Abstract: An economy advisory system includes a circuit and a display. The circuit is configured to receive a route plan remainder of a vehicle and receive a plurality of consumption factor values of the vehicle while the vehicle traverses the route plan. The plurality of consumption factor values is controllable by a driver of the vehicle. The circuit is further configured to modify the plurality of consumption factor values based upon a plurality of modification factor values, calculate a plurality of potential range changes of the vehicle based on the route plan remainder and the plurality of consumption factor values as modified, and identify a group that has at least one of the plurality of potential range changes and a corresponding at least one of the plurality of modification factor values. The display is in communication with the circuit and is configured to present the group to the driver.

Abstract: A system may include one or more tangible, non-transitory computer-readable media having stored thereon instructions, the instructions when executed to instruct one or more processors to: receive a platform-independent access binding data structure (a PIAB data structure), the PIAB data structure comprising a platform-independent representation of a subject class, a verb, an object, and a binding comprising a permission for the subject class to perform the verb on the object; convert the PIAB data structure to a first platform-specific binding for a first target platform; and cause the first platform-specific binding to be implemented on the first target platform.

Abstract: A system for predicting a door opening event of a vehicle includes an identity recognition device associated with an individual occupant profile. The system also includes one or more controllers in electronic communication with the identity recognition device, where the one or more controllers store one or more individual occupant profiles in memory of the one or more controllers that includes historical occupant behavior exhibited by one or more occupants associated with the identity recognition device. The one or more controllers execute instructions to determine a predetermined condition has occurred, where the predetermined condition indicates the vehicle is undergoing a potential engine off event. The one or more controllers determine a door opening event probability value based on at least the gear position probability value and the engine off probability value.

Abstract: Various technologies described herein pertain to an autonomous vehicle computing device for an autonomous vehicle. The autonomous vehicle computing device includes a printed circuit board, a heat sink, and a thermal interface material layer between the printed circuit board and the heat sink. The autonomous vehicle computing device further includes a barrier layer between the thermal interface material layer and the printed circuit board. The thermal interface material layer can be formed of a two-part thermal interface material that cures in place. The barrier layer between the thermal interface material layer and the printed circuit board enables separation of the printed circuit board from the thermal interface material layer if reworking or modification of the autonomous vehicle computing device is desired. The barrier layer can enable the printed circuit board to be separated from the thermal interface material layer in a manner that mitigates damage to the printed circuit board.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides a method including determining an operational mode of a vehicle based on data accumulated from at least one vehicle information system associated with the vehicle; selecting one of a plurality of power consumption profiles for the vehicle based on the determined operational mode; and applying the selected one of the power consumption profiles to the vehicle.

Abstract: A plunger for die casting may include a front injector end made of an iron alloy including, by mass: about 1% to about 6% nickel, about 0.1% to about 5% copper, about 0.2% to about 2.5% aluminum, about 0.5% to about 2% manganese, and about 0.05% to about 0.2% carbon. The iron alloy may be formed into an initial shape of the front injector end, heated to a temperature greater than or equal to about 900° C. and then cooled to form a supersaturated solid solution of iron and dissolved alloying elements. Then, the iron alloy may be heated at a temperature sufficient to precipitate intermetallic nanoparticles from the supersaturated solid solution to form an intermetallic precipitate phase dispersed throughout an iron-based matrix phase. A chemical compound layer may be formed at and along a surface of the iron alloy by exposing the iron alloy to an oxygen-containing and/or nitrogen-containing environment.

Abstract: In exemplary embodiments, methods and systems are provided for a digital flashlight for a vehicle. In another exemplary embodiment, a system is provided that includes a display of a vehicle; and a processor coupled to the display of the vehicle and a camera of the vehicle and configured to at least facilitate: obtaining a camera image frame via the camera of the vehicle; determining a first region of the camera image frame having a first brightness level; determining a second region of the camera image frame having a second brightness level that is greater than the first brightness level; and providing instructions to the display of the vehicle for displaying the first region with increased brightness that is based on the second brightness level.

Abstract: Presented are multi-pulse fuel injection systems for monitoring engine fuel injectors for missed pulses, methods for making/using such systems, and vehicles equipped with such systems. A method of operating a fuel injection system includes an engine controller determining if the system's injectors are operating in a multi-pulse mode for injecting multiple fuel pulses per combustion cycle to an engine's cylinders and, if so, monitoring pulse signals transmitted to the injectors for injecting the multiple fuel pulses. For each combustion cycle for each injector, the controller flags a cylinder misfire if any one of the fuel pulses for that combustion cycle is missed. For each cylinder, the controller calculates a misfire ratio of a total number of cylinder misfires to a total number of combustion cycles; if one of these misfire ratios exceeds a calibrated misfire limit, the controller commands a resident subsystem to execute control operations to mitigate the misfires.

