An energy storage system for vehicles is provided which is formed by a battery and a compartment for its accommodation which allows the insertion and removal of batteries and their connection to the electrical system of the vehicle with ease, quickly and at a low cost, both manually and based on auxiliary tools with different degrees of automation; the battery includes electrical connection elements and communication connection elements and is inserted in or removed from the compartment with a horizontal movement. The compartment includes electrical connection elements and communication connection elements complementary to those of the battery and allows cooling the battery; in this way, an electric vehicle can incorporate batteries as needed, adjusting its cost to its real use and reducing the waiting times due to charging its energy storage.

When conditions have not been satisfied from a timing at which a first position of the interflow zone was set to a timing at which the subject vehicle reaches the first position, the first position is set as a start position where a notification for urging a handover of a central player of the subject vehicle is performed. When the condition for automatic interflow is satisfied for the first time at the timing at which the subject vehicle reaches the first position, a second position between the first position and a distal end of the interflow zone is set as the start position.

When conditions have not been satisfied from a timing at which a first position of the interflow zone was set to a timing at which the subject vehicle reaches the first position, the first position is set as a start position where a notification for urging a handover of a central player of the subject vehicle is performed. When the condition for automatic interflow is satisfied for the first time at the timing at which the subject vehicle reaches the first position, a second position between the first position and a distal end of the interflow zone is set as the start position.

Apparatus and methods for navigation of a robotic device configured to operate in an environment comprising objects and/or persons. Location of objects and/or persons may changed prior and/or during operation of the robot. In one embodiment, a bistatic sensor comprises a transmitter and a receiver. The receiver may be spatially displaced from the transmitter. The transmitter may project a pattern on a surface in the direction of robot movement. In one variant, the pattern comprises an encoded portion and an information portion. The information portion may be used to communicate information related to robot movement to one or more persons. The encoded portion may be used to determine presence of one or more object in the path of the robot. The receiver may sample a reflected pattern and compare it with the transmitted pattern. Based on a similarity measure breaching a threshold, indication of object present may be produced.

The present disclosure relates to a method for operating a haptic system, the haptic system comprising at least one actuator and at least one haptic control device adapted to control the at least one actuator and to provide haptic feedback to a user, the method comprising the steps of: obtaining, from a feedback computational model, modelled feedback data, obtaining, from a feedback estimator, estimated feedback data based on measurement data determined from measurement made on the haptic system, overlaying the modelled feedback data and the estimated feedback data to generate blended feedback data, and providing the blended feedback data to control the haptic feedback to the user.

The present disclosure relates to a method for operating a haptic system, the haptic system comprising at least one actuator and at least one haptic control device adapted to control the at least one actuator and to provide haptic feedback to a user, the method comprising the steps of: obtaining, from a feedback computational model, modelled feedback data, obtaining, from a feedback estimator, estimated feedback data based on measurement data determined from measurement made on the haptic system, overlaying the modelled feedback data and the estimated feedback data to generate blended feedback data, and providing the blended feedback data to control the haptic feedback to the user.

Presented are intelligent electronic footwear and apparel with controller-automated features, methods for making/operating such footwear and apparel, and control systems for executing automated features of such footwear and apparel. A method for operating an intelligent electronic shoe (IES) includes receiving, e.g., via a controller through a wireless communications device from a GPS satellite service, location data of a user. The controller also receives, e.g., from a backend server-class computer or other remote computing node, location data for a target object or site, such as a virtual shoe hidden at a virtual spot. The controller retrieves or predicts path plan data including a derived route for traversing from the user's location to the target's location within a geographic area. The controller then transmits command signals to a navigation alert system mounted to the IES's shoe structure to output visual, audio, and/or tactile cues that guide the user along the derived route.

In representation processing, when a capacity retention is higher than a threshold value while a warranty condition is satisfied, an ECU has the capacity retention shown in a first manner. When the capacity retention is equal to or lower than the threshold value while the warranty condition is satisfied, the ECU has the capacity retention shown in a second manner.

In representation processing, when a capacity retention is higher than a threshold value while a warranty condition is satisfied, an ECU has the capacity retention shown in a first manner. When the capacity retention is equal to or lower than the threshold value while the warranty condition is satisfied, the ECU has the capacity retention shown in a second manner.

A maximum required electric energy for operating a vehicle along a final section of the route under electric power alone when using a specified number of electrically operated devices is estimated. A maximum total electric energy required to operate the vehicle along the route is estimated. An alternate route is determined based on determining the detected stored electric energy is less than the estimated maximum total electric energy required to operate the vehicle along the route. The alternate route is determined based on an estimated maximum total electric energy required to operate the vehicle along the alternate route being greater than or equal to the detected stored electric energy. One of a) the determined alternate route, or b) based on determining no alternate route exists, a notification is output via a human/machine interface.