Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

University of Michigan

Nec Corporation

US Government As Represented by the Secretary of the Army

Ford Motor Company Limited

Shankar Narayan Mohan

Anthony Mario D'Amato

Meghna Menon

John Ottavio Michelini

Mario Anthony Santillo

Gregory P Linkowski

Kenneth Yesh

Steven Joseph Szwabowski

Anna G Stefanopoulou

Jason Benjamin Siegel

Youngki Kim

Steven Schuchard

Ratnesh Kumar Sharma

Dimitar Petrov Filev

Hongtei Eric Tseng

Raj Sohmshetty

Yan Wang

Yi Ding

Ali Hooshmand

Justin Miller

Ling Zhu

Wesley G Zanardelli

Ryan Lee Baker

Arpan Kusari

Seyyed Ali Pourmousavi Kani

Matthew Cui

Sarah Garrow

Leda Daehler

Subramanya Nageshrao

Christopher Short

Mark Goderis

Christopher Cruise

Marty Smets

Sonya Zanardelli

Songan Zhang

Ansar Zunnoon Khan

A method for surveying an environment includes segmenting a plurality of nodes into a plurality of communities. The method includes identifying a plurality of community centroids based on the plurality of communities, where each community centroid from among the plurality of community centroids is associated with one community from among the plurality of communities. The method includes determining, for each community centroid from among the plurality of community centroids, a community type of the community centroid, where the community type is one of a primary type and an auxiliary type, and where the community type is based on a distance between the community centroid and one or more charging stations. The method includes generating a plurality of intercommunity routes based on the plurality of community centroids, the one or more charging stations, the community type, and one or more performance constraints.

Systems and methods for surveying a manufacturing environment

A method for calibrating a map of an autonomous robot, a trajectory of the autonomous robot, or a combination thereof includes obtaining localization data from a localization sensor of the autonomous robot and determining whether a calibration condition of the autonomous robot is satisfied based on the localization data. The method includes, in response to the calibration condition being satisfied: determining a master position coordinate of the autonomous robot based on a plurality of radio frequency (RF) signals broadcasted by a plurality of RF tags, converting the master position coordinate to a local position coordinate of the autonomous robot, and selectively updating the map, the trajectory, or a combination thereof based on the local position coordinate of the autonomous robot.

Systems and methods for calibrating a map of an autonomous robot

A system for reconfiguring a factory having equipment at different workstations throughout the factory and a plurality of sensors disposed throughout the factory includes a factory configuration module configured to store a plurality of predetermined factory configurations and a plurality of mobile transporters configured to engage and transport the equipment to the different workstations throughout the factory based on the predetermined factory configurations and dynamic inputs, where the dynamic inputs include a status of the equipment, a status of the plurality of mobile transporters, sensor data output by the plurality of sensors, or a combination thereof.

Deployable mobile transporters for easy plant reconfiguration

A survey system includes a controller storing a map comprising a plurality of nodes representing data capture points of the environment. The controller is configured to segment the plurality of nodes into a plurality of communities, where each community from among the plurality of communities includes a set of nodes from among the plurality of nodes. The controller is configured to generate, for each community from among the plurality of communities, one or more traversability scores. The controller is configured to assign, for each community from among the plurality of communities, at least one robot from among a plurality of robots to survey the community based on the one or more traversability scores. The controller is configured to deploy, for each community from among the plurality of communities, at least one of the plurality of robots based on the plurality of robots assigned to the community.

There is disclosed an electrical device and a method in which a battery is warmed up when operating from a sub-zero temperature. The electrical device may include a battery; an electrical storage element; and a battery management system including a controller in electrical communication with the battery and the electrical storage element. The controller can be configured to execute a program stored in the controller to shuttle energy between the battery and the electrical storage element until a power capability threshold of the battery has been reached, Shuttling the energy raises a temperature of the battery to meet power demand.

