Vehicle Platoon Communication Segmentation for Low-Latency Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional platooning systems experience significant latency in communication between vehicles due to the chain-like transmission of instructions, leading to delays in high-speed group travel.
Innovation Solution
Segmenting a platoon into smaller groups with a lead vehicle for each, using a combination of long-range and short-range communication channels, and optionally involving unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to relay instructions simultaneously to vehicles within their line of sight.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If instructions are transmitted from vehicle to vehicle in a chain manner, then each vehicle can receive instructions sequentially, but the latency accumulates significantly across large numbers of vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the platoon into multiple groups, with each group having its own lead vehicle. This segmentation allows instructions to be transmitted in parallel to multiple group leaders simultaneously, rather than sequentially through the entire platoon. The group leaders then distribute instructions to their respective members, reducing overall communication latency while maintaining manageable communication structures within each group.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces group lead vehicles as intermediaries between the primary lead vehicle and regular platoon members. These intermediaries receive instructions from the lead vehicle and relay them to their group members, enabling parallel communication paths that reduce latency while distributing the communication burden across multiple nodes rather than creating a single complex chain.
2Reliability
If a single lead vehicle transmits instructions to all vehicles, then centralized control is maintained, but the communication burden and latency increase with platoon size
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the platoon into multiple groups while maintaining centralized control through the lead vehicle. The lead vehicle sends instructions to multiple group lead vehicles simultaneously, preserving centralized decision-making while distributing the transmission task. This segmentation allows the system to maintain reliability through centralized control while reducing transmission delays through parallel communication channels.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a one-dimensional chain communication structure to a two-dimensional hierarchical structure. The lead vehicle communicates with multiple group leaders across different spatial dimensions simultaneously, adding a hierarchical dimension to the communication topology. This dimensional change enables parallel transmissions while maintaining centralized authority, reducing latency without sacrificing control reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein are techniques for facilitating communications between vehicles within a platoon while minimizing latency. In some embodiments, such techniques may be performed by a lead vehicle and may comprise obtaining, from one or more sensors, sensor information pertaining to an environment in which the lead vehicle is located and generating, from the sensor information, driving instructions to be executed by a platoon of vehicles. The techniques may further comprise identifying, within the platoon of vehicles, a plurality of separate groups of vehicles and transmitting the generated driving instructions to a platooning platform via a long-range communication channel such that the driving instructions are relayed to each of the plurality of separate groups of vehicles. The techniques may further comprise transmitting the generated driving instructions to at least one additional vehicle of the platoon of vehicles via a short-range communication channel.