Fallback requests for autonomous vehicles

• US 10,475,345 B2
• Filed: 05/12/2016
• Issued: 11/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Waymo LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Herbach, Joshua Seth, Nemec, Philip, Fairfield, Nathaniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Rampuria, Satish
• Application Number:
  US15/153,117
• Publication Number:
  US 20160351056A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,279 Days
• Field of Search: 718 1-108
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0005 Processor details or data handling, e.g. memory registers or chip architecture
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0006 Digital architecture hierarchy
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2530/209 Fuel quantity remaining in tank
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/45 External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/029 Adapting to failures or work around with other constraints, e.g. circumvention by avoiding use of failed parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/00253 Taxi operations
• 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 1/0297 by controlling means in a control room
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/46 Multiprogramming arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4881 Scheduling strategies for dispatcher, e.g. round robin, multi-level priority queues
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/546 Message passing systems or structures, e.g. queues
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/00 Traffic control systems for road vehicles arrangement of road signs or traffic signals E01F9/00 ; automatic vehicle control B62D
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/202 Dispatching vehicles on the basis of a location, e.g. taxi dispatching

Abstract

Aspects of the present disclosure relate to a system having a memory, a plurality of self-driving systems for controlling a vehicle, and one or more processors. The processors are configured to receive at least one fallback task in association with a request for a primary task and at least one trigger of each fallback task. Each trigger is a set of conditions that, when satisfied, indicate when a vehicle requires attention for proper operation. The processors are also configured to send instructions to the self-driving systems to execute the primary task and receive status updates from the self-driving systems. The processors are configured to determine that a set of conditions of a trigger is satisfied based on the status updates and send further instructions based on the associated fallback task to the self-driving systems.

Claims

1. A system comprising one or more processors configured to:

store, in a memory, one or more fallback tasks including instructions to drive to one or more fallback locations for a type of service for a vehicle and a corresponding trigger for each of the one or more fallback tasks, each corresponding trigger being a set of conditions that, when satisfied, indicate that the type of service is required for the vehicle;

receive status updates from one or more self-driving systems that control the vehicle;

determine that a given set of conditions is satisfied based at least in part on the status updates, wherein the given set of conditions includes whether a connection exists between the one or more processors and a remote server;

determine the type of service for the vehicle is required based on a given corresponding trigger that includes the given set of conditions;

automatically determining a fallback location of the one or more fallback locations according to the type of service required for the vehicle and one or more characteristics of the fallback location;

in response to determining that the given set of conditions is satisfied, cause a given self-driving system of the one or more self-driving systems to control the vehicle to drive to the fallback location;

automatically determining a level of urgency of the given corresponding trigger, the level of urgency being related to how quickly the given corresponding fallback task associated with the given corresponding trigger is executed after the given set of conditions of the given corresponding trigger is satisfied; and

cause the given self-driving system to control the vehicle according to the given corresponding fallback task before a current task is completed when the level of urgency of the given corresponding trigger is a certain level.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

determine a second set of conditions is satisfied based at least in part on the status updates, wherein the second set of conditions includes a predetermined fuel or energy level, a lack of tasks for execution, or a scheduled maintenance of the vehicle; and

in response to determining that the second set of conditions is satisfied, cause the given self-driving system to control the vehicle in order to drive to a second fallback location corresponding to the second set of conditions from the one or more fallback locations.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein

a base location is hardcoded on the memory;

the one or more processors are further configured to determine that the given corresponding fallback task associated with the given corresponding trigger is non-executable; and

update the given corresponding fallback task to be driving to the base location.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

send a status update report based on the status update from the one or more self-driving systems;

receive at least one updated fallback task; and

store the at least one updated fallback task in the memory.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to update at least one of the one or more fallback tasks in the memory based on the at least one updated fallback task.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

determine that the given set of conditions of the given corresponding trigger are no longer satisfied; and

when the given set of conditions of the given corresponding trigger are determined to no longer be satisfied, cause the one or more self-driving systems to autonomously resume a previous task that was interrupted by the given corresponding fallback task.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein causing the given self-driving system to control the vehicle includes causing the given self-driving system to stop executing a current task.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine the type of service for the vehicle is required based on the given corresponding trigger by accessing a mapping of each trigger to corresponding fallback tasks.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising the vehicle.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the vehicle will not start if a base location is not stored on the memory.

11. A fleet management system comprising a server configured to:

receive data related to operation of a plurality of vehicles capable of autonomously driving;

determine one or more fallback locations for a given vehicle of the plurality of vehicles to drive to when executing at least one fallback task based on data received from the given vehicle and a type of service offered at a given location; and

send a dispatch command to the given vehicle, the dispatch command including the at least one fallback task, the one or more fallback locations, and at least one trigger corresponding to each fallback task, each trigger being a set of conditions that, when satisfied, indicate that a corresponding fallback task is to be executed and indicate how quickly the corresponding fallback task is to be executed,

wherein the dispatch command causes the given vehicle to execute the at least one fallback task by automatically determining a fallback location of the one or more fallback locations based on one or more characteristics of the fallback location and driving to the fallback location at a current or later time based on the at least one trigger corresponding to each fallback task,

wherein the dispatch command further includes a level of urgency for each trigger, the level of urgency is related to how quickly the fallback task associated with the trigger is executed after the set of conditions of the trigger is satisfied and

wherein the dispatch command controls the given vehicle according to the fallback task before a current task is completed when the level of urgency for the trigger is a certain level.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the server is further configured to send at least one updated fallback task in response to the received data.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the server is further configured to:

receive additional data indicating that the given vehicle has ended a passenger-related task prematurely to execute a fallback task of the at least one fallback task; and

send a second dispatch command a second vehicle of the plurality of vehicles to cause the second vehicle to complete the passenger-related task.

14. The system of claim 11, further comprising the plurality of vehicles capable of autonomously driving.

15. A method comprising:

storing in a memory, by one or more processors, one or more fallback tasks including instructions to drive to one or more fallback locations for a type of service for a vehicle and a corresponding trigger for each of the one or more fallback task, each corresponding trigger being a set of conditions that, when satisfied, indicate that the type of service is required for the vehicle;

receiving, by the one or more processors, status updates from one or more self-driving systems that control a vehicle;

determining, by the one or more processors, that a given set of conditions is satisfied based at least in part on the status updates, wherein the given set of conditions includes whether a connection exists between the one or more processors and a remote server;

determining, by the one or more processors, the type of service for the vehicle is required based on a given corresponding trigger that includes the given set of conditions;

automatically determining, by the one or more processors, a fallback location of the one or more fallback locations according to the type of service required for the vehicle and one or more characteristics of the fallback location;

in response to determining that the given set of conditions is satisfied, causing, by the one or more processors, a given self-driving system of the one or more self-driving systems to control the vehicle to drive to the fallback location;

automatically determining, by the one or more processors, a level of urgency of the given corresponding trigger, the level of urgency being related to how quickly the given corresponding fallback task associated with the given corresponding trigger is executed after the set of conditions of the given corresponding trigger is satisfied; and

causing the given self-driving system to control the vehicle according to the given corresponding fallback task before a current task is completed when the level of urgency of the given corresponding trigger is a certain level.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising determining, by the one or more processors, the type of service for the vehicle is required based on the given corresponding trigger by accessing a mapping of each trigger to one or more corresponding fallback tasks.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

determining, by the one or more processors, that the set of conditions of the given corresponding trigger are no longer satisfied; and

when one or more conditions of the given corresponding trigger are determined to no longer be satisfied, causing, by the one or more processors, the given self-driving system to autonomously resume a previous task that as interrupted by the given corresponding fallback task.