Wireless vehicle management system

Abstract

The system includes a highway vehicle, a first set of highway points located along a route of the vehicle, a second set of highway points located along a traffic signal section, at least one RFID tag located at each of the first and second sets of highway points, and at least one RFID tag reader located on the highway vehicle and connected to a network, wherein the at least one RFID tag located at the first set of highway points is configured to store dynamic and static characteristics of the highway vehicle as it passes through the first set of highway points, and the at least one RFID tag located at the second set of highway points is configured to store dynamic and static characteristics of the highway vehicle as it passes through the second set of highway points.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This PCT patent application claims priority based on U.S. Patent Application No. 17 / 107,735, which is not a provisional patent application filed on November 30, 2020. The above U.S. Patent Application No. 17 / 107,735 is a continuation-in-part (CIP) non-provisional U.S. patent application that claims priority based on U.S. Patent Application No. 16 / 723,261, which is not a provisional patent application filed on December 20, 2019. The above U.S. Patent Application No. 16 / 723,261 is a U.S. CIP patent application of U.S. Patent Application No. 15 / 992,883, which was filed on May 30, 2018 and patented as U.S. Patent No. 10,518,790 on December 31, 2019. The entire content of these applications is incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0002] The field of the present invention and its embodiments relate to systems and methods for managing vehicle position, distance, speed, and location within a system.

Background Art

[0003] Advances in data storage and processing now enable the emergence of extremely great digital applications with much smaller installation areas and at only a slight cost. Along with hardware advances and widespread availability, the development of adjacent software has become a much more common skill and is approaching something as shared as reading and writing skills.

[0004] Many industrialized countries and cities around the world have to confront public transportation systems that are changing over time, thus creating a need and opportunity for modern approaches to the supervision of those systems. In recent years, several publications have been attempted to repair various aspects of existing systems. Various systems and methodologies are known in the art. However, their structures and operating means are substantially different from the present disclosure.

[0005] Examination of related technologies U.S. Patent No. 9,669,850 relates to a method and system for monitoring railroad operations and the transport of goods by rail, wherein a monitoring device, including a radio receiver, is installed to monitor railroad lines and / or trains of interest. The monitoring device includes a radio receiver (i.e., LIDAR) configured to receive radio signals from trains, tracks, or trackside locations within the scope of the monitoring device. The monitoring device receives radio signals, and the received signals are demodulated into a data stream. However, this disclosure requires memory storage of train activity at a central location rather than on RFID tags.

[0006] U.S. Patent Application Publication 2017 / 0043797 relates to a method and system for using radio frequency identification (RFID) tags installed at trackside points of interest of interest in conjunction with an RFID tag reader installed on the last (EOT) vehicle of a train. The RFID tag reader and RFID tags work together to provide information that can be used in several ways, including, but not limited to, determining the health of a train, determining the geographical location of the EOT vehicle, and determining that the EOT vehicle has cleared trackside points of interest along the tracks. This publication discloses memory on the RFID tags, but does not disclose that the memory is volatile.

[0007] U.S. Patent No. 9,711,046 relates to a control system for presenting a configurable virtual representation of a train and at least a portion of an associated train asset, including the real-time location, configuration, and operational status of the train and associated train asset as it travels along a railroad track. The control system may include a train location system (such as RFID) and a train configuration determination system.

[0008] Various systems are known in the art; however, their structures and means of operation differ substantially from those of this disclosure. Other inventions do not necessarily solve all the problems taught by this disclosure. At least one embodiment of the present invention is shown in the following drawings and will be described in more detail herein. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0009] [Patent Document 1] U.S. Patent No. 9,669,850 [Patent Document 2] U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0043797 [Patent Document 3] U.S. Patent No. 9,711,046 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0010] Generally, the present invention and its embodiments describe systems and methods for managing vehicle position, distance, speed, and location within a vehicle system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] A first embodiment of the present invention describes a vehicle control system. This vehicle control system includes at least one highway vehicle, at least one first pair of highway points located along the route of at least one highway vehicle, and at least one first RFID tag located at each of the at least one first pair of highway points, configured to store the dynamic and static characteristics of at least one highway vehicle as it passes through the at least one first pair of highway points. This vehicle control system also includes at least one second pair of highway points located along a traffic signal section, and at least one second RFID tag located at each of the at least one second pair of highway points, configured to store the dynamic and static characteristics of at least one highway vehicle as it passes through the at least one second pair of highway points.

