Patents by Inventor Patrick Blaes

Patrick Blaes has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20240110811
    Abstract: Techniques are discussed for modifying map elements associated with map data. Map data can include three-dimensional data (e.g., LIDAR data) representing an environment, while map elements can be associated with the map data to identify locations and semantic information associated with an environment, such as regions that correspond to driving lanes or crosswalks. A trajectory associated with the map data can be updated, such as when aligning one or more trajectories in response to a loop closure, updated calibration, etc. The transformation between a trajectory and an updated trajectory can be applied to map elements to warp the map elements so that they correspond to the updated map data, thereby providing automatic and accurate techniques for updating map elements associated with map data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2023
    Publication date: April 4, 2024
    Inventors: Derek Adams, Patrick Blaes, Aleksandrs Ecins, Jesse Sol Levinson, Daniel Miller
  • Publication number: 20240094029
    Abstract: Techniques for representing a scene or map based on statistical data of captured environmental data are discussed herein. In some cases, the data (such as covariance data, mean data, or the like) may be stored as a multi-resolution voxel space that includes a plurality of semantic layers. In some instances, individual semantic layers may include multiple voxel grids having differing resolutions. Multiple multi-resolution voxel spaces may be merged or aligned to generate combined scenes based on detected voxel covariances at one or more resolutions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 31, 2022
    Publication date: March 21, 2024
    Inventors: Hirotatsu Armstrong, Patrick Blaes, Michael Carsten Bosse, Jeffrey Eric Tolliver
  • Patent number: 11915436
    Abstract: Techniques for integrating sensor data into a scene or map based on statistical data of captured environmental data are discussed herein. The data may be stored as a multi-resolution voxel space and the techniques may comprise first applying a pre-alignment or localization technique prior to fully integrating the sensor data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: ZOOX, INC.
    Inventors: Patrick Blaes, Michael Carsten Bosse, Elena Stephanie Stumm, Derek Adams, Brice Rebsamen
  • Publication number: 20230384419
    Abstract: Techniques for estimating a ground plane based on lidar data and/or attributes of the ground plane are discussed herein. A vehicle captures radar data, e.g., 4D radar data including height information, as it traverses an environment. The radar data can include direct returns from an object and reflected or multipath returns, e.g., that reflect off a ground surface and the object. A position of the ground plane can be estimated based at least in part on a distance between direct returns and the reflected returns. Attributes of the ground plane may be determined from differences between the direct returns and the reflected returns.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 31, 2022
    Publication date: November 30, 2023
    Inventors: Patrick Blaes, Badeea Ferdaous Alferdaous Alazem
  • Patent number: 11761791
    Abstract: Techniques are discussed for modifying map elements associated with map data. Map data can include three-dimensional data (e.g., LIDAR data) representing an environment, while map elements can be associated with the map data to identify locations and semantic information associated with an environment, such as regions that correspond to driving lanes or crosswalks. A trajectory associated with the map data can be updated, such as when aligning one or more trajectories in response to a loop closure, updated calibration, etc. The transformation between a trajectory and an updated trajectory can be applied to map elements to warp the map elements so that they correspond to the updated map data, thereby providing automatic and accurate techniques for updating map elements associated with map data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Derek Adams, Patrick Blaes, Aleksandrs Ecins, Jesse Sol Levinson, Daniel Miller
  • Patent number: 11656329
    Abstract: This disclosure is directed to calibrating sensors for an autonomous vehicle. First sensor data and second sensor data can be captured by one or more sensors representing an environment. The first sensor data and the second sensor data can be associated with a grid in a plurality of combinations to generate a plurality of projected data. A number of data points of the projected data occupying a cell of the grid can be summed to determine a spatial histogram. An amount of error (such as an entropy value) can be determined for each of the projected data, and the projected data corresponding to the lowest entropy value can be selected as representing a calibrated configuration of the one or more sensors. Calibration data associated with the lowest entropy value can be determined and used to calibrate the one or more sensors, respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2023
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Patrick Blaes, Daniel Miller
  • Publication number: 20230024326
