Electric Mobility Vehicle Retrieval Routing Under Battery Limits
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenges of enabling self-driving for small electric vehicles on sidewalks include navigating around pedestrians, bicycles, and obstacles, as well as managing battery power to ensure reliable retrieval, especially when manual driving increases battery consumption and may lead to insufficient power for return.
Innovation Solution
An operation system that integrates self-driving and manual driving options, allowing route planning with dynamic node and link settings, battery monitoring, and retrieval point selection to ensure reliable retrieval even with insufficient battery power.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual driving is used to increase route selection freedom and avoid circling, then user comfort and route efficiency are improved, but battery consumption increases and may lead to insufficient power for return
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary battery consumption estimation for different route options before the user commits to a route. The operation server calculates expected battery usage for manual driving routes and presents this information to the user in advance, allowing them to make informed decisions about route selection based on their battery status.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors actual battery consumption during manual driving and compares it against predicted consumption. This feedback loop allows the operation server to update route recommendations and provide real-time guidance to users about their remaining battery capacity and potential retrieval issues.
2Extent of automation
If autonomous return is attempted to vehicle station, then service automation is improved, but retrieval may fail due to insufficient battery power
Solution Approach 1:
The operation server performs preliminary assessment of whether autonomous return to the vehicle station is feasible by calculating the distance from the drop-off location to the station and estimating required battery consumption. If the estimation indicates insufficient power for reliable return, the system proactively identifies and designates alternative retrieval points before the user completes their journey.
Solution Approach 2:
The system prepares alternative retrieval locations in advance as a cushion against potential battery failure during autonomous return. By having pre-identified backup locations within the vehicle fleet's coverage area, the system ensures that even if autonomous return to the original station fails, the vehicle can still be retrieved reliably from an alternative location.
3Adaptability or versatility
If circle-around or detour routes are generated to pick up users on the left side, then service coverage is improved, but user comfort deteriorates due to incorrect user perception of vehicle behavior
Solution Approach 1:
The operation server performs preliminary route analysis to detect when a circle-around or detour is required to pick up a user on the left side of the road. Before presenting the route to the user, the system evaluates whether such maneuvers might cause confusion and prepares alternative pickup locations or provides advance notification to the user about the unusual route behavior.
Data Source
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AI summary
[Problem] To provide an operation system for a small electric vehicle that can execute rapid and reliable retrieval in cases in which autonomous return would fail due to insufficient battery power or the like. [Solution] The operation system comprises: a route generation part (13) that generates, in response to a dispatch request from a user communication terminal connected through a communication system, a travel route by manned driving from a pick-up location associated with a user communication terminal to a destination location and a return route by unmanned driving from a drop-off location for a user to a vehicle station; and a vehicle management part (12) that monitors a location and status of the vehicle through the communication system, and has a retrieval support function that, in a case in which return to the vehicle station is predicted to fail while the vehicle is returning to the vehicle station from the pick-up location via the destination location, selects a vehicle retrieval point at or before an anticipated failure point and calculates an anticipated arrival time at the vehicle retrieval point.