Energy conscious warm-up of lithium-ion cells from sub-zero temperatures

A system includes a robotic system including a robot disposable at a mobile workstation, where the robot is configured to perform an automated operation on a workpiece. The system includes one or more transfer robots configured to transfer the robotic system to or from the mobile workstation. The system includes a control system configured to command the transfer robot to perform a transfer operation of the robotic system, where the transfer operation includes at least one of disposing the robotic system at the mobile workstation or retrieving the robotic system from the mobile workstation. The control system is configured to control the mobile workstation and the robotic system based on image data from the one or more infrastructure sensors, position data from the one or more on-board position sensors, the automated operation to be performed by the robot, or a combination thereof.

Method and system for operating a transfer robot in a manufacturing environment

A system and method for reconfiguring a factory having equipment at different workstations throughout the factory includes a plurality of mobile transporters configured to engage and transport the equipment to the different workstations throughout the factory. Each mobile transporter includes a transmitter, a receiver, at least one proximity sensor, and an engagement mechanism for engaging the equipment. A factory configuration module includes a 3D model of the factory and a plurality of predetermined factory configurations. A supervisory control module is in communication with the plurality of mobile transporters, the equipment, and the factory configuration module. The plurality of mobile transporters are configured to receive instructions from the supervisory control module to engage and reposition the equipment throughout the factory based on the predetermined factory configurations and dynamic inputs.

A system includes a computer that includes a processor and a memory storing instructions executable by the processor to decompose a stored map of an area into a plurality of polygonal sub-areas. The instructions include instructions to generate a set of target locations in the polygonal sub-areas according to a leaky ball algorithm. The instructions include instructions to actuate a robot to move to a first one of the target locations of the set. The instructions include instructions to actuate a sensor to collect data at the first one of the target locations.

Digital model rectification with sensing robot

A system including a computer that includes a processor and a memory storing instructions executable by the processor to determine a location in a defined area according to coordinates on a map. The instructions include instructions to actuate a robot to move to the location. The instructions include instructions to identify an object specified in a digital model of the area, stored at a remote server, to be at the coordinates for the location. The instructions include instructions to actuate a sensor on the robot to collect data at the location. The instructions include instructions to update the object in the digital model based on the collected data.

Digital model rectification

Methods and systems are provided for cruise control velocity tracking. In one example, the method or system may generate a torque command output via a velocity controller that allows for an error within bounds to reduce a fuel consumption amount, the torque command output selected from outcomes of a leader and follower game.

Methods and systems for cruise control velocity tracking

The present disclosure is directed toward, a method that includes receiving a travel path for a robot in a facility, selecting one or more target projectors disposed along the travel path, and displaying, by the one or more target projectors, one or more visual markers along the travel path of the robot to communicate an intended movement of the robot. The one or more target projectors are selected from among a plurality of projectors disposed in the facility.

Intent communication for automated guided vehicles

Methods and systems are provided for controlling vehicle torque output during cruise control. In one example, a method may include determining future vehicle torque output by minimizing an objective function based on an instantaneous vehicle speed, an average vehicle speed, and a present vehicle torque output. The weights of the objective function may be updated based on the past and the present vehicle operating parameters.

Methods and systems for cruise control

A computing system can determine a vehicle action based on inputting vehicle sensor data to a first neural network including a first safety agent that can determine a probability of unsafe vehicle operation. The first neural network can be adapted, at a plurality of times, by a periodically retrained deep reinforcement learning agent that includes a second deep neural network including a second safety agent. A vehicle can be operated based on the vehicle action.

Vehicle adaptive learning

An object exterior to a vehicle can be detected, and an augmented image of the detected object can be output to a vehicle display device, wherein at least one of dimensions and a motion of the augmented image is adjusted based on an environmental condition and physical attribute of the detected object including at least one of a speed, an acceleration, a location, and a direction of the detected object.

Vehicle display with augmented realty

A system and method are provided. The system includes a processor. The processor is configured to receive power related data relating to power usage of power consuming devices at a customer site from a plurality of sources. The processor is further configured to generate object function inputs from the power related data. The processor is additionally configured to apply the generated object function inputs to an objective function to determine an optimal capacity for a battery storage system powering the power consuming devices at the customer site while minimizing a daily operational power cost for the power consuming devices at the customer site. The processor is also configured to initiate an act to control use of one or more batteries of the battery storage system in accordance with the optimal capacity for the battery storage system.

Growing community of inventors

Ann Arbor, MI, United States of America

Shankar Narayan Mohan