DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . This office action is in response to an application filed on 08/18/2025. The applicant does not submit an Information Disclosure Statement. The applicant does not make a claim to Domestic priority. The applicant makes a claim to Foreign priority to an application filed on 02/24/2025.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1 - 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maleki US 2022/0219691 in view of Humble US 2019/0376598.
As per claim 1, A control device for a vehicle, the control device comprising:
a plurality of processors comprising a first processor, a second processor, and a third processor; (Maleki paragraph 0087 discloses, “Embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented as instructions applied by a machine-readable medium, which may be read and executed by one or more processors.”) and
a memory storing at least one instruction, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the first processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to: (Maleki paragraph 0252 discloses, “ground vehicle control system can be implemented as computing device-executable instructions (e.g., computer program) that are stored in computing device-readable media (e.g., computer memory) and executed by a computing device (e.g., processor) on the ground vehicle.”)
based on a map of an area in which the vehicle is traveling, global positioning system (GPS) information associated with the vehicle, and a lateral acceleration of the vehicle, determine that the vehicle, which is traveling on a road with a curvature value above a threshold curvature value, is likely to depart from a driving lane in which the vehicle is traveling, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the second processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to: (Maleki paragraph 0202 discloses, “The driving environment sensors 604 can include, but not limited to, cameras, radar, inertial measurement units (IMU), global position systems (GPS), light detection and ranging (LIDAR), temperature sensors, dedicated short range communications (DSRC), and the like.” And paragraph 0215 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 602 can also include a vehicle lateral dynamics model 628, a transmission model 630, an engine model 632, a lead vehicle model 634, a road topology model 636 and or the like. In a road topology model 636, data from maps can be used to determine useful properties of a roadway, such as road curvature, road gradients, safe and legal speed limits, and the like.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 802 can be configured to determine an operation threshold such as a target speed window based on one or more of one or more ground vehicle operating parameters and one or more driving environment parameters.”)
based on at least one of: the lateral acceleration of the vehicle, a speed of the vehicle, a gear ratio of a transmission of the vehicle, or a rotational speed of the transmission of the vehicle, determine that driving control is required for the vehicle, and wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the first processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to: (Maleki paragraph 0230 discloses, “The transmission sensors 810 and transmission controllers 812 can include, but not limited to, shift lever position sensors, gear selection sensors, clutch pedal position sensors, Transmission Control Units (TCU), tachometers, temperature sensors, fluid level sensors, hydraulic controllers, servos, and the like. The transmission sensors 810 can for example provide vehicle operating parameters such as transmission RPM, torque, current gear, and the like.”)
control, based on the determining that the vehicle is likely to depart from the driving lane and the determining that the driving control is required, an autonomous driving operation of the vehicle by inhibiting upshifting in the transmission. (Humble paragraph 0023 teaches, “The vehicle transmission control unit has and utilizes access to (potential) trigger information about future estimated path characteristics, such as, for example, truck driver ahead (e.g., tractor trailer truck), slope of rode predefined time (e.g., 3 seconds) in future, sharpness of curve, stop light, etc., which can be based on GPS coordinates, maps, forward facing cameras, information from earlier vehicles on the same route/road, etc.”) and (Maleki paragraph 0200 discloses, “The predictive enhanced controller 602 can also be communicatively coupled to one or more transmission sensors 610, one or more transmission controllers 612, one or more brake sensors 614, one or more brake controllers 616, one or more steering sensors 618, one or more steering controllers 620, and or other similar sensors and controllers.” And paragraph 0238 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 820 can also control braking and steering to autonomously control operation of the ground vehicle in accordance with the determined target speed window and adaptive target vehicle performance plan.”)
Maleki discloses an automated cruise control system, method, and non-transitory computer readable medium. Maleki does not disclose potential future position of the vehicle leaving a lane. Humble teaches anticipating the future position of vehicle in various situations to include movement along a curve. Therefore, at the time of filing, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the teachings of Humble et.al. into the invention of Maleki. Such incorporation is motivated by the need to control a vehicle from leaving a lane creating a potential danger the surroundings environment and other vehicles.