[0012] The vehicle control system further includes at least one RFID tag reader located on at least one highway vehicle connected to the network. The at least one RFID tag reader comprises an RF-transparent enclosure containing at least one pair of reader antennas wired to a chip reader, which is connected to at least one highway vehicle. In other examples, the at least one RFID tag reader is located on the underside of at least one highway vehicle.

[0013] In some instances, at least one first RFID tag includes a first RFID type 1 tag, and at least one second RFID tag includes a first RFID type 2 tag. Furthermore, at least one first RFID tag and at least one RFID tag reader are at a distance ranging from approximately 17.78 cm (7 inches) to approximately 101.6 cm (40 inches). In addition, in some instances, at least one first RFID tag includes multiple type 1 RFID tags separated from each other by less than approximately 914.4 cm (30 feet). Furthermore, the first RFID type 2 tag is connected to the second RFID type 2 tag by an RS485 or serial data transmission cable. The first RFID type 2 tag includes an I2C-RS485 converter, which is connected to the RFID chip by an I2C bus connection and to the tag antenna by a parallel connection.

[0014] In other examples, at least one highway vehicle is connected to a wireless communication network, including ultra-wideband, LWIP, LWA, WLAN, ADSL, cable, or LTE networks, at locations where at least one first set of two highway points or at least one second set of two highway points are on an open highway. Furthermore, this vehicle control system may also include other highway vehicles.

[0015] A second embodiment of the present invention describes a method for controlling a vehicle system. This method includes the step of communicating from a first vehicle to a second vehicle via a centralized data network traffic management center. The centralized data network traffic management center comprises a highway database, a schedule database, and a route database. This method also includes the step of communicating from the first vehicle to the second vehicle via a communication system. This communication system comprises at least a first pair of highway points located along the route of the first vehicle, at least a second pair of highway points located along traffic signals, and at least one first RFID tag located at at least the first pair of highway points. The at least one first RFID tag is configured to store its dynamic and static characteristics as the vehicle passes through at least the first pair of highway points.

[0016] The communication system further includes at least one second RFID tag located at least two sets of highway points. The at least one second RFID tag is configured to store its dynamic and static characteristics as a vehicle passes through at least one second set of highway points. The communication system also includes at least one first RFID tag reader located in a first vehicle and at least one second RFID tag reader located in a second vehicle. In some examples, the communication system further includes a backup or fail-safe system.

[0017] The first vehicle communicates parameters to the second vehicle via a communication system. Furthermore, the parameters are selected from a group consisting of the speed of the first vehicle, the position of the first vehicle, and / or the headway of the first vehicle. In the example, at least one first RFID tag includes a first RFID type 1 tag, and at least one second RFID tag includes a first RFID type 2 tag. The first RFID type 1 tag or first RFID type 2 tag in the backup system stores the speed, brake status, vehicle ID, traffic signal status, time stamp, and the schedule of the last vehicle that passed the first RFID type 1 tag or first RFID type 2 tag.

[0018] In one example, the first RFID Type 1 tag and the first RFID Type 2 tag each contain a unique identifier. In yet another example, the first RFID Type 1 tag and the first RFID Type 2 tag each contain volatile memory.

[0019] In practice, this method further includes the step of rewriting the speed, braking status, vehicle ID, traffic signal status, time stamp, and the schedule of the last vehicle to pass the first RFID Type 1 tag or the first RFID Type 2 tag using the next vehicle to pass the first RFID Type 1 tag or the first RFID Type 2 tag. This rewriting step is completed within a time range of approximately 10 to 30 milliseconds. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0020] [Figure 1] These are three operating modes of the system, according to at least some embodiments disclosed herein. [Figure 2] This is one embodiment of a vehicle configuration according to at least some of the embodiments disclosed herein. [Figure 3] Possible configurations of a system along a highway, according to at least some embodiments disclosed herein. [Figure 4] Details of the operation schematic diagram of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 5A] Another detail of the operation schematic diagram of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 5B] Another detail of the operation schematic diagram of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 6] A data flow diagram of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 7A] Data verification of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 7B] Data verification of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 7C] Data verification of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 7D] Data verification of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 7E] Data verification of an embodiment of the system. [Figure 7F] Data verification of an embodiment of the system.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0021] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Identical elements in a number of figures are identified with the same reference numerals.