Abstract: A powder bed fusion system includes a powder bed including a build surface and a vacuum system. The vacuum system includes a collection device positioned over the build surface. The collection device includes a body, a pathway defined in the body, wherein the pathway ends in a passageway opening, and a particle retainer connected to the body near the passageway opening. A method of forming a component includes forming a layer of unfused metal powder on a powder bed with a recoater, introducing gas to the powder bed and applying a vacuum with a collection device, fusing a portion of the layer of unfused metal powder on the powder bed with a heat source to form a component layer and generating contaminants, collecting the contaminants from the powder bed with the gas and the vacuum applied by the collection device.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for automated detection and disinfection of microbes in autonomous vehicles, to prevent possible transmission of diseases or illness to subsequent users. Automated detection and disinfection of a vehicle includes autonomously scanning various parts of the autonomous vehicle for microbes, selecting a disinfectant based on detected microbes, and autonomously disinfecting at least a portion of the autonomous vehicle.

Abstract: Systems and method are provided for controlling a vehicle. In one embodiment, a method includes: receiving a first surface value associated with a first road surface area in an upcoming environment of the vehicle; receiving a second surface value associated with a second road surface area in the upcoming environment of the vehicle; determining a change in surface value based on the first surface value and the second surface value; and in response to the change in surface value being greater than a threshold, adapting at least one of vehicle collision warning messages, vehicle braking control, vehicle steering control, and path planning based on the second surface value.

Abstract: A layered catalyst structure for purifying an exhaust gas stream includes a catalyst support and a palladium catalyst layer including an atomic dispersion of palladium ions electrostatically adsorbed onto an exterior surface of the catalyst support. The catalyst support includes an alumina substrate, a first ceria layer disposed on and extending substantially continuously over the alumina substrate, and a second colloidal ceria layer formed directly on the first ceria layer over the alumina substrate. The palladium catalyst layer is formed on the exterior surface of the catalyst support by applying a palladium-containing precursor solution to the exterior surface of the catalyst support and then heating the catalyst support and the palladium-containing precursor solution. The palladium-containing precursor solution includes a positively charged palladium complex in an aqueous medium and has a pH greater than a point of zero charge of the second colloidal ceria layer.

Abstract: A smart glass display includes a first glass layer, a second glass layer, a display layer, an auto-shading layer and a control module. The display layer is disposed between the first glass layer and the second glass layer and includes an array of light emitting diodes and at least one ambient light sensor. The at least one ambient light sensor is configured to detect a level of ambient light at the display layer. The auto-shading layer includes suspended particle devices each of which configured to selectively provide different levels of transparency. The control module is configured to, based on an output of the at least one ambient light sensor, adjust a transparency level of at least a portion of the auto-shading layer.

Abstract: A rotor core for an electric machine of an automobile includes a core stack including a plurality of lamination plates. Each lamination plate includes a plurality of apertures formed therein. The plurality of apertures of each of the lamination plates are axially aligned and define and a slot extending through the core stack and shaped to receive a corresponding insert. The rotor core also includes at least one insert received by the slot that provides radial structural stability to the plurality of lamination plates to prevent portions of the plurality of lamination plates adjacent the plurality of magnet slots from flexing due to radial forces exerted on the plurality of lamination plates during operation of the rotor core. The rotor core includes a load bearing polymer disposed within the aperture of the rotor core that provides contact between and the insert and the lamination plates.

Abstract: The present technology is effective to cause at least one processor to collect sensor data from at least one sensor on an autonomous vehicle, wherein the sensor data includes a plurality of measurements from the at least one sensor, identify, from the sensor data, at least one measurement from the plurality of measurements that is outside a threshold measurement for the at least one sensor and is indicative of an impact incident, send the sensor data to a remote computing system, and receive, in response to the sending of the sensor data that is indicative of the impact incident, routing instructions from the remote computing system.

Abstract: In various aspects, the present disclosure provides a component. The vehicle component includes a polymer matrix, a plurality of fibers in the polymer matrix, and a heating element embedded in the polymer matrix. The heating element may be (i) a discrete heating element, (ii) at least a portion of the plurality of fibers, or both (i) and (ii). The heating element is configured to be coupled to an external circuit to generate heat. In one aspect, the vehicle component is a vehicle header including an elongated body extending between a first side and a second side.

Abstract: A shoe-clip fastener for securing components in a vehicle includes a stop member having a wall portion and a slot defined in the wall portion and an insertion element coupled to the stop member. The insertion element includes a base member and a clip member cantilevered from the base member. The clip member includes an actuator section that projects proudly of the slot.

Abstract: Presented are feedback control systems for monitoring battery system hardware, methods for making/operating such systems, and vehicles with wireless battery management systems (WBMS) governed through distributed feedback control. A method of operating a WBMS includes a wireless-enabled manager device selecting a batch of cell module assemblies (CMA) within the WBMS to communicate with to thereby retrieve data for their respective battery modules. A manager access control list (ACL) is created with respective media access control (MAC) addresses and ID data for the selected CMAs. A wireless connection is established between the manager device and a respective cell monitoring unit (CMU) for each selected CMA based on the corresponding MAC addresses and ID data in the manager ACL. The manager device downloads, from the CMU of each selected CMA, device data for each battery modules associated with the selected CMA. The manager device then switches the operating mode for each CMU.