Autonomous Rescue Vehicle Response in Signal-Denied Remote Areas
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Solution Overview
Problem
In remote areas, individuals participating in activities like hiking, heliskiing, or underwater exploration often face challenges in transmitting emergency distress signals due to the absence of modern telecommunications systems, making it difficult to facilitate rescue operations.
Innovation Solution
An autonomous device-based emergency response system that includes a rescue autonomous vehicle (RAV) equipped with an embedded controller, which collects waypoint data, detects trigger events, and executes pre-configured response plans to facilitate rescue, such as navigating to a location with cellular service or approaching potential rescuers, even in areas without GPS signals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional emergency response systems are used in remote areas, then rescue operations can be facilitated in locations with telecommunications infrastructure, but emergency distress signals cannot be transmitted in remote areas without modern telecommunications systems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an autonomous vehicle as an intermediary between the distressed user and emergency services. The vehicle collects waypoint data, navigates autonomously to retrieve the user, and serves as a mobile communication node that can reach telecommunications infrastructure, thereby enabling distress signal transmission in areas where direct communication is impossible
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-collecting waypoint data during the user's activity and pre-configuring the autonomous vehicle with navigation capabilities. This allows the vehicle to quickly respond to emergency triggers without requiring real-time infrastructure, resolving the contradiction between reliability and adaptability in remote areas
2Measurement precision
If GPS-based navigation is used for autonomous vehicle routing, then precise location tracking is achieved, but navigation fails in areas with unavailable GPS signals
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces waypoint data as an intermediary reference system. Instead of relying directly on continuous GPS signals, the system collects discrete waypoint data points that serve as navigational markers. The autonomous vehicle uses these pre-collected waypoints to navigate through areas with unavailable GPS signals, maintaining measurement precision without requiring continuous satellite connectivity
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a copy of the geographic environment in the form of collected waypoint data and annotations. This digital representation allows the autonomous vehicle to navigate using stored information rather than real-time GPS signals, enabling operation in signal-denied environments while maintaining navigation accuracy
3Reliability
If multiple response plans are maintained for different trigger events, then comprehensive emergency coverage is achieved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic response plan selection based on trigger events. The system automatically selects and executes appropriate response plans based on the detected emergency condition, transforming a static complex system into a dynamic adaptive one. This allows comprehensive emergency coverage while managing complexity through automated contextual selection rather than manual configuration
Data Source
AI summary
A controller for an emergency response system, a computer program product for an emergency response system, and a method for facilitating rescue One embodiment may comprise a processor coupled to a memory, the memory containing program instructions. The program instructions, when executed on the processor, may cause the controller to collect waypoint data during a user's activity, detect a first trigger event indicating that the user needs assistance, determine a first response plan for an autonomous vehicle (AV) for the first trigger event based on the collected waypoint data, and execute the first response plan.