Leader Vehicle Virtual Linking for On-Demand Autonomy Platoons
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current autonomous vehicle systems lack efficient methods for on-demand autonomy services that enable leader vehicles to dynamically control follower vehicles across varying routes and conditions, limiting the flexibility and cost-effectiveness of autonomous transportation.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of an On-Demand Autonomy (ODA) system, which uses a selection module in leader vehicles to create virtual links with follower vehicles through a distributed protocol, allowing leader vehicles to assess and accept requests based on cost metrics and weighted factors, thereby enabling efficient navigation and control across multiple route segments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If follower vehicles are equipped with advanced autonomous driving capabilities, then navigation and control precision is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a leader vehicle as an intermediary that provides navigation and control commands to follower vehicles. The leader vehicle contains the advanced autonomous driving capabilities, while follower vehicles with simpler systems can achieve precise navigation by following the leader's commands through V2V communication.
Solution Approach 2:
The follower vehicles copy the navigation and control actions of the leader vehicle rather than independently processing environmental data. The leader vehicle's control decisions are transmitted to followers, who replicate these actions, achieving coordinated movement without each vehicle needing full autonomous capabilities.
2Adaptability or versatility
If each leader vehicle independently evaluates service requests, then adaptability to different routes and conditions is improved, but loss of time in coordination increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by having the ODA server broadcast service requests to multiple potential leader vehicles in advance. Vehicles evaluate and accept or reject requests before actual platoon formation, allowing the system to quickly assemble platoons when needed without time-consuming coordination during execution.
Solution Approach 2:
The independent evaluation mechanism provides feedback to the ODA server about vehicle availability and route suitability. This feedback loop allows the server to optimize future request assignments and coordinate platoons more efficiently based on real-world performance data from individual vehicle evaluations.
3Ease of manufacture
If follower vehicles have basic autonomous capabilities, then ease of manufacture is improved, but reliability of autonomous transport decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the advanced autonomous driving capabilities into the leader vehicle while follower vehicles maintain basic capabilities. The combination of one sophisticated leader with multiple simpler followers creates a reliable platoon system where the leader's advanced capabilities compensate for the followers' limitations, achieving overall system reliability without requiring all vehicles to be complex.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for an On-Demand Autonomy (ODA) service. The system includes a selection module of a leader vehicle (Lv) connected to an ODA server to determine whether to confirm a request for an on-demand autonomy (ODA) service which has been broadcast wherein the ODA service request includes control of a follower vehicle (Fv) to a requested location by creating a virtual link between the Lv and the Fv to configure a vehicle platoon to enable transport of the Fv by the Lv wherein the vehicle platoon is a linking of the Lv to the Fv via the virtual link to enable the Lv to assume the control of the Fv to the requested location.