IP Library Granted Patent US 12,093,042
Granted Patent B2
US 12,093,042 · App. 17/331,841 · Granted Sep 17, 2024

Event data recordation to identify and resolve anomalies associated with control of driverless vehicles

Inventor: Mauro Della Penna (San Francisco, CA)
Assignee: NIO USA, INC.
G05D1/0088G05D1/0212G06F8/65G06N3/08G06V20/58G07C5/008G07C5/0841G07C5/085
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,093,042
App. No.
17/331,841
Granted
Sep 17, 2024
Kind
B2
Abstract

Various embodiments relate to recording event data to identify and resolve anomalies associated with control of driverless vehicles. Some examples include computing vehicular drive parameters to facilitate driverless transit, monitoring control signals, detecting an event, triggering storage of event data, determining transmission control criteria, and transmitting the event data based on the transmission control criteria. Other examples include receiving event data via a communications network from an autonomous vehicle, identifying a computed vehicular drive parameter, extracting sensor data associated with the event, detecting application of control signals, analyzing the control signals, the sensor data, and the subset of computed vehicular drive parameters to identify a type of event, and generating update executable instructions responsive to the type of event.

Claims (67)

1. A method comprising:

computing, by an autonomy controller, a vehicular drive parameter that a vehicle controller applies to one or more control devices of a vehicle to autonomously drive the vehicle coextensive with a path of travel;

monitoring, in real-time and while the vehicle controller is controlling the one or more control devices according to the vehicular drive parameter to autonomously drive the vehicle along the path of travel, data representing a control input applied by a driver of the vehicle to the one or more control devices, wherein the control input applied to the one or more control devices by the driver and the vehicular drive parameter applied to the one or more control devices by the vehicle controller are for a same type of driving operation for the vehicle;

detecting, during the monitoring, that a difference between a value of the control input as indicated by the monitored data and a value of the vehicular drive parameter exceeds a threshold;

determining, in response to detecting the difference, that an event has occurred, the event indicating that a type of anomaly has occurred along the path of travel that caused the driver to take an action that changed the value of the vehicular drive parameter to the value of the control input; and

storing event data about the event.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the vehicular drive parameter comprises one or more of a degree of wheel angle, an amount of throttle, and an amount of brake pressure, and wherein the method further comprises:

classifying the type of anomaly as a behavior anomaly associated with driving behavior of a driver of the vehicle.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

monitoring sensor data signals originating at one or more sensors in the vehicle;

receiving a subset of sensor data based on the sensor data signals;

identifying object characteristics associated with the subset of sensor data; and

classifying an object based on the identified object characteristics.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

classifying the type of anomaly as an environmental anomaly associated with an environment of the vehicle that affect one or more performance characteristics of the vehicle.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

determining transmission control criteria for the event data; and

transmitting, based on the transmission control criteria, the event data via a communications network to a logic adaption computing platform that is external to the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the type of driving operation corresponds to vehicle steering, vehicle deceleration, or vehicle acceleration.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

classifying the type of anomaly as a vehicle anomaly associated with a malfunctioning component of the vehicle;

executing instructions to perform vehicle diagnostics to generate characterized vehicle anomaly data characterizing the vehicle anomaly; and

storing the characterized vehicle anomaly data.

8. An apparatus comprising:

processing circuitry to:

receive a vehicular drive parameter that a vehicle controller applies to one or more control devices of a vehicle to autonomously drive the vehicle coextensive with a path of travel;

monitor, in real-time and while the vehicle controller is controlling the one or more control devices according to the vehicular drive parameter to autonomously drive the vehicle along the path of travel, data representing a control input applied by a driver of the vehicle to the one or more control devices, wherein the control input applied to the one or more control devices by the driver and the vehicular drive parameter applied to the one or more control devices by the vehicle controller are for a same type of driving operation for the vehicle, and wherein the type of driving operation corresponds to vehicle steering, vehicle deceleration, or vehicle acceleration;

detect, during the monitoring, that a difference between a value of the control input as indicated by the monitored data and a value of the vehicular drive parameter exceeds a threshold;

