RELATIVE SPEED BASED SPEED PLANNING FOR BUFFER AREA

In one embodiment, a method, apparatus, and system for planning the trajectory of an autonomous driving vehicle (ADV) in view of an object within a buffer area in front of the ADV is disclosed. A buffer area in front of an ADV is identified. A first object of one or more objects that have entered the buffer area is identified. A first distance cost and a first relative speed cost associated with the first object are determined. A first object cost associated with the first object is determined based on a combination of the first distance cost and the first relative speed cost. A trajectory for the ADV is planned based at least in part on a cost function comprising the first object cost, where the cost function is minimized in the planning. Control signals are generated to drive the ADV based on the planned trajectory.