Electric field guidance system for automated vehicles
First Claim
1. An automated vehicle guidance system having one or more self-propelled vehicles adapted to follow a predetermined guidepath having path signal generating means for generating signals on said guidepath, and wherein each of said vehicles includes guidepath sensing means for sensing the position of the guidepath with respect to the vehicle, signal generating means connected to said sensing means for generating an intelligence signal representative of the position of the vehicle with respect to the guidepath, and control means for steering the vehicle in response to the intelligence signal generated by the signal generating means so as to maintain a given position of the vehicle with respect to the guidepath as the vehicle moves therealong, the improvement wherein:
- the path signal generating means comprises means for exciting the guidepath with an AC voltage signal referenced to an earth ground;
the guidepath sensing means comprises electric field sensing means for sensing the strength of the electric field resulting from the voltage signal; and
the signal generating means is connected to the electric field sensing means and is responsive to the sensed strength of the electric field for generating the intelligence signal.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An automated vehicle guidance system (100) includes automated self-propelled vehicles (102) selectively traveling a guidepath (114) comprising a plurality of interconnected guidelines (110, 116, 118). The guidepath (114) comprises an electric field wire system comprising a series of wire segments buried under a floor surface (112), and excited by an alternating current (AC) voltage source (210) referenced to earth ground. Voltage probes (222, 224) sense the electric field emanating from the guidepath segments and generate an intelligence signal for appropriately steering the vehicle (102) along the guidepath (114).
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Citations
8 Claims
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1. An automated vehicle guidance system having one or more self-propelled vehicles adapted to follow a predetermined guidepath having path signal generating means for generating signals on said guidepath, and wherein each of said vehicles includes guidepath sensing means for sensing the position of the guidepath with respect to the vehicle, signal generating means connected to said sensing means for generating an intelligence signal representative of the position of the vehicle with respect to the guidepath, and control means for steering the vehicle in response to the intelligence signal generated by the signal generating means so as to maintain a given position of the vehicle with respect to the guidepath as the vehicle moves therealong, the improvement wherein:
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the path signal generating means comprises means for exciting the guidepath with an AC voltage signal referenced to an earth ground; the guidepath sensing means comprises electric field sensing means for sensing the strength of the electric field resulting from the voltage signal; and the signal generating means is connected to the electric field sensing means and is responsive to the sensed strength of the electric field for generating the intelligence signal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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Specification