Autonomous Vehicle Lot Navigation With Visual Selection Indicators
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Solution Overview
Problem
In-person vehicle vendors face challenges in providing an autonomous customer experience due to the need for human guides to assist customers in navigating large inventories of similar vehicles, which is not scalable and incompatible with large inventories or customer preferences for autonomy.
Innovation Solution
An autonomous vehicle vendor lot system that includes vehicle selection indicators and a visual navigation system, controlled by a processor that receives search queries, identifies vehicles, and generates visual indications of routes to selected vehicles, allowing customers to navigate the lot independently using audio inputs and sensors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a guide-person is employed to assist customers in locating specific vehicles, then customers can receive personalized assistance and navigation help, but the system becomes non-scalable and requires human intervention which conflicts with autonomous customer experience preferences
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service by providing autonomous navigation assistance through visual indicators and routing systems that guide customers independently through the vehicle lot without requiring human guide-person intervention. The control system automatically processes customer queries and provides directional guidance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical system of human guide-person assistance with an automated electronic control system that uses processors, visual indicators, and navigation algorithms to provide the same customer guidance function autonomously.
2Quantity of substance
If the vendor provides many similar vehicles with minute differences, then inventory variety increases, but customer difficulty in finding specific products is exacerbated
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses visual indicators that can change color or illumination states to differentiate between various vehicles and their statuses. Different colors or lighting patterns indicate different vehicle types, availability states, or priority levels, making it easier for customers to locate specific vehicles among many similar options.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system segments the large inventory by providing individual visual indicators for each vehicle or vehicle group, allowing customers to systematically locate specific vehicles through distributed visual cues rather than searching through the entire lot.
3Productivity
If visual indicators are distributed throughout the lot to guide customers, then navigation efficiency improves, but system complexity and infrastructure requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The visual indicators serve multiple functions: they indicate vehicle location, display availability status, provide directional guidance, and can show priority information. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate systems for each function, thereby managing complexity while maintaining high navigation efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
An autonomous vehicle vendor lot may include a plurality of vehicle selection indicators, a visual navigation system, and a control system. The indicators may be distributed in the lot, associated with a respective parking spot in the lot, and operable to generate a visual indication indicative of a selection of a vehicle in the respective parking spot. The navigation system may be operable to generate a visual indication of a route between various locations in the lot. The control system may be operatively connected to the indicators and the navigation system, and configured to: receive a vehicle search query; identify at least one vehicle in the lot corresponding to the query; operate each vehicle selection indicator corresponding to each identified vehicle; identify a respective location in the lot for each identified vehicle; and operate the visual navigation system to generate a visual indication of a route to at least one identified vehicle.