with an application on the electronic device of the passenger.

16. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit passenger attribute information to the vehicle along with the pickup request.

17. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit passenger attribute information to an application server in communication with the vehicle.

18. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the approximate location of the vehicle comprises one of Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates, bei dou navigation Satellite System (BDS) coordinates, cellular triangulation information, or wireless fidelity (WiFi) information.

19. A method of implementing a vehicle pick-up service, comprising:

receiving a pickup request from a passenger, the pickup request including an approximate location of the passenger;

scanning the passenger using a camera after the passenger arrives at the approximate location of the passenger;

picking up the passenger when the passenger is identified and accessible for picking up by the camera using coarse passenger attribute information;

when the passenger is identified by the camera using fine passenger attribute information, the passenger is accessible for pickup and the coarse passenger attribute information fails to identify the passenger;

transmitting an approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information to the passenger when the passenger is not identified by the camera using the fine passenger attribute information and when the passenger is identified but inaccessible for pickup.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the coarse passenger attribute information includes at least one of an age, gender, race, and height of the passenger, a photograph of the passenger taken at the pickup request, a current hairstyle, a current hair color, or a description of clothing of the passenger at the pickup request, and the fine passenger attribute information includes a three-dimensional (3D) model based on at least one of a face, a body, or a gait of the passenger.

Background

By passengers such as

Various passenger pickup services, such as drip, traditional taxi service, etc., to ensure that the ride reaches the desired destination. Unfortunately, drivers and passengers to be picked up may have difficulty identifying each other in crowded environments such as airports, train stations, or busy street corners. In fact, the driver and passenger can only know the approximate location of each other based on Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates. GPS coordinates may not be accurate enough to allow drivers and passengers to easily locate each other in places where the environment is crowded, traffic is constantly moving, etc. Thus, once the GPS coordinates indicate that the driver and passenger are within a visual distance of each other, the driver and passenger may have to be visually located with respect to each other. To assist in this process, the driver may be provided with some basic information about the passenger, such as the passenger's name and the passenger's picture. Likewise, the passenger may also be provided with some basic information about the driver and/or the vehicle, such as the driver's name, driver's picture, and the manufacturer, model and year of the driver's vehicle. However, if the information is not up-to-date (e.g., the photograph is old, there are many similar vehicles in the area), the visual recognition process may not be ideal. Further, if the driver is actively searching for an expected passenger while operating the moving vehicle, the driver may be distracted and cause an accident.

Autonomous vehicles are expected to become a popular mode of travel in the near future. Since the autonomous vehicle does not require any driver when operating, any pick-up service using the autonomous vehicle cannot rely on human involvement, such as visual identification by the driver of the passenger to be picked up. Thus, any pick-up service using an autonomous vehicle cannot rely on conventional methods to identify a passenger requesting a ride.

Disclosure of Invention

In one embodiment, the invention includes a vehicle comprising: a receiver for receiving a pickup request from a passenger, the pickup request including an approximate location of the passenger; a camera coupled to the receiver, the camera for scanning the passenger upon arrival of the passenger at the approximate location of the passenger; a processor coupled to the camera, the processor to identify the passenger based on a comparison between passenger attribute information and results of the scan of the camera; a transmitter coupled to the processor for transmitting to the passenger the approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information when the passenger is not identified, wherein the passenger is picked up by the vehicle when the passenger is identified and accessible for picking up.

