Parking Node Time Control for Collision-Free Vehicle Merging
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Solution Overview
Problem
In parking lots with frequent branching/merging points, autonomous driving vehicles may collide due to gaps between actual and scheduled passage times, and existing techniques struggle to prevent collisions while maintaining efficient travel.
Innovation Solution
A parking lot management device that sets scheduled passage times for each node on a vehicle's travel route, using an acquisition unit to track actual passage times and a determination unit to assess collision risks, delaying the scheduled passage time of following vehicles to prevent collisions without altering the original passage order.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If travel plans are changed to prevent collisions at branching/merging points, then collision risk is reduced, but travel efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by setting scheduled passage times for vehicles before they reach branching/merging points. The management device determines in advance which vehicle should pass through the merging point first based on pre-established rules (e.g., vehicle position, travel direction), and communicates these scheduled times to vehicles beforehand. This allows vehicles to adjust their speed proactively to match the scheduled passage time, preventing collisions while maintaining efficient travel without last-minute plan changes
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where the management device continuously monitors actual vehicle positions and passage times, compares them with scheduled values, and adjusts future scheduled passage times based on this feedback. When a vehicle deviates from its scheduled passage time, the system recalculates and updates passage times for subsequent vehicles to maintain safe spacing and prevent collisions, thereby adapting to real-time conditions while preserving overall travel efficiency
2Reliability
If scheduled passage times are strictly enforced, then collision risk is reduced, but flexibility in travel plans deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies dynamics by making scheduled passage times adjustable rather than fixed. The management device dynamically recalculates passage times based on real-time vehicle positions, actual passage times, and changing traffic conditions. When vehicles encounter unexpected situations or deviations, the system flexibly adjusts future passage times to maintain safety while accommodating reasonable variations in travel plans, thus balancing collision prevention with necessary flexibility
Data Source
AI summary
A parking lot management device configured to manage traveling of vehicles by setting a scheduled passage time for each node indicating a travel route in a parking lot includes: an acquisition unit configured to acquire an actual passage time at which a first vehicle has actually passed a first node; a determination unit configured to determine a collision risk between a second vehicle and the first vehicle based on the actual passage time, the second vehicle being scheduled to pass, following the first vehicle, a second node that is located forward of the first node in a traveling direction of the first vehicle; and a setting unit configured to delay a first scheduled passage time at which the second vehicle passes the second node to cause the second vehicle to pass the second node following the first vehicle when it is determined that there is the collision risk.