    Abstract: Techniques for representing a scene or map based on statistical data of captured environmental data are discussed herein. In some cases, the data (such as covariance data, mean data, or the like) may be stored as a multi-resolution voxel space that includes a plurality of semantic layers. In some instances, individual semantic layers may include multiple voxel grids having differing resolutions. Multiple multi-resolution voxel spaces may be merged to generate combined scenes based on detected voxel covariances at one or more resolutions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 29, 2022
    Publication date: January 26, 2023
    Inventors: Michael Carsten Bosse, Patrick Blaes, Derek Adams, Brice Rebsamen
  • Patent number: 11430087
    Abstract: Techniques for representing a scene or map based on statistical data of captured environmental data are discussed herein. In some cases, the data (such as covariance data, mean data, or the like) may be stored as a multi-resolution voxel space that includes a plurality of semantic layers. In some instances, individual semantic layers may include multiple voxel grids having differing resolutions. Multiple multi-resolution voxel spaces may be merged to generate combined scenes based on detected voxel covariances at one or more resolutions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Carsten Bosse, Patrick Blaes, Derek Adams, Brice Rebsamen
  • Patent number: 11288861
    Abstract: Techniques for representing a scene or map based on statistical data of captured environmental data are discussed herein. In some cases, the data (such as covariance data, mean data, or the like) may be stored as a multi-resolution voxel space that includes a plurality of semantic layers. In some instances, individual semantic layers may include multiple voxel grids having differing resolutions. Multiple multi-resolution voxel spaces may be merged to generate combined scenes based on detected voxel covariances at one or more resolutions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2022
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Carsten Bosse, Patrick Blaes, Derek Adams, Brice Rebsamen
  • Patent number: 11079492
    Abstract: A vehicle may include a localization and/or mapping component to understand what surrounds the autonomous vehicle and where it is in relation to the surroundings. The localization and/or mapping component may receive sensor data from sensor(s) of the vehicle and generate a map and/or position and/or orientation from the sensor data according to parameters that configure the way the localization and/or mapping component generates the map and/or position/orientation. A computing device may dynamically adjust these parameters, thereby changing the way the map and/or position/orientation are generated. This adjustment may be based on a condition detected from the sensor data and may increase a clarity (e.g., degree of distinctness/clarity) of the generated map and/or position/orientation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2021
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Elena Stephanie Stumm, Patrick Blaes
  • Publication number: 20210192689
    Abstract: Techniques for representing a scene or map based on statistical data of captured environmental data are discussed herein. In some cases, the data (such as covariance data, mean data, or the like) may be stored as a multi-resolution voxel space that includes a plurality of semantic layers. In some instances, individual semantic layers may include multiple voxel grids having differing resolutions. Multiple multi-resolution voxel spaces may be merged to generate combined scenes based on detected voxel covariances at one or more resolutions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Publication date: June 24, 2021
    Inventors: Michael Carsten Bosse, Patrick Blaes, Derek Adams, Brice Rebsamen
  • Publication number: 20210192840
    Abstract: Techniques for representing a scene or map based on statistical data of captured environmental data are discussed herein. In some cases, the data (such as covariance data, mean data, or the like) may be stored as a multi-resolution voxel space that includes a plurality of semantic layers. In some instances, individual semantic layers may include multiple voxel grids having differing resolutions. Multiple multi-resolution voxel spaces may be merged to generate combined scenes based on detected voxel covariances at one or more resolutions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Publication date: June 24, 2021
    Inventors: Michael Carsten Bosse, Patrick Blaes, Derek Adams, Brice Rebsamen
  • Publication number: 20210055380
    Abstract: This disclosure is directed to calibrating sensors for an autonomous vehicle. First sensor data and second sensor data can be captured by one or more sensors representing an environment. The first sensor data and the second sensor data can be associated with a grid in a plurality of combinations to generate a plurality of projected data. A number of data points of the projected data occupying a cell of the grid can be summed to determine a spatial histogram. An amount of error (such as an entropy value) can be determined for each of the projected data, and the projected data corresponding to the lowest entropy value can be selected as representing a calibrated configuration of the one or more sensors. Calibration data associated with the lowest entropy value can be determined and used to calibrate the one or more sensors, respectively.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 5, 2020
