Autonomous Vehicle Scheduling via Calendar Signals
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Solution Overview
Problem
Individuals with limited mobility, such as daily commuters, face inefficiencies in managing their personal vehicle for errands due to inconvenient store hours and additional costs when using paid services, as they must either use their vehicle after work or on weekends, leading to significant time and resource expenditure.
Innovation Solution
A method for operating a motor vehicle in fully autonomous driving mode that determines downtime and creates an operating plan based on the user's schedule, allowing the vehicle to autonomously complete tasks without user intervention, by integrating appointment calendar signals, determining travel routes, and establishing time windows for navigation, thereby minimizing downtime and optimizing vehicle utilization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the user uses their personal motor vehicle for errands after work or on weekends, then the user can complete tasks independently, but the user spends significant time and the vehicle experiences increased wear and downtime
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically scheduling and executing errands during the user's working hours without manual intervention. The control device receives appointment calendar signals, determines parking time periods when the user does not need the vehicle, and autonomously plans and executes errands during these periods, eliminating the need for the user to spend time on errands after work or on weekends.
Solution Approach 2:
The motor vehicle serves itself by autonomously completing errands without user intervention. The control device independently receives order signals, determines travel routes, calculates travel times, and generates navigation signals to guide the vehicle to complete tasks such as picking up merchandise or delivering items, allowing the vehicle to perform services on its own during the user's unavailable periods.
2Loss of time
If the user orders a forwarding company or pickup service to complete errands, then the user saves time on task completion, but additional costs are incurred
Solution Approach 1:
The motor vehicle performs errands autonomously without requiring external service providers. The control device enables the vehicle to independently receive order signals, plan routes, and execute tasks such as picking up or delivering items, eliminating the need to pay forwarding companies or pickup services while still saving the user's time.
Solution Approach 2:
The system recovers the vehicle's idle capacity during working hours by utilizing it for errands. Instead of the vehicle sitting unused during the user's work hours, the control device activates it for productive tasks, transforming wasted time and resources into valuable service delivery without incurring external costs.
3Productivity
If the motor vehicle operates autonomously during determined parking time periods, then vehicle utilization is optimized and downtime is reduced, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control device performs multiple functions within a single integrated system. It receives and processes both appointment calendar signals and order signals, determines parking time periods, calculates travel times, plans routes, and generates navigation signals. This multi-functionality optimizes vehicle utilization without requiring separate complex systems for each function.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts operational parameters based on input data. The control device calculates travel times based on route distance and vehicle speed, determines optimal parking time periods by analyzing the user's schedule, and adapts the operating plan according to real-time conditions, enabling efficient autonomous operation without excessive complexity.
4Ease of operation
If the user must wait for store hours or service availability to complete errands, then task completion is constrained by external schedules, but the user loses flexibility in managing their own time
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary scheduling by analyzing the user's appointment calendar and proactively planning errands during determined parking time periods. The control device receives order signals in advance, calculates required travel times, and schedules autonomous execution during optimal windows, eliminating the need for the user to wait for store hours or service availability and providing complete flexibility in time management.
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosure relates to a method for operating a piloted motor vehicle, comprising the following steps carried out by a control device: determining a parking time period and a parking location of the motor vehicle on the basis of an appointment calendar signal received from a mobile terminal, which appointment calendar signal describes at least one appointment and a waiting location of the motor vehicle associated with the appointment, and creating an operating plan for the motor vehicle in accordance therewith. In accordance with at least one task signal, each of which describes a travel destination to which the motor vehicle should drive, a linking route for linking at least one travel destination to the parking location and a corresponding travel time are determined. A time window for traveling the linking route is determined with the travel time as a minimum length, and a navigation signal, which describes the linking route, is transferred to a navigation device for controlling the motor vehicle along the linking route in the determined time window.