Patents Examined by Richard M. Camby
  • Patent number: 10937254
    Abstract: In some examples, a controller detects a compromised condition of a component of a cargo transportation unit (CTU), determines a time of performing a next maintenance of the CTU, and controls adjustment of the component in response to detecting the compromised condition and based on the time of performing the next maintenance of the CTU.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: BlackBerry Limited
    Inventors: Conrad Delbert Seaman, Stephen West, Prabhul Dev
  • Patent number: 10934023
    Abstract: The disclosure provides an approach for performing inspections. An image analysis application is configured to receive sensor data captured at least by one or more sensors mounted on a first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flying along at least one programmed flight pattern. The image analysis application is further configured to normalize the sensor data, and determine anomalies based, at least in part, on differences between the normalized sensor data and sensor data previously captured at least by one or more sensors mounted on a second UAV flying along the at least one programmed flight pattern. In addition, the image analysis application is configured to generate a report indicating the determined anomalies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Inventor: Saishi Frank Li
  • Patent number: 10935991
    Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to scanning radar reflector systems, methods, and apparatuses; even more particularly to a system, method, and apparatus for scanning and reflecting a radar beam transmitted by a radar transmitter onboard an aerial vehicle with radar reflectors equipped on unmanned aerial vehicles. The radar reflection system may include one or more unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with a one or more axis gimbal upon which a radar reflector is mounted. A user may position the unmanned aerial vehicle and the radar reflector to target a specific region for radar scanning.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation
    Inventors: Jae-Woo Choi, Boris Abramov, James D. Paduano
  • Patent number: 10927581
    Abstract: A vehicle tailgate with a power up-down system may employ a method of operating a vehicle tailgate that may include detecting a step is deployed from the tailgate, detecting the tailgate is less than fully open, and automatically actuating a power up-down system to drive the tailgate to fully open.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2021
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Adrian Nania, Craig A. Moccio, Brian K. Sullivan, Manuel Santana
  • Patent number: 10909846
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure include a navigation system and computer-implemented methods for detecting traffic disruption events based on an analysis of input component data obtained from navigation-enabled devices of vehicles near a particular location. Traffic disruption events are events such as accidents, construction road closures, police and speed traps, or road hazards that cause a decrease in the flow of traffic along a particular route and thus, added time delays for occupants of vehicles traveling along those routes. The navigation system scores the input component data associated with each vehicle and aggregates the scored input component data to obtain a frustration score associated with the vehicle. The navigation system may detect traffic disruption events based on a number of vehicles near a particular area having associated frustration scores above a certain threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 2, 2021
    Assignee: eBay Inc.
    Inventors: Dane Glasgow, Matthew Bret MacLaurin, Neville Rhys Newey, Justin VanWinkle, Christopher Michael Hall, Trista Mcneill, David Ramadge
  • Patent number: 10908621
    Abstract: An unmanned aerial vehicle is caused to fly by avoiding a no-fly zone, which changes as a moving object moves. Provided is an unmanned aerial vehicle control system, including: moving object position acquisition means for acquiring moving object position information on a current position of a moving object moving above a surface of an earth; zone setting means for setting a no-fly zone in which a flight of an unmanned aerial vehicle is inhibited based on the moving object position information; and flight control means for controlling the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle so that the unmanned aerial vehicle avoids the no-fly zone set based on the moving object position information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 2, 2021
    Assignee: RAKUTEN, INC.
    Inventor: Jun Takizawa
  • Patent number: 10901428
    Abstract: Herein is disclosed a sensor data evaluation system comprising one or more first sensors, configured to deliver first sensor data to a first sensor frontend; the first sensor frontend, configured to generate a first sensor frontend output corresponding to the first sensor data and to deliver the first sensor frontend output to a second sensor frontend; and the second sensor frontend, configured to receive second sensor data from one or more second sensors; and modify a second sensor parameter based at least on the first sensor frontend output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2021
    Assignee: INTEL IP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Munir Georges, Moinul Islam Al-Mamun
  • Patent number: 10901409
    Abstract: A vehicle control system includes a vehicle controller and a portable user device. The vehicle controller is configured to control operation of a vehicle component of a vehicle. The portable user device is configured to wirelessly connect to the vehicle controller and facilitate providing a command to the vehicle controller regarding operation of the vehicle component from an exterior of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2021
    Assignee: Oshkosh Corporation
    Inventors: Bryan Datema, Cody Clifton, Xiang Gong, Zhenyi Wei, Shashank Bhatia
  • Patent number: 10899414
    Abstract: A bicycle controller controls a motor in accordance with the riding environment of a bicycle. The bicycle controller includes an electronic control unit that is configured to control a motor that assists in propulsion of a bicycle in accordance with a manual driving force. The electronic control unit is further configured to set a response speed of the motor with respect to a change in the manual driving force input to the bicycle for a case within a predetermined period from a time at which the bicycle starts to travel to be different from the response speed for a case in which the predetermined period has elapsed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2021
    Assignee: Shimano Inc.
