Fallback Route Definition Using Voronoi Diagrams for Mobile Machines

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing methods for determining emergency routes in 3D displacement zones with convex zones require storing and calculating large volumes of data, leading to complexity and high computational demands, especially during fallback events, as they need to verify the location of the mobile machine within specific convex zones.

Innovation Solution

The method defines a fallback route by using beacon points associated with the emergency route, which are determined using Voronoi diagrams to separate convex zones, allowing the mobile machine to identify which crossing points are in the same convex zone without prior knowledge of the zone's coordinates, thus reducing data storage and computational complexity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If existing methods store all vertices of each convex zone and perform calculations with respect to all stored points to verify point membership, then the verification of whether a point belongs to a convex zone can be performed, but it requires a large volume of data storage permanently and causes great complexity and large volume of calculations requiring powerful computing machines

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveverification accuracyVSAvoidcomputational complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The displacement zone is subdivided into multiple convex zones, each characterized by a set of vertices. Instead of storing and processing all vertices of all zones simultaneously, the method segments the verification process by testing each convex zone independently using its specific vertex set, thereby reducing the computational burden at each step.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The method extracts only the necessary information for verification by characterizing each convex zone through its vertices and using these vertices to define membership tests. Rather than storing and processing the entire geometric description of all zones, only the vertex coordinates are retained and used for calculations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Measurement precision

If existing methods store all the coordinates of the vertices of all convex areas, then the membership verification can be performed, but it requires a large volume of data storage permanently

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemembership verification capabilityVSAvoiddata storage volume
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The method extracts and stores only the essential geometric information needed for verification - specifically the coordinates of vertices defining each convex zone. This minimal data set is sufficient to perform membership tests without requiring storage of redundant geometric descriptions or full zone characterizations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The convex zones are pre-characterized by identifying their vertices and storing these coordinates in advance. This preliminary processing allows the system to have ready-to-use verification data without needing to compute or reconstruct zone geometries during runtime, reducing both storage requirements and computational overhead.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP2757349B1Method for defining a fallback route for a mobile machine, associated fallback method to join such a route for a mobile machine, associated module and computer program.
Publication Date: 2019.02.20 DASSAULT AVIATION SA
  • EP2757349B1 patent drawingFigure 1~3
  • EP2757349B1 patent drawingFigure 4~5
  • EP2757349B1 patent drawingFigure 6~7

AI summary

The method involves defining a set of points i.e. beacon points, for a fall back route such that edges of Voronoi diagram associated with the set of beacon points separate polygons described by convex zones (ZN1-ZN6) of three-dimensional (3D) displacement zone (ZNd) in the plane. An identifier of the convex zone to which the point belongs, coordinates of the point and an identifier of a region of axis (Z) for each beacon point are associated with each way point of the fall back route and each beacon point of the route in a database. Independent claims are also included for the following: (1) a module for defining a fall back route for a mobile machine in a three-dimensional displacement zone (2) a computer program for defining a fall back route for a mobile machine in three-dimensional displacement zone.