Patents Examined by Gertrude Arthur-Jeanglaude
  • Patent number: 11091167
    Abstract: A method provides driver assistance in a vehicle. The method records at least one movement pattern of a vehicle together with activated vehicle functions, wherein the movement pattern is created via odometry sensors. The method provides the respective vehicle function on the basis of detection of at least one part of the movement pattern previously recorded during a journey of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2021
    Assignee: Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventor: Hubert Glas
  • Patent number: 11084523
    Abstract: A power steering device includes a steering mechanism structured to steer a steerable wheel in accordance with steering of a steering wheel. A first sensor is structured to sense a specific state quantity of steering. A second sensor is structured to sense the specific state quantity. A first actuation part is structured to apply a steering force to the steering mechanism. A second actuation part is structured to apply a steering force to the steering mechanism. A first microprocessor is configured to receive an output signal from the first sensor, and control driving of the first actuation part based on the output signal received from the first sensor. A second microprocessor is configured to receive an output signal from the first sensor and an output signal from the second sensor, and control driving of the second actuation part based on the output signal received from the first sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: HITACHI ASTEMO, LTD.
    Inventors: Mitsuo Sasaki, Takumi Hisazumi
  • Patent number: 11087629
    Abstract: A computer-implemented method for prioritized flight data transmission includes receiving a frame of flight data from one or more aircraft data sensors, the frame of flight data comprising a plurality of parameters collected from one or more avionics systems, associating each parameter of the plurality of parameters with a respective priority level, decomposing the frame of flight data into a plurality of flight data frame layers, wherein each flight data frame layer of the plurality of flight data frame layers comprises a subset of the plurality of parameters having respective priority levels that are equivalent, and transmitting, to a ground station, a first flight data frame layer of the plurality of flight data frame layers comprising parameters having a highest respective priority level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
    Inventors: Pavel Urbanek, Miroslav Krupa, Lukas Harvanek, Michal Cermak
  • Patent number: 11085786
    Abstract: Embodiments disclose a computer-implemented method for guiding a user along a route, the method including receiving route information from a route server, where the route information includes geographical positions of roads and designated lanes of travel for each of a plurality of segments along the route, and receiving a series of images captured by the camera along the route. The method includes analyzing the series of images to determine a horizon and one or more available lanes of travel along the route, identifying one or more designated lanes from the one or more available lanes based on the analyzing of the series of images, and displaying the series of images along with a navigational layer superimposed over the series of images to the user, the navigational layer comprising a blocked region covering areas of the series of images outside of the one or more designated lanes and below the horizon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventor: Jae Woo Chang
  • Patent number: 11067977
    Abstract: A wearable device comprises: a hand gesture configuring and identifying module, for collecting feature data to be identified of a wearer by a sensor, identifying out a current hand gesture action of the wearer, searching a correspondence relation between a hand gesture action and an unmanned aerial vehicle control command that is configured and saved in advance, and sending an unmanned aerial vehicle control command corresponding to the hand gesture action to the ground control station module; a ground control station module, for receiving the unmanned aerial vehicle control command by using a data interface, encoding the control command, converting it into a control message and then sending it to the wireless transmission module; and a wireless transmission module for receiving the control message and wirelessly sending it to the unmanned aerial vehicle, to realize controlling the flight state of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to the control message.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: Goertek Inc.
    Inventor: Pengcheng Su
  • Patent number: 11066030
    Abstract: A method for controlling at least one occupant protection device for a vehicle in the case of a collision, including determining input data which represent an ignition time of an airbag of the vehicle, an angular frequency of the collision, an available displacement path of a vehicle occupant relative to the vehicle, a mass of the vehicle occupant of the vehicle, a distance of the vehicle occupant from the airbag, and an inflation time duration of the airbag; ascertaining a restraint force using the input data. The restraint force represents a force that can be provided by the at least one occupant protection device and that is suitable to minimize an occupant energy of the vehicle occupant up until the end of the collision; and providing a control signal for controlling the at least one occupant protection device, the control signal being produced using the restraint force.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Josef Kolatschek, Gunther Lang
  • Patent number: 11067989
    Abstract: An apparatus, method and computer program product are provided to facilitate the navigation of a vehicle, such as an autonomous vehicle, utilizing map data in which the quality associated with the map data is provided in a more computationally efficient manner. In the context of a method a plurality of different types of sensor data are received including map data, camera data and detector data. The method determines a quality index associated with the map data and weights the reliance upon the map data relative to other types of sensor data based upon the quality index associated with the map data. The method further includes determining navigation information for the vehicle based at least partly upon the weighting of the map data relative to other types of sensor data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: HERE GLOBAL B.V.
