Autonomous Vehicle Idle Data Reduction via Repositioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous vehicles experience downtime and inefficient use of computational resources due to idle periods, as they continue to acquire sensor data even when not performing vehicle services, leading to wastage of processing, data storage, and power resources.
Innovation Solution
A computing system identifies geographic areas with vehicle imbalances and repositions idle autonomous vehicles to optimize their deployment, reducing downtime by increasing the likelihood of vehicle service assignments and efficiently utilizing resources.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If autonomous vehicles continue to acquire sensor data during idle periods, then the vehicles remain ready for immediate service assignment, but processing, data storage, and power resources are wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements periodic monitoring of vehicle status and geographic area conditions, transitioning vehicles between active data acquisition and idle states periodically rather than continuously, thereby reducing resource consumption while maintaining operational readiness through scheduled checks and repositioning actions
2Productivity
If idle autonomous vehicles are repositioned to geographic areas with vehicle imbalances, then service availability is improved, but vehicle downtime and repositioning time are incurred
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary identification of geographic areas with vehicle imbalances and pre-plans repositioning routes for idle vehicles before service demands arise, allowing vehicles to be strategically positioned in advance to minimize response time and maximize service availability when needed
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors vehicle distribution across geographic areas and uses this feedback information to dynamically adjust repositioning decisions, optimizing the balance between maintaining service availability and minimizing unnecessary repositioning time and resource consumption
3Speed
If autonomous vehicles are kept online in idle states, then they can receive service assignments quickly, but data storage and processing resources are consumed continuously
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the essential functions needed for receiving service assignments from the continuous online operation, allowing vehicles to maintain minimal connectivity for assignment reception while discontinuing full sensor data acquisition and processing during idle periods, thereby reducing data storage and processing resource consumption while preserving rapid response capability
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for controlling an autonomous vehicle to reduce idle data usage and vehicle downtime are provided. In one example embodiment, a computing system can obtain data associated with autonomous vehicle(s) that are online with a service entity. The computing system can obtain data indicative of the geographic area with an imbalance in a number of vehicles associated with the geographic area. The computing system can determine a first autonomous vehicle for re-positioning with respect to the geographic area based at least in part on the data associated with the one or more autonomous vehicles and the data indicative of the geographic. The computing system can communicating data indicative of a first re-positioning assignment associated with the first autonomous vehicle. In some implementations, the computing system can generate vehicle service incentive to entice a vehicle provider to re-position its autonomous vehicles with respect to the geographic area.