Patent ID: 7894951

Claim:
A robotically operable vehicle comprising: a mechanical vehicle control system capable of receiving manual inputs and capable of causing the vehicle to operate in a manual mode in accordance with the manual inputs, the mechanical vehicle control system comprising: a steering system capable of controlling a direction of movement of the vehicle; a braking system capable of controlling braking of the vehicle; a throttle system capable of controlling a speed of the vehicle; a transmission system capable of selecting a gear for the vehicle; at least one electrically actuated clutch capable of causing the mechanical vehicle control system to operate in an autonomous mode in response to a command for the vehicle to operate in the autonomous mode and capable of causing the mechanical vehicle system to operate in the manual mode in response to a command for the vehicle to operate in the manual mode; and at least one actuator capable of, in accordance with autonomous control signals received from a controller and as allowed by the at least one electrically actuated clutch, operating the steering system, the braking system, the throttle system, and the transmission system; and the controller capable of generating the autonomous control signals in response to the command for the vehicle to operate in the autonomous mode.