Remote Teleoperation Architecture for Autonomous Vehicle Impasses
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current autonomous vehicle systems face challenges in reliably establishing perfect communication with teleoperators for taking over control in risky scenarios, necessitating either a human operator onboard or extensive training of the vehicle to handle rare circumstances.
Innovation Solution
A system and method for remote assistance of autonomous agents that includes a sensor suite, computing system, communication interface, and teleoperator platform, enabling information exchange and allowing teleoperators to provide remote inputs to assist the vehicle in challenging situations, thereby reducing the need for perfect communication and minimizing training requirements for the autonomous agent.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If perfect communication is established between the vehicle and teleoperator for remote control, then the vehicle can be reliably controlled in risky scenarios, but the system complexity and communication requirements become extremely complex or impossible to satisfy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an onboard human operator as an intermediary between the autonomous vehicle system and remote teleoperators. This intermediary can locally assess situations and communicate with teleoperators only when assistance is needed, rather than requiring continuous perfect communication. The human operator acts as a mediator who can interpret sensor data and determine when remote assistance is appropriate, thereby reducing the complexity of communication requirements while maintaining reliability in risky scenarios.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the autonomous vehicle is trained to handle rare circumstances independently, then remote assistance is not needed, but the training requirements and time become extremely extensive
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements a hybrid approach where the autonomous vehicle handles common scenarios independently through its autonomous systems, while rare or challenging circumstances are handled through remote assistance from teleoperators. This self-service model for common tasks combined with on-demand human assistance for rare cases avoids the need for extensive training to cover all possible scenarios, reducing training time while maintaining adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system prepares for rare circumstances by having teleoperators available and pre-configured to provide assistance when needed, rather than requiring the vehicle to be pre-trained for every possible rare scenario. The teleoperators can be alerted in advance or respond in real-time when the vehicle encounters situations beyond its training, providing a safety net without requiring exhaustive pre-training.
3Reliability
If a human operator is required onboard the autonomous vehicle, then control can be maintained in challenging scenarios, but labor costs and operational complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates a multi-functional control architecture where control authority can be dynamically distributed between the autonomous vehicle systems, onboard human operators, and remote teleoperators depending on the situation. This universal control system allows a single onboard operator to manage multiple vehicles while providing remote assistance when needed, or allows full autonomy when conditions permit, thereby reducing labor costs while maintaining control reliability through flexible, situation-dependent control distribution.
Data Source
AI summary
A system 100 for remote assistance of an autonomous agent can include and/or interface with any or all of: a sensor suite 110, a computing system 120, a communication interface 130, and/or any other suitable components. The system can further optionally include a set of infrastructure devices 140, a teleoperator platform 150, and/or any other suitable components. The system 100 functions to enable information to be exchanged between an autonomous agent and a tele-assist. Additionally or alternatively, the system 100 can function to operate the autonomous agent (e.g., based on remote inputs received from a teleoperator, indirectly, etc.) and/or can perform any other suitable functions.