Teleoperated Vehicle Platooning With Lead-Follower Command Sharing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for remotely operating vehicles lack efficient methods for forming and maintaining platoons of autonomous and teleoperated vehicles, leading to suboptimal travel efficiency and increased computational complexity.
Innovation Solution
A system that enables a teleoperator to control a lead vehicle and allows follower vehicles to interpret commands and data from the lead vehicle's drive state, facilitating the formation and maintenance of platoons through shared sensor data and coordinated operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If a teleoperator remotely controls each vehicle individually, then operational control is achieved, but computational complexity and system resource requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple vehicle control operations into a single platoon-level operation. The teleoperator controls the lead vehicle, and all follower vehicles in the platoon automatically follow the lead vehicle's commands, merging individual control tasks into one coordinated group control, thereby reducing system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The lead vehicle serves multiple functions: it receives teleoperator commands and simultaneously transmits these commands to all follower vehicles. This multi-functional role eliminates the need for separate control systems for each vehicle, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining remote control capability
2Reliability
If vehicles maintain larger headway for safety, then collision risk is reduced, but travel efficiency and fuel economy deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements real-time feedback through continuous communication between the lead vehicle and follower vehicles. The lead vehicle transmits drive state information and commands to followers, enabling them to adjust their positions dynamically, maintaining safe headway while optimizing for fuel efficiency and travel speed
Solution Approach 2:
The platoon system dynamically adjusts headway distances based on real-time conditions. Follower vehicles continuously receive updated commands from the lead vehicle, allowing the headway to vary dynamically rather than remaining fixed, thus balancing safety requirements with fuel economy and travel efficiency
3Measurement precision
If multiple teleoperators control separate vehicles, then individual vehicle control precision is maintained, but operational coordination and platoon formation become complex
Solution Approach 1:
The lead vehicle acts as an intermediary between the teleoperator and follower vehicles. The teleoperator issues commands to the lead vehicle, which then distributes these commands to all follower vehicles, simplifying coordination while maintaining control precision through the centralized command structure
Solution Approach 2:
The system merges multiple control operations into a single platoon-level command structure. Instead of coordinating multiple independent teleoperators, one teleoperator controls the lead vehicle which coordinates all follower vehicles, reducing coordination complexity while maintaining operational precision
Data Source
AI summary
Platoons of vehicles are operated remotely by a teleoperator. A lead vehicle of a platoon establishes communications with a teleoperator station, which receives drive state data from the lead vehicle and generates reference instructions for the lead vehicle. When a lead vehicle is under control of a teleoperator, and a follower vehicle joins a platoon with the lead vehicle, the follower vehicle receives drive state data from the lead vehicle and reference instructions for the lead vehicle from the teleoperator station. The follower vehicle captures data regarding its own drive state, and generates instructions based on the drive state data of the lead vehicle and the reference instructions for the lead vehicle. Drive state data of a lead vehicle of a platoon may be estimated, augmented or refined for accuracy based on drive state data of other vehicles of the platoon.