Real-time bill of materials for a vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12073359-B2
Application number	US-201916723670-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 20, 2019
Priority date	Dec 20, 2019
Publication date	Aug 27, 2024
Grant date	Aug 27, 2024

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for an automatically updated, self-reporting bill of materials. System components report important identifying information including firmware versions, software versions, and part numbers. In particular, when the system detects a change in a component, the bill of materials is updated. Additionally, a log of changes is saved.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for automatically updating a bill of materials for an autonomous vehicle, wherein the autonomous vehicle is a first autonomous vehicle in a fleet of vehicles, comprising:
calibrating a first component in the first autonomous vehicle to generate a first updated extrinsic calibration value for a first variable, a second updated extrinsic calibration value for a second variable, and a third updated extrinsic calibration value for a third variable, wherein the first component is one of a LIDAR component and a RADAR component;
determining that a calibration has occurred in the first autonomous vehicle;
running an automatic component detection process for detecting data about a plurality of components of the first autonomous vehicle, wherein the plurality of components includes the first component, and wherein the automatic component detection process is run in response to determining that the calibration has occurred;
receiving self-reported component data from the first component including receiving an update to component data wherein component data includes the first updated extrinsic calibration value, the second updated extrinsic calibration value, and the third updated extrinsic calibration value;
outputting an updated component configuration including updated component data for the plurality of components in the first autonomous vehicle, wherein the updated component data includes the self-reported component data from the first component;
saving the updated component configuration to the bill of materials;
comparing changes to the updated component configuration with recorded acceptable configuration parameters;
identifying a calibration conflict including determining that at least one of the first extrinsic calibration value, the second extrinsic calibration value, and the third extrinsic calibration value conflicts with a target calibration value;
determining, at a processor, that the updated component configuration is not acceptable based on the calibration conflict;
flagging the updated component configuration for review based on determining that the updated component configuration is not acceptable;
correlating issues with the updated component configuration with features present in a plurality of the fleet vehicles;
identifying an unacceptable change in the updated component configuration based in part on the correlation, wherein the unacceptable change includes a first change to the first component including one of the first updated extrinsic calibration value, the second updated extrinsic calibration value, and the third updated extrinsic calibration value;
identifying a level of immediacy of service to address the unacceptable change;
scheduling the first autonomous vehicle for service based on the unacceptable change and the level of immediacy;
routing the first autonomous vehicle to a service center;
receiving, from the first autonomous vehicle, image data from at least one of cameras on the first autonomous vehicle and cameras inside the first autonomous vehicle;
presenting data about the first component in the bill of materials to augmented reality glasses, and wherein presenting data includes presenting the component data and presenting a camera feed based on the at least one of cameras on the first autonomous vehicle and cameras inside the first autonomous vehicle;
receiving, from the augmented reality glasses, selection of 3-dimensional coordinates for a precise vehicle location, wherein the presenting data about the first component is based on the precise vehicle location.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising creating a log of changes to the bill of materials.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein running the automatic component detection process comprises running the automatic component detection process when the vehicle is in service.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that the updated component configuration is not acceptable includes comparing the updated component configuration to a target configuration, wherein the target configuration includes a range of target values.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting data from the bill of materials about selected components when the glasses are directed at the selected components.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising reporting the updated component configuration in the bill of materials in a human-readable format, wherein reporting complies with selected compliance goals.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the self-reported component data is first self-reported component data, and further comprising:
receiving a firmware update for a second component, wherein the second component updates component firmware of the second component,
receiving second self-reported component data from the second component, including receiving an update to second component firmware data, and
transmitting respective self-reported component data from respective components of the vehicle, wherein the respective components include the first component and the second component.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein transmitting self-reported component data includes transmitting the firmware update to second component firmware data to at least one of an onboard computer, a central computer, a cloud, and a web application, wherein the updated component data includes the second self-reported component data from the second component, and further comprising:
identifying a firmware version conflict including determining that the second component firmware conflicts with a target firmware value; and
determining, at a processor, that the updated component configuration is not acceptable based on the firmware version conflict.

9. The method of claim 5 , further comprising identifying the presence of an unexpected sound related to the unacceptable change, and receiving auditory data of the unexpected sound recorded from vehicle microphones.

10. The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the augmented reality system is configured to display data about selected components when the glasses are directed at the selected components.

11. An autonomous vehicle having an automatically updated bill of materials, comprising:
a plurality of components, wherein the plurality of components each receive component updates including firmware updates,
wherein the plurality of components are each configured to self-report selected component data, including updated component firmware data,
wherein the plurality of components includes a first component,
wherein the first component receives a calibration and generates a first updated extrinsic calibration value for a first variable, a second updated extrinsic calibration value for a second variable, and a third updated extrinsic calibration value for a third variable, and
wherein the first component is one of a LIDAR component and a RADAR component;

a processor configured to:
determine that a calibration has occurred in the autonomous vehicle,
run an automatic component detection process for detecting data about the plurality of components, wherein the automatic component detection process is run in response to determining that the calibration had occurred,
receive first self-reported component data from the first component, including the first updated extrinsic calibration value, the second updated extrinsic calibration value, and the third updated extrinsic calibration value,
output an updated component configuration including updated component data for the plurality of components, wherein the updated component data includes the first self-reported component data,
compare changes to the updated component configuration with recorded acceptabl

Assignees

• Gm Cruise Holdings Llc

Inventors

• Bachant Thomas
• Ullman Nadav
• Thibeault Joseph
• Mccloskey Jake
• Covarrubias Reynoso Jose Arturo
• Garcia Paul

Classifications

• G07C5/008

  communicating information to a remotely located station (transmission systems for measured values G08C) · CPC title

• G07C5/0808

  Diagnosing performance data (testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005) · CPC title

• G06T19/006

  Mixed reality (object pose determination, tracking or camera calibration for mixed reality G06T7/00) · CPC title

• G06Q10/20

  Administration of product repair or maintenance · CPC title

• G06Q10/0875 Primary

  Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials · CPC title