A method of creating a peripheral driver for a particular peripheral by learning the peripheral options and the commands for those options from the peripheral itself. The computer access a specified location in the memory of the peripheral which contains either a generic peripheral description file or a pointer to such a file. The file is a text-based file, which contains the peripheral options as name-value entries. The computer parses the file and learns of the available options and the approp...

A method of creating a peripheral driver for a particular peripheral by learning the peripheral options and the commands for those options from the peripheral itself. The computer access a specified location in the memory of the peripheral which contains either a generic peripheral description file or a pointer to such a file. The file is a text-based file, which contains the peripheral options as name-value entries. The computer parses the file and learns of the available options and the approp...

The driverless vehicle system and method of control therefor includes a fixed camera fixedly mounted to a vehicle and a movable camera movably mounted to the vehicle. A control unit selectively inputs an image from one of the fixed camera and the movable camera, determines a trace angle based on the input image, and controls a steering angle of the vehicle based on the trace angle. The control unit also compares the trace angle to a first reference angle when the control unit inputs images from ...

A safety bumper for a driverless vehicle consists of a bumper assembly including a resilient bumper member having a resilient tube mounted on the outer periphery thereof so as to be engageable with an obstacle. The tube is relatively more flexible than the bumper member, is vented to the atmosphere, and is in fluid communication with a switch operable in response to the increase in pressure in the tube which results when the bumper strikes an obstacle. Operation of the switch in turn operates a ...

A driverless, self-powered lawn mower or the like land processing device, including adjustable, self-contained mechanism for reversing and offsetting each successive path line of travel along a path adjacent the last previous path for systematically mowing or otherwise processing a predetermined rectangular-shaped land area, and further including means, after having completed the last path run of the area being processed, for shutting itself off.

A programmable driverless vehicle steered in accordance with a program recorded in a data recorder. The driverless vehicle includes a control circuit for playing back the record to cause a programmed steering position representative signal to appear at the output of the data recorder. The control circuit determines the steering position error of the actual steering position from the programmed steering position indicated by the steering position signal provided from the data recorder and provide...

A small and high-speed polarization analysis device and ellipsometer having no driving section are provided by overlapping one polarizer array rendered by arranging a plurality of polarizer regions of mutually different optical axis directions in the form of stripes and one wavelength plate array rendered by arranging a plurality of wavelength plate regions of fixed retardation and mutually different optical axis directions in the form of stripes so that the respective stripes of the plurality o...

A driverless vehicle is guided along a guideline which is detected on a floor by an optical sensor having a plurality of light receiving elements. A value representing the amount of light received by each of the light receiving elements is composed with a value representing the amount of light received by one or more neighbouring light receiving elements and smoothed to an appropriately large value so that the detection of the guideline may be based on the smoothed value.

A driverless vehicle is provided with support wheels on one side and drive wheels on the opposite side. The drive wheels perform the dual function of supporting one side of the body and propelling the vehicle by frictional contact with a drive shaft. The drive wheels are coupled together for oscillation about a vertical axis and are biased to a drive position. The vehicle body is provided with a cam for causing accumulation upon contact with another vehicle.

A monorail driverless vehicle for use on an assembly line includes a vertically disposed frame having a drive wheel on the upper end of the frame and biased downwardly for contact with a drive shaft. Aligned support wheels on the frame are adapted for contact with a track therebelow. A fixture may be mounted on either side face of the vehicle for removably supporting the workpiece to be worked on by persons or apparatus along the assembly line.