[0022] Here, each embodiment of the present invention will be referred to in detail. These embodiments are provided as an explanation of the present invention, and it is not intended that the present invention be limited to these embodiments. In fact, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and changes can be made to them upon reading this specification and referring to these drawings.

[0023] This invention, hereafter referred to as the “Acorn” system, describes a system designed to enable vehicles to operate autonomously along highways. At the heart of the Acorn design is the placement of Acorn tags along highways at typical intervals of approximately 3.048 meters (10 feet) to 9.144 meters (30 feet), preferably 7.62 meters (25 feet). Along (or through) straight sections of highway, Type 1 Acorn tags are placed at typical intervals without hardware connections. At traffic signals and intersections, Type 2 Acorn tags are deployed at typical intervals using series wired connections that simulate highway circuits used to control traffic signals. These simulated highway circuits can interface with traffic signal controllers.

[0024] In the following, a single Acorn tag and reader interface method is required to achieve a successful read-write cycle in a system operating at approximately 144.84 kilometers per hour (90 mph), simplifying installation. However, if deployment requires supporting speeds exceeding approximately 144.84 kilometers per hour (90 mph), the system can be configured to utilize a segmented read-write cycle in its current configuration to continue achieving a successful read-write cycle.

[0025] The Acorn system is an open protocol-based system, and its software applications can be made available from multiple vendors and sources. It should be understood that this system is adaptable to various systems worldwide, using multiple operating systems on different hardware and software platforms. This approach, as with the supply of Acorn tags, does not tie the Acorn system to a single supplier. Furthermore, this approach eliminates common failure modes in both the software and hardware of the system.

[0026] Referring now to Figure 1, a method for controlling a vehicle system according to one embodiment of the present invention is illustrated as an example. In one embodiment, a first vehicle communicates with a second vehicle via a centralized data network (e.g., a traffic management center) using wirelessly controlled communication, in which case the traffic management center includes a highway database, a schedule database, and a route database. The first vehicle may also communicate with the second vehicle via a backup communication system.

[0027] According to one embodiment, the system architecture used in this method enables multiple layers of communication to send and receive critical in-vehicle data in order to calculate safe head-to-head distance. These layers of communication help form three operating modes (labeled 1, 2, and 3 in Figure 1) to ensure the continuous and safe operation of the vehicles. Mode 1 in Figure 1 uses all layers of the technology to guide Mode 1 into the primary, and therefore normal, operating mode, in order to provide the system with the minimum head-to-head distance. According to one embodiment, in Mode 1, normal operation calculates head-to-head distance using the following redundant inputs: schedule updates and vehicle location confirmation (a) broadcast by a traffic management center; vehicle location confirmation (b) broadcast from vehicle to vehicle; time and speed of the preceding vehicle (c) read by a tag; current vehicle location confirmation (d) read by a tag; and highway visual range (e) that senses a clear preceding distance, made possible by LIDAR.

[0028] According to one embodiment, the subsequent operating mode, Mode 2 in Figure 1, is reduced in its involvement when communication with the traffic management center is lost, but enables the system to continue functioning by increasing the minimum head-to-head distance. Finally, Mode 3 in Figure 1 represents autonomous operation that enables overall vehicle autonomy by relying solely on information from tags and on-board equipment, enforcing the most restrictive head-to-head distance.

[0029] According to one embodiment, the backup communication system includes a first vehicle, a second vehicle, at least a first pair of two highway points, at least a second pair of two highway points, at least one RFID type 1 tag, at least one RFID type 2 tag, and at least one RFID tag reader. It should be understood that the number of vehicles is not limited to any particular number. Furthermore, the number of at least a first pair of two highway points and at least a second pair of two highway points is not limited to any particular number.

[0030] At least two highway points in a first set are located along the route of the first vehicle. At least two highway points in a second set are located at traffic signal locations. Furthermore, at least one RFID Type 1 tag is located at at least two highway points in a first set and is configured to store the characteristics of the first vehicle when the first vehicle passes through at least two highway points in a first set. Furthermore, at least one RFID Type 2 tag is located at at least two highway points in a second set and is configured to store the characteristics of the vehicle when the vehicle passes through at least two highway points in a second set. At least one RFID tag reader is located at both the first and second vehicles.

