Vision System Health-Based Travel Speed Control for Mobile Machines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vision systems in autonomous or remotely-operated machines degrade over time, leading to reduced effectiveness in identifying paths and obstacles, which can compromise safety and productivity due to inaccurate operation at higher speeds.
Innovation Solution
A system that includes a perception sensor and a controller to monitor the health of the vision system, setting travel speed limits and permissions based on the successful identification of targets, ensuring continuous and safe operation by adjusting speed and travel restrictions when the vision system's health deteriorates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the machine operates at higher speeds to increase productivity, then productivity is improved, but safety deteriorates due to vision system degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic speed adjustment by continuously monitoring vision system health metrics and automatically modifying machine operating speed in real-time. The system transitions from static speed settings to dynamic speed control, where the speed limit is adjusted based on current vision system performance, thereby maintaining safety while optimizing productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes a feedback loop where vision system health data is continuously collected, analyzed, and used to adjust machine operation parameters. The controller receives feedback from health metrics and automatically modifies speed limits, creating a closed-loop control system that adapts to changing vision system conditions.
2Productivity
If the machine operates at higher speeds, then productivity is improved, but measurement precision deteriorates due to reduced vision system accuracy
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts operating speed based on real-time vision system performance. When measurement precision degrades, the system automatically reduces speed to compensate, ensuring that productivity is optimized at each moment given the current sensor accuracy level.
3Reliability
If the machine reduces speed to maintain safety, then safety is improved, but productivity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than maintaining a static reduced speed, the system dynamically adjusts speed based on actual vision system health. This allows the machine to operate at higher speeds when vision system performance is good and automatically reduce speed only when necessary, optimizing the balance between safety and productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the speed parameter dynamically based on vision system health metrics. Instead of a fixed speed limit, the operating speed is continuously adjusted as a variable parameter in response to changing system conditions.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for speed control of a machine includes a mobile machine configured for traversing a worksite, the mobile machine including ground-engaging devices for propelling the mobile machine at a travel speed, and a vision system. The vision system includes a perception sensor and a controller. The controller is configured to receive signals from the perception sensor, determine when the perception sensor successfully identifies a target, determine when the perception sensor is unsuccessful in identifying the target, and set a travel speed limit of the machine based on whether the target was successfully identified.