In one embodiment, the transmitter is configured to transmit a pickup confirmation in response to the pickup request and to transmit the approximate location of the vehicle and the vehicle identification information to the passenger when the passenger is identified but inaccessible for pickup. In an embodiment, the camera comprises a monocular camera system or a stereo camera system. In one embodiment, the approximate location of the passenger and the approximate location of the vehicle each include one of Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates, BeiDou Navigation satellite system (BDS) coordinates, cellular triangulation information, or wireless fidelity (WiFi) information. In an embodiment, the passenger attribute information is retrieved from a memory of the vehicle, the memory coupled to the processor. In an embodiment, the pickup request and the passenger attribute information are received from an application server associated with an application on the passenger's electronic device. In an embodiment, the passenger attribute information contains rough information including at least one of age, gender, race, and height of the passenger, a photograph of the passenger taken at the time of the pickup request, a current hairstyle, a current hair color, or a description of clothing of the passenger at the time of the pickup request. In an embodiment, the passenger attribute information contains fine information including a three-dimensional (3D) model based on at least one of a face, a body, or a gait of the passenger, and the fine information is used only when the coarse information fails to identify the passenger. In an embodiment, the passenger attribute information includes at least one of an image including a face of the passenger, a photograph of the passenger taken on the day of the pickup request, a video of the passenger, or a portrait of the passenger. In one embodiment, the vehicle identification information includes at least one of a three-dimensional (3D) model of the vehicle, a bar code located on an exterior of the vehicle, a license plate of the vehicle, a color pattern located on the exterior of the vehicle, or a light-emitting diode (LED) strip located on the exterior of the vehicle. In one embodiment, the vehicle identification information is used to be scanned by a camera of the passenger's electronic device to identify the vehicle. In one embodiment, the camera and the processor are coupled to a display for displaying a personal image of a passenger who may be initiating the pickup request to the driver of the vehicle. In one embodiment, the vehicle is an autonomous vehicle.

In one embodiment, the invention includes a passenger's electronic device comprising: a transmitter for transmitting a pick-up request to a vehicle, the pick-up request including an approximate location of the passenger; a receiver coupled to the transmitter, the receiver for receiving an approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information; a camera coupled to the receiver, the camera for scanning the vehicle using the vehicle identification information in response to receiving an indication that the passenger is not identified by the vehicle and that the passenger is identified by the vehicle but is inaccessible for pickup; a processor coupled to the camera, the processor to identify the vehicle based on a result of the scan of the camera; a display coupled to the processor, the display for displaying the vehicle identified for the passenger.

In an embodiment, the pickup request is sent to the vehicle through an application server associated with an application on the electronic device of the passenger. In one embodiment, the transmitter is configured to transmit passenger attribute information to the vehicle along with the pickup request. In one embodiment, the transmitter is configured to transmit the passenger attribute information to an application server in communication with the vehicle. In one embodiment, the approximate location of the vehicle includes one of Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates, BeiDou naval satellite System (BDS) coordinates, cellular triangulation information, or wireless fidelity (WiFi) information.

In one embodiment, the invention includes a method of implementing a vehicle pickup service, the method comprising: receiving a pickup request from a passenger, the pickup request including an approximate location of the passenger; scanning the passenger using a camera after the passenger arrives at the approximate location of the passenger; picking up the passenger when the passenger is identified and accessible for picking up by the camera using coarse passenger attribute information; when the passenger is identified by the camera using fine passenger attribute information, the passenger is accessible for pickup and the coarse passenger attribute information fails to identify the passenger; transmitting an approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information to the passenger when the passenger is not identified by the camera using the fine passenger attribute information and when the passenger is identified but inaccessible for pickup.

In an embodiment, the coarse passenger attribute information includes at least one of an age, a gender, a race, and a height of the passenger, a photograph of the passenger taken at the pickup request, a current hairstyle, a current hair color, or a clothing description of the passenger at the pickup request, and the fine passenger attribute information includes a three-dimensional (3D) model based on at least one of a face, a body, or a gait of the passenger.

Drawings

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is now made to the following brief description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and detailed description, wherein like reference numerals represent like parts.

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a passenger pick-up service capable of bidirectional identification;

fig. 2 shows an embodiment of a first stage of the passenger pickup service;

3A-3B collectively illustrate an embodiment of a second phase of the passenger pickup service;

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment in which a passenger implements a portion of the passenger pickup service to locate a vehicle using an electronic device;

fig. 5 is a schematic view of a passenger pickup device;

fig. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a method of implementing the passenger seating service by a vehicle.