[0031] The RFID Type 1 or RFID Type 2 tags of the backup system can store many parameters, among others, including the speed, braking status, vehicle ID, traffic signal status, time stamp, and / or schedule of the last vehicle to pass the RFID Type 1 or RFID Type 2 tag. The parameters recorded on the tag (e.g., the speed, braking status, vehicle ID, traffic signal status, time stamp, and schedule of the last vehicle to pass the RFID Type 1 or RFID Type 2 tag) can be rewritten using information about the next vehicle to pass the RFID Type 1 or RFID Type 2 tag. The read and write steps can typically be completed within a range of about 10 to 30 milliseconds, but optimally, 20 milliseconds is preferable for the safe operation of the system.

[0032] Each vehicle (for example, vehicle 1 and vehicle 2) can track three primary databases it carries, including a highway database, a schedule database, and a route database. The highway database contains details of the highway network and uses a tag-unique ID ("UID") as a key for recording its location. The temporary speed field is variable, while all other fields (e.g., highway speed limit field, next approaching vehicle field, field of view range, next road point field, etc.) are fixed unless maintenance changes the tag. The schedule database allows a vehicle to determine its own position in relation to other vehicles in the system. All fields (e.g., vehicle ID field, scheduled route field, scheduled time field, confirmed time field) can be pre-loaded or updated throughout the journey. The route database may contain information necessary to navigate the highway system. This database contains information about the predicted location of an individual vehicle in relation to time. The location is based on the tag-UID.

[0033] Using the current UID and vehicle ID, it is possible to access the scheduled time field to determine whether the vehicle is ahead of or behind its scheduled time. For operation in Mode 2 and Mode 3, the scheduled position can be determined using the ID and time of the preceding vehicle. The Acorn system database can be programmed to have more than 100,000 records. At the initial startup, all database searches to identify the current tag UID input and scheduled position can take up to 1 second to find the record. After that, high-speed indexing is used because records are accessed sequentially, resulting in incremental increases or decreases.

[0034] Vehicle spacing is achieved by establishing vehicle positions with an accuracy of at least ±3.81 meters (12.5 feet) using tags and inertial navigation. This data is stored in an on-board network map and can be broadcast to all vehicles along the route. The on-board network map is also updated with vehicle positions it receives from other vehicle broadcasts, enabling the vehicle computer to calculate the distance to the preceding vehicle, the target speed, and the braking points to maintain a safe operating distance. The tags have data fields regarding the time, speed, and driving status of the last vehicle. If no other data is received, this allows the vehicle to calculate where the preceding vehicle is located if it applies its emergency brakes. When a vehicle makes an update, it broadcasts its own position to all other vehicles along the route at approximately 30.48 meters (100 feet) intervals or determined by the vehicle's operating speed.

[0035] To calculate the target speed and available head-to-head distance for a vehicle used in Mode 2 and Mode 3, the onboard processor can adhere to the following process:

[0036] A tag sequence array called "vehicle-to-vehicle spacing" is preloaded from the highway database and can be used to calculate the distance to a preceding vehicle (as the number of clear tags). This value can be known as the "clear tag" value. The tag location of the preceding vehicle can be obtained in the following way: In Mode 1, the highway database holds the current location of the preceding vehicle. This location can be verified via transmission from the preceding vehicle and verification arriving from the traffic control center. If the location of the preceding vehicle has been received but has not been verified by the traffic control center, Mode 2 is invoked. Using the speed of the preceding vehicle and the time the vehicle was at the tag location, the location of the preceding vehicle can be predicted, assuming a constant speed. This estimated location of the preceding vehicle is compared with the highway database and the location reported from that vehicle. The lower of the two numbers is used to set the value in the clear tag field or value.

[0037] Mode 3 is invoked if the vehicle has not received any vehicle status updates for more than 500 milliseconds. In Mode 3, the vehicle uses scheduled locations to calculate the number of preceding clear tags from the received tag data and to correct the tag clear value as necessary. The highway visual range will be used to correct the maximum allowable speed. The length of the vehicle (converted to the number of tags) is subtracted from the resulting tag clear value. This becomes the scheduled stop tag for that vehicle. Next, the number of head-to-head spacing tags is used to address the onboard database to determine the maximum speed at which the vehicle can operate when it stops due to a stop tag. The maximum speed derived from the onboard database is then compared to the highway speed and the temporary speed. The lowest value is selected. The received data allows the vehicle to calculate the speed and brake profile of the preceding vehicle.

