Abstract: A wire guidance apparatus for an automated guided vehicle which comprises a first crossed coil sensor for acquiring a wire and tracking along curves in the wire as the vehicle is travelling in the forward direction, a second crossed coil sensor for acquiring the wire and tracking along the wire when the vehicle is travelling in the reverse direction, third and fourth sensors for tracking along straight runs in the wire and circuitry for switching between the crossed coil sensors and the third and fourth sensors. Circuitry is also provided to generate a guidance error signal from the outputs of either of the crossed coil sensors or both the third and fourth sensors. The guidance error signal is then used to control a motor connected to a steerable wheel of the vehicle to maintain the vehicle in alignment with the wire.

Abstract: A guidance system for guiding a plurality of unmanned vehicles along guide wires. A plurality of data communication circuits are provided which form an extensive network. A traffic control computer composes a coded vehicle instruction for assigning tasks and allocates resources to said unmanned vehicles. The traffic control computer polls the status of each vehicle at varying time intervals and receives a response from said vehicle.The network connecting the computer and the communication circuits prevents reception of data transmissions from more than one vehicle at a time. Other messages are temporarily stored.Data transmitters generate low frequency, low power signals which have a high data transmission rate.Digital data is converted at the transmitters into cosine waveforms of selected frequencies. The cosine waveforms are transposed into sine waveforms at receivers. Low impedance or high impedance characteristics are imposed upon the guide wires.

Abstract: A guidance system for guiding a plurality of unmanned vehicles along guide wires. A plurality of data communication circuits are provided which form an extensive network. A traffic control computer composes a coded vehicle instruction for assigning tasks and allocates resources to said unmanned vehicles. The traffic control computer polls the status of each vehicle at varying time intervals and receives a response from said vehicle. The network connecting the computer and the communication circuits prevents reception of data transmissions from more than one vehicle at a time. Other messages are temporarily, stored. Data transmitters generate low frequency, low power signals which have a high data transmission rate. Digital data is converted at the transmitters into cosine waveforms of selected frequencies. The cosine waveforms are transposed into sine waveforms at receivers. Low impedance or high impedance characteristics are imposed upon the guide wires.

Abstract: Routing decisions for vehicles following current-carrying guidewires and carrying destination addresses are made at intersections of a guidewire system without the need for storing large amounts of data at the intersections by making inequality and equality comparisons of destination addresses with one or a few numbers stored at each intersection and basing routing on the results of one or a combination of two such comparisons.