SELF-ORGANIZED FLEETS OF AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES TO OPTIMIZE FUTURE MOBILITY AND CITY SERVICES

• US 20180376357A1
• Filed: 03/16/2018
• Published: 12/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nexar Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Veniam Inc.
• Inventors: Tavares Coutinho, Nuno Alexandre, Magalhaes de Matos, Ricardo Jorge, Cordeiro de Oliveira Barros, Joao Francisco
• Granted Patent: US 10,405,215 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/04 Arrangements for maintaining operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 Selecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

Communication network architectures, systems and methods for supporting a network of mobile nodes. As a non-limiting example, various aspects of this disclosure provide autonomous vehicle network architectures, systems, and methods for supporting a dynamically configurable network of autonomous vehicles comprising a complex array of both static and moving communication nodes. In particular, systems and methods for operating self-organized fleets of autonomous vehicles.

Claims

1. A method of operating a node of a plurality of nodes of a network of moving things, each of the plurality of nodes configurable to wirelessly communicate using two or more different wireless communication protocols, the method comprising:

detecting, at a current physical location of the node, one or more radio frequency (RF) signals of respective other nodes of the plurality of nodes of the network;

for each of the one or more detected RF signals, estimating a respective quality of wireless communication between the node at the current physical location and the respective other node;

identifying one or more services accessible to the node through the other nodes by analyzing messages wirelessly communicated by the other nodes;

receiving, from a system of the node, a request for a particular service;

disqualifying from wireless communication with the node for the particular service, respective nodes of the other nodes whose estimated quality of wireless communication with the node is below a threshold of quality, based on a collection of historical information representative of quality of wireless communication at the current physical location of the node;

selecting a particular node through which the particular service is accessible from any remaining nodes of the other nodes that have not been disqualified; and

configuring the node to provide wireless access to the particular service to an end-user device through the particular node.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the node is a mobile node that provides wireless access in an autonomous vehicle.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

adding the estimated respective quality of wireless communication of the detected one or more RF signals at the current physical location of the node to the collection of historical information representative of quality of wireless communication.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the request for a particular service is received from a system of the node that provides a wireless access point to an end-user device.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the messages wirelessly communicated by the other nodes comprise one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes comprise a respective physical location of the broadcasting node;

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes comprise information that identifies one or more services accessible from or through the broadcasting node.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon, one or more code sections each comprising a plurality of instructions executable by one or more processors, the instructions for causing the one or more processors to perform the actions of a method of operating a node of a plurality of nodes of a network of moving things, each of the plurality of nodes configurable to wirelessly communicate using two or more different wireless communication protocols, the actions of the method comprising:

detecting, at a current physical location of the node, one or more radio frequency (RF) signals of respective other nodes of the plurality of nodes of the network;

for each of the one or more detected RF signals, estimating a respective quality of wireless communication between the node at the current physical location and the respective other node;

identifying one or more services accessible to the node through the other nodes by analyzing messages wirelessly communicated by the other nodes;

receiving, from a system of the node, a request for a particular service;

disqualifying from wireless communication with the node for the particular service, respective nodes of the other nodes whose estimated quality of wireless communication with the node is below a threshold of quality, based on a collection of historical information representative of quality of wireless communication at the current physical location of the node;

selecting a particular node through which the particular service is accessible from any remaining nodes of the other nodes that have not been disqualified; and

configuring the node to provide wireless access to the particular service to an end-user device through the particular node.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the node is a mobile node that provides wireless access in an autonomous vehicle.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:

adding the estimated respective quality of wireless communication of the detected one or more RF signals at the current physical location of the node to the collection of historical information representative of quality of wireless communication.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the request for a particular service is received from a system of the node that provides a wireless access point to an end-user device.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the messages wirelessly communicated by the other nodes comprise one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 12, wherein the one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes comprise a respective physical location of the broadcasting node;

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 12, wherein the one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes comprise information that identifies one or more services accessible from or through the broadcasting node.

15. A system for a node of a plurality of nodes of a network of moving things, the system comprising:

one or more processors operably coupled to at least one storage for instructions executable by the one or more processors and to at least one wireless communication interface configured to wirelessly communicate using two or more different wireless communication protocols, the one or more processors operable to, at least;

detect, at a current physical location of the node, one or more radio frequency (RF) signals of respective other nodes of the plurality of nodes of the network;

for each of the one or more detected RF signals, estimate a respective quality of wireless communication between the node at the current physical location and the respective other node;

identify one or more services accessible to the node through the other nodes by analyzing messages wirelessly communicated by the other nodes;

receive, from a system of the node, a request for a particular service;

disqualify from wireless communication with the node for the particular service, respective nodes of the other nodes whose estimated quality of wireless communication with the node is below a threshold of quality, based on a collection of historical information representative of quality of wireless communication at the current physical location of the node;

select a particular node through which the particular service is accessible from any remaining nodes of the other nodes that have not been disqualified; and

configure the node to provide wireless access to the particular service to an end-user device through the particular node.

16. The system according to claim 15, wherein the node is a mobile node that provides wireless access in an autonomous vehicle.

17. The system according to claim 15, wherein the method further comprises:

adding the estimated respective quality of wireless communication of the detected one or more RF signals at the current physical location of the node to the collection of historical information representative of quality of wireless communication.

18. The system according to claim 15, wherein the request for a particular service is received from a system of the node that provides a wireless access point to an end-user device.

19. The system according to claim 15, wherein the messages wirelessly communicated by the other nodes comprise one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes.

20. The system according to claim 19, wherein the one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes comprise a respective physical location of the broadcasting node;

21. The system according to claim 19, wherein the one or more messages broadcast by respective nodes of the other nodes comprise information that identifies one or more services accessible from or through the broadcasting node.