Robotic vehicle that tracks the path of a lead vehicle

• US 20010054524A1
• Filed: 06/04/2001
• Published: 12/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Andrew C. Masters, Connie Ruby Masters, Nathan Eugene Masters
• Original Assignee: Andrew C. Masters, Connie Ruby Masters, Nathan Eugene Masters
• Inventors: Masters, Connie Ruby, Masters, Nathan Eugene, Masters, Andrew C.
• Granted Patent: US 6,494,476 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 180/400
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 13/005 operated from tractor steering system
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 13/025 the pivoted movement being initiated by the coupling means between tractor and trailer
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 53/005 Combinations with at least three axles and comprising two or more articulated parts articulated buses B62D47/025
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 53/06 Semi-trailers
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 53/0871 with stabilising means, e.g. to prevent jack-knifing, pitching, rolling, buck jumping stabilising in general B62D37/00; tractors B62D49/08

Abstract

A method and apparatus for controlling the steering of a trailing section of a multi-sectioned vehicle is described. The trailing section follows the path of the first section. Data is acquired by a controller from sensors on the various sections. The controller then processes this data, generating a configuration needed for the controller-steered wheels to follow a path approximately equivalent to the path taken by the first steered section. Power is then applied by some means to steer these controller-steered wheels, forcing them into the desired configuration. The complexity of the control system can be varied with different algorithms providing alternative steering patterns as desired. This system can be extended with more trailing sections without necessitating more than minor changes to the control algorithms.

Claims

1. An articulated steerable mobile machine, comprising:

First, second, and third machine sections, each machine section having an axle, said first machine section being independently steerable, said second machine section being non-steerable and being pivotally connected to said first machine section, and said third machine section being, via a control system, steerable as a robotic system, and being pivotally connected to said second machine section;

A control system receiving input from sensors measuring information about or to some degree equivalent to the relative or absolute orientation or the rate of change of said relative or absolute orientation in a roughly horizontal plane of at least two of said machine sections or of subsections of said machine sections, or receiving input from sensors measuring information about or to some degree equivalent to the relative or absolute position or the rate of change of said relative or absolute position in a roughly horizontal plane, or from which the relative or absolute position in a roughly horizontal plane can be derived of at least two of said machine sections or of subsections of said machine sections;

Said control system using mathematical algorithms of various types to process the data acquired from the input sensors and to generate an output signal to control the orientation of steerable components mounted on said third machine section;

Said control system, by the way it handles the input data in order to generate output control signals, causing the path of the third machine section to be characterized by a degree of similarity to the path of the first machine section;

A first sensor connected to sense information about or to some degree equivalent to the relative or absolute orientation or the rate of change of said relative or absolute orientation in a roughly horizontal plane of the first one of said machine sections or any subsection of said machine sections and deliver a corresponding first orientation angle signal to the controller or connected to sense information about or to some degree equivalent to the relative or absolute position or the rate of change of said relative or absolute position in a roughly horizontal plane or from which the relative or absolute position in a roughly horizontal plane can be derived of the first one of said machine sections or any subsection of said machine sections and deliver a corresponding first orientation angle signal or a first position signal to the controller;

A second sensor connected to sense information about or to some degree equivalent to the relative or absolute orientation or the rate of change of said relative or absolute orientation in a roughly horizontal plane of a second of said machine sections or any subsection of a second of said machine sections and deliver a corresponding second orientation angle signal the controller or connected to sense information about or to some degree equivalent to the relative or absolute position or the rate of change of said relative or absolute position in a roughly horizontal plane or from which the relative or absolute or relative position can be derived of a second of said machine sections or any subsection of a second of said machine sections and deliver a corresponding second orientation angle signal or a second position signal to the controller;

2. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in

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wherein the control system also receives input from a third sensor measuring information about, or to some degree equivalent to, the distance traveled by one of the machine sections along a linear path in a roughly horizontal plane, or the speed or the acceleration of one of the machine sections along its linear path in a roughly horizontal plane, and uses this data along with the other input data to generate output control signals that cause the path of the robotic machine section to be characterized by a degree of similarity to the path of the first machine section;

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3. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in either

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or

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, wherein at least one additional set of data is obtained from a sensor or from some other source, and utilized by the control system;

4. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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,

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, or

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wherein information that is to some degree equivalent to the input data received from said sensors is generated and is conveyed to the same or to a different control system instead of or in addition to information obtained directly from said sensors;

5. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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wherein the steering of the robotic set of steerable wheels is accomplished by the means of a steering motor(s) or steering brake(s) or other steering device(s) that is mounted to maintain or to change the steering angle of the steering axle(s);

6. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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wherein at least one more machine section is added to the machine and is pivotally connected to said third machine section;

7. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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wherein said articulated steerable mobile machine is a part of a larger machine;

8. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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wherein machine can be broken apart at one of said pivot points between machine sections or re-attached after such a breaking apart as a part of normal operations;

9. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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wherein at least one of said machine sections can be removed from said machine or can be replaced after such a removal by a different but, to some degree, equivalent machine section, as a part of normal operations;

10. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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wherein said controller has, by the way it handles the input data in order to generate output control signals, some degree of control over when the path of said robotic machine section is similar to the path of said first machine section, or some degree of control over the degree of similarity between the path of said robotic machine section and the path of said first machine section;

11. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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, wherein at least one of said machine sections is self-propelled;

12. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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, wherein at least one of said machine sections is not self-propelled;

13. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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, wherein said first machine section is steered by a human or by some other control system that takes its input directly, or through one or more successive chained or partially chained control systems, from a machine section that is steered by a human;

14. The articulated steerable mobile machine, as set forth in any of

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, or

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, wherein said first machine section is steered by a non-human control system or by some other control system that takes its input directly, or through one or more successive chained or partially chained control systems, from a machine section that is steered by a non-human control system;

15. An articulated steerable mobile machine, similar to the one set forth in any of

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wherein said first machine section is separated from the robotic machine section by a set of steerable or non-steerable axles in addition to the single set of non-steerable axles specified before (the minimum number of machine sections here is four);

16. An articulated steerable mobile machine, similar to the one set forth in any of

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wherein the first machine section is not the machine section that is copied as first by the robotic machine section in its steering behavior;

17. An articulated steerable mobile machine, similar to the one set forth in any of

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, claim IS, or

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wherein the first machine section is indirectly steered as a result of following an axle that is directly steered by a human or by a non-human control system;

18. An articulated steerable mobile machine, similar to the one set forth in any of

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wherein the axle(s) of said robotic machine section are powered to enhance the ability of the robotic machine section to swing wide around sharper corners;

19. An articulated steerable mobile machine, similar to the one set forth in any of

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wherein the first master machine section is a truck tractor, the semi trailer carried by the truck tractor comprises another of the machine sections, and a robotic tractor capable of carrying a second semi trailer comprises the robotic machine section;

20. An articulated steerable mobile machine, similar to the one set forth in any of

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wherein the first machine section is the body of any standard double axled vehicle, a trailer with a single set of parallel axles pulled behind the first vehicle comprises another of the machine sections, and the front axle of any standard or non-standard double-axled vehicle or trailer attached behind the first vehicle comprises the robotic machine section;

21. An articulated steerable mobile machine, similar to the one set forth in any of

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wherein the first machine section is the front axle of any standard double axled vehicle, the body of the vehicle comprises another of the machine sections, and the front axle of any standard or non-standard double-axled vehicle or trailer attached behind the first vehicle comprise the robotic machine section;