Autonomous Vehicle Sensor Field Adjustment for Weight-Induced Inclination
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Solution Overview
Problem
Autonomous public transport vehicles face detection issues due to varying passenger weight distribution causing inclinations up to 30°, leading to sensor interference with the ground and false positives during braking or acceleration.
Innovation Solution
A control system that uses cameras and weight sensors to estimate passenger weight distribution, adjust the sensor field of view, and potentially move sensors to avoid ground interference, ensuring continuous road monitoring and accurate obstacle detection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If sensors are positioned on the lower edge of the front wall at a fixed height, then the vehicle structure is simple and manufacturing is easy, but under certain loading and braking conditions the sensing cone intercepts the ground causing detection problems and false positives
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the sensor positioning adaptive rather than fixed. The sensor is mounted on a movable support that can adjust its position along the longitudinal axis of the vehicle based on detected inclination angles. This dynamic adjustment allows the sensing cone to maintain proper clearance from the ground under varying loading and braking conditions, resolving the contradiction between detection reliability and device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements parameter changes by varying the sensor's position parameter in response to changing vehicle inclination parameters. The control system detects inclination angle changes and adjusts the sensor's longitudinal position accordingly, changing the geometric parameters of the sensing system to maintain optimal detection conditions despite varying vehicle attitudes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the vehicle allows passenger movement and weight redistribution, then passenger comfort and flexibility are improved, but the vehicle inclination can vary up to 30° causing sensor ground interference
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by using sensors to continuously detect the vehicle's inclination angle caused by passenger movement and weight distribution changes. This detection feedback is fed to a control system that automatically adjusts the sensor support position to compensate for the inclination, maintaining reliable ground clearance and detection accuracy while allowing passengers free movement throughout the vehicle.
Data Source
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AI summary
An autonomously driven road vehicle (1), comprising sensor means (10) configured to acquire data in a visual field (C) facing said vehicle (1) and an electronic control unit (11) comprising processing means configured to receive said data to allow automatic driving of said vehicle (1), the vehicle comprising image acquisition means (12) configured to acquire images of the interior (5) of said vehicle (1) in order to determine the distribution of the weights of the passengers, the electronic control unit (11) being configured to store data relating to the dimensions of the vehicle (1) and being electrically connected to the functional elements of the latter, making it possible to process a weight distribution and a braking/acceleration instruction for the vehicle (1) in order to estimate the slope of the vehicle (1), the electronic control unit varying the visual field (C) of the sensor means (10) so that the visual field (C) is suitable for the estimated future slope.