3D outline contours of vehicles in 3D-LIDAR-measurements for tracking extended targets

Tracking of extended targets in high definition 360 degree 3D-LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) measurements is a challenging task. It is a key component in robotic applications and is relevant to collision avoidance and autonomous driving. This paper presents a robust method to determine the 3D outline contour of vehicles in disordered 3D-LIDAR measurements while using several geometrical vehicle-specific constraints. In addition, the 3D outline contour contains information on the local reliability of the contour. A weighted registration approach allows calculating the velocity of consecutive 3D outline contours directly. The approach is tested with real sensor data. A robot car equipped with an inertial measurement unit serves as ground truth.