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The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.

The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.

Patent No.:

US 12597141 B1

PDFFull Text
Date of Patent:
Apr. 07, 2026

Filed:

Mar. 23, 2020

System for optical determination of coefficient of friction for a surface

Applicant:

Vergence Automation, Inc., Excelsior, MN (US);

Inventor:

James E. Retterath, Excelsior, MN (US);

Assignee:

VERGENCE AUTOMATION, INC., Chaska, MN (US);

Attorney:

Barnes & Thornburg LLP

Primary Examiner:

Chineyere Wills-Burns

Assistant Examiner:

Emmanuel undefined Silva-Avina

Int. Cl.
CPC ...
G06T 7/11 (2017.01); B60W 40/06 (2012.01); B60W 60/00 (2020.01); G01C 21/00 (2006.01); G01N 21/55 (2014.01); G06T 7/13 (2017.01); G06T 7/20 (2017.01); G06T 7/40 (2017.01); G06T 7/521 (2017.01); G06T 7/70 (2017.01); G06V 10/74 (2022.01); G06V 10/764 (2022.01); G06V 10/82 (2022.01); G06V 20/56 (2022.01); H04N 17/00 (2006.01); H04N 23/56 (2023.01);
U.S. Cl.
CPC ...
G06T 7/11 (2017.01); B60W 40/06 (2013.01); G01C 21/3867 (2020.08); G01N 21/55 (2013.01); G06T 7/13 (2017.01); G06T 7/20 (2013.01); G06T 7/40 (2013.01); G06T 7/521 (2017.01); G06T 7/70 (2017.01); G06V 10/761 (2022.01); G06V 10/764 (2022.01); G06V 10/82 (2022.01); G06V 20/56 (2022.01); G06V 20/588 (2022.01); H04N 17/002 (2013.01); H04N 23/56 (2023.01); B60W 60/001 (2020.02); B60W 2420/403 (2013.01); B60W 2552/53 (2020.02); G06T 2207/20164 (2013.01); G06T 2207/30241 (2013.01); G06T 2207/30244 (2013.01); G06T 2207/30256 (2013.01);
Abstract

Friction plays a vital role in keeping vehicles on the road, as adequate surface friction is necessary for a driver or control system to control/maneuver a vehicle safely, in both longitudinal and lateral directions. Providing adequate friction for safe driving is a key input for highway geometric design, as it is used in determining the adequacy of minimum stopping sight distance, minimum horizontal radius, minimum radius of crest vertical curves, and maximum super-elevation in horizontal curves. Roadway safety is enhanced with a system that determines the coefficient of friction of a road surface prior to a vehicle traversing a roadway. In embodiments, an optical system that determines a coefficient of friction for the road surface in real-time allows a driver or a vehicle safety system to take corrective action in response to changes in road surface friction and to adjust speed or trajectory for roadway topology based on such changes.

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