IP Library Granted Patent US 12,598,231
Granted Patent B2
US 12,598,231 · App. 17/991,675 · Granted Apr 7, 2026

Mobile offloading for disconnected terminal operation

Inventors: Michel H.J. Laverne (Pittsburgh, PA); Sean Williams (Pittsburgh, PA); Matthew Puchalski (Pittsburgh, PA)
Assignee: VOLKSWAGEN GROUP OF AMERICA INVESTMENTS, LLC
H04L67/1097H04W4/023H04W4/44
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,598,231
App. No.
17/991,675
Granted
Apr 7, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

Disclosed herein are system, method, and computer program product embodiments for a mobile offload station for disconnected terminal operation. For example, the method includes deploying at least one autonomous vehicle (AV) to within a predetermined proximity of a mobile offload station responsive to log data stored on a data storage device onboard the AV exceeding a data storage threshold. The method further includes establishing, by the at least one AV, a data communication link with the mobile offload station responsive to entry into the predetermined proximity. The method further includes transmitting, by the at least one AV, to a storage device onboard the mobile offload station, at least a portion of the log data via the data communication link.

Claims (34)

1 . A computer-implemented method, comprising:

monitoring, by one or more computing devices, a status parameter corresponding to an autonomous vehicle (AV) to determine whether the AV is operating outside its nominal range of operation, and for the AV operating outside its nominal range of operation, a logged data on a data storage device onboard the AV to determine whether the data storage device has exceeded a data storage threshold;

deploying, by the one or more computing devices, a mobile offload station to a proximate distance of the AV based on detecting that the logged data has exceeded the data storage threshold;

instructing, by the one or more computing devices, the mobile offload station to ingest the logged data from the AV upon the mobile offload station entering the proximate distance to the AV; and

receiving, by the one or more computing devices, the logged data from the mobile offload station after completion of ingestion of the logged data by the mobile offload station.

2 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the mobile offload station is a further AV.

3 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the mobile offload station is a non-autonomous vehicle.

4 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising determining, by the one or more computing devices, the data storage threshold based on a level of significance of the logged data.

5 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising deploying, by the one or more computing devices, the AV to the proximate distance of the mobile offload station upon detecting that the data storage device has exceeded the data storage threshold.

6 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising offloading, by the one or more computing devices, the logged data onto a cloud infrastructure for further processing upon receiving the logged data from the mobile offload station.

7 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising determining, by the one or more computing devices, the proximate distance based a rendezvous point chosen such that a cumulative metric of travel times of the AV and the mobile offload station are minimized.

8 . A computing system, comprising:

a memory to store instructions; and

at least one processor coupled to the memory and configured to process the stored instructions to perform operations comprising:

monitor a status parameter corresponding to an autonomous vehicle (AV) to determine whether the AV is operating outside its nominal range of operation, and for the AV operating outside its nominal range of operation, a logged data on a data storage device onboard the AV to determine whether the data storage device has exceeded a data storage threshold;

deploy a mobile offload station to a proximate distance of the AV based on detecting that the logged data has exceeded the data storage threshold;

instruct the mobile offload station to ingest the logged data from the AV upon the mobile offload station entering the proximate distance to the AV; and

receive the logged data from the mobile offload station after completion of ingestion of the logged data by the mobile offload station.

9 . The computing system of claim 8 , wherein the mobile offload station is a further AV.

10 . The computing system of claim 8 , wherein the mobile offload station is a non-autonomous vehicle.

11 . The computing system of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine the data storage threshold based on a level of significance of the logged data.

12 . The computing system of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to deploy the AV to the proximate distance of the mobile offload station upon detecting that the data storage device has exceeded the data storage threshold.

13 . The computing system of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to offload the logged data onto a cloud infrastructure for further processing upon receiving the logged data from the mobile offload station.

14 . The computing system of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine the proximate distance based a rendezvous point chosen such that a cumulative metric of travel times of the AV and the mobile offload station are minimized.

15 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by at least one processor of a computing system, cause the at least one processor to perform operations comprising:

monitoring a status parameter corresponding to an autonomous vehicle (AV) to determine whether the AV is operating outside its nominal range of operation, and for the AV operating outside its nominal range of operation, a logged data on a data storage device onboard the AV to determine whether the data storage device has exceeded a data storage threshold;

deploying a mobile offload station to a proximate distance of the AV based on detecting that the logged data has exceeded the data storage threshold;

instructing the mobile offload station to ingest the logged data from the AV upon the mobile offload station entering the proximate distance to the AV; and

receiving the logged data from the mobile offload station after completion of ingestion of the logged data by the mobile offload station.

16 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the mobile offload station is a further AV.

17 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the mobile offload station is a non-autonomous vehicle.

18 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the operations further comprise determining the data storage threshold based on a level of significance of the logged data.

19 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the operations further comprise deploying the AV to the proximate distance of the mobile offload station upon detecting that the data storage device has exceeded the data storage threshold.

20 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the operations further comprise determining the proximate distance based a rendezvous point chosen such that a cumulative metric of travel times of the AV and the mobile offload station are minimized.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Oct 7, 2024
From: ARGO AI, LLC
To: VOLKSWAGEN GROUP OF AMERICA INVESTMENTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 069113/0265 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 23, 2022
From: LAVERNE, MICHEL H.J.; WILLIAMS, SEAN; PUCHALSKI, MATTHEW
To: ARGO AI, LLC
Reel/Frame 061867/0902 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20240171633A1 · May 23, 2024
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