    Inventors: Belle Walker, Uyen Nguyen, Daniel Weinstein, Pamela Korda, Xin Chen, David Doria, Phillip Bernard, Ralf Herrtwich
  • Patent number: 11059547
    Abstract: A system on a marine vessel or platform supports a load while allowing heave compensation. The load is supported via a hydraulic actuator. A transformer of the system includes a power source and at least one hydraulic pump/motor, for communicating energy between any two of: the hydraulic actuator; a hydraulic accumulator; and a power source. A valve associated with the pump/motor is switchable during at least one cycle of the pump/motor for selectively providing fluid communication between a drive chamber of the pump/motor and any of the hydraulic actuator, the hydraulic accumulator, and a hydraulic fluid reservoir, via at least one port of the drive chamber, so as to allow a desired displacement of hydraulic fluid from the pump/motor to be obtained.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2021
    Inventors: Kristjan Kristjansson, David Allen Hill, Slawomir Kukielka, Steinar Bø Nilsen
  • Patent number: 11052917
    Abstract: A vehicle control device includes at least one processor configured to perform operations including: performing a function related to autonomous driving based on a sensor signal from a sensing unit of a vehicle; autonomously driving the vehicle based on performance of the function related to autonomous driving; in a state in which the vehicle is autonomously driven, receiving an update request related to a first sensor of the sensing unit from a communication unit of the vehicle; determining presence of a second sensor configured to provide the sensor signal for performance of the function related to autonomous driving; and in response to reception of the update request, updating information related to the first sensor based on presence of the second sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Youngil Kim, Hyeonju Bae
  • Patent number: 11055932
    Abstract: Systems and methods of providing usage-based maintenance services for a plurality of vehicles arranged in a fleet includes receiving usage data. A usage parameter distribution is generated, and a fleet usage model is generated according to the distribution. The fleet usage model expresses a score as a function of the usage parameter. Also, a score distribution is generated, and a reward model is generated according to the score distribution. The reward model expresses a maintenance reward as a function of the score. Additionally, the score for one of the vehicles is determined using the fleet usage model, and the maintenance reward is determined for the vehicle using the reward model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC.
    Inventors: Manoj Kumar, Chris Hickenbottom, Jan Zirnstein
  • Patent number: 11052765
    Abstract: A first and a second control device capable of transmitting and receiving signals to and from a third control device that performs an overall management to the control devices. The third device transmits a command signal to the second device in response to a reception signal from the first device. The first device transmits, to the second device and the third device, an electrical power storage unit signal includes at least one of control information and abnormality information about charging/discharging. The second device includes a function of controlling actuation of a rotating electrical machine on the basis of an actuation command signal about actuation of the rotating electrical machine transmitted from the third device in response to the electrical power storage unit signal, and a function of controlling actuation of the rotating electrical machine on the basis of the electrical power storage unit signal transmitted from the first device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kenji Inokuma, Takuto Suzuki, Hiroshi Inamura
  • Patent number: 11052902
    Abstract: A method determines a force to be transmitted to driving wheels of a vehicle provided with a hybrid power train with several gear ratios and a traction battery. The method includes determining, over all of a speed range that the vehicle is capable of achieving, a maximum force that the power train is theoretically capable of transmitting to the wheels in predetermined nominal conditions of charge of the traction battery and/or of outside temperature and/or of atmospheric pressure; and determining, over all of the speed range, a drivability force that the power train is capable of transmitting to the wheels. The drivability force confirms that whatever the value of the speed of the vehicle, the drivability force is less than or equal to the maximum force; and the drivability force evolves within the speed range without exhibiting an inflexion point at values of the speed requiring a gear change.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: RENAULT s.a.s.
    Inventors: Loic Le-Roy, Jean-Martin Ruel
  • Patent number: 11047949
    Abstract: Examples are provided of an entertainment robot featuring an infrared apparatus for use in determining a position of an object. In these examples, a power supply of a plurality of infrared transmitters is varied, wherein a control value used to set the power supply is transmitted by the plurality of infrared transmitters. The examples may be used in a first entertainment robot, for example, to determine a distance and orientation of another entertainment robot using received infrared signals. The entertainment robot may be controlled by a computing device such as a smartphone or tablet. The entertainment robot may comprise a gaming robot to be used in solo or group gaming activities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: Awarri Limited
    Inventors: Christopher James Beck, John Honniball
  • Patent number: 11046289
    Abstract: A motor vehicle system comprising a first electric parking brake actuation unit assigned to a first vehicle wheel, and a second electric parking brake actuation unit assigned to a second vehicle wheel. The system further comprises a first control unit which includes at least one first microprocessor and which is designed to control the first electric parking brake actuation unit and does not allow the second electric parking brake actuation unit to be controlled. Furthermore, a second control unit is provided which comprises at least one second microprocessor and which is designed to control the second electric parking brake actuation unit and does not allow the first electric parking brake actuation unit to be controlled. The redundancy of the two control units increases the system safety. At the same time, the system complexity remains low since no individual control unit has to be designed to control all of the electric parking brake actuation units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: ZF Active Safety GmbH
    Inventors: Erwin Michels, Benedikt Ohlig, Matthias Fuchs
  • Patent number: 11037361
    Abstract: A view of geometry captured in image data generated by an imaging sensor is compared with a description of the geometry in a volumetric data structure. The volumetric data structure describes the volume at a plurality of levels of detail and includes entries describing voxels defining subvolumes of the volume at multiple levels of detail. The volumetric data structure includes a first entry to describe voxels at a lowest one of the levels of detail and further includes a number of second entries to describe voxels at a higher, second level of detail, the voxels at the second level of detail representing subvolumes of the voxels at the first level of detail. Each of these entries include bits to indicate whether a corresponding one of the voxels is at least partially occupied with the geometry. One or more of these entries are used in the comparison with the image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2021
    Assignee: Movidius Ltd.