As per claim 2, The control device of claim 1, wherein the map has a resolution that is above a threshold value or is associated with a navigation device. (Maleki paragraph 0215 discloses, “The maximum speed of driving can then be calculated using the curvature information obtained from a map. A cubic parameterized curve results in a representation of roads which is twice differentiable and is suitable for curvature estimation.” And paragraph 0145 discloses, “the 3D maps 315 in real-time may provide driving parameters such as but not limited to ascending grades of the segment of the roadway, descending grades of the segment of the roadway, curvature of the segment of the roadway, posted signage, maps of the segment of the roadway, terrain of the segment of the roadway, look ahead maps of the roadway beyond the segment of the roadway, landmarks associated with the segment of the roadway, posted speed limit signs, and/or any other type of driving parameter that is associated with the geometry and/or terrain of the segment of the roadway as the ground vehicle 110 operates in the driving environment that will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art(s) without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.” And paragraph 0122 discloses, “The driving parameters may also provide insight as to the current terrain that the ground vehicle 110 is operating such as the grade of the roadway, the map of the roadway, and so on. The driving parameters may include but are not limited to acceleration, deceleration, ground vehicle speed, wheel speed, road lane markings, position of external vehicles, position of the ground vehicle, maps, posted speed limits, upper limit and lower limits of the operating speed, 3D road map, roadway curvature,”)
As per claim 3, The control device of claim 1, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the first processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to determine that the vehicle is likely to depart from the driving lane by: determining that the lateral acceleration of the vehicle is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
As per claim 4, The control device of claim 1, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the second processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to determine that the driving control is required for thevehicle by: determining that the lateral acceleration of the vehicle is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
As per claim 5, The control device of claim 1, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the second processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to determine that the driving control is required for the vehicle by: determining that the speed of the vehicle is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
As per claim 6, The control device of claim 1, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the second processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to determine that the driving control is required for the vehicle by: determining that the rotational speed of the transmission is less than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0230 discloses, “The transmission sensors 810 and transmission controllers 812 can include, but not limited to, shift lever position sensors, gear selection sensors, clutch pedal position sensors, Transmission Control Units (TCU), tachometers, temperature sensors, fluid level sensors, hydraulic controllers, servos, and the like. The transmission sensors 810 can for example provide vehicle operating parameters such as transmission RPM, torque, current gear, and the like.”)
As per claim 7, The control device of claim 1, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the second processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to determine that the driving control is required for the vehicle by: determining that the gear ratio of the transmission is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0230 discloses, “The transmission sensors 810 and transmission controllers 812 can include, but not limited to, shift lever position sensors, gear selection sensors, clutch pedal position sensors, Transmission Control Units (TCU), tachometers, temperature sensors, fluid level sensors, hydraulic controllers, servos, and the like. The transmission sensors 810 can for example provide vehicle operating parameters such as transmission RPM, torque, current gear, and the like.” And paragraph 0200 discloses, “The predictive enhanced controller 602 can also be communicatively coupled to one or more transmission sensors 610, one or more transmission controllers 612, one or more brake sensors 614, one or more brake controllers 616, one or more steering sensors 618, one or more steering controllers 620, and or other similar sensors and controllers.” And paragraph 0238 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 820 can also control braking and steering to autonomously control operation of the ground vehicle in accordance with the determined target speed window and adaptive target vehicle performance plan.”)
As per claim 8, The control device of claim 1, wherein the at least one instruction is configured, when executed by the third processor communicating with the memory, to further cause the control device to: control, based on a predetermined condition being satisfied while upshifting in the transmission is inhibited, a second autonomous driving operation of the vehicle by allowing upshifting in the transmission. (Humble paragraph 0053 teaches, “The software application 320 of the transmission control unit 302 processes this trigger information of future estimated path characteristics in order to control the downshifting of the transmission 306 of the vehicle 300.”) and (Maleki paragraph 0215 discloses, “The retardation forces can include transmission retarding, downshifting, engine retarding and or the like. One method of calculating the maximum safe speed is to parameterize the roadway. After having a parameterized representation of the roadway, curvature values can be calculated by analytical differentiation. The maximum speed of driving can then be calculated using the curvature information obtained from a map.”)
Maleki discloses an automated cruise control system, method, and non-transitory computer readable medium. Maleki does not disclose potential future position of the vehicle leaving a lane. Humble teaches anticipating the future position of vehicle in various situations to include movement along a curve. Therefore, at the time of filing, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the teachings of Humble et.al. into the invention of Maleki. Such incorporation is motivated by the need to control a vehicle from leaving a lane creating a potential danger the surroundings environment and other vehicles.