Detailed Description

It should be understood at the outset that although illustrative implementations of one or more embodiments are provided below, the disclosed systems and/or methods may be implemented using any number of techniques, whether currently known or in existence. The present invention should in no way be limited to the illustrative embodiments, drawings, and techniques illustrated below, including the exemplary designs and embodiments illustrated and described herein, but may be modified within the scope of the appended claims along with their full scope of equivalents.

Disclosed herein is a passenger pickup service that allows bidirectional identification. As will be explained more fully below, the vehicle is able to identify the passenger and the passenger is able to identify the vehicle even in crowded environments. The passenger pickup service is suitable for use with private vehicles, corporate vehicles, public transportation vehicles, shared vehicles (e.g., corporate vehicles), taxi services, and autonomous vehicles (e.g., unmanned vehicles). In one embodiment, the passenger pickup service is implemented in two phases, one being a knowledge base construction phase and the other being an identification phase, where two-way identification is performed.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a passenger pickup service 100 capable of two-way identification. The passenger pickup service 100 includes a passenger's electronic device 102 and a vehicle 104. For example, the electronic device 102 may be a smartphone, a smartwatch, a tablet, smart glasses, a wearable electronic device, a heads-up display, or other handheld or portable electronic device. In one embodiment, the electronic device 102 includes a transmitter 106, a receiver 108, a processor 110, a memory 112, a camera 114, and a display 116. In practical applications, the electronic device 102 may include other components and functions, such as a microphone, a speaker, a keyboard, a sensor, a power port, an antenna, flash memory, etc., which are not illustrated or described in detail herein. The electronic device 102 may be used to download and run a variety of different mobile applications.

The vehicle 104 may be an automobile, truck, van, motorcycle, watercraft or other device suitable for transporting passengers. In particular, the vehicle 104 may be, for example, a taxi sharing a car, a taxi service, or an autonomous vehicle. In one embodiment, the vehicle 104 includes a transmitter 126, a receiver 128, a processor 130, a memory 132, a camera 134, and a display 136. In actual practice, the vehicle 104 may include other components and functions not illustrated or described in detail herein.

The electronic device 102 and the vehicle 104 are configured to communicate with each other. For example, the electronic device 102 and the vehicle 104 may exchange data and information over a cellular network, a wireless network, or other type of communication system collectively represented by the antenna 140.

With continued reference to fig. 1, the passenger pickup service 100 is shown at various stages. The first stage 150 comprises an interactive process for building a knowledge base. The second stage 152 includes two-way identification to enable efficient and accurate delivery services.

In an embodiment of the first stage 150, the passenger uses the electronic device 102 to send a pickup request 160 to the vehicle 104. In one embodiment, the pickup request 160 is transmitted from the electronic device 102 to the vehicle 104 via the antenna 140. The pickup request 160 includes the passenger's approximate location. The approximate location of the passenger may include, for example, Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates, BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) coordinates, cellular triangulation information, or wireless fidelity (WiFi) information. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other types of techniques may be used to generate the approximate location of the occupant.

Upon receipt of the pickup request 160, the vehicle 104 will obtain passenger attribute information 162. The vehicle 104 may obtain the occupant attribute information from various different locations in various different manners. For example, when the vehicle 104 is trusted, the vehicle 104 may read the passenger attribute information from the memory 132 of the vehicle 104, as is the case with a private vehicle. In other cases, when the vehicle 104 is a public vehicle (e.g., a taxi) or an autonomous vehicle, the vehicle 104 may obtain the passenger attribute information from a network account, a third party cloud server 290 (see fig. 2), an application associated with an application on the electronic device 102 of the passenger, and/or the like.

