Patents Examined by Anshul Sood
  • Patent number: 11022461
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a method and a device for mobile illumination, and a storage medium, which pertains to the technical field of intelligent hardware. The method includes: performing a lighting process through a device for mobile illumination; during the lighting process, acquiring environmental information of a target area to be traveled, the environmental information including at least one of the followings: a number of reflected test signals of a designated number of test signals emitted to the target area, image data of the target area, and map data of the target area, and the target area being any area in front of the device for mobile illumination; and determining whether the target area is unsafe to travel according to the environmental information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2021
    Assignee: BEIJING XIAOMI MOBILE SOFTWARE CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Qiqi Cui, Yan Xie
  • Patent number: 11022975
    Abstract: Systems and methods are provided herein for operating an autonomous vehicle in the presence of hazardous materials. The autonomous vehicle is operated in travel along a selected route. A determination is made, using a sensor, that a hazardous material is present inside the autonomous vehicle during the operation of the autonomous vehicle. In response, a setting of the autonomous vehicle is changed to counteract the presence of the hazardous material inside the autonomous vehicle. Additionally, also in response, a modified route is calculated, the modified route addressing the presence of the hazardous material inside the autonomous vehicle. Then, the autonomous vehicle is operated to travel along the modified route.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2021
    Assignee: Rivian IP Holdings, LLC
    Inventors: Patrick Hunt, Justin Wade, Lacey Trelfa
  • Patent number: 11009888
    Abstract: An autonomous vehicle, in particular an automated guided vehicle, comprises a control device and a sensor for detecting a continuous lane marking. The control device is adapted to control the vehicle along the lane marking in dependence on the detected lane marking, wherein the sensor is adapted to detect a code marking arranged adjacent to the lane marking and to determine a distance between the detected code marking and the lane marking, and wherein the control device is further adapted to control the vehicle in dependence on the determined distance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Bastian Steder, Fabian Fischer, Thomas Bludau
  • Patent number: 11001254
    Abstract: A method of providing parking information for autonomous parking, may include receiving, by an autonomous driving vehicle based on a connected car entering a parking lot, pieces of global positioning system (GPS) information for a driving route in the parking lot from the connected car, configuring a map of the parking lot on the basis of the received pieces of GPS information, and providing a driving route on the map of the parking lot according to a request of the autonomous driving vehicle entering the parking lot, wherein the driving route is selected by a weight value assigned to each route on the map of the parking lot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2021
    Assignees: Hyundai Motors Company, KIA Motors Corporation
    Inventor: Sung-Hwan Park
  • Patent number: 11001152
    Abstract: Presented are adaptive propulsion assist systems and control logic for manually-powered vehicles, methods for making/using such systems, and intelligent electric scooters with distributed sensing and control-loop feedback for adaptive e-assist operations. A method for regulating a propulsion assist system of a manually-powered vehicle includes a vehicle controller detecting a user contacting the vehicle's handlebar, responsively receiving sensor signals indicative of a user-applied force to the handlebar, and then determining a net user-applied force based on the handlebar force and user-generated forces applied to the scooter deck. The vehicle controller also receives sensor signals indicative of the vehicle's current acceleration, and determines therefrom a pitch angle of the surface on which the vehicle moves.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2021
    Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC
    Inventors: Carlos E. Caro Suarez, Brian V. Castillo, Sandra N. Thomson, Bradly LaBaere
  • Patent number: 11001256
    Abstract: A vehicle computing system may implement techniques to control a vehicle to avoid collisions between the vehicle and agents (e.g., dynamic objects) in an environment. The techniques may include generating a representation of a path of the vehicle through an environment as a polygon. The vehicle computing system may compare the two-dimensional path with a trajectory of an agent determined using sensor data to determine a collision zone between the vehicle and the agent. The vehicle computing system may determine a risk of collision based on predicted velocities and probable accelerations of the vehicle and the agent approaching and traveling through the collision zone. Based at least in part on the risk of collision, the vehicle computing system may cause the vehicle to perform an action.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2021
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Jefferson Bradfield Packer, Zhenqi Huang, William Anthony Silva
  • Patent number: 10994749
