Patents Examined by Luat T Huynh
  • Patent number: 9983585
    Abstract: The disclosure provides a method and apparatus for determination of a control policy for a rigid body system, where the rigid body system comprises a sensor and a plurality of actuators designed to maneuver the rigid body system and orient the sensor toward a plurality of defined vertices, such as geographic points on the earth surface. A processor receives input data describing an initial state of the rigid body system and further receives a plurality of candidate vertices for potential targeting by the sensor. The processor additionally receives an intrinsic value for each vertex, reflecting the relative desirability of respective vertices in the plurality of vertices. The processor determines an appropriate control policy based on the vertices, the intrinsic values, and the rigid body system through a formulation of the determination process as an optimization problem which actively considers various constraints during the optimization, such as maneuvering and observation constraints.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2018
    Assignee: The United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Issac M. Ross, Ronald J. Proulx, Joseph M. Greenslade, Mark Karpenko
  • Patent number: 9944228
    Abstract: A method for vehicle control includes receiving physiological data from one or more wearable computing devices, where each of the one or more wearable computing devices is associated with one or more vehicle occupants in the vehicle, and determining a health state of the one or more vehicle occupants based on the physiological data. The health state describing a current condition of each of the one or more vehicle occupants. The method includes determining a priority level for the health state of each of the one or more vehicle occupants. Further, the method includes controlling one or more vehicle systems of the vehicle based on the health state of each of the one or more vehicle occupants and according to the priority level of the health state of each of the one or more vehicle occupants.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2018
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: David M. Kirsch, Bonnie Chen, Harinkumar Vashi
  • Patent number: 9939284
    Abstract: An autonomous vehicle may include a processor configured to execute instructions to identify, from vehicle transportation network information representing a vehicle transportation network, first and second location information representing a first and second location in the vehicle transportation network, and generate route information representing a route from the first location to the second location via the vehicle transportation network, wherein the route information includes first lane information indicating that the route includes a first lane of a road segment, wherein the vehicle transportation network information includes second lane information representing a second lane of the road segment and adjacent to the first lane, the route having a minimal expected cost among available candidate routes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2018
    Assignee: Nissan North America, Inc.
    Inventor: Nicolas Meuleau
  • Patent number: 9932127
    Abstract: In one example, a method includes receiving, over an aircraft data communications bus, a plurality of non-pneumatic inputs corresponding to aircraft operational parameters. The method further includes processing the plurality of non-pneumatic inputs through an artificial intelligence network to generate an air data output value, and outputting the air data output value to a consuming system for use when a pneumatic-based air data output value is determined to be unreliable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2018
    Assignee: Rosemount Aerospace Inc.
    Inventors: Kaare Josef Anderson, Brian Daniel Matheis, Derrick D. Hongerholt, William Kunik
  • Patent number: 9928667
    Abstract: Determining occupancy of a vehicle during a trip can be carried out using a computer server which receives data from mobile computing devices within the vehicle. Each of the mobile computing devices is associated with a person, and sends to the server a unique identification of the vehicle, such as a license plate number, and also data generated during the trip from sensors within the device. The sensors collect data that relates to the local ambient environment of the device during the trip, such as a local magnetic field, movements, altitude, location, and sounds. The server compares the data from all devices in the vehicle to determine if the data from all of devices match, within predetermined limits. If there is a match, the server can provide a probable vehicle occupancy count; otherwise, the server can provide an indication that the vehicle occupancy should be investigated in another manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2018
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Priscilla Barreira Avegliano, Carlos Henrique Cardonha, Ricardo Guimaraes Herrmann, Diego Sanchez Gallo
  • Patent number: 9886034
    Abstract: A vehicle computer is programmed to: detect a portable computing device communicatively coupled to the vehicle computer. The vehicle computer is further programmed to control at least one vehicle operation based at least in part on the presence of the portable device, the at least one vehicle operation including at least one of control of steering, propulsion, and brakes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2018
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Mathew Alan Boesch, Sarra Awad Yako
  • Patent number: 9873413
    Abstract: A system for the remote actuation of a parking brake in a vehicle, thereby to insure that the parking brake of the vehicle is set when the driver exits the vehicle, includes: an actuator disposed within a vehicle equipped with air brakes and a parking brake button and coupled to the parking brake button and configured to set the parking brake upon the occurrence of a predetermined event; and a remote actuation device configured to be with the driver of the vehicle and to indicate to the actuator when the driver exits the vehicle such that the actuator sets the parking brake if not already set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2018
    Inventor: David J. Oberheu
  • Patent number: 9865098
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention are directed to a fleet management computer system configured for forecasting travel delays within a geographic area. According to various embodiments, the fleet management computer system is configured to assess operational data, including vehicle telematics data. In various embodiments, the fleet management computer system is further configured to determine, based on the operational data, a value indicative of the average amount of travel delay time per unit of distance within the geographic area, such as the average amount of idle time second per mile of travel with the geographic area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2018
    Assignee: United Parcel Service of America, Inc.
    Inventor: Mark J. Davidson