Proactive Vehicle Control for Environmental Force Prediction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous and remotely operated vehicles, such as drones, face challenges in predicting and mitigating the impact of environmental forces like wind and precipitation, leading to potential collisions and reduced operational safety due to their lightweight construction and limited ability to react to harsh environmental conditions in real-time.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a proactive vehicle control system that uses data acquisition devices and a circuit with machine-readable instructions to predict environmental forces by analyzing the movement of objects like tree leaves or flags, allowing for the proactive adjustment of vehicle operating parameters, such as speed and direction, to minimize the impact of these forces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of moving object
If vehicles are constructed of lightweight materials to improve range and reduce power storage load, then vehicle range is improved, but vehicle vulnerability to environmental forces increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of environmental forces (wind, precipitation, electrical activity) using data acquisition devices before the vehicle encounters them. The controller predicts the magnitude and direction of these forces and proactively adjusts flight parameters (altitude, speed, heading) to compensate for the expected impact, allowing lightweight vehicles to operate safely in harsh conditions without requiring heavier protective structures
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors environmental conditions through data acquisition devices and uses this feedback to dynamically adjust vehicle operating parameters. The controller processes real-time sensor data about environmental forces and modifies flight path, speed, and altitude to maintain safety and performance, enabling lightweight construction to remain viable despite environmental vulnerabilities
2Reliability
If vehicles use reactive control systems to respond to environmental conditions, then vehicle safety can be maintained, but response time is insufficient to mitigate rapid environmental changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system detects environmental forces and predicts their impact before the vehicle actually encounters them. By calculating the projected force magnitude and direction in advance, the controller can proactively adjust flight parameters ahead of time, transforming reactive control into proactive control and eliminating the harmful delay between environmental change detection and vehicle response
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies preliminary counter-actions to offset upcoming environmental forces. By predicting the direction and magnitude of impending wind gusts or precipitation effects, the controller pre-adjusts vehicle orientation, speed, and altitude to compensate for the anticipated force, preventing rather than merely reacting to safety threats
3Reliability
If vehicles proactively adjust operating parameters to compensate for predicted environmental forces, then vehicle safety and performance are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The controller integrates multiple functions into a single unified system: it detects environmental forces through data acquisition devices, predicts force magnitude and direction using processing circuits, calculates optimal compensation parameters, and executes control adjustments all through one multi-functional controller. This consolidates what could be separate complex subsystems into a single coordinated unit, managing complexity while maintaining proactive safety capabilities
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the vehicle's existing data acquisition devices and processing circuits to perform environmental force detection and prediction, rather than requiring entirely separate dedicated sensors and processors. The controller leverages available computational resources and sensor data to autonomously make control decisions, reducing the need for additional specialized components and minimizing system complexity
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle may include a sensor and a proactive vehicle controller that is capable of proactively altering one or more vehicle operating parameters in response to detecting a force caused by an environmental event that will be exerted on a chassis of the vehicle. The sensor has a field-of-view that includes the direction of travel of the vehicle. The sensor may detect objects in the field-of-view and, based at least in part on the behavior of the objects in the field-of-view, predicts the force exerted on the object by an environmental event. Based on the predicted force, the proactive vehicle controller proactively adjusts one or more vehicle operating parameters to minimize the effect of the force that will be exerted on the vehicle by the environmental event.