Driverless vehicle
First Claim
1. A processor-based electronic system for use in a state of the electronic system being installed on or in a first vehicle or transported by the first vehicle, the electronic system being configured to automatically control a velocity of the first vehicle on a roadway subject to traffic by a plurality of vehicles thereon, the electronic system comprising:
- a clock configured to maintain synchronization with a common clock reference signal received from a terrestrial station;
a position determining system configured to determine and record a position and a velocity of the first vehicle with respect to points in a coordinate space and with respect to the clock;
an information communication system configured to transmit first information from the first vehicle for reception by the plurality of vehicles on the roadway within a transmission range of the first vehicle, the first information including the position and velocity of the first vehicle, the information communication system further being configured to receive second information transmitted from the plurality of vehicles, the second information including position information and velocity information regarding positions and velocities, respectively, of the plurality of vehicles determined by electronic systems carried by respective vehicles of the plurality of vehicles relative to the coordinate space and relative to clocks of the respective electronic systems which are configured to maintain synchronization with the common transmitted clock reference signal, the second information including timestamps, each timestamp based on the clock of the electronic system of each respective vehicle, the timestamps indicating times at which the position information and the velocity information are generated by the electronic system of each respective vehicle;
a vehicle routing system configured to determine a target routing of the first vehicle between a given location and a destination over a path including the roadway; and
a vehicle velocity control system configured to control the velocity of the first vehicle based on the target routing, the determined position and the determined velocity of the first vehicle, and the received second information from the plurality of vehicles indicating the positions and the velocities of the plurality of vehicles and the times, indicated by the timestamps, at which the position information and velocity information are generated.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Each respective vehicle of a plurality of vehicles transports a vehicle navigation system. A position determining system determines a position and a velocity of the respective vehicle and an information acquisition system is operable to determine a displacement and velocity between the respective vehicle and a vehicle adjacent to the respective vehicle. An information communication system of a respective vehicle is operable to transmit first information (that vehicle'"'"'s velocity and position) to other vehicles and to receive information from other vehicles regarding their velocities and positions. A vehicle routing system can determine a target routing and target velocity for moving the respective vehicle over a path including the roadway. Based on the received or determined information, the velocity of the respective vehicle can be controlled.
105 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A processor-based electronic system for use in a state of the electronic system being installed on or in a first vehicle or transported by the first vehicle, the electronic system being configured to automatically control a velocity of the first vehicle on a roadway subject to traffic by a plurality of vehicles thereon, the electronic system comprising:
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a clock configured to maintain synchronization with a common clock reference signal received from a terrestrial station; a position determining system configured to determine and record a position and a velocity of the first vehicle with respect to points in a coordinate space and with respect to the clock; an information communication system configured to transmit first information from the first vehicle for reception by the plurality of vehicles on the roadway within a transmission range of the first vehicle, the first information including the position and velocity of the first vehicle, the information communication system further being configured to receive second information transmitted from the plurality of vehicles, the second information including position information and velocity information regarding positions and velocities, respectively, of the plurality of vehicles determined by electronic systems carried by respective vehicles of the plurality of vehicles relative to the coordinate space and relative to clocks of the respective electronic systems which are configured to maintain synchronization with the common transmitted clock reference signal, the second information including timestamps, each timestamp based on the clock of the electronic system of each respective vehicle, the timestamps indicating times at which the position information and the velocity information are generated by the electronic system of each respective vehicle; a vehicle routing system configured to determine a target routing of the first vehicle between a given location and a destination over a path including the roadway; and a vehicle velocity control system configured to control the velocity of the first vehicle based on the target routing, the determined position and the determined velocity of the first vehicle, and the received second information from the plurality of vehicles indicating the positions and the velocities of the plurality of vehicles and the times, indicated by the timestamps, at which the position information and velocity information are generated. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method of automatically controlling a velocity of a first vehicle on a roadway subject to traffic by a plurality of individual vehicles thereon, comprising:
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using a processor-based electronic system installed in or on the first vehicle or transported by the first vehicle in; maintaining synchronization of a clock of the electronic system with a common clock reference signal received from a terrestrial station; determining and recording a position and a velocity of the first vehicle with respect to points in a coordinate space and with respect to the clock; transmitting first information from the first vehicle for reception by the plurality of vehicles on the roadway within a transmission range of the first vehicle, the first information including the position and velocity of the first vehicle; receiving second information transmitted from the plurality of vehicles, the second information including position information and velocity information regarding positions and velocities, respectively, of the plurality of vehicles determined by electronic systems installed in or transported by respective vehicles of the plurality of vehicles relative to the coordinate space and relative to clocks of the respective electronic systems synchronized with the common transmitted clock reference signal, the second information including timestamps, each timestamp based on the clock of the electronic system of each respective vehicle, the timestamps indicating times at which the position information and the velocity information are generated by the electronic system of each respective vehicle; determining a target routing of the first vehicle between a given location and a destination over a path including the roadway; and controlling the velocity of the first vehicle based on the target routing, the determined position and the determined velocity of the first vehicle, and the received second information from the plurality of vehicles including the position information and velocity information regarding the positions and the velocities of the plurality of vehicles and the times indicated by the timestamps at which the position information and velocity information are generated. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification