Systems and methods for sensor cleaning on autonomous vehicles

1 . A system for cleaning a sensor, the system comprising:

at least one sensor disposed on an autonomous vehicle;

an autonomy computing system communicatively coupled to the at least one sensor, the autonomy computing system comprising a processor coupled to a memory, the processor configured to:

receive sensor data from the sensor;

detect an obstruction affecting the sensor from the received sensor data;

determine an operational impact to the autonomous vehicle caused by the detected obstruction;

select a sensor cleaning solution based on the operational impact, wherein the sensor cleaning solution comprises at least one of:

a first cleaning solution being liquid, or

a second cleaning solution being liquid and including increased detergent properties compared to the first cleaning solution;

wherein select the sensor cleaning solution further comprises:

select the first cleaning solution when the operational impact is at or below a predetermined threshold; and

select the second cleaning solution when the operational impact is at or above the predetermined threshold;

deploy the sensor cleaning solution; and

detect nominal operation of the sensor from the sensor data in response to the deployment of the sensor cleaning solution, wherein the nominal operation of the sensor indicates elimination of the obstruction.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to disengage the sensor cleaning solution after a pre-determined time period.

3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein determining the operational impact on the autonomous vehicle comprises assessing at least one of: a reduction in sensor range, a reduction in sensor field of view, a reduction in sensor accuracy, a reduction in sensor operation, or a sensor failure.

4 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to:

monitor the sensor data for a predetermined time period after deploying the sensor cleaning solution;

process the sensor data to evaluate an impact of the sensor cleaning solution;

reselect the sensor cleaning solution based on the sensor data corresponding to the impact of the sensor cleaning solution; and

redeploy the sensor cleaning solution if the nominal operation of the sensor is not detected within the predetermined time period.

5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the sensor is an optical sensor, an electromagnetic sensor, a LiDAR sensor, a radar sensor, or an ultrasonic sensor.

6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the obstruction is at least one of: dirt, debris, snow, ice, or a foreign object on a surface of the sensor.

7 . A processing system for cleaning sensors on an autonomous truck, the processing system comprising:

a memory storing executable instructions representing a sensor cleaning system; and

a processor coupled to the memory and configured to operate the sensor cleaning system,

the processor, upon execution of the sensor cleaning system, configured to:

receive operating data from an autonomy system corresponding to an obstruction to a sensor;

process the operating data to determine an operational impact;

select a cleaning solution based on the obstruction;

wherein select the cleaning solution further comprises:

select a first cleaning solution when the operational impact is at or below a predetermined threshold, the first cleaning solution being liquid; and

select a second cleaning solution when the operational impact is above the predetermined threshold, the second cleaning solution being liquid and including increased detergent properties compared to the first cleaning solution;

deploy the selected cleaning solution with the sensor cleaning system; and

receive additional operational data during deployment of the selected cleaning solution.

8 . The processing system of claim 7 , wherein the processor is further configured to disengage the sensor cleaning system.

9 . The processing system of claim 7 , wherein processing the operating data to select the cleaning solution comprises assessing at least one of: a reduction in sensor range, a reduction in sensor field of view, a reduction in sensor accuracy, a reduction in sensor operation, or a sensor failure.

10 . The processing system of claim 7 , wherein the processor is further configured to:

monitor the additional operational data for a predetermined time period after deploying the selected cleaning solution;

process the operating data to evaluate an impact of the selected cleaning solution;

reselect a selected cleaning solution based on the operating data corresponding to the impact of the selected cleaning solution; and

redeploy the selected cleaning solution after the predetermined time period.

11 . The processing system of claim 7 , wherein the sensor is an optical sensor, an electromagnetic sensor, a LiDAR sensor, a radar sensor, or an ultrasonic sensor.

12 . The processing system of claim 7 , wherein the obstruction is at least one of: dirt, debris, snow, ice, or a foreign object on a surface of the sensor.

13 . A method for cleaning a sensor disposed on an autonomous vehicle, the method comprising:

receiving sensor data from a sensor on an autonomous vehicle;

detecting an obstruction affecting the sensor based on the sensor data;

determining an operational impact on the autonomous vehicle from the obstruction;

selecting a sensor cleaning solution based on the operational impact, wherein the sensor cleaning solution comprises at least one of:

a first cleaning solution being liquid, or

a second cleaning solution being liquid and including increased detergent properties compared to the first cleaning solution;

wherein selecting the sensor cleaning solution further comprises:

selecting the first cleaning solution when the operational impact is at or below a predetermined threshold; and

selecting the second cleaning solution when the operational impact is at or above the predetermined threshold

deploying the sensor cleaning solution; and

detecting nominal operation of the sensor from the sensor data in response to the deployment of the sensor cleaning solution, wherein the nominal operation of the sensor indicates elimination of the obstruction.

14 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising disengaging the sensor cleaning solution.

15 . The method of claim 13 , wherein determining the operational impact on the autonomous vehicle comprises assessing at least one of: a reduction in sensor range, a reduction in sensor field of view, a reduction in sensor accuracy, a reduction in sensor operation, or a sensor failure.

16 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising:

monitoring the sensor data for a predetermined time period after deploying the sensor cleaning solution;

processing the sensor data to evaluate an impact of the sensor cleaning solution;

reselecting a sensor cleaning solution based on the sensor data corresponding to the impact of the sensor cleaning solution; and

redeploying the sensor cleaning solution after a predetermined time period.

17 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the obstruction is at least one of: dirt, debris, snow, ice, or a foreign object on a surface of the sensor.

18 . The system of claim 1 , further comprising a wiper, the processor further configured to:

cause the wiper to move along a path to remove the obstruction of the sensor.

19 . The processing system of claim 7 , wherein the sensor cleaning system further includes a wiper, the processor further configured to:

cause the wiper to move along a path to remove the obstruction of the sensor.

20 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the autonomous vehicle further includes a wiper, the method further comprising:

causing the wiper to move along a path to remove the obstruction from the sensor.