Autonomous Vehicle State Control for User Recognition at Pickup
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for autonomous vehicles to meet users lack effectiveness in environments where GPS signals are unavailable and the vehicle's location cannot be easily identified, leading to confusion and difficulty in recognition, especially in crowded parking lots with similar vehicle appearances.
Innovation Solution
A control device and method that includes a receiver for user location information, a memory for distinct vehicle states, and a processor to calculate distances and switch states based on environment and user proximity, ensuring the autonomous vehicle becomes visually or audibly recognizable when approaching the user.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the autonomous vehicle uses standard appearance without distinctive features, then manufacturing cost is reduced and ease of manufacture is improved, but the vehicle becomes difficult to identify and recognize by users in crowded environments
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous vehicle is equipped with lights that can change color or illuminate in specific patterns to make the vehicle visually distinctive and easily recognizable by users. This allows the vehicle to maintain a standard appearance during normal operation while becoming highly visible and identifiable when needed for user interaction.
2Reliability
If the autonomous vehicle changes state frequently to enhance recognizability, then user identification capability is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous vehicle dynamically adjusts its state (such as lighting conditions) based on the operational context. The vehicle remains in a low-energy state during normal operation and transitions to a high-visibility state only when approaching a meeting point or when user identification is required, thereby balancing recognizability with energy efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The vehicle uses periodic or intermittent lighting patterns rather than continuous illumination to enhance recognizability. This allows the vehicle to be noticeable to users while consuming less energy compared to continuous lighting.
3Reliability
If the autonomous vehicle uses multiple distinctive states with visual and audible features, then user identification reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous vehicle uses a multi-functional notification system where lights serve multiple purposes: they can change color for visual identification, blink in patterns to attract attention, and coordinate with audible signals. This single integrated system performs multiple functions (visual signaling, auditory signaling, attention-grabbing) without requiring separate complex subsystems.
Data Source
AI summary
Various embodiments for controlling a state of an autonomous vehicle that is to meet a user are provided. A receiver receives location information indicating a current location of the user. A memory stores a plurality of states of the autonomous vehicle. Each of the states at least one of visually or audibly distinguishes the autonomous vehicle. A sensor senses an environment of the autonomous vehicle to obtain environment information. A distance from a place of meeting the user to the current location of the user is calculated based on the location information. A first state is selected in accordance with the environment information. The autonomous vehicle is caused to change from a second state to the first state when the distance from the place of meeting the user to the current location of the user becomes smaller than or equal to a predetermined distance.