Multimodal debris clearing system for autonomous vehicles and methods for controlling a debris clearing system

A multimodal debris clearing system for a vehicle, comprising:

• an airflow generator;
• one or more multimodal debris clearing apparatuses in airflow communication with the airflow generator, wherein each of the multimodal debris clearing apparatuses includes a duct configured to direct airflow toward a front end of the vehicle via an air outlet formed at a first end of the duct;
• a duct positioning system configured to move the multimodal debris clearing apparatuses between a retracted position and a deployed position;
• a debris monitoring and clearing module programmed with control logic to activate both the airflow generator and the duct positioning system when debris is detected.

A method of deploying a debris clearing system of a vehicle, comprising:

• monitoring for a debris in a path of the vehicle;
• detecting the debris in the path of the vehicle, wherein the debris is a detected debris;
• deploying the debris clearing system;
• and
• clearing the detected debris from the path of the vehicle using one or modes of clearing equipped on the debris clearing system.