    Publication date: February 25, 2021
    Inventors: Patrick Blaes, Daniel Miller
  • Publication number: 20210041250
    Abstract: Techniques are discussed for modifying map elements associated with map data. Map data can include three-dimensional data (e.g., LIDAR data) representing an environment, while map elements can be associated with the map data to identify locations and semantic information associated with an environment, such as regions that correspond to driving lanes or crosswalks. A trajectory associated with the map data can be updated, such as when aligning one or more trajectories in response to a loop closure, updated calibration, etc. The transformation between a trajectory and an updated trajectory can be applied to map elements to warp the map elements so that they correspond to the updated map data, thereby providing automatic and accurate techniques for updating map elements associated with map data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 21, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Derek Adams, Patrick Blaes, Aleksandrs Ecins, Jesse Sol Levinson, Daniel Miller
  • Patent number: 10830871
    Abstract: This disclosure is directed to calibrating sensors for an autonomous vehicle. First sensor data and second sensor data can be captured by one or more sensors representing an environment. The first sensor data and the second sensor data can be associated with a grid in a plurality of combinations to generate a plurality of projected data. A number of data points of the projected data occupying a cell of the grid can be summed to determine a spatial histogram. An amount of error (such as an entropy value) can be determined for each of the projected data, and the projected data corresponding to the lowest entropy value can be selected as representing a calibrated configuration of the one or more sensors. Calibration data associated with the lowest entropy value can be determined and used to calibrate the one or more sensors, respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 10, 2020
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Patrick Blaes, Daniel Miller
  • Patent number: 10782136
    Abstract: Techniques are discussed for modifying map elements associated with map data. Map data can include three-dimensional data (e.g., LIDAR data) representing an environment, while map elements can be associated with the map data to identify locations and semantic information associated with an environment, such as regions that correspond to driving lanes or crosswalks. A trajectory associated with the map data can be updated, such as when aligning one or more trajectories in response to a loop closure, updated calibration, etc. The transformation between a trajectory and an updated trajectory can be applied to map elements to warp the map elements so that they correspond to the updated map data, thereby providing automatic and accurate techniques for updating map elements associated with map data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2020
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Derek Adams, Patrick Blaes, Aleksandrs Ecins, Jesse Sol Levinson, Daniel Miller
  • Publication number: 20200103236
    Abstract: Techniques are discussed for modifying map elements associated with map data. Map data can include three-dimensional data (e.g., LIDAR data) representing an environment, while map elements can be associated with the map data to identify locations and semantic information associated with an environment, such as regions that correspond to driving lanes or crosswalks. A trajectory associated with the map data can be updated, such as when aligning one or more trajectories in response to a loop closure, updated calibration, etc. The transformation between a trajectory and an updated trajectory can be applied to map elements to warp the map elements so that they correspond to the updated map data, thereby providing automatic and accurate techniques for updating map elements associated with map data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Publication date: April 2, 2020
    Inventors: Derek Adams, Patrick Blaes, Aleksandrs Ecins, Jesse Sol Levinson, Daniel Miller
  • Publication number: 20190293756
    Abstract: This disclosure is directed to calibrating sensors for an autonomous vehicle. First sensor data and second sensor data can be captured by one or more sensors representing an environment. The first sensor data and the second sensor data can be associated with a grid in a plurality of combinations to generate a plurality of projected data. A number of data points of the projected data occupying a cell of the grid can be summed to determine a spatial histogram. An amount of error (such as an entropy value) can be determined for each of the projected data, and the projected data corresponding to the lowest entropy value can be selected as representing a calibrated configuration of the one or more sensors. Calibration data associated with the lowest entropy value can be determined and used to calibrate the one or more sensors, respectively.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 21, 2018
    Publication date: September 26, 2019
    Inventors: Patrick Blaes, Daniel Miller