Patent ID: 6925380

Claim:
A real-time path-directed controller for navigating an object along a desired path, said controller comprising: (a) a position sensor, said position sensor producing an object position signal to an object position signal conditioning module, said object position signal conditioning module producing a conditioned object position signal to a controller summer; (b) a heading conditioning module, said heading conditioning module receiving the object position signal and conditioning the object position signal to produce a conditioned heading signal to the controller summer; (c) a control apparatus sensor, said control apparatus sensor producing a control apparatus signal to a control apparatus signal conditioning module, said control apparatus signal conditioning module producing a conditioned control apparatus signal to the controller summer; and (d) a controller summer summing the conditioned object position signal, the conditioned heading signal, and the conditioned control apparatus signal to produce a controller summer signal to a controller summer conditioning module so as to produce a control apparatus control signal to a control apparatus controller so as to direct the control apparatus and thereby direct the object by feedback control along the desired path.