Vehicle guidance based on tractor position

• US 8,825,263 B1
• Filed: 03/12/2013
• Issued: 09/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Raven Industries Incorporated (CNH Industrial N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Raven Industries Incorporated (CNH Industrial N.V.)
• Inventors: Nelson, Robert Leonard Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): CAMBY, RICHARD M
• Application Number:
  US13/795,700
• Publication Number:
  US 20140277898A1
• Time in Patent Office: 539 Days
• Field of Search: 701/24, 701/25, 701/26, 701/23, 701/50, 701/409, 701/410, 701/411, 701/412, 701/438, 701/431, 701/469, 701/41, 180/418, 180/419, 280/400, 280/411.1, 280/426, 280/442
• US Class Current: 701/25
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3614 through interaction with a road map, e.g. selecting a POI icon on a road map
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3617 using user history, behaviour, conditions or preferences, e.g. predicted or inferred from previous use or current movement
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/362 received from an external device or application, e.g. PDA, mobile phone or calendar application
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0212 with means for defining a desired trajectory involving a plurality of land vehicles G05D1/0287

Abstract

Guiding a leading vehicle according to a desired trailing vehicle path includes generating one or more proceeding paths for one or more intermediate locations along an implement train between a trailing vehicle first location and a leading vehicle second location. The proceeding paths generated with a propagation and transformation algorithm that propagates a preceding path of one of the first location, such as the desired trailing vehicle path, or one of one or more intermediate locations to an immediately proceeding location, and transforms the preceding path according to dimensional characteristics of the implement train. A second guiding path is generated for the leading vehicle second location with the algorithm based on the immediately preceding path of the intermediate location closest to the second location. The method facilitates guidance of the trailing vehicle along the desired trailing vehicle path without navigation markers on the implement train except for the leading vehicle.

Claims

1. A method for guiding a leading vehicle according to a desired trailing vehicle path, the method comprising:

determining a first desired path for a rear hitch location of a designated trailing vehicle of an implement train including at least the designated trailing vehicle and a leading vehicle;

generating one or more proceeding paths for one or more intermediate locations along the implement train and a front hitch location of the leading vehicle with a propagation and transformation algorithm, generating the one or more proceeding paths with the propagation and transformation algorithm including;

propagating a preceding path of one of the rear hitch location or one of the one or more intermediate locations to an immediately proceeding location of one of the one or more intermediate locations or the front hitch location, wherein the first desired path is a first preceding path, and

transforming the preceding path according to intervening dimensional characteristics of the implement train to generate the proceeding path; and

generating a second guiding path for the front hitch location of the leading vehicle with the propagation and transformation algorithm based on the immediately preceding path of the intermediate location closest to the front hitch location.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein generating one or more proceeding paths for one or more intermediate locations along the implement train and a front hitch location of the leading vehicle includes repeating generation of the one or more proceeding paths for each of the one or more intermediate locations and the front trailing hitch with the propagation and transformation algorithm based on immediately preceding paths that respectively precede the one or more proceeding paths.

3. The method of claim 1 comprising guiding the leading vehicle along the second guiding path, the second guiding path output through a navigation system at the front hitch location, and

automatically guiding the designated trailing vehicle along the first desired path with guidance of the leading vehicle along the second guiding path.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the leading vehicle is the only vehicle of the implement train with a navigation system sensor.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the intervening dimensional characteristics of the implement train includes the dimensional characteristics between adjacent locations of the implement train including the rear hitch location of the designated trailing vehicle, the one or more intermediate locations and the front hitch location of the leading vehicle.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the second guiding path is completed prior to moving the leading vehicle along the second guiding path.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the second guiding path is conducted while moving the leading vehicle along the second guiding path.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the first desired path for the rear hitch location of the designated trailing vehicle includes generating an instant direction unit vector of an instant point of respective discrete points along the first desired path based on the locations of one or more of a preceding point and a proceeding point of the respective discrete points relative to a location of the instant point.

9. The method of claim 8 comprising relaxing the second guiding path based on jitter originating in the first desired path.

10. The method of claim 1 comprising decomposing each vehicle of the implement train into component vehicles, each of the component vehicles including a respective component single axle and respective component rear hitch and component front hitch locations.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the first desired path includes decimating the first desired path into a plurality of discrete points along the first desired path.