    Inventors: Satoshi Shahana, Yasuhiro Tsuchizawa, Hiroshi Matsuda
  • Patent number: 10899467
    Abstract: The disclosed embodiments describe cover detection systems, controllers, and aircraft. The aircraft includes the controller and parts of the cover detection systems. A cover detection system includes an engine, a first sensor, an engine cover assembly, and a controller. The engine has moving parts and defines a fluid opening. The fluid opening exposes the moving parts to an ambient environment. The first sensor component is located proximate to the engine. The engine cover assembly includes an engine cover and a second sensor. The engine cover is configured to cover the fluid opening. The second sensor component is attached to the engine cover and is configured to interact with the first sensor component. The controller is configured to determine whether the engine cover is installed on the engine based on an interaction between the first sensor component and the second sensor component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2021
    Assignee: Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation
    Inventor: Jeffrey Hausmann
  • Patent number: 10895063
    Abstract: Provided are an energy regeneration device which can regenerate energy of a working fluid discharged from an actuator while controlling a flow rate of the working fluid, and a work machine including the foregoing device. The regeneration device (100) includes a boom cylinder (20), an inertial fluid container (102), an oil tank (110), an accumulator (105), a low-pressure-side opening/closing device (103), and a high-pressure-side opening/closing device (104). A calculation unit (151) calculates a duty ratio for opening/closing the low-pressure-side opening/closing device (103) and the high-pressure-side opening/closing device (104) in accordance with a desired flow rate of a working fluid discharged from the boom cylinder (20).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 19, 2021
    Assignee: Kobe Steel, Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoki Sugano, Satoshi Maekawa
  • Patent number: 10889272
    Abstract: An autonomous emergency braking apparatus may include: a front sensor configured to sense object information by searching for a control target ahead of a vehicle; a compensation condition sensor configured to sense a vehicle state and a surrounding environment, in order to estimate the road state and the driving environment of the vehicle; a brake controller configured to generate a braking force to brake the vehicle; a warning controller configured to notify an operation state when the vehicle is braked; and a controller configured to calculate a braking force and braking point, adjust the road state estimated from the vehicle state sensed through the compensation condition sensor and the braking force and the braking point which are calculated according to the surrounding environment, output a braking command to the brake, and notify the operation state through the warning controller according to the braking command.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignee: Hyundai Mobis Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Joo Yeob Lee
  • Patent number: 10890449
    Abstract: A navigation system includes a digital-map, a global-positioning-system receiver, and one or more controller-circuits. The digital-map includes a record of global-positioning-system dead-zones. The global-positioning-system receiver indicates a position of a host-vehicle on the digital-map. The one or more controller-circuits are in communication with the global-positioning-system receiver and the digital-map. The one or more controller-circuits are configured to steer the host-vehicle. The one or more controller-circuits determine the position of the host-vehicle relative to the global-positioning-system dead-zone and determining whether a travel-path for the host-vehicle includes a lane-change to a desired-lane. In accordance with the determination by the one or more controller-circuits that the travel-path includes a lane-change and that the host-vehicle is outside of the global-positioning-system dead-zone, the one or more controller-circuits steer the host-vehicle to the desired-lane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignee: Aptiv Technologies Limited
    Inventor: Premchand Krishna Prasad
  • Patent number: 10890451
    Abstract: A computer server of a social communication platform may be configured to provide a social communication platform to a first user to chat with a second user over a window displaying on a computer device of the first user; receive chat messages between the first user and second user, the chat message including a current geographical location information of the first user; select at least one candidate POI associated with the second user and based on the current geographical location information of the first user; send location information of at least one candidate POI to the first user through the window; receive from the first user a selection of a target POI from the at least one candidate POI; and send information associated with the target POI to the first user through the social communication platform.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignee: Tencent Technology (Shenzhen) Company Limited
    Inventors: Wenrong Tang, Guangyuan Bai, Yan Wang, Daihua Wang
  • Patent number: 10883248
