Oliver Pink

Bio: Oliver Pink is an academic researcher from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. The author has contributed to research in topics: Map matching & Global Positioning System. The author has an hindex of 9, co-authored 12 publications receiving 803 citations.

Segmentation of 3D lidar data in non-flat urban environments using a local convexity criterion

Abstract: Present object detection methods working on 3D range data are so far either optimized for unstructured offroad environments or flat urban environments. We present a fast algorithm able to deal with tremendous amounts of 3D Lidar measurements. It uses a graph-based approach to segment ground and objects from 3D lidar scans using a novel unified, generic criterion based on local convexity measures. Experiments show good results in urban environments including smoothly bended road surfaces.

Team AnnieWAY's autonomous system for the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge

Abstract: This paper reports on AnnieWAY, an autonomous vehicle that is capable of driving through urban scenarios and that successfully entered the finals of the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge competition. After describing the main challenges imposed and the major hardware components, we outline the underlying software structure and focus on selected algorithms. Environmental perception mainly relies on a recent laser scanner that delivers both range and reflectivity measurements. Whereas range measurements are used to provide three-dimensional scene geometry, measuring reflectivity allows for robust lane marker detection. Mission and maneuver planning is conducted using a hierarchical state machine that generates behavior in accordance with California traffic laws. We conclude with a report of the results achieved during the competition. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A statistical approach to map matching using road network geometry, topology and vehicular motion constraints

Abstract: This paper presents a method for reliable matching of position and orientation measurements from a standard GPS receiver to a digital map. By incorporating road network topology in the matching process using a hidden Markov model, an optimum position and orientation history can be computed from a sequence of GPS measurements. Increased robustness is achieved by introducing constraints for vehicular motion in an extended Kalman filter and by reconstructing the original road network from the digital map using cubic spline interpolation. The proposed method delivers robust matching results for standard inner-city scenarios and gives a reliable estimate of the optimal position history even for severely disturbed GPS measurements.

Visual map matching and localization using a global feature map

Abstract: This paper presents a novel method to support environmental perception of mobile robots by the use of a global feature map. While typical approaches to simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) mainly rely on an on-board camera for mapping, our approach uses geographically referenced aerial or satellite images to build a map in advance. The current position on the map is determined by matching features from the on-board camera to the global feature map. The problem of feature matching is posed as a standard point pattern matching problem and a solution using the iterative closest point method is given. The proposed algorithm is designed for use in a street vehicle and uses lane markings as features, but can be adapted to almost any other type of feature that is visible in aerial images. Our approach allows for estimating the robot position at a higher precision than by a purely GPS-based localization, while at the same time providing information about the environment far beyond the current field of view.

Visual features for vehicle localization and ego-motion estimation

Abstract: This paper introduces a novel method for vehicle pose estimation and motion tracking using visual features. The method combines ideas from research on visual odometry with a feature map that is automatically generated from aerial images into a Visual Navigation System. Given an initial pose estimate, e.g. from a GPS receiver, the system is capable of robustly tracking the vehicle pose in geographical coordinates over time, using image data as the only input. Experiments on real image data have shown that the precision of the position estimate with respect to the feature map typically lies within only several centimeters. This makes the algorithm interesting for a wide range of applications like navigation, path planning or lane keeping.

Trajectory Data Mining: An Overview

Abstract: The advances in location-acquisition and mobile computing techniques have generated massive spatial trajectory data, which represent the mobility of a diversity of moving objects, such as people, vehicles, and animals. Many techniques have been proposed for processing, managing, and mining trajectory data in the past decade, fostering a broad range of applications. In this article, we conduct a systematic survey on the major research into trajectory data mining, providing a panorama of the field as well as the scope of its research topics. Following a road map from the derivation of trajectory data, to trajectory data preprocessing, to trajectory data management, and to a variety of mining tasks (such as trajectory pattern mining, outlier detection, and trajectory classification), the survey explores the connections, correlations, and differences among these existing techniques. This survey also introduces the methods that transform trajectories into other data formats, such as graphs, matrices, and tensors, to which more data mining and machine learning techniques can be applied. Finally, some public trajectory datasets are presented. This survey can help shape the field of trajectory data mining, providing a quick understanding of this field to the community.

A Review of Motion Planning Techniques for Automated Vehicles

Abstract: Intelligent vehicles have increased their capabilities for highly and, even fully, automated driving under controlled environments. Scene information is received using onboard sensors and communication network systems, i.e., infrastructure and other vehicles. Considering the available information, different motion planning and control techniques have been implemented to autonomously driving on complex environments. The main goal is focused on executing strategies to improve safety, comfort, and energy optimization. However, research challenges such as navigation in urban dynamic environments with obstacle avoidance capabilities, i.e., vulnerable road users (VRU) and vehicles, and cooperative maneuvers among automated and semi-automated vehicles still need further efforts for a real environment implementation. This paper presents a review of motion planning techniques implemented in the intelligent vehicles literature. A description of the technique used by research teams, their contributions in motion planning, and a comparison among these techniques is also presented. Relevant works in the overtaking and obstacle avoidance maneuvers are presented, allowing the understanding of the gaps and challenges to be addressed in the next years. Finally, an overview of future research direction and applications is given.

Map-matching for low-sampling-rate GPS trajectories

Abstract: Map-matching is the process of aligning a sequence of observed user positions with the road network on a digital map. It is a fundamental pre-processing step for many applications, such as moving object management, traffic flow analysis, and driving directions. In practice there exists huge amount of low-sampling-rate (e.g., one point every 2--5 minutes) GPS trajectories. Unfortunately, most current map-matching approaches only deal with high-sampling-rate (typically one point every 10--30s) GPS data, and become less effective for low-sampling-rate points as the uncertainty in data increases. In this paper, we propose a novel global map-matching algorithm called ST-Matching for low-sampling-rate GPS trajectories. ST-Matching considers (1) the spatial geometric and topological structures of the road network and (2) the temporal/speed constraints of the trajectories. Based on spatio-temporal analysis, a candidate graph is constructed from which the best matching path sequence is identified. We compare ST-Matching with the incremental algorithm and Average-Frechet-Distance (AFD) based global map-matching algorithm. The experiments are performed both on synthetic and real dataset. The results show that our ST-matching algorithm significantly outperform incremental algorithm in terms of matching accuracy for low-sampling trajectories. Meanwhile, when compared with AFD-based global algorithm, ST-Matching also improves accuracy as well as running time.

Making Bertha Drive?An Autonomous Journey on a Historic Route

Abstract: 125 years after Bertha Benz completed the first overland journey in automotive history, the Mercedes Benz S-Class S 500 INTELLIGENT DRIVE followed the same route from Mannheim to Pforzheim, Germany, in fully autonomous manner. The autonomous vehicle was equipped with close-to-production sensor hardware and relied solely on vision and radar sensors in combination with accurate digital maps to obtain a comprehensive understanding of complex traffic situations. The historic Bertha Benz Memorial Route is particularly challenging for autonomous driving. The course taken by the autonomous vehicle had a length of 103 km and covered rural roads, 23 small villages and major cities (e.g. downtown Mannheim and Heidelberg). The route posed a large variety of difficult traffic scenarios including intersections with and without traffic lights, roundabouts, and narrow passages with oncoming traffic. This paper gives an overview of the autonomous vehicle and presents details on vision and radar-based perception, digital road maps and video-based self-localization, as well as motion planning in complex urban scenarios.