[0038] To determine the vehicle's speed, an interrupt request (IRQ) can be used to initiate a timer sequence that aggregates the time between tag readings. This counter is 64 bits long, using 100-microsecond intervals, and allows for the determination of the average speed using known tag intervals between tags. At a speed of approximately 16.09 kilometers per hour (10 mph), the counter reaches an integer value of 15,957 during tag readings at that tag interval, as calculated by the formula below. This counter value can then be used to calculate the vehicle's position between tags, based on the average speed calculated between previous tags.

[0039]

number

[0040] For example, using the above equation, if a vehicle is traveling at approximately 16.09 kilometers per hour (10 mph), accurate position and speed calculations occur every 1,596 microseconds, allowing accurate position and speed to be broadcast to the traffic control center and other vehicles every 1,596 microseconds. As the vehicle's speed increases, the travel time decreases, allowing for a higher frequency of broadcasting accurate position and speed values. For example, if the average speed is approximately 40.23 kilometers per hour (25 mph), position updates occur every 682 microseconds, and if the speed is approximately 96.56 kilometers per hour (60 mph), updates occur every 284 microseconds.

[0041] Wide-area network (WAN) communication can utilize various technologies and networks to provide varying levels of connectivity along different types of highway areas. While continuous WAN communication is not required for continued operation, ideally, communication should exist along the entire highway system to support the broadcasted vehicle location as described above. Since the broadcasted vehicle location requires only 1024 bits for data transmission and 1024 bits for acknowledgment, minimal communication is required along the entire highway route system.

[0042] In addition to vehicle location, WAN communication needs to support schedule updates from the traffic management center to each vehicle. Unlike vehicle location, schedule updates require a considerable amount of bandwidth and therefore need to be supported by a high-bandwidth network. Reasonable locations where high-bandwidth communication should exist are the locations of stations and traffic signals, also known as waypoints.

[0043] Next, the number of records to be updated is approximately 250kB. To accommodate 16CRC, data verification, and other communication overhead, updating a single vehicle's records may be 6Mb, and a full scheduled update may be 400Mb (50MB). Note that various embodiments of the present invention, such as communication and data updates (Figure 6) and data verification (Figures 7A, 7B, 7C, 7D, 7E, and 7F), can be found in one or more of the drawings of this application (Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5A, 5B, 6, 7A, 7B, 7C, 7D, 7E, and 7F).

[0044] Such reductions in coding allow for much faster verification to SIL ratings because fewer lines of code are required, making it possible for multiple vendors to be involved in providing the code.

[0045] At traffic signal locations, Acorn Type 2 tags can be installed at a typical distance of approximately 1219.20 kilometers (4,000 feet) from the actual traffic signal. The Type 2 tag enables the traffic signal / ARS to communicate with the onboard system, providing information on the status of the traffic signal location and the target speed relative to that location.

[0046] Referring here to Figure 2, a vehicle control system is illustrated exemplary according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the system includes at least one leading vehicle connected to a network, at least one RFID tag reader located on the at least one leading vehicle, and at least one following vehicle. According to one embodiment, the RFID tag reader located on the at least one leading vehicle (as shown in Figure 2) may include an RF-transparent enclosure including at least one pair of reader antennas wired to a chip reader connected to the at least one vehicle.

[0047] According to one embodiment, a network database in at least one preceding vehicle can be connected to a network database in at least one following vehicle by a communication backbone that interconnects various networks, such as Bluetooth® and Wi-Fi® connections. Furthermore, the networks of at least one preceding vehicle and / or at least one following vehicle may include radar.

[0048] According to one embodiment, the network of at least one preceding vehicle or at least one following vehicle can connect to a wireless communication network using an LTE network at locations where the highway point is on an open highway and a Wi-Fi network at locations where the highway point is on an enclosed highway (as shown in Figure 4). Alternatively, the communication network may use ultra-wideband (UWB), LWIP, LWA, WLAN, ADSL, or cable networks for communication.

[0049] Figure 3 shows at least a first pair of highway points, which are located along the route of a vehicle to which at least one RFID Type 1 tag (Acorn tag) can be attached, and which is configured to store the characteristics of the vehicle as it passes through at least the first pair of highway points. Figure 3 further shows a second pair of highway points located along highway traffic signals, and at least one RFID Type 2 tag (Acorn tag Type 2) located at each of the second pair of highway points. This at least one RFID Type 2 tag (Acorn tag Type 2) is configured to store the characteristics of the vehicle as it passes through the second pair of highway points.

