Intelligent driverless vehicle

A speed and position control system for vehicles adapted to ride on a track wherein each vehicle comprises:

• (a) a drive wheel in rolling contact with a rotating drive shaft, said drive wheel being oscillatable between a drive position and an accumulation position;
• (b) a slave computer;
• (c) drive wheel control means having an output shaft movable in response to signals from said slave computer;
• (d) a control linkage operatively connected to said drive wheel and to said output shaft of said drive wheel control means for oscillating said drive wheel means in response to the movement of said output shaft;
• (e) means for generating a signal representative of a change of the position of said vehicle on said track, said track position signal being supplied to said slave computer;
• said control system further comprising
• (f) a host computer communicating with each slave computer via a bidirectional communications link;
• whereby operating parameters such as speed and position are determined for each vehicle by its slave computer based upon said track position signal, said operating parameters being supplied to said host computer via said communications link, said host computer determining new vehicle operating parameters and communicating said new vehicle operating parameters to selected ones of said slave computers, each selected slave computer thereby supplying a signal to its associated drive wheel control means to adjust said vehicle operating parameters accordingly.

A vehicle and track system comprising:

• (a) a plurality of vehicles, each vehicle being mounted on wheels adapted to ride on a track;
• (b) drive shaft means including a drive shaft disposed adjacent and parallel to said track, said drive shaft being rotatable about its longitudinal axis;
• (c) drive wheel means mounted on each of said vehicles, said drive wheel means including a drive wheel in rolling contact with the periphery of said drive shaft, said drive wheel being oscillatable between a drive position and accumulation position;
• (d) a plurality of slave computers, each vehicle having a slave computer associated therewith;
• (e) a host computer communicating with each slave computer via a bidirectional communications link;
• (f) drive wheel control means disposed on each vehicle, each drive wheel control means having an output shaft movable in response to signals from its slave computer;
• (g) a control linkage disposed on each vehicle, each control linkage being operatively connected to said drive wheel means and to said output shaft for oscillating said drive wheel between said drive position and said accumulation position in response to the movement of said output shaft;
• (h) a first position encoder disposed on each servo means for providing an output signal representative of said drive wheel position to said slave computer;
• (i) a second position encoder disposed on each vehicle for generating an output signal representative of a change of position of said vehicle on said track, each second position encoder comprising an input shaft and a pinion gear affixed thereto, said pinion gear engaging with teeth in a rack located adjacent said track, said input shaft thereby rotating as said vehicle moves on said track, said second position encoder generating an output signal such as a pulse when said vehicle has travelled a predetermined distance;
• whereby vehicle operating parameters such as the speed and position of each vehicle are provided to said host computer by each of said slave computers, said host computer keeping track of the operating parameters of each vehicle and computing new vehicle operating parameters for selected vehicles and providing said operating parameters to the appropriate ones of said slave computers, each of said slave computers supplying a signal to its drive wheel control means to adjust the operating parameters of its respective vehicle.