Patents Examined by Calvin Cheung
  • Patent number: 11835954
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a driving control apparatus, a driving control method, and a program that can resolve a conflict between a deliberate action and a reflex action during determination of a next action in autonomous driving. During autonomous driving, a reflex action is determined as a simplified action on the basis of detection results detected by a variety of sensors provided in a vehicle, and a deliberate action ranked higher than a reflex action is determined through elaborate processing. A plurality of resolution modes are made available to deal with a possible conflict between the reflex action and the deliberate action, and by which of the resolution modes the conflict is resolved is specified in advance so that the conflict is resolved by the specified resolution mode. The present disclosure is applicable to motor vehicles that drive autonomously.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2023
    Assignee: Sony Group Corporation
    Inventor: Kenta Kawamoto
  • Patent number: 11835361
    Abstract: A system for autonomously driving a vehicle along a road segment using map data including coordinate information of a landmark disposed along a road, includes at least one processor. The map data is distributable from a predetermined server to the vehicle in patch units, which are data sets for different areas. The processor is configured to: acquire a position of the vehicle based on a detection result of a positioning sensor mounted on the vehicle; and set a patch as a download target including a road which has a possibility that the vehicle passes through and is determined based on a current position of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2023
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventor: Ryota Terada
  • Patent number: 11830366
    Abstract: The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for using geofences to restrict vehicle operation. Aspects of the invention include creating dynamic geofences and limiting vehicle movements (e.g., speed, acceleration, steering, etc.) within and in the vicinity of the dynamic geofences to protect pedestrians from physical harm. In general, radio devices track people in an area by counting the number of devices and calculating the number of people based on average number of devices per person. Using count and location data, a geofence is created when population or population density within an area exceeds a threshold. The geofence can be sent to vehicles to restrict vehicle operation, for example, slowing down or stopping the vehicle, within and around the geofence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Xiaoyi Ren, Sakthi Narayanan Balasubramanian, Daniel Boccuccia
  • Patent number: 11818976
    Abstract: A dispensing machine dispenses a material on a field. A blockage is detected, and an initial blockage location, where the blockage started, is identified. A blockage characterization system identifies characteristics of the blockage, and a control signal generator generates control signals based upon the detected blockage, and the characteristics of the blockage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 2, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Assignee: Deere & Company
    Inventors: Sandeep Ekhe, Mandar Mhalsakant Kale, Sean A Mahrt, William Douglas Graham, Peter R. Nedved, Grant J. Wonderlich, Robert T. Casper, Omkar Joshi
  • Patent number: 11821743
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present disclosure provide improved techniques of a route optimization system to provide dynamic promotions to compensate for predicted time of arrival of a vehicle in response to a ride request. The promotions may be for vendors located by the pickup location in the ride request and timed to compensate for a wait time or an unexpected delay. In another embodiment, dynamic promotions may be determined and provided to incentivize customers to go to an alternate pickup location providing a more optimized route for the assigned vehicle. The more optimized route may be based on a better quality route score compared to the quality route score of the route originally determined for the original pickup location from the ride request. The promotion may be for vendors identified to be on the way to the alternate pickup location and timed to optimize efficiency and reduce any lag or wait time on the customer's behalf.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Inventor: Alexander Balva
  • Patent number: 11816937
    Abstract: Systems and methods for reconfigurable on-vehicle data routing are provided. In one embodiment, a data link communication system comprises: a router to communicate with at least one communication bus and at least one data bus, and monitor data communicated over the communication data buses, wherein the communication bus communicates data link messages with an off-vehicle service provider system, wherein the data bus transports data between the router and a plurality of on-vehicle systems; a routing control logic; and a conditional logic database, wherein the database comprises definitions of one or more datatypes and definitions for at least one data forwarding command; wherein, in response to receiving a first set of data associated with a datatype defined by the database, the logic executes the at least one data forwarding command to control the router to output a second set of data to one or more of the plurality of on-vehicle systems.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2023
    Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
    Inventors: Divya Swarup Giriyappa Srinivasan, Thomas D. Judd
  • Patent number: 11815887
    Abstract: A vehicle control device includes a remote operation control unit that approves a remote operation right (a right to perform a remote operation of a vehicle) and an operation control unit that controls an operation of the vehicle according to a remote operation performed in response to an instruction by an information processing device to which the remote operation right is granted to another vehicle to move. The information processing device includes a vehicle detection unit that detects a first vehicle and a vehicle control unit that requests a remote operation right that is a right to remotely operate the first vehicle and remotely operates the first vehicle in response to an instruction to move a second vehicle in a case where the remote operation right is granted. The present technology is applied to, for example, a vehicle that performs automatic driving or a control device of a parking lot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2023
    Assignee: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masahiro Tamori, Nobuhiro Jogano
  • Patent number: 11812325
    Abstract: Systems and methods for creating a database of geofences and registering geofences, with each geofence in the database being associated with an IP address, preferably an IPv6 address. Each geofence is defined using at least one geographic designator, preferably real property boundaries. Entitlements can be associated with geofences relating to permissive and prohibitive activities within the geofences.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2023
    Assignee: GEOFRENZY, INC.
