Autonomous Trailer Interchange Zone Gate Control for Collision Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The coordination between autonomous vehicle yard trucks (AV yard trucks) and over-the-road (OTR) trucks in a yard environment is challenging, often requiring human intervention and posing risks of collisions, especially when exchanging trailers without proper control of the environment.
Innovation Solution
A system and method utilizing an Interchange Zone (IZ) with predetermined boundary structures and a management process that selectively opens and closes gates based on predetermined rules, ensuring safe and efficient trailer interchange between OTR and AV yard trucks, using sensors and communication systems to manage vehicle entry and exit, and a standby zone for waiting OTR trucks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If AV yard trucks and OTR trucks operate in the same yard environment without isolation, then vehicle coordination complexity increases, but collision risk and need for human intervention increase
Solution Approach 1:
The yard environment is segmented into distinct operational zones: an AV-only zone for autonomous vehicle operations and an OTR zone for over-the-road truck operations. Physical barriers and controlled access points divide these zones, allowing both types of vehicles to operate simultaneously without direct interaction, thereby reducing collision risk while maintaining operational efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
A centralized control system acts as an intermediary between AV yard trucks and OTR trucks. This control system manages trailer interchange operations by coordinating vehicle movements, authorizing zone entries, and facilitating safe interactions at designated interchange points, eliminating the need for direct vehicle-to-vehicle coordination
2Ease of operation
If manual coordination is used for trailer interchange between AV and OTR trucks, then flexibility is maintained, but human intervention requirements and safety risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service trailer interchange operations where AV yard trucks autonomously navigate to designated interchange zones, automatically identify and connect with trailers, and coordinate their own movements with OTR trucks through automated communication systems. This eliminates the need for manual coordination while maintaining operational flexibility through programmable control logic
Solution Approach 2:
The control system implements continuous feedback loops that monitor vehicle positions, gate states, and operational status in real-time. Sensors and communication systems provide feedback to the centralized controller, which adjusts coordination commands dynamically to ensure safe operations, replacing manual judgment with automated decision-making based on real-time conditions
3Productivity
If the interchange zone keeps gates open continuously, then vehicle flow efficiency improves, but collision risk and uncontrolled access increase
Solution Approach 1:
Gates controlling access to the interchange zone operate periodically rather than remaining continuously open. The control system opens gates only during authorized interchange operations, closes them during non-operational periods, and sequences their opening/closing based on vehicle arrival schedules and operational priorities, maintaining both safety and efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The gate system transitions from a static open/closed state to a dynamic, adaptively controlled system. Gates respond in real-time to vehicle presence, operational status, and priority levels, adjusting their state (open/closed/sequentially opening) based on current conditions to optimize both safety and throughput
Data Source
AI summary
This provides a system and method for handling the interchange of trailers between an over the road (OTR) truck and an autonomous vehicle (AV) yard truck in a facility yard includes an interchange zone (IZ) that is bounded by a predetermined boundary structure, having an OTR entry gate and an OTR exit gate on a first side and an AV entry gate and an AV exit gate on a second side. The system and method further includes a management process that selectively opens and closes each of the OTR entry gate, the OTR exit gate, the AV entry gate and the AV exit gate according to a predetermined set of rules.