Vehicle Guide Display for Off-Highway Spotting Accuracy
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Off-highway vehicles, such as dump trucks, face challenges in accurately aligning with a desired path during spotting maneuvers due to limited visual references and misinformation, leading to increased spotting time and reduced production efficiency, especially in adverse environmental conditions.
Innovation Solution
A display module providing a course deviation indicator, heading indicator, and lateral deviation indicator to help operators and machines accurately position vehicles by establishing a desired approach course and adjusting vehicle motion based on calculated angles and distances to a loading point.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If reverse motion is used for spot maneuver, then vehicle can approach loading point, but visual reference and depth perception are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a display device as an intermediary that provides virtual visual references (desired path indicators, spot point markers, depth gauges) to compensate for the lack of real visual references during reverse spotting maneuvers. This mediator translates complex positional data into intuitive visual cues that restore the operator's depth perception and spatial awareness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical/optical visual reference systems (mirrors, windows, direct line-of-sight) with an electronic information system that calculates and displays virtual references based on sensor data and vehicle state, enabling spotting in conditions where physical visual references are insufficient or unavailable.
2Loss of information
If camera aide is used for spotting, then some visualization is provided, but distance and speed judgment remain limited due to two dimensional information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms two-dimensional camera images into three-dimensional spatial understanding by overlaying virtual path lines, distance markers, and depth gauges that provide metric scale and spatial relationships. The system adds dimensional context (distance, angle, position) to the flat camera view, enabling accurate depth perception and measurement judgment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements continuous feedback loops where sensor data (GPS, IMU, wheel encoders) is processed to update the display in real-time, providing dynamic information about vehicle position, speed, and alignment with the desired path. This feedback enables the operator to make precise corrective adjustments based on quantitative measurements rather than subjective visual estimation.
3Productivity
If environmental challenges (dust, rain, shadow) occur during spotting, then visibility is reduced, but spotting maneuver must still be completed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces reliance on natural light and physical visibility with an electronic display system that synthesizes the visual environment from sensor data. The display provides artificial visual references that are independent of external lighting conditions, allowing spotting to proceed accurately in dust, rain, shadow, or complete darkness where natural visibility is compromised.
Solution Approach 2:
The display device acts as an intermediary between the vehicle's actual position and the operator's perception, creating a virtual representation of the spotting environment that is immune to environmental degradation. This mediator provides consistent, reliable visual information regardless of external conditions such as dust clouds, rain, or shadowing from equipment.
4Measurement precision
If misalignment error occurs during spot maneuver, then spotting time increases due to need to restart
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous feedback through the display showing real-time deviation from the desired path and spot point position. This feedback enables the operator to make small, incremental corrective adjustments rather than large corrections requiring restarts, significantly reducing spotting time while maintaining high alignment precision through quantitative measurement guidance.
Data Source
AI summary
A display module and method are disclosed to show the positional relationship of both the direction and distance of a vehicle relative to a desired approach course leading to a loading point.