Self-driving vehicle road safety flare deploying system

• US 10,529,147 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2017
• Issued: 01/07/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Gordon, Michael S., Kozloski, James R., Pickover, Clifford A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shafi, Muhammad
• Application Number:
  US15/398,927
• Publication Number:
  US 20180190042A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,097 Days
• Field of Search: 701 2
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 1/02 Dropping, ejecting, or releasing articles jettisonable fuel reservoirs B64D37/12
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/60 for transporting passengers; for transporting goods other than weapons
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/10 autonomous, i.e. by navigating independently from ground or air stations, e.g. by using inertial navigation systems [INS]
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/20 Remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/042 specially adapted for aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005

Abstract

A method deploys a road safety flare near a faulty self-driving vehicle (SDV). One or more processors detect a driving problem severity level for a faulty SDV. One or more processors assess environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV. One or more processors determine an opportune position for deploying the road safety flare based on the environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV and then deploy, according to directions from the faulty SDV, a road safety flare at the opportune position.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

detecting, by one or more processors, a driving problem severity level for a faulty self-driving vehicle (SDV), wherein the driving problem severity level describes an amount of danger that is posed to other vehicles by the faulty SDV;

assessing, by one or more processors, environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV;

determining, by one or more processors, an opportune position for deploying one or more road safety flares by the faulty SDV based on the environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV and the driving problem severity level; and

transmitting, from the faulty SDV to a drone controller system, directions to deploy the one or more road safety flares at the opportune position, wherein the directions cause the drone controller system to issue instructions to an aerial drone that cause the aerial drone to deploy the one or more road safety flares at the opportune position based on the amount of danger that is posed to the other vehicles by the faulty SDV.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting, by one or more processors, a presence of airborne hazards above the opportune position, wherein the airborne hazards are moving objects that are capable of striking the aerial drone;

determining, by one or more processors, a safe altitude from which to deploy the one or more road safety flares from the aerial drone, wherein the safe altitude is determined based on the presence of the airborne hazards above at the opportune position; and

positioning, by one or more processors, the aerial drone at the safe altitude above the opportune position before deploying the road safety flares.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting, by one or more processors, a presence of hazardous gasses above the opportune position;

determining, by one or more processors, a safe altitude below the hazardous gasses from which to deploy the one or more road safety flares from the aerial drone; and

positioning, by one or more processors, the aerial drone at the safe altitude below the hazardous gasses before deploying the road safety flares.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the driving problem severity level is based on a safety concern expressed by an occupant of the faulty SDV.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the one or more road safety flares are from a group consisting of an electronic safety flare, a pyrotechnic safety flare, and a radio signal transmitting safety flare.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the one or more road safety flares are equipped with a communication system that electronically communicates with the faulty SDV, and wherein the computer-implemented method further comprises:

receiving, by the faulty SDV, a message from the communication system on the one or more road safety flares describing a real-time state of the one or more road safety flares; and

activating, by the faulty SDV and based on the real-time state of the one or more road safety flares, the one or more road safety flares by a remote transmission from the faulty SDV to the communication system on the one or more road safety flares.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the environmental conditions are current traffic conditions at the location of the faulty SDV.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the environmental conditions are current weather conditions at the location of the faulty SDV.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the environmental conditions are curvatures of the roadway at the location of the faulty SDV.

10. A computer program product for deploying one or more road safety flares at an opportune position near a faulty self-driving vehicle (SDV), the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, wherein the computer readable storage medium is not a transitory signal per se, the program instructions readable and executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform a method comprising:

detecting a driving problem severity level for a faulty self-driving vehicle (SDV), wherein the driving problem severity level describes an amount of danger that is posed to other vehicles by the faulty SDV;

assessing environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV;

determining an opportune position for deploying the one or more road safety flares based on the environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV and the driving problem severity level; and

transmitting, from the faulty SDV to a drone controller system, directions to deploy the one or more road safety flares at the opportune position, wherein the directions cause the drone controller system to issue instructions to an aerial drone that cause the aerial drone to deploy the one or more road safety flares at the opportune position based on the amount of danger that is posed to the other vehicles by the faulty SDV.

11. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

detecting a presence of moving hazards above the opportune position, wherein the moving hazards are moving objects that are capable of striking the aerial drone;

determining a safe altitude from which to deploy the one or more road safety flares from the aerial drone, wherein the safe altitude is determined based on the presence of moving hazards above at the opportune position; and

positioning the aerial drone at the safe altitude above the opportune position.

12. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the one or more road safety flares are from a group consisting of an electronic safety flare, a pyrotechnic safety flare, and a radio signal transmitting safety flare.

13. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the one or more road safety flares are equipped with a communication system that electronically communicates with the faulty SDV, and wherein the method further comprises:

receiving, by the faulty SDV, a message from the communication system on the one or more road safety flares describing a real-time state of the one or more road safety flares; and

adjusting, by the faulty SDV and based on the real-time state of the one or more road safety flares, a functionality of the one or more road safety flares by a remote transmission from the faulty SDV to the communication system on the one or more road safety flares.

14. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the program instructions are provided as a service in a cloud environment.

15. A computer system comprising:

one or more processors,

one or more computer readable memories communicably coupled to the one or more processors, and

program instructions stored on at least one of the one or more computer readable memories for execution by at least one of the one or more processors via at least one of the one or more computer readable memories, the stored program instructions comprising;

program instructions to detect a driving problem severity level for a faulty self-driving vehicle (SDV), wherein the driving problem severity level describes an amount of danger that is posed to other vehicles by the faulty SDV;

program instructions to assess environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV;

program instructions to determine an opportune position for deploying one or more road safety flares based on the environmental conditions at the location of the faulty SDV and the driving problem severity level; and

program instructions to transmit, from the faulty SDV to a drone controller system, directions to deploy, the one or more road safety flares at the opportune position, wherein the directions cause the drone controller system to issue instructions to an aerial drone that cause the aerial drone to deploy the one or more road safety flares at the opportune position based on the amount of danger that is posed to the other vehicles by the faulty SDV.