APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING TRAVEL OF VEHICLES

• US 20120330540A1
• Filed: 11/08/2010
• Published: 12/27/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Inventors: Ozaki, Tomonori, Takeda, Koji
• Granted Patent: US 8,566,009 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/117
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0297 by controlling means in a control room
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/047 Optimisation of routes or paths, e.g. travelling salesman problem
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096816 where the complete route is transmitted to the vehicle at once
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/164 Centralised systems, e.g. external to vehicles

Abstract

A method for causing vehicles to travel improves work efficiency by minimizing stop time of the vehicles while avoiding deadlock, wherein reservation-requested routes are generated for the respective vehicles. The reservation-requested routes are parts of travel routes and between the current positions and travel stop positions, and are generated in so that a position not interfering with an interference region shown on a map and the terminal position of the reservation-requested routes for other vehicles becomes a terminal. Then, an already reserved route, is generated on conditions that the reservation-requested route for the vehicle does not interfere with the already reserved routes for the other vehicles and that deadlock does not occur. Then, the respective vehicles are controlled to travel from the current positions to the terminal positions of the already reserved routes.

Claims

1. A travel control apparatus for unmanned vehicles, which causes a plurality of unmanned vehicles to travel along respective travel routes, comprising:

a reservation-requested route generation section which generates, for respective vehicles, reservation-requested routes that are parts of travel routes from current positions to travel stop positions and that have, as terminal positions, positions which do not interfere with an interference region on a map and terminal positions of reservation-requested routes for other vehicles,

a deadlock judgment section which judges for respective vehicles that the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle does not interfere with already reserved routes for the other vehicles, and that deadlock does not occur when it is assumed that an already reserved route, which has the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle already reserved, is generated,

an already reserved route generation section which generates the already reserved route with the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle already reserved, and

a travel control section which controls respective vehicles to travel from current positions to terminal positions of already reserved routes.

2. A travel control method for unmanned vehicles, which causes a plurality of unmanned vehicles to travel along respective travel routes, comprising:

a reservation-requested route generation step of generating, for respective vehicles, reservation-requested routes that are parts of travel routes from current positions to travel stop positions and that have, as terminal position, positions which do not interfere with an interference region on a map and terminal positions of reservation-requested routes for other vehicles,

an already reserved route generation step of generating an already reserved route with the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle already reserved on conditions that for respective vehicles, the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle does not interfere with the already reserved routes for the other vehicles, and that deadlock does not occur when it is assumed that the already reserved route, which has the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle already reserved, is generated, and

a travel control step of controlling the respective vehicles to travel from current positions to terminal positions of already reserved routes.

3. The travel control method for unmanned vehicles according to claim 2, wherein, in the already reserved route generation step, when the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle interferes with the reservation-requested route for the other vehicle, an already reserved route, which has the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle already reserved, is generated on conditions that the own vehicle has a priority higher than the other vehicles.

4. The travel control method for unmanned vehicles according to claim 2, wherein:

in the already reserved route generation step, it is assumed that the already reserved route has been generated with the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle already reserved,

a directed graph of an arrow directed from the vehicle, for which the reservation-requested route has been generated, to the vehicle, for which an already reserved route interfering with the reservation-requested route has been generated, is generated, and

it is judged whether or not deadlock occurs depending on whether or not the generated directed graph has a closed loop.

5. The travel control method for unmanned vehicles according to claim 2, wherein, in the already reserved route generation step, when it is judged that the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle interferes with the already reserved route for the other vehicle, the other vehicle is demanded to cancel the interfered portion on the already reserved route for the other vehicle.

6. The travel control method for unmanned vehicles according to claim 5, wherein when it is judged that the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle interferes with the already reserved route for the other vehicle, the other vehicle is demanded to stop at a position before a position where the other vehicle interferes with the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle.

7. The travel control method for unmanned vehicles according to claim 2, wherein, in the reservation-requested route generation step, when the terminal position of the reservation-requested route for the own vehicle interferes with the terminal positions of the reservation-requested routes for the other vehicles, the terminal positions of the reservation-requested route for the other vehicle are extended to a non-interference position.