Patents Examined by Hunter B. Lonsberry
  • Patent number: 11520348
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are a method for driving a robot based on an external image, and a robot and a server implementing the same. In the method, and the robot and server implementing the same, drive of a robot is controlled further using external images acquired by camera modules installed outside the robot. To this end, a robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a communication unit configured to communicate with external camera modules acquiring external images including the robot that is being driven, a drive-information acquiring unit configured to acquire driving related information at the time of driving the robot, a driving unit configured to drive the robot, and a control unit configured to control the driving unit using external information including the external images received from the external camera modules and the driving related information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventor: Wonhee Lee
  • Patent number: 11511756
    Abstract: A vehicle system is disclosed herein. A display panel is disposed on the exterior of the vehicle and is configured as a user interface for receiving inputs from a user. An occupant detection device is configured to detect the position of an occupant of the vehicle. A controller is configured to receive a request for pickup from a potential passenger via a first communication; register authorization information based on the first communication; receive a request for vehicle access via a second communication that includes authorization information; and control one or more doors of the vehicle to allow the potential passenger access to the vehicle via the one or more doors in response to the authorization information registered based on the first communication corresponding to the authorization information from the second communication, wherein the controller allows access via the one or more doors based on the position of the occupant detected by the occupant detection device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Kristopher Karl Brown, Steven Wayne Friedlander, Ali Hassani, Kirk Leonard, Stuart C. Salter
  • Patent number: 11511754
    Abstract: A seat determining apparatus includes a travel route determining unit configured to determine a travel route of a vehicle such that the travel route runs by way of a scheduled boarding point and scheduled alighting point of each of a plurality of users scheduled to ride the vehicle, the scheduled boarding point being a point at which the user is scheduled to get on the vehicle, the scheduled alighting point being a point at which the user is scheduled to get off the vehicle; a boarding and alighting order determining unit configured to determine alighting order, in which the users get off the vehicle, based on the travel route and the scheduled alighting point of each of the users; and a seat determining unit configured to determine a seat according to the alighting order for each of the users when each of the users rides the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Keiji Yamashita, Koichi Ikemoto, Koji Taguchi, Shin Sakurada, Tomoyuki Kuriyama
  • Patent number: 11513532
    Abstract: A robot can include a cart to receive one or more objects; a camera sensor to photograph a periphery of the robot and capture an image of a user of the robot; a handle assembly coupled to the cart; a moving part to move the robot; a force sensor to sense a force applied to the handle assembly; and a controller configured to generate physical characteristics information on physical characteristics of the user of the robot based on the image of the user, and adjust at least one of a moving direction of the robot, a moving speed of the moving part and a value of torque applied to a motor of the moving part, based on the physical characteristics information and a magnitude of the force applied to the handle assembly sensed by the force sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventor: Hyeri Park
  • Patent number: 11506797
    Abstract: Method, systems, and computer-readable media containing instructions which, when executed by a computing device, cause it to receive data from an inertial measurement unit, including GPS data, velocity data, and bearing data, receive data from a digital magnetic compass, including bearing data, receive data from a Doppler sensor, including velocity data and distance data, determining whether GPS location data is in consensus with a previous derived multi-source reckoning system location, determining a consensus distance value from a weighted average of data from the inertial measurement unit and the Doppler sensor, determine a consensus heading value from a weighted average of data from the inertial measurement unit and the digital magnetic compass, determine a consensus geolocation value from a weighted average of data from the inertial measurement unit and the previous derived multi-source reckoning system location, and determine a derived multi-source reckoning system location.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: MSRS LLC
    Inventors: Nathan Donham, Joshua Burton
  • Patent number: 11506505
    Abstract: A method for generation of a vehicle path for a vehicle. The method includes, using an excursion planning processor to perform generating a grid of attitude constraint masks, wherein each attitude constraint mask corresponds to a respective possible attitude of the vehicle. The method also includes defining a distance function between two points on a vehicle path, such that the vehicle path defines a change in orientation of the vehicle, determining a vehicle path component, of the vehicle path, between the two points having a selected cost, selecting a vehicle path in the grid of attitude constraint masks from the vehicle path component, and generating an excursion plan so that the vehicle travels along the vehicle path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Brian K. Pheiffer, Neal Carlson
  • Patent number: 11505124