As per claim 9, The control device of claim 8, wherein the predetermined condition comprises at least one of: the speed of the vehicle being greater than or equal to a threshold speed, the rotational speed of the transmission being greater than or equal to a threshold rotational speed, or a time to collision (TTC) between the vehicle and a target vehicle being less than or equal to a threshold time duration. (Maleki paragraph 435 discloses, “are desired time gap, minimum time gap and minimum time to collision between the vehicle and leading vehicle”)
As per claim 10, A method performed by an apparatus of a vehicle, the method comprising:
starting a cruise control operation of the vehicle; (Maleki paragraph 0378 discloses, “an Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) on/off button (not shown) is utilized by a user to start ACC.”)
determining that the vehicle is traveling on a high-curvature road having a curvature value above a threshold curvature value; (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
determining, by an autonomous driving controller of the apparatus and based on a determination that the vehicle is traveling on the high-curvature road, that the vehicle is likely to depart from a driving lane in which the vehicle is traveling; (Humble paragraph 0023 teaches, “The vehicle transmission control unit has and utilizes access to (potential) trigger information about future estimated path characteristics, such as, for example, truck driver ahead (e.g., tractor trailer truck), slope of rode predefined time (e.g., 3 seconds) in future, sharpness of curve, stop light, etc., which can be based on GPS coordinates, maps, forward facing cameras, information from earlier vehicles on the same route/road, etc.”) and (Maleki paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
determining, based on a determination that the vehicle is likely to depart from the driving lane, that driving control is required for the vehicle; (Humble paragraph 0023 teaches, “The vehicle transmission control unit has and utilizes access to (potential) trigger information about future estimated path characteristics, such as, for example, truck driver ahead (e.g., tractor trailer truck), slope of rode predefined time (e.g., 3 seconds) in future, sharpness of curve, stop light, etc., which can be based on GPS coordinates, maps, forward facing cameras, information from earlier vehicles on the same route/road, etc.”) and
controlling, based on a determination that the driving control is required for the vehicle, an autonomous driving operation of the vehicle by inhibiting upshifting in a transmission of the vehicle. (Maleki paragraph 0200 discloses, “The predictive enhanced controller 602 can also be communicatively coupled to one or more transmission sensors 610, one or more transmission controllers 612, one or more brake sensors 614, one or more brake controllers 616, one or more steering sensors 618, one or more steering controllers 620, and or other similar sensors and controllers.” And paragraph 0238 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 820 can also control braking and steering to autonomously control operation of the ground vehicle in accordance with the determined target speed window and adaptive target vehicle performance plan.”)
Maleki discloses an automated cruise control system, method, and non-transitory computer readable medium. Maleki does not disclose potential future position of the vehicle leaving a lane. Humble teaches anticipating the future position of vehicle in various situations to include movement along a curve. Therefore, at the time of filing, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the teachings of Humble et.al. into the invention of Maleki. Such incorporation is motivated by the need to control a vehicle from leaving a lane creating a potential danger the surroundings environment and other vehicles.
As per claim 11, The method of claim 10, wherein the determining that the vehicle is traveling on the high-curvature road comprises: determining that the vehicle is traveling on the high- curvature road based on a map, wherein the map has a resolution that is above a threshold value or is associated with a navigation device. (Maleki paragraph 0215 discloses, “The maximum speed of driving can then be calculated using the curvature information obtained from a map. A cubic parameterized curve results in a representation of roads which is twice differentiable and is suitable for curvature estimation.” And paragraph 0145 discloses, “the 3D maps 315 in real-time may provide driving parameters such as but not limited to ascending grades of the segment of the roadway, descending grades of the segment of the roadway, curvature of the segment of the roadway, posted signage, maps of the segment of the roadway, terrain of the segment of the roadway, look ahead maps of the roadway beyond the segment of the roadway, landmarks associated with the segment of the roadway, posted speed limit signs, and/or any other type of driving parameter that is associated with the geometry and/or terrain of the segment of the roadway as the ground vehicle 110 operates in the driving environment that will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art(s) without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.” And paragraph 0122 discloses, “The driving parameters may also provide insight as to the current terrain that the ground vehicle 110 is operating such as the grade of the roadway, the map of the roadway, and so on. The driving parameters may include but are not limited to acceleration, deceleration, ground vehicle speed, wheel speed, road lane markings, position of external vehicles, position of the ground vehicle, maps, posted speed limits, upper limit and lower limits of the operating speed, 3D road map, roadway curvature,”)
As per claim 12, The method of claim 10, wherein the determining that the vehicle is likely to depart from the driving lane comprises: determining that a lateral acceleration of the vehicle is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
As per claim 13, The method of claim 10, wherein the determining that the driving control is required for the vehicle comprises: determining that the driving control is required for the vehicle based on at least one of: a lateral acceleration of the vehicle, a speed of the vehicle, a rotational speed of the transmission, or a gear ratio of the transmission. (Maleki paragraph 0230 discloses, “The transmission sensors 810 and transmission controllers 812 can include, but not limited to, shift lever position sensors, gear selection sensors, clutch pedal position sensors, Transmission Control Units (TCU), tachometers, temperature sensors, fluid level sensors, hydraulic controllers, servos, and the like. The transmission sensors 810 can for example provide vehicle operating parameters such as transmission RPM, torque, current gear, and the like.”)