In one embodiment, the passenger attribute information includes "coarse" information. In one embodiment, the coarse passenger attribute information is information that may be observed or disclosed. Examples of rough passenger attribute information include the age, gender, race, and height of the passenger, a picture of the passenger taken at the pickup request, the current hairstyle, current hair color, or clothing description of the passenger at the pickup request. In an embodiment, the coarse passenger attribute information does not relate to passenger privacy. Thus, the coarse passenger attribute information may be stored by the vehicle 104 or in a network account of the passenger.

In one embodiment, the passenger attribute information includes "fine" information. In an embodiment, the refined passenger attribute information relates to or contains passenger privacy. In practice, the refined passenger attribute information may include information that is sensitive to the passenger and/or information that the passenger does not wish to be arbitrarily disclosed. Examples of the refined passenger attribute information include a three-dimensional (3D) model based on at least one of a face, a body, and a gait of the passenger. In an embodiment, the 3D model is generated by the electronic device 102 of the passenger based on the passenger's request and information provided by the passenger. The 3D model may also be pre-generated by other means, for example, a 3D camera or a plurality of 2D cameras. Thus, in one embodiment, the fine passenger attribute information must be authorized by the passenger before the passenger can be accessed by the vehicle 104 or other vehicles.

In one embodiment, the vehicle 104 or its driver (if any) may provide vehicle information 164 to the electronic device 102 of the passenger after receiving the pickup request. In one embodiment, the vehicle information includes an approximate location of the vehicle 104. The approximate location of the vehicle 104 may be obtained using GPS coordinates, BDS coordinates, cellular triangulation information, and WiFi information. One or both of the approximate location of the occupant and the approximate location of the vehicle 104 may be dynamically updated in real-time and displayed on a map as a reference to the occupant and/or driver of the vehicle 104.

The vehicle information (also referred to as vehicle identification information) may include, for example, a 3D model of the vehicle 104, a barcode outside the vehicle 104, a license plate number of the vehicle 104, a color pattern outside the vehicle 104, a light-emitting diode (LED) strip outside the vehicle 104, and the like. In one embodiment, the vehicle identification information is used to be scanned by the camera 114 of the electronic device 102 of the passenger to identify the vehicle 104 provided to the passenger.

Once the vehicle 104 acquires the occupant attribute information 162, the vehicle 104 will enter the occupant's general location and enter the second stage 152. In one embodiment, the vehicle 104 is located at the approximate location of the occupant when the occupant is within range of the camera 134 of the vehicle 104. In one embodiment, the vehicle 104 is located at the approximate location of the occupant when the current location of the occupant is within a visual distance of a driver of the vehicle 104.

In the second stage 152, the camera 134 of the vehicle 104 is adjusted 166 to scan an area outside of the vehicle 104. In one embodiment, the camera 134 may be adjusted 166 upward, downward, and/or rotationally. In one embodiment, the camera 134 is capable of scanning three hundred and sixty degrees (360 °) around the vehicle 104. The camera 134 of the vehicle 104 attempts to detect the passenger 168. In some embodiments, the camera 134 may be activated to scan the corresponding area upon reaching the approximate location of the passenger. The camera 134 may be directed to the current location (e.g., as indicated in a dynamically updated location message sent by the passenger from the device). In one embodiment, the camera 134 is capable of detecting a face, body, or other aspect of a pedestrian. In one embodiment, the camera 134 collects information that is subsequently used by the vehicle 104 to generate a 3D model of the occupant. In one embodiment, the camera 134 includes a monocular camera system or a stereo camera system.

Continuing with reference to fig. 1, an attempt is made to detect the occupant using coarse occupant attribute information 170. The decision maker 172 (which may be the processor 130 of the vehicle 104 and/or the driver of the vehicle 104) determines whether more than one candidate passenger 174 is detected as a result of the scan. If not, the vehicle 104 will travel to the passenger identified for pickup 176. If so, the vehicle will park 178 in the most appropriate location (e.g., a safe and currently available parking area) and transmit the vehicle identification information to the passenger. Upon receipt of the vehicle identification information, the passenger will automatically identify the vehicle 104 from the vehicle identification information using the application 180 on the electronic device 102. In an embodiment, the application uses the camera 114 of the electronic device 102 to scan and/or locate the vehicle 104 using the vehicle identification information. When the application locates the vehicle 104, the passenger may go to the location of the parked vehicle 104 for pickup.

