Coordinated Vehicle Control Using Wireless Trajectory Exchange
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for coordinating the movement of agricultural vehicles, such as tractors and combines, face challenges in maintaining safe control during interruptions or losses in wireless communication, which can lead to potential collisions and loss of control.
Innovation Solution
A method utilizing onboard computers and wireless communication devices to specify safe stopping intervals and intermediate intervals, allowing vehicles to exchange forecasted trajectories and update positions periodically, generating warning signals and controlling gradual stops when communication is scarce, without the need for additional distance-sensing sensors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If wireless communication is used to exchange position information between vehicles, then coordination and control of vehicles is improved, but latency and communication interruptions may cause loss of control and safety issues
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-calculates and stores safe stopping trajectories and control actions before communication failure occurs. When communication is interrupted, the vehicle controller can immediately execute these pre-prepared control sequences without waiting for new position data, ensuring continuous safe operation despite information loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The system establishes safe stopping intervals and buffer zones in advance during normal communication. These pre-defined safety margins act as a cushion that protects against communication failures by providing predetermined safe operating parameters that can be executed immediately when wireless communication is interrupted.
2Measurement precision
If additional distance-sensing sensors (ultrasonic, radar, laser) are added to detect vehicle position, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The wireless communication devices and onboard computers, originally designed for trajectory exchange and coordination control, are made to serve dual purposes: they also perform position detection and measurement functions. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate distance-sensing sensors while maintaining measurement capabilities through the existing communication infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using physical distance-sensing sensors to directly measure position, the system uses copies of position information exchanged through wireless communication. The trajectory data transmitted between vehicles serves as a digital replica of position information, replacing the need for direct physical sensing while achieving the same measurement objective.
Data Source
AI summary
A control system controls a pair of vehicles in coordination to traverse a respective pair of trajectories. The control system is configured to specify a plurality of successive waypoints, a safe stopping interval and an intermediate interval greater than the safe stopping interval, and exchange waypoints between vehicles. The system controls each vehicle in coordination with the other, senses a rate of exchange of waypoint data between the vehicles, and determines the safe stopping interval. The control system updates positions with additional waypoints as the respective vehicles pass by waypoints of the forecasted trajectory, determines the length of the forecasted trajectory remaining and compares it with the intermediate interval and the safe stopping interval. The system generates a warning signal if distance is less than the intermediate interval, and if the distance is less than the safe stopping interval, stops within the safe stopping interval.