Convoy Vehicle Emergency Control via Direct Inter-Vehicle Alerts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle convoy systems lack responsiveness for emergency stops, leading to reduced distance between vehicles and convoy disturbances.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle control device that includes a control information acquisition unit, emergency information acquisition unit, and travel control unit, which allows for emergency operation control without relying on server communication, utilizing inter-vehicle communication to enhance responsiveness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the vehicle control device communicates via the server for operation control, then the control system maintains centralized management and stability, but the responsiveness for emergency operation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the control system into two segments: normal operation control through the server and emergency operation control through direct vehicle-to-vehicle communication. This segmentation allows the system to maintain centralized management for routine operations while enabling rapid local response for emergencies, resolving the contradiction between centralized stability and emergency responsiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-establishing direct communication channels between vehicles in the convoy and pre-programming emergency response protocols. When an emergency is detected, the system immediately activates the pre-configured direct communication path without needing to route through the server, enabling instantaneous response while maintaining the overall centralized architecture.
2Speed
If the vehicle control device uses direct vehicle-to-vehicle communication for emergency operation, then the responsiveness is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing the communication device to perform multiple functions: it handles both normal server-based communication and emergency direct-vehicle communication through the same hardware infrastructure. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated emergency communication systems, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while maintaining improved emergency responsiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The communication device serves as an intermediary that can switch between two communication modes: server-mediated normal operations and direct vehicle-to-vehicle emergency communication. This intermediary role allows the system to add emergency capability without requiring completely separate communication infrastructure, thus managing complexity while achieving rapid response.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle control device according to the present disclosure is a vehicle control device that controls an operation of a vehicle traveling in a convoy, and includes a control information acquisition unit, an emergency information acquisition unit, and a travel control unit. The control information acquisition unit acquires control information related to the operation control of the vehicle from the server. The emergency information acquisition unit acquires emergency information, which is information for notifying an emergency situation, from another vehicle traveling in a convoy. When the emergency information acquisition unit has not acquired the emergency information, the travel control unit controls the operation of the vehicle based on the control information, and when the emergency information acquisition unit has acquired the emergency information, the travel control unit controls the operation of the vehicle so as to execute the emergency operation.