determine, in response to detecting the difference, that an event has occurred, the event indicating that a type of anomaly has occurred along the path of travel that caused the driver to take an action that changed the value of the vehicular drive parameter to the value of the control input; and

store event data about the event in memory.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the vehicular drive parameter comprises one or more of a degree of wheel angle, an amount of throttle, and an amount of brake pressure, and wherein the processing circuitry:

classifies the type of anomaly as a behavior anomaly associated with driving behavior of a driver of the vehicle.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processing circuitry:

monitors sensor data signals originating at one or more sensors in the vehicle;

receives a subset of sensor data based on the sensor data signals;

identifies object characteristics associated with the subset of sensor data; and

classifies an object based on the identified object characteristics.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processing circuitry:

classifies the type of anomaly as an environmental anomaly associated with an environment of the vehicle that affect one or more performance characteristics of the vehicle.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processing circuitry:

determines transmission control criteria for the event data; and

transmits, based on the transmission control criteria, the event data via a communications network to a logic adaption computing platform that is external to the vehicle.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein a source of the vehicular drive parameter is an autonomy controller.

14. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processing circuitry:

classifies the type of anomaly as a vehicle anomaly associated with a malfunctioning component of the vehicle;

executes instructions to perform vehicle diagnostics to generate characterized vehicle anomaly data characterizing the vehicle anomaly; and

stores the characterized vehicle anomaly data.

15. A vehicle, comprising:

one or more control devices;

a vehicle controller that applies a vehicular drive parameter to one or more control devices of the vehicle to autonomously drive the vehicle coextensive with a path of travel; and

processing circuitry configured to:

monitor, in real-time and while the vehicle controller is controlling the one or more control devices according to the vehicular drive parameter to autonomously drive the vehicle along the path of travel, data representing a control input applied to the one or more control devices by a driver of the vehicle, wherein the control input applied to the one or more control devices by the driver and the vehicular drive parameter applied to the one or more control devices by the vehicle controller are for a same type of driving operation for the vehicle, and wherein the type of driving operation corresponds to vehicle steering, vehicle deceleration, or vehicle acceleration;

detect, during the monitoring, that a difference between a value of the control input as indicated by the monitored data and a value of the vehicular drive parameter exceeds a threshold;

determine, in response to detecting the difference, that an event has occurred, the event indicating that a type of anomaly has occurred along the path of travel that caused the driver to take an action that changed the value of the vehicular drive parameter to the value of the control input applied by the driver;

classify the type of anomaly as one of a behavior anomaly associated with driving behavior of the driver of the vehicle, an environmental anomaly associated with an environment of the vehicle that affects one or more performance characteristics of the vehicle, or a vehicle anomaly associated with a malfunctioning component of the vehicle; and

store event data about the event in memory, the event data including information that identifies the classified type of anomaly.

16. The vehicle of claim 15 , wherein the vehicular drive parameter comprises one or more of a degree of wheel angle, an amount of throttle, and an amount of brake pressure.

17. The vehicle of claim 15 , wherein the processing circuitry:

monitors sensor data signals originating at one or more sensors in the vehicle;

receives a subset of sensor data based on the sensor data signals;

identifies object characteristics associated with the subset of sensor data; and

classifies an object based on the identified object characteristics.

18. The vehicle of claim 15 , wherein the processing circuitry:

determines transmission control criteria for the event data; and

transmits, based on the transmission control criteria, the event data via a communications network to a logic adaption computing platform that is external to the vehicle.

19. The vehicle of claim 15 , further comprising:

an autonomy controller that computes the vehicular drive parameter.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 24, 2022
From: NIO USA, INC.
To: NIO TECHNOLOGY (ANHUI) CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 060171/0724 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jan 11, 2022
From: DELLA PENNA, MAURO
To: NIO USA, INC.
Reel/Frame 058615/0135 →
Continuity (2)
Continuation 15872555 · Jan 16, 2018
Related Publication 20210286359A1 · Sep 16, 2021
Cited By (1)
US 12,332,353