Autonomous vehicle convoy communications

• US 10,452,079 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2018
• Issued: 10/22/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LYFT Incorporated
• Original Assignee: LYFT Incorporated
• Inventors: Harvey, Thomas Danaher
• Primary Examiner(s): Badii, Behrang
• Assistant Examiner(s): Greene, Daniel L
• Application Number:
  US16/014,711
• Publication Number:
  US 20180307252A1
• Time in Patent Office: 488 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/5035 electronic displays
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/507 specific to autonomous vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/508 specific to vehicles driving in fleets or convoys
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/544 for indicating other states or conditions of the vehicle occupants, e.g. for indicating disabled occupants
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/547 for issuing requests to other traffic participants; for confirming to other traffic participants they can proceed, e.g. they can overtake
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/06 Automatic manoeuvring for parking
• CPC Class Codes: E04H 6/422 Automatically operated car-parks
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0022 characterised by the communication link data switching networks in general H04L12/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0027 involving a plurality of vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling fleet control of land vehicles from a control room G05D1/0297; traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00; for marine craft G08G3/00; for aircraft G08G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0293 Convoy travelling
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0295 by at least one leading vehicle of the fleet
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0297 by controlling means in a control room
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/168 Driving aids for parking, e.g. acoustic or visual feedback on parking space
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/22 Platooning, i.e. convoy of communicating vehicles

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method includes receiving sensor data from one or more sensors of each of one or more vehicles, processing a combination of the sensor data to generate an assessment of an area surrounding the one or more vehicles based on one or more points-of-view of the area, the one or more points-of-view of the area generated based on synchronizing the combination of the sensor data, and detecting an occurrence of an event based on the assessment of the area. The method further includes identifying one or more instructions corresponding to the event, the instructions associated with a particular vehicle and sending one or more executable instructions based on the instructions to the particular vehicle.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a central computing device of a convoy comprising two or more autonomous vehicles, location information that indicates a location of each of the autonomous vehicles, wherein at least one of the autonomous vehicles in the convoy is a lead autonomous vehicle with one or more sensors;

computing, by the central computing device, based on the location information and environmental information generated using data from one or more of the sensors of the lead autonomous vehicle, moving instructions for one or more of the autonomous vehicles in the convoy; and

sending, by the central computing device, the moving instructions and the environmental information to the one or more of the autonomous vehicles, wherein the moving instructions instruct each of the one or more of the autonomous vehicles to determine and perform movements using;

one or more sensors associated with the autonomous vehicle;

the moving instructions; and

the environmental information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the central computing device is remote from the autonomous vehicles in the convoy.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the central computing device is in the lead autonomous vehicle.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the convoy is:

a fleet of autonomous vehicles;

a platoon of autonomous vehicles;

two or more autonomous vehicles traveling in concert in a same direction;

two or more autonomous vehicles traveling in a determined formation relative to each other;

two or more autonomous vehicles traveling together in a loose group;

or

two or more autonomous vehicles generally following a path with stops or diversions to perform various functions.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein at least some of the moving instructions are computed based on information transmitted from infrastructural equipment along a route taken by the convoy.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the central computing device of the convoy further receives route information that includes one or more conditions affecting travel of the convoy and road condition information from an outside coordinator, and

wherein the moving instructions are further computed based on the route information and the road condition information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein at least some of the location information is from the two or more autonomous vehicles.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein at least some of the moving instructions are computed based on the location information from the two or more autonomous vehicles.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein at least some of the moving instructions are computed based on information transmitted from an outside coordinator.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the outside coordinator is a zone authority.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the central computing device of the convoy is associated with a sensor module that comprises one or more sensors that are configured to detect objects and conditions by discrete or line-of-sight signals or by distributed-field signals.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

detecting, by the sensor module, a hazard;

updating, by the central computing device, the moving instructions for the autonomous vehicles responsive to the hazard.

13. One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying software that is operable when executed to:

receive, by a central computing device of a convoy comprising two or more autonomous vehicles, location information that indicates a location of each of the autonomous vehicles, wherein at least one of the autonomous vehicles in the convoy is a lead autonomous vehicle with one or more sensors;

compute, by the central computing device, based on the location information and environmental information generated using data from one or more of the sensors of the lead autonomous vehicle, moving instructions for one or more of the autonomous vehicles in the convoy; and

send, by the central computing device, the moving instructions and the environmental information to the one or more of the autonomous vehicles, wherein the moving instructions instruct each of the one or more of the autonomous vehicles to determine and perform movements using;

one or more sensors associated with the autonomous vehicle;

the moving instructions; and

the environmental information.

14. The media of claim 13, wherein

the central computing device is in the lead autonomous vehicle.

15. The media of claim 13, wherein the central computing device of the convoy is associated with a sensor module that comprises one or more sensors that are configured to detect objects and conditions by discrete or line-of-sight signals or by distributed-field signals.

16. A system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media coupled to one or more of the processors and comprising instructions operable when executed by one or more of the processors to cause the system to;

receive, by a central computing device of a convoy comprising two or more autonomous vehicles, location information that indicates a location of each of the autonomous vehicles, wherein at least one of the autonomous vehicles in the convoy is a lead autonomous vehicle with one or more sensors;

compute, by the central computing device, based on the location information and environmental information generated using data from one or more of the sensors of the lead autonomous vehicle, moving instructions for one or more of the autonomous vehicles in the convoy; and

send, by the central computing device, the moving instructions and the environmental information to the one or more of the autonomous vehicles, wherein the moving instructions instruct each of the one or more of the autonomous vehicles to determine and perform movements using;

one or more sensors associated with the autonomous vehicle;

the moving instructions; and

the environmental information.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein:

the central computing device is in the lead autonomous vehicle.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the central computing device of the convoy is associated with a sensor module that comprises one or more sensors that are configured to detect objects and conditions by discrete or line-of-sight signals or by distributed-field signals.