Doors with Adaptive Positioning

Abstract

Doors on a vehicle may be controlled by a door positioning system that moves the doors freely and fluidly relative to the body of the vehicle. The doors may include front and rear doors on each side of the vehicle. The door positioning system may control the movement and positioning of each door using a door mechanism coupled between the door and the body of the vehicle. The door positioning system may determine a position or path of motion for each door based on sensor data and user input. The door positioning system may issue corresponding control signals to actuators in the door mechanism to position the door accordingly. For example, the front door may slide open at an angle to accommodate an angled tire. Front and rear doors may open in opposite directions to create a large, unobstructed space for passengers to enter and exit the vehicle.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A vehicle, comprising:
 a body having an opening;   a door located in the opening, wherein the door comprises first and second door members;   a first actuator that rotates the first door member about a first rotational axis;   a second actuator that rotates the second door member about a second rotational axis that is parallel to the first rotational axis, wherein the first and second actuators are independently controlled;   a sensor that gathers sensor data; and   a door controller that controls the first and second actuators based on the sensor data.   
     
     
         2 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  further comprising first and second parallel shafts, wherein the first door member rotates about the first shaft and the second door member rotates about the second shaft. 
     
     
         3 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the door controller adjusts a direction with which the door moves away from the opening based on the sensor data. 
     
     
         4 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the first and second rotational axes are vertical axes. 
     
     
         5 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the door comprises a third door member and a third actuator, wherein the third actuator slides the third door member along a linear axis that is perpendicular to the first and second rotational axes. 
     
     
         6 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the sensor data comprises steering angle information associated with a tire position. 
     
     
         7 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the sensor data comprises vehicle orientation information. 
     
     
         8 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the sensor data comprises passenger information. 
     
     
         9 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the sensor data comprises information about a person approaching the vehicle. 
     
     
         10 . The vehicle defined in  claim 1  wherein the sensor data comprises vehicle inclination information. 
     
     
         11 . A vehicle, comprising:
 a body having an opening;   first and second doors in the opening that open away from one another to an open position, wherein the opening is unobstructed when the first and second doors are in the open position;   a first actuator that rotates the first door about a first rotational axis and a second actuator that rotates the door about a second rotational axis that is parallel to the first rotational axis;   a sensor that gathers sensor data; and   a door controller that controls the first and second actuators based on the sensor data.   
     
     
         12 . The vehicle defined in  claim 11  wherein the first actuator is one of three independently controlled actuators that control a position of the first door. 
     
     
         13 . The vehicle defined in  claim 12  wherein the three independently controlled actuators comprise two rotary actuators and a linear actuator. 
     
     
         14 . The vehicle defined in  claim 11  wherein the vehicle has first and second opposing sides and wherein the first door opens towards the first side and the second door opens towards the second side. 
     
     
         15 . The vehicle defined in  claim 11  wherein the sensor data is selected from the group consisting of: obstruction information, vehicle inclination information, vehicle orientation information, steering angle information, passenger information, and information about a person approaching the vehicle. 
     
     
         16 . A vehicle, comprising:
 a body having an opening;   a door in the opening and having first and second door members;   first and second parallel shafts, wherein the first door member rotates about the first shaft and the second door member rotates about the second shaft;   a sensor configured to gather passenger information; and   a door controller configured to control the first and second door members based on the passenger information.   
     
     
         17 . The vehicle defined in  claim 16  further comprising first and second independently controlled actuators, wherein the first independently controlled actuator rotates the first door member about the first shaft and the second independently controlled actuator rotates the second door member about the second shaft. 
     
     
         18 . The vehicle defined in  claim 17  wherein the door comprises a third door member, the vehicle further comprising a third independently controlled actuator that slides the third door member along a linear axis. 
     
     
         19 . The vehicle defined in  claim 16  wherein the passenger information comprises a number of passengers in the vehicle. 
     
     
         20 . The vehicle defined in  claim 16  wherein the passenger information comprises a location of a passenger in the vehicle.