12. A method for guiding a leading vehicle according to a desired trailing vehicle path, the method comprising:

determining a first desired path for a rear hitch location of a designated trailing vehicle of one or more trailing vehicles of an implement train, the implement train including a leading vehicle having a front hitch location;

generating a first direction unit vector at an instant point along the first desired path for the rear hitch location based on the instant point and one or more path points proceeding and preceding the instant point along the first desired path; and

generating one or more proceeding path points for one or more intermediate locations along the implement train and the front hitch location of the leading vehicle with a propagation and transformation algorithm, generating the one or more proceeding path points with the propagation and transformation algorithm including;

propagating a preceding path point of one of the rear hitch location or one of the one or more intermediate locations to an immediately proceeding location of one of the one or more intermediate locations or the front hitch location, wherein the first direction unit vector is a first preceding path point, and

transforming the preceding path point according to intervening dimensional characteristics of the implement train to generate the proceeding path point; and

generating a second guiding path point for the front hitch location with the propagation and transformation algorithm based on the immediately preceding path point of an intermediate location of the one or more intermediate locations closest to the front hitch location.

13. The method of claim 12 comprising repeating generation of both of the one or more proceeding path points and the second guiding path point for a plurality of points along the first desired path, repeated generation generating a corresponding plurality of second guiding path points that form a second guiding path.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein generating the second guiding path is completed prior to moving the leading vehicle along the second guiding path.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein generating the second guiding path is conducted while moving the leading vehicle along the second guiding path.

16. The method claim 12, wherein generating both of the one or more proceeding path points and the second guiding path point includes generation of corresponding direction unit vectors.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein generating the first direction unit vector includes:

determining rear and forward chord vectors respectively extending from a preceding point on the first desired path to the instant point and from the instant point to a proceeding point on the first desired path,

measuring a change in direction between the rear and forward chords,

associating the first direction unit vector to the rear hitch location based on one of the rear or forward chord vectors and the measured change in direction.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein generating both of the one or more proceeding path points includes generating a designated trailing vehicle intermediate direction unit vector for an intermediate location on the designated trailing vehicle closer to the leading vehicle than the rear hitch location,

generating the designated trailing vehicle intermediate direction unit vector including combining the rear chord vector with a fraction of the change in direction based on the distance from the rear hitch location to the intermediate location on the designated trailing vehicle.

19. The method of claim 12 comprising guiding the leading vehicle along the second guiding path, the second guiding path output through a navigation system at front hitch location, and

automatically guiding the designated trailing vehicle along the first desired path with guidance of the leading vehicle along the second guiding path.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the leading vehicle is the only vehicle of the implement train with a navigation system sensor.

21. A system for guiding a leading vehicle according to a desired trailing vehicle path comprising:

a map module including a first desired path for a rear hitch location of a designated trailing vehicle of an implement train including a leading vehicle;

a dimensional characteristic module including dimensional characteristics for each of the vehicles of the implement train, the rear hitch location of the designated trailing vehicle, the front hitch location of the leading vehicle and one or more intermediate locations between the rear and front hitch locations; and

a path transformation module configured to generate a second guiding path for a front hitch location of a leading vehicle based on the first desired path, wherein the designated trailing vehicle automatically follows the first desired path where the leading vehicle follows the second guiding path, the path transformation module includes;

a propagation module in communication with the dimensional characteristic and the map modules, the propagation module configured to propagate and transform a preceding path to a proceeding path, the preceding path includes one or more of the first desired path and one or more intermediate paths associated with each of the respective one or more intermediate locations, and the proceeding path includes one or more of the intermediate paths and the second guiding path.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the path transformation module includes a relaxation module, and the relaxation module relaxes the second guiding path based on jitter originating in the first desired path.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the map module includes a decimation module configured to decimate the first desired path, each decimation of the first desired path corresponding to a discrete point of a series of discrete points along the first desired path.

24. The system of claim 21 comprising a storage module in communication with the path transformation module, and the storage module is configured to store the second guiding path.

25. The system of claim 21 comprising a navigation system in communication with the path transformation module, the navigation system is configured for coupling at the front hitch location of the leading vehicle, and the navigation system receives the second guiding path.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the navigation system is coupled with an output device, and the output device is configured to convey the second guiding path.

27. The system of claim 21, wherein the path transformation module includes a vector module in communication with the propagation module, the path transformation module configured to generate direction unit vectors at each point along the first desired path, the second guiding path, and the one or more intermediate paths.

28. The system of claim 21 comprising a decomposition module in communication with the dimensional characteristic module, the decomposition module configured to decompose each vehicle of the implement train into component vehicles have a respective single axle and respective component rear hitch and component front hitch locations.