Lane-level route planning based on a multi-layer map model

The demand for high precision navigation services for human drivers and even intelligent vehicles cannot be satisfied by traditional road-level maps, and on the other hand, current enhanced digital maps with abundant details for vehicle localization and navigation simultaneously bring about practical difficulties for lane-level route planning. In this paper, aiming at achieving lane-level route planning, a three-layer map model combining the traditional road-level data with high precision lane-level data is created, in which an intermediate layer serves as a bridge between road and lane level. Then, based on the lane-level map model, a hierarchical route planning framework is established, including road-level route planning, node contraction according to the intermediate layer, and lane-level route planning with the cost model in lane level which takes the lane change and turn into account. A simulation result is implemented to reveal the validation of this hierarchical routing algorithm based on this novel lane-level map model.