The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Aug. 13, 1996
Filed:
Apr. 06, 1992
Shigeki Ishikawa, Tokyo, JP;
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY (US);
Abstract
The present apparatus, control system, and method for navigating is used to navigate a mobile machine accurately along a traced path so that the machine avoids collisions with obstacles. Intermediate control outputs are generated not only in accordance with a signal indicative of a distance and angle from a path to be traced according to a navigation procedure for path tracing, but also in response to a signal related to the obstacle-free space ahead of the machine according to a navigation procedure for obstacle avoidance. Weighting coefficients respective for the two procedures are generated by fuzzy inference based on signals indicating the distance and angle from the predetermined path and signals related to the obstacle-free space ahead of the machine. Final control outputs are computed in accordance with the two intermediate outputs and the two weighting coefficients. Regardless of the number of obstacles a mobile machine comes across while moving along a path, and of whether or not they are moving, the mobile machine can avoid them reliably and smoothly.