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EP-4741588-A1 - VIRTUAL SAFETY BUBBLES FOR SAFE NAVIGATION OF CONSTRUCTION VEHICLES

EP4741588A1EP 4741588 A1EP4741588 A1EP 4741588A1EP-4741588-A1

Abstract

A control system deploys a virtual safety bubble for autonomous operation of a construction vehicle in a worksite. The control system obtains a work schedule for the construction vehicle to perform one construction action. The control system identifies one or more objects to be interacted with by the construction vehicle while performing the one construction action. The control system deploys a virtual safety bubble for the construction vehicle based on the one construction action. Breach of the virtual safety bubble triggers remedial actions; however, the virtual safety bubble permits breach by the one or more identified objects during the construction action. The control system detects breach of the virtual safety bubble by the one or more identified objects during the construction action. Responsive to the breach of the virtual safety bubble by the one or more identified objects during the construction action, the control system withholds the remedial actions.

Inventors

  • SRIPADAM, Maya Devi
  • CHAWLA, SUMIT
  • WARDEN, Grant
  • Ross, Charles McCauley
  • GOLDSTEIN, JACOB
  • OSTROWSKI, JAMES PATRICK
  • ELCANO, MICHAEL ALBERT

Assignees

  • Deere & Company

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20251112

Claims (15)