    Abstract: A vehicle hitch assistance system includes a first image sensor in connection with a portion of the vehicle and positioned forward of a forward hitch disposed in a cargo bed of the vehicle. The system further includes a controller configured to capture first image data with the first image sensor. The first image data depicts a coupler of a trailer. The controller is further configured to identify a trailer type of the trailer based on the first image data. The trailer type is configured to connect to the forward hitch. The controller is further configured to acquire position data identifying a coupler position of the coupler in the first image data, derive a vehicle path aligning the forward hitch with the coupler, and control a maneuvering system driving the vehicle along the vehicle path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Luke Niewiadomski, Roger Arnold Trombley, Thomas Edward Pilutti
  • Patent number: 11491981
    Abstract: A method of determining a commanded friction brake torque is disclosed. The method uses inputs, such as from a gearshift sensor, an accelerator pedal sensor, a brake pedal sensor, and engine torque output sensor, a transmission speed input sensor and a transmission speed output sensor, to determine how much engine braking or regenerative braking is occurring. The method then uses this information combined with the braking command information from the brake pedal sensor to determine the amount of friction braking to apply to the friction brakes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC
    Inventors: Anthony H. Heap, Jordan Billet
  • Patent number: 11486721
    Abstract: Transportation systems have artificial intelligence including neural networks for recognition and classification of objects and behavior including natural language processing and computer vision systems. The transportation systems involve sets of complex chemical processes, mechanical systems, and interactions with behaviors of operators. System-level interactions and behaviors are classified, predicted and optimized using neural networks and other artificial intelligence systems through selective deployment, as well as hybrids and combinations of the artificial intelligence systems, neural networks, expert systems, cognitive systems, genetic algorithms and deep learning.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2022
    Assignee: Strong Force Intellectual Capital, LLC
    Inventor: Charles Howard Cella
  • Patent number: 11479142
    Abstract: A system receives historical vehicle battery data from a gateway device connected to a vehicle. Some vehicles with plug-in rechargeable batteries recommend/require that the vehicle computer be turned off when recharging. Thus, obtaining a current state of charge while a vehicle is charging can be difficult because the vehicle computer can be off. While the vehicle/gateway device is unable to transmit current battery data, the systems estimate a battery charge from the historical data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2022
    Assignee: Samsara Inc.
    Inventors: Alexander Thomas Govan, Alvin Wu, Benjamin Chang, Jennifer Zhang, Katherine Lee
  • Patent number: 11479126
    Abstract: A system for compensating acceleration of electrical motorbike includes a throttle unit and an electro-mechanic assembly. After the electrical motorbike starts, the throttle unit receives external operation from a rider for generating a series of original throttle signal. An acceleration compensating module calculates a throttle variation rate based on the original throttle signal and variation of a throttle operation magnitude, and calculates a throttle compensating value based on the throttle variation rate when the throttle variation rate is larger than or equal to a correction threshold. A throttle compensating module receives and sums the original throttle signal and the throttle compensating value up for generating a new throttle signal. A torque controller generates a corresponding torque command based on the new throttle signal, and outputs the torque command to the electro-mechanic assembly for operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2022
    Assignees: DELTA ELECTRONICS, INC., KWANG YANG MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Chien-Ping Huang, Chung-An Hsieh, Hsiang-Hsi Huang, Cheng-Hsien Huang
  • Patent number: 11472578
    Abstract: A method for estimating a direction of a satellite in the transfer phase. The direction of the satellite is estimated relative to a measurement antenna by executing steps for measuring the reception power, by the measurement antenna, of a target signal emitted by the satellite, for different pointing directions of the measurement antenna. The target signal has a substantially sinusoidal component referred to as a single-frequency component. Each power measurement step includes a transposition in the frequency domain of a digital signal, obtained from a signal supplied by the measurement antenna, to obtain a frequency spectrum of the digital signal over a predetermined frequency band having the single-frequency component. The power measurement for the pointing direction being considered is determined based on a maximum value of the frequency spectrum.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS DEFENCE AND SPACE SAS
    Inventors: Jean-Marc Aymes, Sébastien Mazuel, Antoine Poulet
  • Patent number: 11474540
    Abstract: A method of automatically determining a flight trajectory of a vertical take-off and landing aircraft having vectorable propulsion can be used to improve flight efficiency. The method includes receiving one or more aircraft flight constraints, inputting the aircraft flight constraints to a trajectory planning algorithm to determine a minimum energy aircraft transition trajectory, and outputting a control schedule to fly the aircraft to along the flight trajectory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: ROLLS-ROYCE plc
    Inventors: David Fillingham, Marko Bacic
  • Patent number: 11465696