    Abstract: A vehicle control method comprising: obtaining first vehicle data and second vehicle data, processing the first vehicle data using the first computing system to obtain first structured data; processing the second vehicle data using the second computing system to obtain second structured data; and further controlling safe driving of a vehicle based on the first structured data and the second structured data, wherein the first structured data is used to represent an environment that is of the vehicle at a first time point and that is detected by the first group sensing apparatus, and the second structured data is used to represent an environment that is of the vehicle at the first time point and that is detected by the second group sensing apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Xiaolin Jia, Huawei Liu, Baifeng Yu
  • Patent number: 10988139
    Abstract: A vehicle position correction device is provided with a controller for correcting a position error of an autonomous host vehicle. The controller detects a lane boundary of a lane in which the host vehicle travels. The controller calculates a target value for a lateral correction amount of the target route by comparing positional relationships between lane boundary detection results and the target route on a map, and changes a lateral movement speed of the target route to calculate the target value for the lateral correction amount according to a bearing of the host vehicle in which the bearing being a vehicle attitude angle. The controller corrects the target route by moving the target route sideways in a lateral direction by an amount equal to the lateral correction amount upon the calculation of the lateral correction amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takashi Fukushige, Satoshi Tange
  • Patent number: 10988131
    Abstract: A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), which has an engine and a motor and travels using a power of the engine and an electric power of the motor, includes: a battery configured to supply a drive energy of the motor; a battery sensor configured to measure a state of charge (SOC) of the battery; and a controller configured to estimate an average mileage per cycle established using traveling information of the vehicle, estimate an average SOC per cycle using the measured SOC, and control a reference power needed for driving the engine according to the estimated average mileage and the estimated average SOC.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignees: Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors Corporation
    Inventors: Sang Joon Kim, Young Chui Kim, Leehyoung Cho, Dong Ho Yang
  • Patent number: 10974676
    Abstract: A life and property protection system including a monitoring member having a plurality of sensors and devices for monitoring the interior of the vehicle and communicating with phone devices of designated individuals and 911 dispatch. The system has an activation mode that is triggered when motion is detected, a pre-alarm mode triggered when preset criteria is met, and an alarm mode when the system is not manually reset after a preset time period following a text to designated phone devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Proof of Life Innovations LLC
    Inventors: Erik C. Hatfield, Michael D. White
  • Patent number: 10974562
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus to adjust vehicle suspension damping are disclosed herein. An example apparatus includes a sensor interface to obtain wheel position information and vehicle speed information from sensors associated with wheels of a vehicle and obtain throttle position information. The apparatus further includes a parameter analyzer to determine a compression damping command based on the wheel position information, the vehicle speed information, and the throttle position information and an instruction generator to adjust a damping system of the vehicle based on the compression damping command.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Chris Paiva, Tom Sawarynski, Steven Thompson, Daniel Collins, Geoffrey Bossio, Jason Wallace Michener
  • Patent number: 10960862
    Abstract: A method for electronically setting the brake force distribution of a desired total braking force in partial braking forces to the axle of a motor vehicle in dependence on the differential slip is provided. The differential slip is detected as the difference of the slip values of a variable representing the slip at the respective axle and is assigned to a relevant pair of axles. One of the axles is selected as a reference axle and the respective differential slip of a pair of axles is determined as the difference of the slip value at the reference axle and of the respective slip value of one of the further axles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2021
    Assignee: WABCO GMBH
    Inventors: Nikolai Flaum, Torsten Wallbaum
  • Patent number: 10953985
    Abstract: A sensor module is assigned to a vehicle that can be displaced in a terrain or designed for being positioned in the terrain. The sensor module has a sensor system with sensors that acquire sensor data in a contactless fashion. The sensors are designed for detecting the spatial extent of the plant at a location in the terrain. The sensor data makes it possible to determine whether the plant should be pruned. To this end, the sensor data is evaluated by utilizing a knowledge database.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2021
    Assignee: Vorwerk & Co. Interholding GmbH
    Inventors: Georg Hackert, Martin Helmich, Lorenz Hillen, Christian Holz, Gerhard Isenberg, Hendrik Koetz, Andrej Mosebach, Roman Ortmann, Robin Dulinski
  • Patent number: 10933793
    Abstract: A locker configured to store a package is disclosed. The locker includes a storage compartment, a door to the storage compartment, and a securing component attached to the storage compartment. The securing component actuates between a secured position and an unsecured position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Christopher Westfall, Juliette Seive
  • Patent number: 10922979
