Autonomous Vehicle Audible Announcements for Passenger Boarding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous vehicles lack effective assistance mechanisms for passengers, particularly those with visual impairments or disabilities, to confirm their location and navigate safely, leading to potential confusion and inefficiencies in vehicle operation.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a method where autonomous vehicles use processors to provide audible instructions and announcements through speakers, confirming the passenger's location, destination, and vehicle status, allowing passengers to initiate rides and control vehicle functions, while also offering customizable announcement frequencies and content based on passenger input.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If autonomous vehicles provide no assistance mechanisms to passengers, then the vehicle operation remains simple and automated, but passengers with visual impairments or disabilities cannot confirm their location or navigate safely
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an audio announcement system as an intermediary between the autonomous vehicle system and the passenger. The system uses speakers to provide verbal instructions and confirmations about vehicle status, location, and navigation, enabling passengers with visual impairments to interact with and understand the vehicle without adding complex mechanical or visual interfaces
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces potential visual or mechanical assistance mechanisms with an acoustic information delivery system. Instead of using visual displays or complex mechanical interfaces, the system uses audio announcements to convey all necessary information to passengers, simplifying the overall system while improving accessibility
2Reliability
If the vehicle provides detailed audible instructions and announcements, then passenger understanding and safety improve, but the system complexity and processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic audio announcements at key moments in the passenger journey - when the door opens, when the vehicle begins moving, when approaching the destination, and when the door closes. This structured, periodic delivery of information ensures passengers receive necessary updates without overwhelming them with continuous announcements, balancing reliability with system simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides preliminary audio instructions before critical actions occur - announcing the destination before departure, providing navigation instructions before maneuvers, and confirming door status before closing. This allows passengers to mentally prepare and understand upcoming events, improving safety without requiring complex real-time processing
3Ease of operation
If the vehicle waits for a predetermined period after door opening, then passengers have time to enter safely, but vehicle operation efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses door sensors to provide feedback on whether the door is open or closed. Based on this feedback, the system activates audio announcements to guide passengers and confirms door status verbally. This allows the vehicle to maintain efficiency by not waiting indefinitely while ensuring passenger safety through active monitoring and communication of door status
4Adaptability or versatility
If the vehicle provides customizable announcement frequencies and content, then passenger preference and comfort improve, but system complexity and programming requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic announcement system that can adjust its behavior based on passenger input. The system allows passengers to select their preferred announcement frequency (e.g., all announcements, selective announcements) and content types through a user interface. This dynamic adaptability enables the system to cater to different passenger preferences without requiring completely separate systems for each configuration
Data Source
AI summary
Aspects of the technology relate to assisting a passenger in an autonomous vehicle without a driver. For instance, after a door of the vehicle is opened, a predetermined period of time may be waited by processors of computing devices of the vehicle. After waiting the predetermined period of time and when the vehicle's door remains open, a set of instructions for closing the vehicle's door may be played by the processors through a speaker of the vehicle. Once the door of the vehicle is closed, an announcement may be played by the processors through the speaker requesting that the passenger press a first button to initiate a ride to a destination. In response to the first button being pressed, the ride to the destination may be initiated by the processors by maneuvering the vehicle autonomously to the destination.