If attempting to detect the passenger using the coarse passenger attribute information 170 fails, then attempting to detect the passenger using the fine passenger attribute information 182 may be performed. As previously described, the decision maker 172 (which may be the processor 130 of the vehicle 104 and/or the driver of the vehicle 104) determines whether more than one passenger candidate 174 is detected as a result of the scan. If not, the vehicle 104 will travel to the passenger identified for pickup 176. If so, the vehicle will park 178 in the most appropriate location and the vehicle identification information will be sent to the passenger. Upon receipt of the vehicle identification information, the passenger will automatically identify the vehicle 104 from the vehicle identification information using the application 180 on the electronic device 102. In an embodiment, the application uses the camera 114 of the electronic device 102 to scan and/or locate the vehicle using the vehicle identification information. When the application locates the vehicle 104, the passenger may go to the location of the parked vehicle 104 for pickup.

Fig. 2 shows another embodiment of the first stage 200 of the passenger pickup service 100 of fig. 1. As shown, the passenger uses the electronic device 102 to send a pickup request 260 to the vehicle 104. In an embodiment, the pickup request comprises an indication of an approximate location of the passenger. In an embodiment, the pick-up request comprises the passenger attribute information, such as an image containing the passenger's face, a photograph of the passenger taken on the day of the pick-up request, a video of the passenger or a portrait of the passenger, etc. The pickup request may be transmitted from the electronic device 102 to the vehicle 104 via the antenna 140.

In an embodiment, the passenger pickup request may be sent directly from the electronic device 102 of the passenger to the vehicle 104 without going through, for example, a third party cloud server 290. The passenger attribute information 250 may be provided to the vehicle 104 at any time (e.g., the passenger attribute information may be retrieved from the memory 132 of the vehicle 104). As used herein, the third party cloud server 290 may represent an application server, a web server, or the like.

In an embodiment, the application may send the passenger attribute information from the electronic device 102 to the third party cloud server 290, which third party cloud server 290 in turn sends the passenger attribute information to the vehicle 104. The passenger attribute information 250 is available to the vehicle 104 (e.g., the passenger attribute information can be retrieved from the memory 132 of the vehicle 104). In an embodiment, the passenger device 102 can send the coarse passenger attribute information to the third party cloud server 290. In some cases, the coarse passenger attribute information is sent concurrently with the pickup request. In other cases, the coarse passenger attribute information may be provided to the third party cloud server when the passenger uses the application to establish an account on the third party cloud server 290.

In an embodiment, the passenger may also share fine passenger attribute information 262 (e.g., the 3D model information) with the vehicle 104 at or about the time the pickup request is sent 260. The refined passenger attribute information may help the vehicle 104 to easily or more quickly identify the passenger. In some embodiments, the vehicle 104 may efficiently and accurately identify the passenger using the coarse and fine information of the passenger. For example, the vehicle 104 may perform a recognition operation to compare the occupant's coarse information to the scan results (e.g., images or 2D frames) of the camera 134 to narrow or filter out detected unlikely targets (or objects). Subsequently, the vehicle 104 may perform more detailed identification operations based on the refined information to identify the passenger based on the filtered scan results. The identification operation based on the coarse information is more efficient than the identification operation based on the fine information. The recognition result based on the fine information may be more accurate than the recognition result based on the coarse information. Thus, applications running on the electronic device 102 may strongly suggest sharing this information with the vehicle 104.

If the passenger chooses not to share fine passenger attribute information with the vehicle 104, the third party cloud server 290 may generate or retrieve the fine passenger attribute information 264 using the coarse passenger attribute information. For example, the third party cloud server 290 may generate 3D model information corresponding to the passenger through available two-dimensional (2D) passenger information (e.g., facial images, portraits, photographs, videos, etc.) using the modeling software. In one embodiment, the third party cloud server 290 obtains the 3D model information from a source other than the passenger after providing the 2D model information to the source.