    Abstract: A method for coordinating an emergency braking of a platoon of communicatively-coupled transportation vehicles. In response to an emergency situation, individual braking control settings are centrally determined for one or more transportation vehicles of the platoon by a managing entity managing the platoon. The individual braking control settings are communicated from the managing entity) to the one or more transportation vehicles of the platoon. The one or more transportation vehicles of the platoon brake in accordance with the respective individual braking control settings received from the managing entity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2021
    Inventors: Daniel Reimann, Roman Alieiev, Ahmad El Assaad, Guillaume Jornod
  • Patent number: 10919531
    Abstract: A method in a transportation vehicle for an automatic drive which includes detecting additional transportation vehicles in the surroundings of the transportation vehicle by at least one sensor system, detecting and identifying lanes by the at least one sensor system, assigning the detected additional transportation vehicles to the detected lanes by a controller, and identifying and evaluating an intention to pass of another transportation vehicle by a pass assistance device. If an intention to pass has been identified, the method also includes calculating a total use of a possible lane change by a predictive device and adapting a drive behavior of the transportation vehicle by the controller, wherein the possible lane change is carried out if the calculated total use reaches or exceeds a specified total use threshold, and the possible lane change is not carried out if the calculated total use does not exceed the specified total use threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2021
    Inventors: Simon Ulbrich, Simon Grossjohann, Kai Homeier, Christian Appelt
  • Patent number: 10922962
    Abstract: A congestion management apparatus includes a memory configured to store, on a per-action-option basis, upper limits on numbers of users allowed to be guided to action options, and a processor coupled to the memory and configured to: generate the action options by time slot for a user; calculate for each of the generated action options, choice probabilities of the action options with respect to the user, and store the calculated choice probabilities in the memory; and calculate for each of the action options, estimated numbers of previous users assumed to have selected the action options, based on choice probabilities of each of the action options with respect to the previous users, the choice probabilities being obtained from the memory, wherein the processor is configured to extract, based on the upper limits and the estimated numbers for the action options, action options to be presented to the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2021
    Assignee: FUJITSU LIMITED
    Inventors: Takuro Ikeda, Eiji Kitagawa, Vishal Sharma
  • Patent number: 10894540
    Abstract: A vehicle control apparatus includes: a brake control portion which is configured, when a vehicle is stopped, to cause a braking apparatus to keep a stopped state in which the vehicle is held stopped independently of operation of a brake pedal of the vehicle; a driver-assistance control portion which is configured to start a driver assistance operation in response to a manual operation made by the operator, and which is configured, when the stopped state is kept by the brake control portion, to withhold start of the driver assistance operation; and a withhold cancel portion which is configured, when a returning operation of the brake pedal has been made by the operator, to cause the driver-assistance control portion to cancel withhold of the start of the driver assistance operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 19, 2021
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Yusuke Nakade
  • Patent number: 10890663
    Abstract: Techniques are discussed for using multi-resolution maps, for example, for localizing a vehicle. Map data of an environment can be represented by discrete map tiles. In some cases, a set of map tiles can be precomputed as contributing to localizing the vehicle in the environment, and accordingly, the set of map tiles can be loaded into memory when the vehicle is at a particular location in the environment. Further, a level of detail represented by the map tiles can be based at least in part on a distance between a location associated with the vehicle and a location associated with a respective region in the environment. The level of detail can also be based on a speed of the vehicle in the environment. The vehicle can determine its location in the environment based on the map tiles and/or the vehicle can generate a trajectory based on the map tiles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignee: Zoox, Inc.
    Inventors: Nitesh Shroff, Brice Rebsamen, Elena Stephanie Stumm
  • Patent number: 10884425
    Abstract: One aspect of the disclosure provides a method of maneuvering a vehicle in reverse for attachment to a trailer. The method includes: determining, at a computing device in communication with the neural network, a selected trailer in proximity to the vehicle; detecting at least one user input gesture performed by a user and captured in at least one image from at least one camera on the vehicle; selected a maneuver command for the vehicle based on the detected gesture; and executing the maneuver to move the vehicle from the initial position toward a final position adjacent the trailer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2021
    Assignee: Continental Automotive Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Dalong Li, Kyle P Carpenter, Dominik Froehlich, Ibro Muharemovic, Julien Ip, Lubna Khasawneh, Uriel Sanchez, Steffen Hartmann