Vehicle Position Control Using Rough-to-Precise Sensor Handover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for guiding vehicles to perform operations in close proximity are either expensive due to the need for high-precision GNSS systems or suffer from limited sensor range and low confidence levels, leading to imprecise navigation.
Innovation Solution
A navigation control system that uses a combination of rough and precise sensors to guide vehicles, starting with a low-precision GNSS for initial positioning and transitioning to high-precision sensors as vehicles approach, continuously correcting the path based on increasing sensor confidence levels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If high-precision GNSS systems are used for vehicle navigation, then positioning accuracy is improved, but system cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation system is divided into two functional segments: a rough approach system using low-precision GNSS for initial positioning, and a precise approach system using high-precision sensors (cameras, LIDAR, radar) for final positioning. This segmentation allows the system to achieve high overall precision without requiring expensive high-precision GNSS throughout the entire operation
Solution Approach 2:
The rough approach system performs preliminary positioning using inexpensive GNSS to guide the vehicle to a general vicinity of the target. This preliminary action reduces the distance the vehicle must travel before engaging the more sophisticated precise approach sensors, optimizing both cost and performance
2Measurement precision
If high-precision sensors are used for precise approach, then positioning accuracy is improved, but sensor range is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The approach process is segmented into two phases: rough approach using GNSS with long range but low precision, and precise approach using short-range high-precision sensors. This temporal and spatial segmentation allows each sensor type to operate in its optimal range, with the rough approach system covering long distances and the precise system taking over when the vehicle is within sensor range
Solution Approach 2:
The rough approach system acts as an intermediary that bridges the gap between long-distance navigation and short-distance precision positioning. It guides the vehicle into the effective range of the precise sensors, enabling the high-precision system to function effectively despite its limited range
3Device complexity
If low-precision GNSS is used for initial positioning, then system cost is reduced, but positioning accuracy deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning function is segmented across two systems operating at different stages: low-precision GNSS handles the rough approach phase, while high-precision sensors handle the precise approach phase. This segmentation allows the system to use inexpensive GNSS where high precision is not yet needed, reducing overall cost while maintaining final positioning accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The low-precision GNSS performs preliminary positioning to establish a rough location estimate, which is then refined by the high-precision sensors. This preliminary action with inexpensive equipment avoids the need to use expensive high-precision systems for the entire operation, reducing cost while achieving the required final accuracy
Data Source
AI summary
A navigation control system on a material transfer vehicle includes a rough approach location system that identifies a rough location of a destination of the material transfer vehicle in order to perform an unloading operation. The rough location is provided to a path planning system which generates a path that the material transfer vehicle follows to the rough location. As the material transfer vehicle approaches the rough location, a set of on-board sensors sense a more precise location of a container that is to receive the material from the material transfer vehicle. The more precise location is provided to the path planning system which modifies the path based upon the more precise location. As the material transfer vehicle comes closer to the container, the precise approach system corrects the precise location of the container and provides the corrected precise location to the path planning system. The path planning system continues to correct the path based upon the additional precise container locations. A navigation system navigates the material transfer vehicle along the path generated by the path planning system.