[0050] In one embodiment, an RFID Type 2 tag can be connected to a second RFID Type 2 tag by an RS485 cable. The RFID Type 2 tag includes an I2C to RS485 converter, which is connected to the RFID chip by an I2C bus connection and to the tag antenna by a parallel connection. In one embodiment, the RFID Type 1 tag and the RFID tag reader are located at a distance of approximately 17.78 cm (7 inches) to approximately 101.6 cm (40 inches), with the RFID tag reader positioned on the underside of at least one preceding vehicle and at least one following vehicle. In one embodiment, the RFID Type 1 tags are separated from each other only at a distance of approximately 609.6 cm (20 feet) to approximately 914.4 cm (30 feet), but optimally, they are separated at approximately 762 cm (25 feet), as shown in Figure 3.

[0051] Next, referring to Figure 4, a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of one embodiment of the present invention is shown in detail.

[0052] The interface at the traffic management center can convert the current vehicle schedules held by the existing system into the Acorn database format, adding additional granularity to the target time at each location. When vehicles report their locations, the interface emulates the location reports as they would be currently used by the traffic management center. A second interface to the existing system is the automated route setting system. If the route has changed from what was planned, the new route is converted into an Acorn-compatible format and transmitted to the vehicles running Acorn. These interfaces enable operation with existing and auxiliary mixed traffic operations, which can also be illustrated in Figures 5A and 5B.

[0053] As shown in Figure 4, all vehicles in the system include an Acorn tag reader mounted on its underside, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth® links between vehicles, Acorn processing equipment inside or outside the vehicle, a WAN antenna on top of the vehicle, a radar collision detector on the front of the driver's vehicle, and a driver display in the driver's area.

[0054] A key advantage of the Acorn system is that its deployment to the service is based on the overlay principle. Installation on highways has been minimized, avoiding disruption to system users while minimizing time and cost. Encryption is applied to all transmitted and stored tag data to prevent cyber hacking of tags or communication paths.

[0055] According to one embodiment, the deployment of the Acorn System service occurs seamlessly, with the switchover being possible in virtually one night.

[0056] Furthermore, embodiments of the present invention include a vehicle control system comprising at least one preceding vehicle, at least one following vehicle, at least a first pair of two highway points, at least a second pair of two highway points, at least one RFID Type 1 tag (Acorn Tag), at least one RFID Type 2 tag (Acorn Tag 2), and at least one RFID reader. The at least first pair of two highway points are located along the vehicle's route, and at least one RFID Type 1 tag (Acorn Tag) can be connected thereto and configured to store vehicle characteristics when the vehicle passes through the at least first pair of two highway points. The at least second pair of two highway points are located along traffic signals. At least one RFID Type 2 tag (Acorn Tag 2) is located at each of the at least second pair of two highway points and is configured to store vehicle characteristics when the vehicle passes through the at least second pair of two highway points. At least one RFID tag reader is located on at least one preceding vehicle and at least one following vehicle, both connected to the network.

[0057] Another object of embodiments of the present invention is to have a method for controlling a vehicle system. This method includes several processing steps, such as causing a first vehicle to communicate with a second vehicle via a centralized data network wireless control communication (e.g., a traffic management center). The centralized data network wireless control communication includes a highway database, a schedule database, and a route database.

[0058] Communication between the first vehicle and the second vehicle may also occur via a backup communication system. The backup communication system (referred to as Mode 1 above) includes at least a first pair of highway points, at least a second pair of highway points, at least one RFID Type 1 tag, at least one RFID Type 2 tag, and at least one RFID tag reader. The at least first pair of highway points are located along the route of the first vehicle. At least one RFID Type 1 tag is located at the location of at least the first pair of highway points and is configured to store the characteristics of the first vehicle as the first vehicle passes through at least the first pair of highway points. The at least second pair of highway points are located along traffic signals. At least one RFID Type 2 tag is located at the location of at least the second pair of highway points and is configured to store the characteristics of the vehicle as the vehicle passes through at least the first pair of highway points. At least one RFID tag reader is located in both the first and second vehicles.

[0059] While various embodiments of the present invention have been presented for illustrative purposes, they are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and alterations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein has been chosen to best describe the principles of the embodiments, practical applications, or technical improvements in comparison to technologies available on the market, or to enable other persons or those skilled in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0060] When describing elements of this disclosure or its embodiments, the articles “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to indicate that one or more of those elements exist. Similarly, the adjective “another” is intended to mean one or more elements when used to describe an element. The terms “including” and “having” are intended to be inclusive, meaning that additional elements may exist beyond those listed.

