Headlamp for vehicle

• US 10,047,925 B2
• Filed: 06/24/2016
• Issued: 08/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ZKW Group GmbH (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Geunhyeong
• Primary Examiner(s): Dzierzynski, Evan
• Application Number:
  US15/191,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20160377251A1
• Time in Patent Office: 781 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/08 automatically
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/14 having dimming means
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/143 combined with another condition, e.g. using vehicle recognition from camera images or activation of wipers
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/052 Switching delay, i.e. the beam is not switched or changed instantaneously upon occurrence of a condition change
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/054 Variable non-standard intensity, i.e. emission of various beam intensities different from standard intensities, e.g. continuous or stepped transitions of intensity
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/056 Special anti-blinding beams, e.g. a standard beam is chopped or moved in order not to blind
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/32 Road surface or travel path
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/41 preceding vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/42 oncoming vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/45 Special conditions, e.g. pedestrians, road signs or potential dangers
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 11/04 Mounting of cameras operative during drive; Arrangement of controls thereof relative to the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/141 Light emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/255 Lenses with a front view of circular or truncated circular outline
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/285 Refractors, transparent cover plates, light guides or filters not provided in groups F21S41/24 - F21S41/2805
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/30 characterised by reflectors
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/321 the reflector being a surface of revolution or a planar surface, e.g. truncated
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/43 characterised by the shape thereof
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/64 by changing their light transmissivity, e.g. by liquid crystal or electrochromic devices
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/645 by electro-optic means, e.g. liquid crystal or electrochromic devices
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/657 by moving light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/56 : exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/161 : Detection; Localisation; Normalisation

Abstract

A headlamp, for a vehicle, that includes an interface unit configured to receive information about an object external to the vehicle, at least one light source configured to generate light, and a transparent display configured to allow at least a portion of the light to pass through the transparent display. The headlamp also includes a processor configured to control the transparent display to darken one area of the transparent display to block transmission of the light through the area of the transparent display, the area of the transparent display being less than an entirety of the transparent display is disclosed.

Claims

1. A headlamp for a vehicle comprising:

an interface unit configured to receive information about an object external to the vehicle;

at least one light source configured to generate light;

a transparent display configured to allow at least a portion of the light to pass through the transparent display; and

a processor configured to control the transparent display to darken a first area of the transparent display corresponding to the object to block transmission of the light through the area of the transparent display, the area of the transparent display being less than an entirety of the transparent display,

wherein the processor is configured to darken the first area gradually as a distance between the vehicle and the object decreases, and

wherein the processor is configured to darken the first area such that at least one of color and brightness of the first area is different from color or brightness of a second area of the transparent display.

2. The headlamp according to claim 1, wherein the processor configured to change a location or a size of the area within the transparent display based on a location or a size of the object.

3. The headlamp according to claim 1, wherein the object is a vehicle traveling in opposite direction, a foregoing vehicle, or a pedestrian.

4. The headlamp according to claim 3, wherein, when the object is the vehicle traveling in the opposite lane,

the processor configured to control the transparent display to darken the first area of the transparent display based on a windshield of the vehicle traveling in the opposite lane.

5. The headlamp according to claim 4, wherein the processor configured to darken the first area of the transparent display based on a part of the windshield of the vehicle traveling in the opposite lane, a face of a driver of the vehicle traveling in the opposite lane being positioned at the part of the windshield.

6. The headlamp according to claim 4, wherein, when the vehicle traveling in the opposite lane comprises a plurality of vehicles traveling in the opposite lane,

the processor configured to darken an area based on the windshield of each of the vehicles traveling in the opposite lane.

7. The headlamp according to claim 3, wherein, when the object is the foregoing vehicle,

the processor configured to control the transparent display to darken the first area of the transparent display based on at least one of a rear windshield, side-view mirrors, and a rearview mirror of the foregoing vehicle.

8. The headlamp according to claim 7, wherein, when the foregoing vehicle comprises a plurality of foregoing vehicles,

the processor configured to darken an area of the transparent display based on at least one of a rear windshield, side-view mirrors, and a rearview mirror of each of the foregoing vehicles.

9. The headlamp according to claim 8, wherein the plurality of foregoing vehicles travels on the same lane or neighboring lanes.

10. The headlamp according to claim 3, where the object is the pedestrian,

the processor configured to darken the first area of the transparent display corresponding to a face of the pedestrian.

11. The headlamp according to claim 1, wherein the processor configured to:

receive information about curve, uphill road, or downhill road of a driving lane;

change position of the light in response to the information about curve, uphill road, or downhill road of the driving lane; and

darken the area of the transparent display corresponding to the object based on the changed position of the light.

12. The headlamp according to claim 1, further comprising:

an aspheric lens configured to allow the light generated by the light source to be refracted and pass through the aspheric lens,

wherein the transparent display is disposed at a front end or rear end of the aspheric lens.

13. The headlamp according to claim 1, further comprising:

an outer lens covering an opening of the headlamp,

wherein the transparent display is disposed at a rear end of the outer lens.

14. A vehicle comprising:

an adaptive driver assistance system comprising;

a camera to acquire an image of a vehicle;

a first processor configured to detect a vehicle traveling in opposite lane or a foregoing vehicle from the acquired image; and

a first interface unit to transmit information about the detected vehicle traveling in the opposite lane or information about the detected foregoing vehicle to a headlamp; and

the headlamp comprising a second interface unit configured to receive the information about the detected vehicle traveling in the opposite lane or the information about the detected foregoing vehicle;

at least one light source to generate light;

a transparent display configured to allow at least a portion of the light to pass through the transparent display; and

a second processor configured to, based on the information about the detected vehicle traveling in the opposite lane or the information about the detected foregoing vehicle, control the transparent display to darken a first area of the transparent display corresponding to the object to block transmission of the light through the area of the transparent display, the first area of the transparent display being less than an entirety of the transparent display,

wherein the second processor is configured to darken the first area gradually as a distance between the vehicle and the object decreases, and

wherein the second processor is configured to darken the first area such that at least one of color and brightness of the first area is different from color or brightness of a second area of the transparent display.