  1. A computer-implemented method for autonomous operation of a construction vehicle in a worksite, the computer-implemented method comprising: obtaining a work schedule for the construction vehicle to perform one construction action; identifying one or more objects to be interacted with by the construction vehicle while performing the one construction action; deploying a virtual safety bubble for the construction vehicle based on the one construction action, wherein breach of the virtual safety bubble triggers remedial actions, and wherein the virtual safety bubble permits breach by the one or more identified objects during the construction action; detecting breach of the virtual safety bubble by the one or more identified objects during the construction action; and responsive to the breach of the virtual safety bubble by the one or more identified objects during the construction action, withholding the remedial actions.
  2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein identifying the one or more objects to be interacted with by the construction vehicle comprises identifying a planned interaction between the construction vehicle and a second construction vehicle.
  3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein identifying the planned interaction between the construction vehicle and the second construction vehicle comprises: obtaining, at the construction vehicle, information on the second construction vehicle including a current position of the second construction vehicle, a schedule of construction actions for the second construction vehicle; and cross-referencing the schedule of the second construction vehicle and a schedule of the first construction vehicle to identify the planned interaction.
  4. The computer-implemented method of any one of claims 2-3, wherein identifying the planned interaction comprises: plotting a path of the first construction vehicle and a predicted path of the second construction vehicle to identify any spatiotemporal overlap as the planned interaction.
  5. The computer-implemented method of any one of claims 2-4, wherein deploying the virtual safety bubble comprises: merging, during the planned interaction, the virtual safety bubble of the first construction vehicle and a virtual safety bubble of the second construction vehicle to form a grouped bubble moderated by the first construction vehicle and the second construction vehicle.
  6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, further comprising: detecting a breach of the grouped bubble by an object that is not either the first construction vehicle or the second construction vehicle; and responsive to detecting the breach of the grouped bubble by the object, transmitting from the first construction vehicle a notification to the second construction vehicle to cause one or more remedial actions by the second construction vehicle.
  7. The computer-implemented method of any one of claims 1-6, further comprising: identifying one or more environmental effects predicted to occur following the one construction action; wherein deploying the virtual safety bubble for the construction vehicle is further based on the identified one or more environmental effects.
  8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein identifying the one or more environmental effects comprises: applying a physics-based model to the one or more objects being interacted with to predict the one or more environmental effects.
  9. A construction vehicle comprising: a computer processor; and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions for autonomous operation of the construction vehicle in a worksite, the instructions that, when executed by the computer processor, cause the computer processor to perform operations comprising: obtaining a work schedule for the construction vehicle to perform one construction action; identifying one or more objects to be interacted with by the construction vehicle while performing the one construction action; deploying a virtual safety bubble for the construction vehicle based on the one construction action, wherein breach of the virtual safety bubble triggers remedial actions, and wherein the virtual safety bubble permits breach by the one or more identified objects during the construction action; detecting breach of the virtual safety bubble by the one or more identified objects during the construction action; and responsive to the breach of the virtual safety bubble by the one or more identified objects during the construction action, withholding the remedial actions.
  10. The construction vehicle of claim 9, wherein identifying the one or more objects to be interacted with by the construction vehicle comprises identifying a planned interaction between the construction vehicle and a second construction vehicle.
  11. The construction vehicle of claim 10, wherein identifying the planned interaction between the construction vehicle and the second construction vehicle comprises: obtaining, at the construction vehicle, information on the second construction vehicle including a current position of the second construction vehicle, a schedule of construction actions for the second construction vehicle; and cross-referencing the schedule of the second construction vehicle and a schedule of the first construction vehicle to identify the planned interaction.
  12. The construction vehicle of any of claims 10-11, wherein identifying the planned interaction comprises: plotting a path of the first construction vehicle and a predicted path of the second construction vehicle to identify any spatiotemporal overlap as the planned interaction.
  13. The construction vehicle of any of claims 10-12, wherein deploying the virtual safety bubble comprises: merging, during the planned interaction, the virtual safety bubble of the first construction vehicle and a virtual safety bubble of the second construction vehicle to form a grouped bubble moderated by the first construction vehicle and the second construction vehicle.
  14. The construction vehicle of claim 13, further comprising: detecting a breach of the grouped bubble by an object that is not either the first construction vehicle or the second construction vehicle; and responsive to detecting the breach of the grouped bubble by the object, transmitting from the first construction vehicle a notification to the second construction vehicle to cause one or more remedial actions by the second construction vehicle.
  15. The construction vehicle of any of claims 10-14, further comprising: identifying one or more environmental effects predicted to occur following the one construction action; wherein deploying the virtual safety bubble for the construction vehicle is further based on the identified one or more environmental effects.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION The present application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/719,476 filed on November 12, 2024, which is incorporated by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD This disclosure generally relates to construction vehicles with autonomous navigation capabilities, i.e., autonomous construction vehicles. The autonomous construction vehicles are generally utilized in construction environments to perform different construction actions. BACKGROUND Construction vehicles generally outsize human operators and various other objects in their environment. With such bulk in size, such construction vehicles generally have difficulty gauging the proximity of objects to the construction vehicles. As such, operators must move slowly and with great care, especially in confined or dense environments. The challenge in navigating such environments is further compounded in the case with the automation of such construction vehicles. SUMMARY A construction vehicle is configured to generate and maintain a virtual safety bubble that enables the construction vehicle to autonomously perform construction actions in the environment safely. The construction vehicle is a navigable vehicle with at least a detection system and a control system, among other components for performing the construction actions. The detection system includes one or more detection mechanisms, e.g., cameras, for capturing image data of the surrounding environment. The detection system may have a 360-degree construction site of view, aggregated from the individual construction sites of view of the detection mechanisms. The control system, e.g., a general computing system, controls operation of the various components. To aid in the safe navigation of the construction vehicle, the control system may generate and maintain a virtual safety bubble based on a configuration of the construction vehicle. The control system may dynamically and automatically adjust the virtual safety bubble as the construction vehicle switches between different configurations and/or performs different actions. The control system detects when an obstacle breaches the virtual safety bubble. When an object is determined to have breached, i.e., is within the virtual safety bubble, the control system may terminate or cease operations, and/or may enact other preventive measures. Preventive measures include rerouting the construction vehicle around the obstacle, changing a configuration of the construction vehicle, requesting input from an operator or a manager, etc. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1A illustrates a construction vehicle with a bulldozing mechanism, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 1B illustrates a construction vehicle with an excavating mechanism, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 1C illustrates a construction vehicle with , in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of the system environment for the construction vehicle, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 3A illustrates a construction vehicle with one or more inherent blind spots based on the positioning of a plurality of detection mechanisms, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 3B illustrates a construction vehicle with one or more blind spots caused by components of the construction vehicle obstructing a partial view of the detection mechanism, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 4A illustrates a first virtual safety bubble around a construction vehicle, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 4B illustrates dynamically modifying the virtual safety bubble around a construction vehicle, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart of the method for dynamically modifying the virtual safety bubble during operation of the construction vehicle, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 6 illustrates a verification process of the detection systems of the construction vehicle, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 7 illustrates a notification that the construction vehicle is establishing the virtual safety bubble, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 8 illustrates a notification transmitted to a client device regarding a detected obstacle, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 9 illustrates actions the construction vehicle may implement when detecting an object in the virtual safety bubble, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 10 illustrates actions the construction vehicle may implement when detecting an object in the virtual safety bubble, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 11 illustrates a navigational workflow of construction vehicle, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 12 illustrates navigation of a construction vehicle on-path on a straight path, in accordance with one or more embodiments.FIG. 13 illustrates navigation of a construction vehicle off-path on