    Inventor: Benjamin T. Jones
  • Patent number: 11802776
    Abstract: A cross-regional travel recommendation method and apparatus, an electronic device and a storage medium are provided, which relates to the fields of intelligent transportation and deep learning. A specific implementation solution is: acquiring a travel request of a user, the travel request comprising a start point and an end point which are located in different regions; extracting user features according to the travel request of the user; and recommending at least one travel plan to the user according to the user features and a pre-trained cross-regional travel recommendation model. The technical solutions can make up for the deficiency of the existing technology, provide a cross-regional travel plan recommendation under a large-space scale and a multimodal environment through a pre-trained cross-regional travel recommendation model and user features extracted based on a travel request of a user, and can satisfy a cross-regional travel request of the user, and is highly practical.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2023
    Assignee: BEIJING BAIDU NETCOM SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hao Liu, Panpan Zhang, Jianguo Duan, Hui Xiong
  • Patent number: 11780077
    Abstract: A self-moving robot includes a shell, a driving module, driving the self-moving robot to move on the ground; a mowing module, executing mowing work; an energy module, providing energy for the self-moving robot; a control module, controlling the self-moving robot to automatically move and execute work, the self-moving robot further includes a cleaning module executing ground cleaning work; the self-moving robot has a mowing mode and a cleaning mode, under the mowing mode, the control module controls the self-moving robot to execute mowing work, and under the cleaning mode, the control module controls the self-moving robot to execute cleaning work.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2023
    Assignee: Positec Technology (China) Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Mingming He, Zhendong Gao, Ka Tat Kelvin Wong, Gen Sun, Qiang Liu, Yue Rao
  • Patent number: 11770993
    Abstract: There is provided an agricultural field work vehicle capable of entering a work travel path intended by the driver in transition from manual turn travel to autonomous work travel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: KUBOTA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Junichi Yuasa, Yushi Matsuzaki, Shinnosuke Ishikawa
  • Patent number: 11757851
    Abstract: An example apparatus comprises a memory resource configured to store a private key associated with a vehicle and store a data matrix comprising data corresponding to operation of the vehicle. The apparatus may further include a processing resource configured to generate a first secure message comprising data corresponding to the vehicle, transmit the first secure message, receive a second secure message comprising an updated data matrix, and update the data matrix based, at least in part, on the updated data matrix.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2023
    Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Alberto Troia, Antonino Mondello
  • Patent number: 11747820
    Abstract: An improved retrofit assembly for ground support equipment providing autonomous operation of the logistics ground support equipment (GSE). The assembly has a refit control system attached to the GSE (with a vehicle dynamics control processor and a data preprocessing control processor), retrofitted proprioceptive sensors coupled to the vehicle dynamics control processor monitoring operating parameters and characteristics of the GSE, retrofitted exteroceptive sensors coupled to the data preprocessing control processor that monitor an exterior environment of the GSE, and refit actuators for different control elements on the GSE and to autonomously alter motion of the GSE. The refit control system programmatically receives sensor data from the proprioceptive sensors and exteroceptive sensors; optimizes a path for the GSE based upon the different sensor data; and activates at least one of the actuators according to the optimized path for the GSE.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2023
    Assignee: FEDEX CORPORATE SERVICES, INC.