As per claim 14, The method of claim 10, wherein the determining that the driving control is required for the vehicle comprises: determining that a lateral acceleration of the vehicle is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
As per claim 15, The method of claim 10, wherein the determining that the driving control is required for the vehicle comprises: determining that a speed of the vehicle is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
As per claim 16, The method of claim 10, wherein the determining that the driving control is required for the vehicle comprises: determining that a rotational speed of the transmission is less than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0203 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”)
As per claim 17, The method of claim 10, wherein the determining that the driving control is required for the vehicle comprises: determining that a gear ratio of the transmission is greater than or equal to a threshold value. (Maleki paragraph 0230 discloses, “The transmission sensors 810 and transmission controllers 812 can include, but not limited to, shift lever position sensors, gear selection sensors, clutch pedal position sensors, Transmission Control Units (TCU), tachometers, temperature sensors, fluid level sensors, hydraulic controllers, servos, and the like. The transmission sensors 810 can for example provide vehicle operating parameters such as transmission RPM, torque, current gear, and the like.” And paragraph 0200 discloses, “The predictive enhanced controller 602 can also be communicatively coupled to one or more transmission sensors 610, one or more transmission controllers 612, one or more brake sensors 614, one or more brake controllers 616, one or more steering sensors 618, one or more steering controllers 620, and or other similar sensors and controllers.” And paragraph 0238 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 820 can also control braking and steering to autonomously control operation of the ground vehicle in accordance with the determined target speed window and adaptive target vehicle performance plan.” )
As per claim 18, The method of claim 10, further comprising: controlling, based on a predetermined condition being satisfied while upshifting in the transmission is inhibited, a second autonomous driving operation of the vehicle by allowing upshifting in the transmission. (Humble paragraph 0053 teaches, “The software application 320 of the transmission control unit 302 processes this trigger information of future estimated path characteristics in order to control the downshifting of the transmission 306 of the vehicle 300.”) and (Maleki paragraph 0215 discloses, “The retardation forces can include transmission retarding, downshifting, engine retarding and or the like. One method of calculating the maximum safe speed is to parameterize the roadway. After having a parameterized representation of the roadway, curvature values can be calculated by analytical differentiation. The maximum speed of driving can then be calculated using the curvature information obtained from a map.”)
Maleki discloses an automated cruise control system, method, and non-transitory computer readable medium. Maleki does not disclose potential future position of the vehicle leaving a lane. Humble teaches anticipating the future position of vehicle in various situations to include movement along a curve. Therefore, at the time of filing, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the teachings of Humble et.al. into the invention of Maleki. Such incorporation is motivated by the need to control a vehicle from leaving a lane creating a potential danger the surroundings environment and other vehicles.