    Abstract: In accordance with an example embodiment, a work vehicle may include a vehicle positioning system providing a vehicle position signal, a ground-engaging blade moveable by blade actuators, a blade sensing system providing a blade position signal, and a controller in communication with the vehicle positioning system, the blade actuators, and the blade sensing system. The controller may be configured to receive the vehicle position signal, receive the blade position signal, determine a target blade position using the vehicle position signal and a stored maintenance pass, the stored maintenance pass indicative of a past position of the blade associated with a past position of the vehicle for a plurality of past vehicle positions, and control the blade actuators to move the blade toward the target blade position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2021
    Assignee: Deere & Company
    Inventor: Richard L Stotlar
  • Patent number: 10886023
    Abstract: Semi-autonomous vehicle apparatus which is controlled by a plurality of control sources includes a vehicle which may function autonomously and apparatus for control of the vehicle by either an onboard driver or a driver not situated onboard. The vehicle may also be controlled by an off-vehicle computational device. Hierarchy setting apparatus determines which one or combination of the possible control entities take priority. Persons using the apparatus are identified by either a password or, preferably by providing identification based on a biologic feature. Management of impaired vehicle operators is provided for.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2021
    Inventor: Jeffrey A. Matos
  • Patent number: 10864917
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate switching between autonomous and manual driving modes. In order to do so, the vehicle's computer may conduct a series of environmental, system, and driver checks to identify certain conditions. The computer may correct some of these conditions and also provide a driver with a checklist of tasks for completion. Once the tasks have been completed and the conditions are changed, the computer may allow the driver to switch from the manual to the autonomous driving mode. The computer may also make a determination, under certain conditions, that it would be detrimental to the driver's safety or comfort to make a switch from the autonomous driving mode to the manual driving mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 15, 2020
    Assignee: Waymo LLC
    Inventors: Brian Douglas Cullinane, Philip Nemec, Manuel Christian Clement, Robertus Christianus Elisabeth Mariet, Lilli Ing-Marie Jonsson
  • Patent number: 10861326
    Abstract: In a method for sharing driving images of a second vehicle by a first terminal, which communicates with a first vehicle, in a communication system, the present invention comprises the steps of: storing routes by time of the first vehicle; receiving a first message, for notifying an occurrence of an accident or a hazardous situation, from an electronic device of the first vehicle; if the first message is received, selecting a first route of predetermined time from the stored routes; and transmitting a second message for requesting image information related to the first route among the driving images of the second vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2020
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hae-in Chun, Jung-Gap Kuk, Hyun-Jeong Kang, In-Hak Na
  • Patent number: 10860020
    Abstract: System, methods, and other embodiments described herein relate to selectively processing sensor data to perceive aspects of a surrounding environment of a vehicle. In one embodiment, a method includes, in response to identifying attributes of the surrounding environment from sensor data of one or more sensors, selecting a perception technique from a plurality of perception techniques according to a human-based perception model that correlates the plurality of perception techniques with the attributes to identify which of the plurality of perception techniques efficiently process the sensor data. The method includes analyzing the sensor data using the perception technique to perceive characteristics of the surrounding environment that pertain to autonomously controlling the vehicle. The method includes autonomously controlling the vehicle according to the characteristics to navigate through the surrounding environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2020
    Assignee: Toyota Research Institute, Inc.
    Inventor: Jens Strabo Hummelshøj
  • Patent number: 10860971
    Abstract: Systems and methods include UAVs that serve to assist carrier personnel by reducing the physical demands of the transportation and delivery process. A UAV generally includes a UAV chassis including an upper portion, a plurality of propulsion members configured to provide lift to the UAV chassis, and a parcel carrier configured for being selectively coupled to and removed from the UAV chassis. UAV support mechanisms are utilized to load and unload parcel carriers to the UAV chassis, and the UAV lands on and takes off from the UAV support mechanism to deliver parcels to a serviceable point. The UAV includes computing entities that interface with different systems and computing entities to send and receive various types of information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2020
    Assignee: UNITED PARCEL SERVICE OF AMERICA, INC.
    Inventors: Julio Gil, Jeffrey Cooper