OPERATION MANAGEMENT APPARATUS

Organization Name

Inventor(s)

Ibuki Shimada of Miyoshi-shi Aichi-ken (JP)

OPERATION MANAGEMENT APPARATUS - A simplified explanation of the abstract

This abstract first appeared for US patent application 18488270 titled 'OPERATION MANAGEMENT APPARATUS

Simplified Explanation

The operation management apparatus described in the patent application operates vehicles through automated driving and includes a controller that predicts the time at which driving should switch from automated to manual mode for each vehicle. The controller also identifies vehicles that are nearing this time, acquires data on the vehicles and their operations, determines any abnormalities in the vehicles, assigns a worker to perform maintenance on the identified vehicle, and notifies the worker of the issue.

Predictive maintenance system for automated vehicles:

   - The apparatus predicts the time for switching from automated to manual driving for each vehicle based on operation plan data.
   - It identifies vehicles that are close to this predicted time and acquires data to determine any abnormalities in the vehicles.
   - A worker is designated to perform maintenance on the identified vehicle based on the type of abnormality detected.

Potential Applications:

Fleet management systems
Autonomous vehicle maintenance systems

Problems Solved:

Efficient maintenance scheduling for automated vehicles
Timely identification and resolution of abnormalities in vehicles

Benefits:

Improved vehicle performance and safety
Reduced downtime for maintenance
Optimized maintenance operations

Potential Commercial Applications: Predictive Maintenance System for Automated Vehicles

Possible Prior Art: There are existing predictive maintenance systems for various types of machinery and equipment, but specific applications for automated vehicles may be less common.

Unanswered Questions: 1. How does the apparatus prioritize maintenance tasks for multiple vehicles with different types of abnormalities? 2. What measures are in place to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the predictive maintenance predictions for each vehicle?

Original Abstract Submitted

An operation management apparatus operates one or more vehicles by automated driving. The operation management apparatus includes a controller configured to predict, for each vehicle based on operation plan data, a time point at which driving is switched from automated driving to manual driving, identify, as a target vehicle, a vehicle for which time until the predicted time point is less than a threshold value, acquire vehicle data and/or operation record data, determine, based on the acquired vehicle data or the acquired operation record data, one or more types of abnormality having occurred in the target vehicle, designate, from among a plurality of workers according to the determined types of abnormality, a first worker who is to perform a maintenance operation on the target vehicle at a site near the target vehicle, and notify the first worker of information that prompts the first worker to take care of the abnormality.

18488270. OPERATION MANAGEMENT APPARATUS simplified abstract (TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA)

Contents

OPERATION MANAGEMENT APPARATUS

Organization Name

Inventor(s)