Park attraction with collaborative passenger control of holonomic vehicles

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11294378-B2
Application number	US-201815940390-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 29, 2018
Priority date	Mar 29, 2018
Publication date	Apr 5, 2022
Grant date	Apr 5, 2022

Abstract

A system for use in a park attraction to provide collaborative driving experiences. The system includes a vehicle including a body with passenger seats, including a user input assembly proximate to each of the passenger seats, and further including a holonomic drive system adapted to move the body in any direction while riding on a driving surface of the park attraction. The system also includes a system controller (running an attraction/game control module) that operates to: (a) receive user input from each of the user input assemblies; (b) process the user input from each of the user input assemblies to generate a control vector associated with each of the user input assemblies; (c) combine the control vectors from all of the user input assemblies to generate a resultant vector; (d) generate a drive control signal from the resultant vector; and (e) transmit the drive control signal to the vehicle.

First claim

We claim:

1. A system for use in a park attraction that provides a collaborative driving experience, comprising:
a vehicle including a body with a plurality of passenger seats, including a user input assembly proximate to each of the passenger seats, and further including a holonomic drive system adapted to move the body in any direction while riding on a driving surface of the park attraction; and
a system controller operating to:
receive user input from each of the user input assemblies;
process the user input from each of the user input assemblies to generate a control vector associated with each of the user input assemblies;
combine the control vectors from all of the user input assemblies to generate a resultant vector;
generate a drive control signal from the resultant vector; and
transmit the drive control signal to the vehicle,

wherein the holonomic drive system operates in response to the drive control signal to move on the driving surface of the park attraction.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control vectors each define a direction of travel on the driving surface and a magnitude of acceleration.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the body includes four of the passenger seats and wherein the direction of travel for a pair of adjacent ones of the user input assemblies are offset at an angular offset of 90 degrees.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the passenger seats have seat backs oriented such that a passenger seated in any of the passenger seats faces inward toward a vertical center axis of the body of the vehicle.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the direction of travel for each of the control vectors is orthogonal to a vertical plane extending through one of the seat backs and extends inward toward the vertical center axis of the body of the vehicle, whereby the direction of travel is in a direction corresponding to a direction a passenger in one of the passenger seats is facing.

6. The system of claim 2 , wherein a fuel or power level value is assigned to each of the user assemblies and wherein the processing of the user input from each of the user input assemblies comprises multiplying the magnitude of acceleration by the fuel or power level value.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control vectors are combined by the system controller using a 2D vector summation.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein each of the user input assemblies includes a drive control element that is operable by a passenger of the vehicle to be in a first operating state and in a second operating state and wherein the user input provided when the drive control element is in the first operating state corresponds with full thrust by a virtual thruster or drive associated with and operable by the passenger to move the vehicle in a direction matching a direction in which the passenger is presently facing in one of the passenger seats.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the system controller, before generating the drive control signal, modifies the resultant vector based upon operating parameters of the vehicle, based upon game play data for the park attraction, or based on detection of an upcoming collision with an obstacle or other vehicle.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the holonomic drive system comprises an omni wheel-based drive.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the vehicle comprises four to eight of the passenger seats.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the vehicle includes eight of the passenger seats and wherein the system controller processes the user input from four predefined pairs of the user input assemblies to generate the resultant vector when the four predefined pairs each faces inward along one of the cardinal axes or each of the passenger seats faces inward along axes offset by 45 degrees.

13. A system for use in a park attraction that provides a collaborative driving experience, comprising:
a vehicle including a body with a plurality of passenger seats, including a user input assembly proximate to each of the passenger seats, and further including a holonomic drive system adapted to move the body in any direction while riding on a driving surface of the park attraction; and
a system controller running a control module that:
processes user input from each of the user input assemblies to generate a control vector for each of the user input assemblies;
combines the control vectors from the user input assemblies to generate a resultant vector;
generates a drive control signal from the resultant vector; and
transmits the drive control signal to the vehicle to operate the holonomic drive,

wherein the system controller, before generating the drive control signal, modifies the resultant vector based upon operating parameters of the vehicle, based upon game play data for the park attraction, or based on detection of an upcoming collision with an obstacle or other vehicle.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the control vectors each define a direction of travel on the driving surface and a magnitude of acceleration or velocity.

15. The system of claim 13 , wherein the body includes four of the passenger seats, wherein the direction of travel for a pair of adjacent ones of the user input assemblies are offset at an angular offset of 90 degrees, and wherein the passenger seats have seat backs oriented such that a passenger seated in any of the passenger seats faces inward toward a vertical center axis of the body of the vehicle.

16. The system of claim 14 , wherein a fuel or power level value is assigned to each of the user assemblies and wherein the processing of the user input from each of the user input assemblies comprises multiplying the magnitude of acceleration or velocity by the fuel or power level value.

17. The system of claim 13 , wherein the control vectors are combined by the system controller using a 2D vector summation.

18. A system for use in a park attraction that provides a collaborative driving experience, comprising:
a vehicle including a body including a plurality of user input assemblies and a drive system adapted to move the body about the park attraction; and
a system controller operating to:
receive user input from each of the user input assemblies;
process the user input from each of the user input assemblies to generate a drive control signal; and
transmit the drive control signal to the vehicle,

wherein the drive system operates in response to the drive control signal to travel within the park attraction,
wherein a fuel or power level value is assigned to each of the user assemblies, and
wherein the processing of the user input from each of the user input assemblies comprises multiplying a predefined magnitude of acceleration or velocity by the fuel or power level value.

19. The system of claim 18 , wherein the plurality of user input assemblies are each operable to initiate acceleration or velocity at a magnitude along a different direction of travel for the vehicle.

20. The system of claim 19 , wherein the body includes a passenger seat facing and proximate to each of the user input assemblies and wherein the direction of travel associated with each of the user input assemblies corresponds to a direction a corresponding one of the passenger seats is facing in the vehicle.

21. A system for use in a park attraction that provides a collaborative driving experience, comprising:
a vehicle including a body with a plurality of passenger seats, including a user input assembly proximate to each of the passenger seats, and further inclu

Assignees

• Disney Entpr Inc

Inventors

• Ilardi Michael J
• Mezzatesta Iii Frank D
• Becker Jonathan Michael
• Dill Dawson Mcleod
• Sciaraffa Luke Andrew
• Hager Iv Joseph George
• Hogue Jr William Bennett

Classifications

• A63G31/02

  with moving substructures · CPC title

• B60N2/01

  Arrangement of seats relative to one another · CPC title

• B62D15/00

  Steering not otherwise provided for · CPC title

• A63G25/00 Primary

  Autocar-like self-drivers; Runways therefor · CPC title

• G05D1/0212 Primary

  with means for defining a desired trajectory (involving a plurality of land vehicles G05D1/0287) · CPC title