As per claim 19, The method of claim 18, wherein the predetermined condition comprises at least one of: a speed of the vehicle being greater than or equal to a threshold speed, a rotational speed of the transmission being greater than or equal to a threshold rotational speed, or a time to collision (TTC) between the vehicle and a target vehicle being less than or equal to a threshold time duration. (Maleki paragraph 435 discloses, “are desired time gap, minimum time gap and minimum time to collision between the vehicle and leading vehicle”)
As per claim 20, A control device for a vehicle, the control device comprising:
at least one sensor comprising an inertial measurement sensor and a camera; (Maleki paragraph 0202 discloses, “The driving environment sensors 604 can include, but not limited to, cameras, radar, inertial measurement units (IMU), global position systems (GPS), light detection and ranging (LIDAR), temperature sensors, dedicated short range communications (DSRC), and the like. The driving environment sensors 604 can for example provide driving environment parameters such as road surface condition, road width, lane markings, traffic control devices, traffic conditions, line of sight, visibility, lighting, current weather, location, and the like.”)
a processor; (Maleki paragraph 0087 discloses, “Embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented as instructions applied by a machine-readable medium, which may be read and executed by one or more processors.”) and
a memory storing at least one instruction that is configured, when executed by the processor communicating with the memory, to cause the control device to: (Maleki paragraph 0252 discloses, “ground vehicle control system can be implemented as computing device-executable instructions (e.g., computer program) that are stored in computing device-readable media (e.g., computer memory) and executed by a computing device (e.g., processor) on the ground vehicle.”)
start a cruise control operation of the vehicle; (Maleki paragraph 0378 discloses, “an Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) on/off button (not shown) is utilized by a user to start ACC.”)
determine, based on measurements of the inertial measurement sensor and at least one image captured by the camera, that the vehicle is traveling on a high-curvature road having a curvature value above a threshold curvature value; (Maleki paragraph 0202 discloses, “The driving environment sensors 604 can include, but not limited to, cameras, radar, inertial measurement units (IMU), global position systems (GPS), light detection and ranging (LIDAR), temperature sensors, dedicated short range communications (DSRC), and the like. The driving environment sensors 604 can for example provide driving environment parameters such as road surface condition, road width, lane markings, traffic control devices, traffic conditions, line of sight, visibility, lighting, current weather, location, and the like.”)
during an autonomous driving operation of the vehicle, determine, based on a determination that the vehicle is traveling on the high-curvature road, that the vehicle is likely to depart from a driving lane in which the vehicle is traveling; (Maleki paragraph 0215 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 602 can also include a vehicle lateral dynamics model 628, a transmission model 630, an engine model 632, a lead vehicle model 634, a road topology model 636 and or the like. In a road topology model 636, data from maps can be used to determine useful properties of a roadway, such as road curvature, road gradients, safe and legal speed limits, and the like.” And paragraph 0231 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 802 can be configured to determine an operation threshold such as a target speed window based on one or more of one or more ground vehicle operating parameters and one or more driving environment parameters.”)
determine, based on a determination that the vehicle is likely to depart from the driving lane, that driving control is required for the vehicle; (Humble paragraph 0023 teaches, “The vehicle transmission control unit has and utilizes access to (potential) trigger information about future estimated path characteristics, such as, for example, truck driver ahead (e.g., tractor trailer truck), slope of rode predefined time (e.g., 3 seconds) in future, sharpness of curve, stop light, etc., which can be based on GPS coordinates, maps, forward facing cameras, information from earlier vehicles on the same route/road, etc.”) and (Maleki paragraph 0231 discloses, “A maximum speed can also be determined based on road curvature and safe lateral acceleration. An operator, such as the company operating the vehicle, may specify a maximum operating speed. The one or more different specified and or determined speeds can be combined to generate a target speed window.”) and
control, based on a determination that the driving control is required for the vehicle, an autonomous driving operation of the vehicle by inhibiting upshifting in a transmission of the vehicle. (Maleki paragraph 0200 discloses, “The predictive enhanced controller 602 can also be communicatively coupled to one or more transmission sensors 610, one or more transmission controllers 612, one or more brake sensors 614, one or more brake controllers 616, one or more steering sensors 618, one or more steering controllers 620, and or other similar sensors and controllers.” And paragraph 0238 discloses, “The predictive enhanced cruise controller 820 can also control braking and steering to autonomously control operation of the ground vehicle in accordance with the determined target speed window and adaptive target vehicle performance plan.”)
Maleki discloses an automated cruise control system, method, and non-transitory computer readable medium. Maleki does not disclose potential future position of the vehicle leaving a lane. Humble teaches anticipating the future position of vehicle in various situations to include movement along a curve. Therefore, at the time of filing, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the teachings of Humble et.al. into the invention of Maleki. Such incorporation is motivated by the need to control a vehicle from leaving a lane creating a potential danger the surroundings environment and other vehicles.
Conclusion
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/TYLER D PAIGE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3664
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