[0061] While the present invention has been described with a certain degree of specificity, it should be understood that this disclosure is merely illustrative and that several modifications to the details of the configuration and arrangement of the components can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. Network and At least one highway vehicle, At least one first pair of two highway points located along the route of the highway vehicle, A first RFID tag located at each of the two highway points of the at least one first set, configured to store the dynamic and static characteristics of the at least one highway vehicle as it passes through the two highway points of the at least one first set, Two highway points of at least one second set located along a traffic signal section, A second RFID tag located at each of the two highway points of the at least one second set, configured to store the dynamic and static characteristics of the at least one highway vehicle as it passes through the two highway points of the at least one second set, At least one RFID tag reader located in at least one highway vehicle connected to the network, A vehicle control system equipped with this feature.

2. The at least one first RFID tag includes a first RFID type 1 tag, The vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one second RFID tag includes a first RFID type 2 tag.

3. The first RFID type 2 tag is connected to the second RFID type 2 tag by an RS485 or serial data transmission cable. The vehicle control system according to claim 2, wherein the first RFID type 2 tag includes an I2C-RS485 converter, the I2C-RS485 converter is connected to an RFID chip by an I2C bus connection and to a tag antenna by a parallel connection.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one RFID tag reader includes an RF-transparent enclosure containing at least one pair of reader antennas wired to a chip reader connected to the at least one highway vehicle.

5. The vehicle control system according to claim 2, wherein the at least one first RFID tag and the at least one RFID tag reader are at a distance between approximately 17.78 cm (7 inches) and approximately 101.6 cm (40 inches).

6. The vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one RFID tag reader is located on the underside of the at least one highway vehicle.

7. The vehicle control system according to claim 2, wherein the at least one first RFID tag comprises a plurality of Type 1 RFID tags separated from each other by less than approximately 914.4 cm (30 feet).

8. The vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one highway vehicle is connected to a wireless communication network including an ultra-wideband, LWIP, LWA, WLAN, ADSL, cable, or LTE network at a location where the at least one first set of two highway points or the at least one second set of two highway points are on an open highway.

9. The system according to claim 1, further comprising another highway vehicle.

10. The steps include: communicating from a first vehicle to a second vehicle via a centralized data network traffic management center equipped with a highway database, a schedule database, and a route database; The first vehicle communicates with the second vehicle via a communication system, A vehicle system control method including the communication system, At least a first pair of two highway points located along the route of the first vehicle, At least two sets of highway points located along traffic signals, At least one first RFID tag located at each of the two highway points of the first set, and configured to store the dynamic and static characteristics of at least one of the first vehicle and the second vehicle when they pass through the two highway points of the first set, At least one second RFID tag is located at each of the two highway points of the at least second set and is configured to store the dynamic and static characteristics of at least one of the first vehicle and the second vehicle when they pass through the two highway points of the at least second set, At least one first RFID tag reader located in the first vehicle, The second vehicle comprises at least one second RFID tag reader, A vehicle system control method that includes the following features.

11. The first vehicle communicates parameters to the second vehicle via the communication system. The method according to claim 10, wherein the parameter is selected from a group consisting of the speed of the first vehicle, the position of the first vehicle, and the head-to-head distance of the first vehicle.

12. The at least one first RFID tag includes a first RFID type 1 tag, The method according to claim 10, wherein the at least one second RFID tag includes a first RFID type 2 tag.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the communication system further comprises a backup or fail-safe system.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the first RFID type 1 tag or the first RFID type 2 tag of the backup system stores speed, brake status, vehicle ID, traffic signal status, time stamp, and the schedule of the last vehicle that passed the first RFID type 1 tag or the first RFID type 2 tag.

15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising the step of rewriting the speed, the brake state, the vehicle ID, the traffic signal state, the time stamp, and the schedule of the last vehicle to pass the first RFID type 1 tag or the first RFID type 2 tag using the next vehicle to pass the first RFID type 1 tag or the first RFID type 2 tag.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the rewriting step is completed within a time range of approximately 10 milliseconds to approximately 30 milliseconds.

17. The method according to claim 12, wherein each of the first RFID type 1 tag and the first RFID type 2 tag includes a unique identifier.

18. The method according to claim 12, wherein each of the first RFID type 1 tag and the first RFID type 2 tag includes a volatile memory.

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