Apparatuses, methods and systems with a vehicle architecture for unmanned autonomous vehicles

A method using an architecture of modular units of an autonomous modular drive unit for forming an autonomous vehicle, the method comprising:

• configuring an upper body unit to consume space in an upward direction to thereby minimizing a horizontal footprint of the upper body unit by enabling a stacking of a set of vehicle components on top of each other in the upward direction comprising:
• a battery pack residing at a bottom of the upper body unit, on top of which are components of a charger and high-voltage (HV) electronics, and allotting space on either side of the upper body unit for sensor packages;
• configuring a lower chassis unit for opposing the upper body unit and comprising a structure for supporting the modular unit with prismatic cross members for configuring a range of module unit widths by:
• coupling a drive unit within the lower chassis unit to an axle with a set of wheels on either side;
• and
• configuring a set of structural rails on either side of the lower chassis unit in a rigid frame unit with longitudinal members wherein the structural rails can be attached to another corresponding set of structural rails;
• attaching a plurality of compartment units comprising:
• front-compartment, rear-compartment, and mid-compartment units configured on either side of the lower chassis unit for the forming of the autonomous vehicle;
• placing at least one sensor placed at an upper peripheral edge of the upper body unit to enable a greater field-of-view resulting from the upward direction of the upper body unit;
• and
• positioning a set of ducts on either side of the upper body unit and ducted upward through a horizontally oriented heat exchanger at a top surface to the upper body unit thereby un-pinging airflow in air flow-path resulting from a lower air pressure at the top surface of the heat exchange while the autonomous vehicle is in motion.

A system configured with an architecture of an autonomous modular drive unit for forming an autonomous vehicle, the system comprising:

• the autonomous modular drive unit which comprises:
• an upper body unit configured to consume space in an upward direction to minimize a horizontal footprint of the upper body unit and enable a stacking of a set of vehicle components on top of each other in the upward direction comprising a battery pack residing at a bottom of the upper body unit, on top of which are components of a charger and high-voltage (HV) electronics, and space allotted on either side of the upper body unit for sensor packages;
• a lower chassis unit configured to oppose the upper body unit and comprise a structure for supporting the modular unit with prismatic cross members to configure to a range of module unit widths, the lower chassis unit comprises:
• a drive unit within the lower chassis unit coupled to an axle with a set of wheels on either side;
• and
• a set of structural rails on either side of the lower chassis unit configured in a rigid frame unit with longitudinal members wherein the structural rails can be attached to another corresponding set of structural rails;
• a plurality of compartment units which comprise:
• front-compartment, rear-compartment, and mid-compartment units configured to be attached on either side of the lower chassis unit for the forming of the autonomous vehicle;
• at least one sensor placed at an upper peripheral edge of the upper body unit to enable a greater field-of-view resulting from the upward direction of the upper body unit;
• a set of ducts positioned on either side of the upper body unit and ducted upward through a horizontally oriented heat exchanger at a top surface to the upper body unit un-pinged airflow in air flow-path resulting from a lower air pressure at the top surface of the heat exchange while the autonomous vehicle is in motion;
• a control system located in the upper body unit which is designed in a parametric configuration of geometric values comprising items of a wheelbase, overhangs, vehicle width, and control parameters that enable a tailored configuration to a specific application for the autonomous modular drive unit without need for a gross revision of the control system wherein the autonomous modular drive unit is configured to the specific application using a generic control system, or re-configured if the configuration is changed during a life of the drive unit;
• and
• a data link between control units of sets of autonomous modular drive units to communicate information between each autonomous modular drive unit at least comprising sensor data, wheel speeds, torques and steering angles to enable coordination between each module unit of torque, braking and steering functions wherein communications between control units provide redundancy to enhance safety as a failure of a particular control unit of an autonomous modular drive unit can be detected by another autonomous modular drive control unit wherein the data link configured between each set of autonomous modular drive units enables combinations of steering and torque application outputs that result in producing motions such as counter-steering, parallel steering, and skid steering of sets of autonomous modular drive units.