Autonomous Vehicle Driveway Entry for Opposite-Side Pickup
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous vehicles face challenges in determining how to maneuver into a driveway for passenger pickup or drop-off, often inconveniencing passengers and other road users by stopping on the opposite side of the street or taking longer due to complex maneuvers.
Innovation Solution
The vehicle's computing devices analyze convenience costs and difficulty scores to decide whether to enter an available driveway on the same side of the street, using map information and sensor data to control the vehicle's entry, ensuring safety and passenger convenience.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If the autonomous vehicle stops on the opposite side of the street as the pickup location, then the vehicle can arrive more quickly without complex maneuvers, but the passenger experience is inconvenienced and safety is reduced due to required street crossings
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous vehicle performs preliminary actions by analyzing multiple potential stopping locations and their associated difficulty scores before making a final decision. The system evaluates factors such as driveway availability, traffic conditions, and maneuver complexity in advance to select the optimal stopping location that balances speed and passenger convenience
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary decision-making system that acts as a mediator between the conflicting goals of quick arrival and passenger convenience. This system uses a difficulty score calculation framework that incorporates multiple parameters (driveway availability, traffic conditions, maneuver complexity) to determine the best course of action, effectively mediating between speed and convenience requirements
2Ease of operation
If the autonomous vehicle performs complex maneuvers to reach the lane adjacent to the pickup location, then the passenger experience is improved by avoiding street crossings, but the vehicle arrival time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically changes operational parameters by adjusting the difficulty score thresholds and decision criteria based on real-time conditions. When passenger convenience is prioritized, the system is willing to accept higher maneuvering difficulty and longer arrival times. The parameter changes include adjusting the weight of different factors in the difficulty score calculation based on the chosen priority
3Reliability
If the autonomous vehicle enters a driveway to reach the pickup location, then passenger convenience and safety are improved, but the device complexity increases due to additional decision-making requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The decision-making system is segmented into modular components that evaluate different aspects of the driveway entry decision independently. The system divides the complex decision into separate evaluations of driveway availability, traffic conditions, maneuver difficulty, and safety considerations, with each module contributing to the overall difficulty score. This segmentation makes the complex decision-making process more manageable and maintainable
Data Source
AI summary
Aspects of the disclosure provide for controlling an autonomous vehicle to enter a driveway. As an example, an instruction to pickup or drop off a passenger at a location may be received. It may be determined that the vehicle is arriving in a lane on an opposite side of a street as the location, the lane having a traffic direction opposite to a traffic direction of a lane adjacent to the location. A difficulty score to maneuver the vehicle to the lane adjacent to the location may be determined, and the difficulty score may be compared to a predetermined difficulty score. Based on the comparison, it may be determined to an available driveway on the same side of the street as the location. The vehicle may be controlled to enter the available driveway.