Vehicle Platoon Routing With RSU-Based Intersection Reconfiguration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current navigation systems are not designed to optimize routes or formations for vehicle platoons in urban environments, leading to inefficient traffic flow and potential disruptions, especially when interacting with pedestrians and other vulnerable road users.
Innovation Solution
The system determines an optimal route and formation for vehicle platoons within a smart city by utilizing roadside units and V2I communication to minimize impact on other road users, dynamically adjusting configurations such as lane usage and traffic signal timing to maximize throughput and safety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If vehicle platoons travel in close proximity with synchronized driving dynamics, then fuel consumption is reduced and traffic efficiency is improved, but the platoon may disrupt traffic flow and create safety hazards when interacting with pedestrians and other vulnerable road users in urban environments
Solution Approach 1:
The platoon configuration is made dynamic and adaptable to different urban environments. The system dynamically adjusts platoon formation, lane usage, and routing based on real-time conditions such as pedestrian presence, intersection geometry, and traffic patterns. This allows the platoon to maintain efficiency benefits while adapting to safety requirements of different urban zones.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary routing and formation management system that mediates between platoon traffic efficiency goals and vulnerable road user safety. This system coordinates platoon movements with urban infrastructure elements like traffic signals and intersection geometries, ensuring platoons navigate urban environments without disrupting pedestrians or cyclists.
2Ease of operation
If the platoon maintains a fixed formation and routing, then coordination and communication within the platoon is simplified, but the platoon cannot adapt to varying urban road conditions, intersection geometries, and traffic patterns
Solution Approach 1:
The platoon system employs dynamic formation and routing capabilities that allow it to adapt to varying urban conditions. The system can reconfigure platoon size, lane distribution, and routing in real-time based on road geometry, intersection characteristics, and traffic patterns, while maintaining coordinated communication through centralized management.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the platoon into configurable sub-formations that can be distributed across multiple lanes or routed through different paths based on urban road conditions. This segmentation allows the platoon to adapt to narrow streets, multi-lane arterials, and complex intersections while maintaining overall coordination through centralized control.
3Productivity
If the platoon uses multiple lanes and complex formations to optimize urban routing, then throughput and efficiency are improved, but the system complexity and difficulty of navigation increase
Solution Approach 1:
The routing and formation management system is designed to handle multiple functions universally: it manages lane distribution, intersection coordination, pedestrian zone navigation, and real-time reconfiguration through a single integrated platform. This multi-functional approach optimizes throughput across diverse urban conditions without proportionally increasing system complexity.
4Ease of operation
If the platoon size and composition are determined in advance, then driver allocation and platoon management is simplified, but the platoon cannot optimize its configuration for different urban segments and routing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary routing and formation planning that identifies optimal platoon configurations for different urban segments in advance. Driver allocation and platoon composition are pre-determined based on anticipated routing requirements, while maintaining the flexibility to optimize configurations as the platoon progresses through different urban zones.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods described herein are provided for determining a platoon configuration for a group of vehicles, determining a set of routes connecting two locations, determining for each route segment the platoon configurations supported and the availability of roadside units on the route segment, and selecting a route from the set of routes connecting the two locations. A route may be selected based on the availability of a roadside unit (RSU) to request an extended time period for a green light to enable a length of the platoon to traverse through an intersection prior to the time period ending. Systems and methods described herein may enable a reconfiguration of a platoon to meet a platoon size restriction for a segment of the selected route.