Virtual moving safety limits for vehicles transporting objects

• US 9,561,794 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2016
• Issued: 02/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intrinsic Innovation LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: X Development LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Watts, Kevin William
• Primary Examiner(s): Marc, McDieunel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Stroud, James E
• Application Number:
  US15/148,055
• Publication Number:
  US 20160297429A1
• Time in Patent Office: 277 Days
• Field of Search: 701/2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/00 Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator fittings acting on two or more sub-units B60W30/14; speedometers G01P; systems or devices for controlling speed in general G05D13/00 ; in traffic anti-collision system for road vehicles G08G1/16
• CPC Class Codes: B60P 3/00 Vehicles adapted to transport, to carry or to comprise special loads or objects ambulances or other vehicles with special provisions for transporting patients or disabled persons, or their personal conveyances A61G3/00; hearses A61G21/00; fire-fighting land vehicles A62C27/00; refuse-collecting vehicles B65F3/00, B65F7/00; snow-removing vehicles E01H; armoured or armed vehicles F41H7/00; self-propelled mine-clearing vehicles F41H11/16
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2300/12 Trucks; Load vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2300/121 Fork lift trucks, Clarks
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/105 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/125 Lateral acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2530/10 Weight
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/55 using telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/14 Yaw
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/04 related to roll-over prevention
• CPC Class Codes: B60Y 2200/80 Other vehicles not covered by groups B60Y2200/10 - B60Y2200/60
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 17/003 for fork-lift trucks
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/063 Automatically guided
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0011 associated with a remote control arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0027 involving a plurality of vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling fleet control of land vehicles from a control room G05D1/0297; traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00; for marine craft G08G3/00; for aircraft G08G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0038 by providing the operator with simple or augmented images from one or more cameras located onboard the vehicle, e.g. tele-operation images analyzed by a computer and used for automatic navigation G05D1/0246
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0044 by providing the operator with a computer generated representation of the environment of the vehicle, e.g. virtual reality, maps maps used for automatic navigation G05D1/0274; flight directors G01C23/005
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0214 in accordance with safety or protection criteria, e.g. avoiding hazardous areas monitoring the location of vehicles within a certain area, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas, in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/13
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0223 : involving speed control of the vehicle vehicle fittings for automatically controlling, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator B60K31/00

Abstract

Example systems and methods are disclosed for implementing vehicle operation limits to prevent vehicle load failure during vehicle teleoperation. The method may include receiving sensor data from sensors on a vehicle that carries a load. The vehicle may be controlled by a remote control system. The load weight and dimensions may be determined based on the sensor data. In order to prevent a vehicle load failure, a forward velocity limit and an angular velocity limit may be calculated. Vehicle load failures may include the vehicle tipping over, the load tipping over, the load sliding off of the vehicle, or collisions. The vehicle carrying the load may be restricted from exceeding the forward velocity limit and/or the angular velocity limit during vehicle operation. The remote control system may display a user interface indicating to a remote operator the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit.

Claims

1. A method performed by a control system, the method comprising:

receiving sensor data from one or more sensors on a vehicle that is moving within an environment while carrying a load;

determining, by a processor, a load weight and one or more load dimensions based on the sensor data;

determining, by the processor, a forward velocity limit and an angular velocity limit for the vehicle while carrying the load, based at least in part on the load weight and the one or more load dimensions, to prevent vehicle load failure; and

preventing, by the processor, operation of the vehicle above the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a forward acceleration limit for the vehicle while carrying the load, based at least in part on the load weight and the one or more load dimensions, to prevent vehicle load failure; and

preventing operation of the vehicle above the forward acceleration limit.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a current lateral acceleration of the vehicle while carrying the load, based at least in part on a current vehicle velocity and a current vehicle angular velocity; and

determining the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit based on the current lateral acceleration of the vehicle.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more load dimensions include a load height, a load length, and a load width.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

determining a tip-over torque of the vehicle while carrying the load based at least in part on a vehicle weight, the load weight, the load height, and a current lateral acceleration of the vehicle, wherein the tip-over torque of the vehicle indicates an amount of torque on the vehicle generated by the current lateral acceleration of the vehicle;