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an autonomous traveling vehicle having a loading space for loading a package and/or a user. The autonomous traveling vehicle includes: a partition apparatus for performing switching between a partitioned state where the loading space is partitioned into a plurality of spaces separated from each other and a communicating state where the loading space forms one continuous space; and a control unit that controls the partition apparatus such that the loading space is brought into the communicating state when only any one of the package and the user is loaded in the loading space and the loading space is brought into the partitioned state when both of the package and the user are loaded in the loading space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Koichi Suzuki, Toru Nishitani, Jun Usami, Minami Yoda, Kensuke Koike, Tsuyoshi Ogawa, Yohei Tanigawa
  • Patent number: 11467598
    Abstract: A method for estimating a position of a robot in a local area of a large space and a robot and a cloud server that implement such method are provided. The robot includes a local area classifier configured to identify a local area of a plurality of local areas of the space in which the robot moves and a plurality of position estimators configured to estimate the position of the robot in the local area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventors: Jinuh Joo, Jungsik Kim
  • Patent number: 11460304
    Abstract: A method of locating a remotely operated vehicle within a workspace includes the steps of: receiving a video feed of the workspace from a video camera; processing the video feed to identify landmarks and features of known physical structures in or near the workspace; determining a correlation between the features and landmarks and known physical structures; calibrating the video feed from the camera to the known physical structures using the correlation; determining the location in the calibrated video feed of a number of fiducial markers on the remotely operated vehicle; and determining the position of the remotely operated vehicle within the workspace using the location of the number of fiducial markers in the calibrated video feed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Company LLC
    Inventors: Lyman J. Petrosky, Martin Bolander
  • Patent number: 11458957
    Abstract: A vehicle surrounding display apparatus comprises a display control means for displaying images, each of which corresponding to each of a plurality of display modes on a display screen. The display control means, when at a first mode, generates a first bird's-eye view image of a vehicle and a first surrounding region thereof seen from a bird's-eye view to display this image in a first display area with a fixed size on the display screen and generates a first another image to display this image in a second display area with a fixed size on the display screen, and when at a second mode, generates a second bird's-eye view image of a vehicle and a second surrounding region thereof wider than the first surrounding region to display this image in the first display area and generates a second another image to display this image in the second display area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignees: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA, DENSO Corporation
    Inventors: Yamato Yorifuji, Kohei Maejima, Takuya Itoh, Eriko Yamazaki, Kouei Kiyo, Yukiko Hatakeyama
  • Patent number: 11460841
    Abstract: An apparatus for remote support of autonomous operation of a vehicle includes a processor that is configured to perform a method including receiving, from a vehicle traversing a driving route from a start point to an end point at a destination, an assistance request signal identifying an inability of the vehicle at the destination to reach the end point, generating a first map display including a representation of a geographical area and the vehicle within the geographical area, receiving, from the vehicle, sensor data from one or more sensing devices of the vehicle, generating a remote support interface including the first map display and the sensor data, and transmitting instruction data to the vehicle that includes an alternative end point at the destination responsive to an input signal provided to the remote support interface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignees: Nissan North America, Inc., United States of America as Represented by the Administrator of NASA, Renault S.A.S.
    Inventors: Siddharth Thakur, Armelle Guerin, Atsuhide Kobashi, Julius S. Gyorfi, Mark B. Allan
  • Patent number: 11460302
    Abstract: The invention relates to an observation device having a location determination functionality for the high-accuracy determination of the spatial location and thus the position and orientation (for example, Euler angles: azimuth, elevation angle, and roll angle) of the observation device by analysis of a recorded camera image of the terrain surrounding the camera by means of the three-dimensional map information of a digital terrain model (DTM). For this purpose, the observation device comprises a camera having an objective lens and a camera sensor, a data memory, a sensor system, an analysis unit, and a display screen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: SAFRAN VECTRONIX AG
    Inventor: Holger Kirschner
  • Patent number: 11458964
    Abstract: A driver assistance device, a driver assistance method, and a driver assistance system according to the present invention make it possible to: determine a distribution of a risk of a vehicle departing from a drivable width of a road on which the vehicle travels based on driving environment factors including a road curvature and a friction coefficient of a road surface of a curve approaching the vehicle; calculate an operation variable of an actuator related to a steering operation of the vehicle based on the distribution of the risk; and output the operation variable to the actuator. This enables steering control based on potential risk evaluation made by taking into account a risk that the controllability of the vehicle may decrease when the vehicle travels on a curve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: Hitachi Astemo, Ltd.
    Inventor: Satoshi Kashiwamura