With continued reference to fig. 2, wherein, in an embodiment, the third party cloud server 290 forwards the passenger pickup request 266 with the passenger's approximate location to the vehicle 104. The passenger pickup request 266 is acknowledged by the vehicle 268 or the driver of the vehicle 104. The confirmation may be sent to the third party cloud server 290, which third party cloud server 290 in turn sends the confirmation to the electronic device 102 of the passenger. The vehicle 104 then obtains or downloads 270 the refined passenger attribute information (e.g., the 3D model) from the third party cloud server 290.

In one embodiment, the vehicle 104 sends/shares 272 the vehicle attribute information (e.g., the 3D model of the vehicle) to the third party cloud server 290. In an embodiment, the vehicle 104 may authorize the electronic device 102 to download the vehicle attribute information from the third party cloud server 290 instead of sending the vehicle attribute information to the third party cloud server 290. The third party cloud server 290 may then send 272 this vehicle attribute information to the electronic device 102 of the passenger. In an embodiment, the vehicle 104 may also send the vehicle attribute information to the electronic device 102 directly through a wireless network or antenna 140 without using the third party cloud server 290.

Once the vehicle 104 receives the passenger's approximate location, the vehicle 104 will travel to that location 274. Upon reaching the occupant's approximate location, the vehicle 104 may attempt to locate the occupant, as described herein.

Fig. 3A-3B collectively illustrate another embodiment of the second stage 300 of the pickup service 100 of fig. 1. As shown, the vehicle 104 arrives at the occupant's approximate location 350. In one embodiment, this may be in the range of the camera 134 of the vehicle 104, or in the visual range of the driver of the vehicle 104.

Once the vehicle 104 is in the approximate location of the occupant, the cameras 134-352 of the vehicle 104 are adjusted to scan an area outside of the vehicle 104. In one embodiment, the camera 134 may be part of a monocular camera system or a stereo camera system (e.g., using multiple cameras). Video input 354 is obtained from the onboard and/or onboard camera 134. That is, the scan results are acquired by the vehicle 104. In one embodiment, the processor 130 of the vehicle 104 performs face, body, and/or pedestrian detection in the video sequence 356 and then generates a 3D reconstruction of the occupant.

The camera 134 of the vehicle 104 attempts to detect and/or identify the occupant 358 using the coarse occupant information described herein. In one embodiment, the vehicle 104 determines whether the passenger has been identified by comparing coarse passenger attribute information to the scan results of the camera 134. Such a comparison may result in a single candidate passenger or a plurality of potential candidate passengers 360. If, based on the comparison, it is found that there is not more than one candidate passenger, the vehicle 104 determines 362 whether the passenger is accessible for pickup. If so, the vehicle 104 will pick up the passenger 364.

In one embodiment, the passenger attribute information is forcibly deleted 366 from the memory 132 of the vehicle 104 and/or the vehicle attribute information is forcibly deleted 366 from the memory 112 of the electronic device 102 after the passenger is picked up or the passenger is transported to a destination.

If more than one potential candidate passenger 360 is found, the scan results of the cameras 134 may be compared to the fine passenger attribute information 368. Such a comparison may result in a single candidate passenger or a plurality of potential candidate passengers 370. If, based on the comparison, it is found that there is not more than one candidate passenger, the vehicle 104 determines 362 whether the passenger is accessible for pickup. If so, the vehicle 104 will pick up the passenger 364. As previously described, in one embodiment, the information may be forcibly deleted 366 in some cases.