    Inventors: Reuben F. Burch, V, Sherif Abelwahed, John E. Ball, Matt Doude, James R. Gafford, Tyler J. Hannis, Yucheng Liu, Michael S. Mazzola, Howard McKinney
  • Patent number: 11740620
    Abstract: Disclosed are devices, systems and methods for the operational testing on autonomous vehicles. One exemplary method includes configuring a primary vehicular model with an algorithm, calculating one or more trajectories for each of one or more secondary vehicular models that exclude the algorithm, configuring the one or more secondary vehicular models with a corresponding trajectory of the one or more trajectories, generating an updated algorithm based on running a simulation of the primary vehicular model interacting with the one or more secondary vehicular models that conform to the corresponding trajectory in the simulation, and integrating the updated algorithm into an algorithmic unit of the autonomous vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2023
    Assignee: TUSIMPLE, INC.
    Inventors: Zehua Huang, Yixin Yang
  • Patent number: 11740100
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable media can receive a starting location and a destination location. A route from the starting location to the destination location is determined. A video preview of the route is generated based on map data associated with the route. The video preview depicts one or more vehicles to be taken by a user traversing the route.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2023
    Assignee: Lyft, Inc.
    Inventor: Kris Richard Efland
  • Patent number: 11733716
    Abstract: An example method involves determining an expected demand level for a first type of a plurality of types of transport tasks for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the first type of transport tasks associated with a first payload type. Each of the UAVs is physically reconfigurable between at least a first and a second configuration corresponding to the first payload type and a second payload type, respectively. The method also involves determining based on the expected demand level for the first type of transport tasks, (i) a first number of UAVs having the first configuration and (ii) a second number of UAVs having the second configuration. The method further involves, at or near a time corresponding to the expected demand level, providing one or more UAVs to perform the transport tasks, including at least the first number of UAVs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: Wing Aviation LLC
    Inventors: Jesse Blake, James Schmalzried, Scott Velez, Andre Prager, Eric Teller, Matthew Nubbe
  • Patent number: 11733284
    Abstract: Systems and methods for determining vehicle operational status in accordance with embodiments of the invention are disclosed. In one embodiment, a vehicle event detection device includes a low pass filter configured to sense a vehicle voltage and filter the sensed voltage to remove noise, and a plurality of first high pass filter configured to detect either a drop or a rise in the vehicle voltage and several low power comparators configured to determine whether the drop or rise in voltage is indicative of a vehicle event.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: CalAmp Corp.
    Inventor: David B. Patton
  • Patent number: 11731620
    Abstract: A vehicle may include a primary system and a secondary system to validate operation of the primary system and to control the vehicle to avoid collisions. For example, the secondary system may receive multiple trajectories from the primary system, such as a primary trajectory and a secondary, contingent, trajectory associated with a deceleration or other maneuver. The secondary system may determine if a trajectory is associated with a potential collision, if the trajectory is consistent with a current or previous pose, if the trajectory is compatible with a capability of the vehicle, etc. The secondary system may select the primary trajectory if valid, the secondary trajectory if the primary trajectory is invalid, or another trajectory generated by the secondary system if the primary trajectory and the secondary trajectory are invalid. If no valid trajectory is determined, the vehicle may decelerate at a maximum rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Andrew Lewis King, Jefferson Bradfield Packer, Robert Edward Somers, Marc Wimmershoff
  • Patent number: 11731627
    Abstract: A computing system can receive sensor log data from one or more first autonomous vehicles (AVs) operating along one or more routes. The system can analyze the sensor log data to identify a road anomaly along the one or more routes, and generate an updated localization map comprising a label that indicates the road anomaly. The system may then transmit the updated localization map to one or more second AVs to enable the one or more second AVs to respond to the road anomaly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: UATC, LLC
    Inventor: Alyson Bonk
  • Patent number: 11733657
    Abstract: The invention discloses a MIMO different-factor compact-form model-free control method with parameter self-tuning. In view of the limitations of the existing MIMO compact-form model-free control method with the same-factor structure, namely, at time k, different control inputs in the control input vector can only use the same values of penalty factor and step-size factor, the invention proposes a MIMO compact-form model-free control method with the different-factor structure, namely, at time k, different control inputs in the control input vector can use different values of penalty factors and/or step-size factors, which can solve control problems of strongly nonlinear MIMO systems with different characteristics between control channels widely existing in complex plants. Meanwhile, parameter self-tuning is proposed to effectively address the problem of time-consuming and cost-consuming when tuning the penalty factors and/or step-size factors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Jiangang Lu, Chen Chen