determining a tip-over torque of the load based at least in part on the load weight, the load height, and a current lateral acceleration of the load, wherein the tip-over torque of the load indicates an amount of torque on the load generated by the current lateral acceleration of the load; and

determining the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit based on the tip-over torque of the vehicle and the tip-over torque of the load.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, for the vehicle carrying the load in a surrounding environment containing one or more objects, one or more respective minimum distances between the vehicle and the one or more objects to prevent collisions between the vehicle and the one or more objects; and

determining the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit to maintain the one or more respective minimum distances between the vehicle and the one or more objects.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining the load weight based on sensor data from at least one force sensor on the vehicle; and

determining the one or more load dimensions based on sensor data from one or more optical scanners on the vehicle.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

estimating a center of mass for the vehicle carrying the load based at least in part on a vehicle weight, the load weight, load height, load length, and load width;

determining the tip-over torque of the vehicle carrying the load based on the estimated center of mass for the vehicle;

estimating a center of mass for the load based at least in part on the load weight, load height, load length, and load width; and

determining the tip-over torque of the load based on the estimated center of mass for the load.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving additional sensor data from the vehicle carrying the load, wherein the additional sensor data includes weight distribution data for the load;

updating the center of mass estimate for the vehicle carrying the load based on the received additional sensor data; and

updating the center of mass estimate for the load based on the received additional sensor data.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle load failure includes a vehicle tip-over failure that occurs when the vehicle carrying the load tips over.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle load failure includes a load tip-over failure that occurs when the load tips over off of the vehicle.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle load failure includes a load slide-off failure that occurs when the load slides off the vehicle, wherein the method of claim 1 further comprises:

determining a force of the load on the vehicle, based on at least the load weight and a current lateral acceleration of the vehicle; and

determining the forward velocity limit and angular velocity limit to prevent the load slide-off failure based on the force of the load on the vehicle.

13. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining a maximum velocity of the vehicle; and

providing an indication of the velocity limit by displaying a percentage of the maximum velocity that corresponds to the forward velocity limit.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that are executable by one or more computing devices, wherein executing the instructions causes the one or more computing devices to perform functions comprising:

receiving sensor data from one or more sensors on a vehicle that is moving within an environment while carrying a load;

determining, by a processor, a load weight and one or more load dimensions based on the sensor data;

determining, by the processor, a forward velocity limit and an angular velocity limit for the vehicle while carrying the load, based at least in part on the load weight and the one or more load dimensions, to prevent vehicle load failure; and

preventing, by the processor, operation of the vehicle above the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein executing the instructions further causes the one or more computing devices to perform functions comprising:

determining a current lateral acceleration of the vehicle while carrying the load, based at least in part on a current vehicle velocity and a current vehicle angular velocity; and

determining the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit based on the current lateral acceleration of the vehicle.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the one or more load dimensions include a load height, a load length, and a load width.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein executing the instructions further causes the one or more computing devices to perform functions comprising:

determining a tip-over torque of the vehicle while carrying the load based at least in part on a vehicle weight, the load weight, the load height, and a current lateral acceleration of the vehicle, wherein the tip-over torque of the vehicle indicates an amount of torque on the vehicle generated by the current lateral acceleration of the vehicle;

determining a tip-over torque of the load based at least in part on the load weight, the load height, and a current lateral acceleration of the load, wherein the tip-over torque of the load indicates an amount of torque on the load generated by the current lateral acceleration of the load; and

determining the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit based on the tip-over torque of the vehicle and the tip-over torque of the load.

18. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory storing instructions that when executed by the processor cause the system to perform functions comprising;

receiving sensor data from one or more sensors on a vehicle that is moving within an environment while carrying a load;

determining, by the processor, a load weight and one or more load dimensions based on the sensor data;

determining, by the processor, a forward velocity limit and an angular velocity limit for the vehicle while carrying the load, based at least in part on the load weight and the one or more load dimensions, to prevent vehicle load failure; and

preventing, by the processor, operation of the vehicle above the forward velocity limit and the angular velocity limit.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the vehicle load failure includes a vehicle tip-over failure that occurs when the vehicle carrying the load tips over.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the vehicle load failure includes a load tip-over failure that occurs when the load tips over off of the vehicle.