    Inventors: David Macdara Moloney, Jonathan David Byrne
  • Patent number: 11036232
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for generating adversarial scenarios and training an autonomous driving agent for an autonomous vehicle, using one or more sets of parameters, each set of parameters defining a respective driving scenario. A new set of parameters is generated by changing one or more parameters of one of the sets of parameters to define a new driving scenario, and performance of the autonomous driving agent is evaluated on the new driving scenario. The generating and evaluating is repeated until the autonomous driving agent fails to satisfy a predefined performance threshold for the new driving scenario. Each instance of changing the one or more parameters is based on a prior evaluated performance of the autonomous driving agent. The autonomous driving agent is trained to update a learned policy of the autonomous driving agent using at least one set of parameters, including the new set of parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2021
    Assignees: HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD, THE ROYAL INSTITUTION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING/MCGILL UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Florian Shkurti, Gregory Dudek, Yasasa Abeysirigoonawardena, Elmira Amirloo Abolfathi, Jun Luo
  • Patent number: 11029690
    Abstract: A mobile machine including a chassis, a plurality of ground-engaging elements, actuators for driving movement of the ground-engaging elements and a controller for controlling each of the actuators to cause the mobile machine to follow a reference path. The controller is configured to implement a cascading control loop for controlling movement of the mobile machine, the cascading control loop including an outer loop and an inner loop. The outer loop is configured to determine a set heading for reducing a distance between the mobile machine and the reference path, the set heading being determined using an error slope parameter. The inner loop is configured to drive the actuators so that the mobile machine follows the set heading determined by the outer loop. The controller is configured to automatically adjust the error slope value so that the rate of change of the set heading does not exceed a maximum yaw rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2021
    Assignee: AGCO International GmbH
    Inventor: Christian Noess
  • Patent number: 11027726
    Abstract: A vehicle and ladar sensor assembly system is proposed which makes use of forward mounted long range ladar sensors and short range ladar sensors mounted in auxiliary lamps to identify obstacles and to identify potential collisions with the vehicle. A low cost assembly is developed which can be easily mounted within a body panel cutout of a vehicle, and which connects to the vehicle electrical and computer systems through the vehicle wiring harness. The vehicle has a digital processor which interprets 3D data received from the ladar sensor assembly, and which is in control of the vehicle subsystems for steering, braking, acceleration, and suspension. The digital processor onboard the vehicle makes use of the 3D data and the vehicle control subsystems to avoid collisions and steer a best path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2021
    Assignee: Continental Advanced Lidar Solutions US, LLC
    Inventors: Roger Stettner, Patrick B Gilliland, Andrew Duerner
  • Patent number: 11015939
    Abstract: A method of detecting the closure and/or opening of a navigable element forming part of a network of navigable elements within a geographic area. A passability parameter is associated with each segment of an electronic map representing the navigable network and indicates a likelihood of closure of the element represented by the segment. The value of the passability parameter decays over time. When a device is detected on the element represented by the segment, the passability parameter is increased, and when a closure report is received relating to the segment, the parameter is decreased. In one set of embodiments, when the passability parameter decreases below a first threshold value, the element represented by the segment is determined to be potentially closed. In another set of embodiments, when the passability parameter increases above a second threshold value, the closed element represented by the segment is determined to be opened.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: TOMTOM TRAFFIC B.V.
    Inventors: Arne Kesting, Nikolaus Witte, Christian Lorenz, Robin Tenhagen
  • Patent number: 11014466
    Abstract: A building optimization system includes charging and discharging a battery of a battery power vehicle. The building optimization system includes a charging system configured to cause the battery of the battery powered vehicle to charge or discharge. The building optimization system also includes an optimization controller including a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured to receive charging constraints for the battery powered vehicle, determine whether to charge discharge the battery of the battery powered vehicle based on the charging constraints, and cause the charging system to charge or discharge the battery of the battery powered vehicle based on the optimization.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: Johnson Controls Technology Company
    Inventors: Sudhi R. Sinha, Youngchoon Park, Robert D. Turney