If more than one potential candidate passenger 370 is found, a determination 372 is made as to whether the vehicle 104 is autonomous. If not, in one embodiment, a photograph of the passenger may be displayed 374 to the driver of the vehicle 104. The vehicle 104 picks up the passenger 364 if the driver of the vehicle 104 is able to identify the passenger from the photograph and the passenger is accessible for pickup based on the determination 362. As previously described, in one embodiment, the information may be forcibly deleted 366 thereafter.

If the determination 372 shows that the vehicle 104 is autonomous or the determination 362 shows that the passenger is unavailable for pickup (e.g., the road is blocked, the passenger is in a prohibited zone of the vehicle, etc.), the vehicle 104 may be parked at a convenient or most appropriate location 376. After parking, the vehicle 104 transmits the vehicle attribute information to the electronic device 102 of the passenger. The electronic device 102 of the passenger identifies the vehicle 104 using the received vehicle attribute information. In an embodiment, the electronic device 102 uses an application that is running or launched on the electronic device 102. In one embodiment, the electronic device 102 uses a 3D model of the vehicle to locate the appropriate vehicle. Once the correct vehicle 104 is found, the passenger may proceed to the vehicle 104 for pickup. As previously described, in one embodiment, the information may be forcibly deleted 366 thereafter.

Fig. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a passenger implementing a portion 400 of the passenger pickup service 100 of fig. 1 to locate a vehicle using the electronic device 102. As shown, the portion 400 may be implemented, for example, when the passenger runs the application 402 for pickup services on the electronic device 102. The application 402 running in fig. 4 may be the same as or similar to the application 378 running in fig. 3B. Using the application and the camera 114 of the electronic device 102, the passenger scans the area 404 along a direction determined by the vehicle location (e.g., GPS coordinates of the vehicle). The vehicle 104 may provide a vehicle location to the electronic device 102, as described herein.

The camera 114 of the electronic device 102 is used to scan the vehicle 104 using some type of vehicle identification information. For example, the camera 114 of the electronic device 102 may attempt to identify the vehicle 104 by searching for a random color pattern displayed by a color LED display 406 on the vehicle 104. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the vehicle 104 may be uniquely identified in a variety of different ways as described herein. Once the correct vehicle 104 is found, the passenger may proceed to the vehicle 104 for pickup.

Fig. 5 is a schematic view of a passenger conveyor 500 according to an embodiment of the invention. The passenger pickup device 500 is suitable for implementing the disclosed embodiments described herein. For example, the passenger conveyor 500 may be a component of the electronic device 102 or the vehicle 104. The passenger pick-up device 500 includes an entrance port 510 and a receiving unit (Rx) 520 for receiving data; a processor, logic unit, or Central Processing Unit (CPU) 530 for processing data; a transmitter unit (Tx) 540 for transmitting data and an outlet 550; and a memory 560 for storing data. The passenger pickup device 500 may further include an optical-to-electrical (OE) conversion component and an optical-to-Electrical (EO) conversion component coupled to the inlet port 510, the receiver unit 520, the transmitter unit 540, and the outlet port 550 for outputting or inputting light or electrical signals.

The processor 530 is implemented by hardware and software. The processor 530 may be implemented as one or more CPU chips, cores (e.g., as a multi-core processor), one or more Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), and Digital Signal Processors (DSPs). The processor 530 is in communication with the inlet port 510, the receiver unit 520, the transmitter unit 540, the outlet port 550, and the memory 560. The processor 530 includes a passenger pickup module 570. The passenger pickup module 570 implements the embodiments disclosed above. For example, the passenger pickup module 570 implements, processes, prepares, or provides various functions of the electronic device 102 and/or the vehicle 104. Thus, the inclusion of the passenger pickup module 570 provides a substantial improvement in the functionality of the passenger pickup device 500 and enables the passenger pickup device 500 to be transitioned to a different state. Alternatively, the passenger pickup module 570 is implemented as instructions stored in the memory 560 and executed by the processor 530.

