US 12,386,323 B2
Determining causal models for controlling environments
Gilles J. Benoit, Minneapolis, MN (US); Brian E. Brooks, St. Paul, MN (US); Peter O. Olson, Andover, MN (US); Tyler W. Olson, Woodbury, MN (US); Himanshu Nayar, St. Paul, MN (US); Frederick J. Arsenault, Stillwater, MN (US); and Nicholas A. Johnson, Woodbury, MN (US)
Assigned to 3M Innovative Properties Company, St. Paul, MN (US)
Filed by 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY, St. Paul, MN (US)
Filed on Apr. 2, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/624,611.
Application 18/624,611 is a continuation of application No. 17/438,725, granted, now 11,966,204, previously published as PCT/US2019/050695, filed on Sep. 11, 2019.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/818,816, filed on Mar. 15, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2024/0248439 A1, Jul. 25, 2024
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. G05B 13/04 (2006.01); B60W 40/064 (2012.01); B60W 40/08 (2012.01); B60W 40/105 (2012.01); G05B 13/02 (2006.01); G05B 19/4065 (2006.01); G05B 19/418 (2006.01); G05B 23/02 (2006.01); G06F 18/21 (2023.01); G06N 5/043 (2023.01); G06N 5/046 (2023.01); G06N 7/01 (2023.01); G06Q 10/0631 (2023.01); G06Q 10/0639 (2023.01); G06Q 10/087 (2023.01); G06Q 30/0202 (2023.01)
CPC G05B 13/042 (2013.01) [B60W 40/064 (2013.01); B60W 40/08 (2013.01); B60W 40/105 (2013.01); G05B 13/021 (2013.01); G05B 13/024 (2013.01); G05B 13/0265 (2013.01); G05B 13/041 (2013.01); G05B 19/4065 (2013.01); G05B 19/41835 (2013.01); G05B 23/0229 (2013.01); G05B 23/0248 (2013.01); G06F 18/2193 (2023.01); G06N 5/043 (2013.01); G06N 5/046 (2013.01); G06N 7/01 (2023.01); G06Q 10/06315 (2013.01); G06Q 10/06395 (2013.01); G06Q 30/0202 (2013.01); G05B 2219/36301 (2013.01); G06Q 10/087 (2013.01)] 14 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of controlling an environment by selecting control settings that include a respective setting for each of a plurality of controllable elements of the environment, the method comprising repeatedly performing the following:
repeatedly selecting, by a control system for the environment, control settings for the environment based on internal parameters of the control system, wherein:
at least some of the control settings for the environment are selected based on a causal model that identifies, for each controllable element, causal relationships between possible settings for the controllable element and a performance metric that measures a performance of the control system in controlling the environment, and
the internal parameters include a first set of internal parameters that define a number of previously received performance metric values that are used to generate the causal model for a particular one the controllable elements;
obtaining, for each selected control setting, a performance metric value;
determining, based on the measures of the performance metric values, that generating the causal model for the particular controllable element using a different number of previously received performance metric values would result in higher system performance; and
adjusting, based on the determining, the first set of internal parameters.