The memory 560, which may include one or more disks, tape drives, and solid state drives, may be used as an over-flow data storage device to store programs when such programs are selected for execution, as well as to store instructions and data that are read during program execution. The memory 560 may be volatile and/or nonvolatile, and may be a read-only memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a ternary content-addressable memory (TCAM), and/or a Static Random Access Memory (SRAM).

Fig. 6 illustrates an embodiment of a method 600 of implementing the passenger pickup service 100 with a vehicle 104. In one embodiment, the method 600 may be performed when a passenger wants to pick up and initiate a pick-up request. In block 602, a pickup request is received from a passenger. In an embodiment, the pickup request includes an approximate location of the passenger.

In block 604, the camera 134 of the vehicle 104 scans the occupant upon reaching the occupant's approximate location. In block 606, the passenger is picked up when the passenger is identified and accessible for pickup by the camera 134 using the coarse passenger attribute information. In block 608, when the passenger is identified by the camera 134 using the fine passenger attribute information, the passenger is accessible for pickup and the coarse passenger attribute information fails to identify the passenger.

In block 610, the approximate location of the vehicle 104 and vehicle identification information is transmitted to the passenger when the passenger is not identified by the camera 134 using the fine passenger attribute information and when the passenger is identified but inaccessible for pickup.

The passenger pickup systems and methods disclosed herein use identification information of future passengers and/or location information of passengers and vehicles to achieve highly successful and efficient connections between vehicles and future passengers.

A vehicle includes a receiving device for receiving a pickup request from a passenger, the pickup request including an approximate location of the passenger; a camera device coupled to the receiving device, the camera device for scanning the passenger after the passenger reaches the approximate location of the passenger; processing means coupled to the camera means for determining whether the passenger has been identified by comparing passenger attribute information with scan results of the camera means; a transmitting device coupled to the processor for transmitting to the passenger the approximate position of the vehicle and vehicle identification information when the passenger is not identified, wherein the passenger is picked up by the vehicle when the passenger is identified and accessible for picking up.

An electronic device of a passenger includes: a transmitting device for transmitting a pickup request to a vehicle, the pickup request including an approximate location of the passenger; a receiving device coupled to the transmitting device for receiving an approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information when the occupant is not located by the vehicle and when the occupant is located by the vehicle but inaccessible for pickup; a camera device coupled to the receiving device, the camera device to scan the vehicle using the vehicle identification information when the passenger is not identified by the vehicle and when the passenger is identified by the vehicle but is inaccessible for pickup; the processing device is coupled to the camera device and used for identifying a vehicle receiving the pick-up request of the passenger based on the scanning result of the camera device; and a display device coupled to the processing device, the display device for displaying the vehicle identified for the passenger.

While several embodiments have been provided in the present disclosure, it should be understood that the disclosed systems and methods may be embodied in many other specific forms without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. The present examples are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is not to be limited to the details given herein. For example, various elements or components may be combined or combined in another system, or certain features may be omitted, or not implemented.

The invention includes a method for implementing vehicle pick-up service, comprising: receiving a pickup request from a passenger, the pickup request including an approximate location of the passenger; scanning the passenger using a camera after the passenger arrives at the approximate location of the passenger; picking up the passenger when the passenger is identified and accessible for picking up by the camera device using coarse passenger attribute information; when the passenger is identified by the camera device using fine passenger attribute information, the passenger is accessible for pickup and the coarse passenger attribute information fails to identify the passenger; transmitting an approximate location of the vehicle and vehicle identification information to the passenger when the passenger is not identified by the camera using the fine passenger attribute information and when the passenger is identified but inaccessible for pickup.

Furthermore, techniques, systems, subsystems, and methods described and illustrated in the various embodiments as discrete or separate may be combined or integrated with other systems, modules, techniques, or methods without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Other items shown or discussed as coupled or directly coupled or communicating with each other may also be indirectly coupled or communicating through some interface, device, or intermediate component, whether electrically, mechanically, or otherwise. Other examples of changes, substitutions, and alterations are ascertainable by one skilled in the art and could be made without departing from the spirit and scope disclosed herein.