Automatic settings for vehicle components based on measured anthropometric features

• US 10,144,374 B2
• Filed: 10/19/2015
• Issued: 12/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Incorporated (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Incorporated (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamasaki, Bryan E., Helm, Sean L., Schmidt, Eric R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Cuong H
• Application Number:
  US14/886,300
• Publication Number:
  US 20170106875A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,142 Days
• Field of Search: 701 1, 701 334, 707769, 348148
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/037 for occupant comfort , e.g. for automatic adjustment of appliances according to personal settings, e.g. seats, mirrors, steering wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/00 Fittings or systems for preventing or indicating unauthorised use or theft of vehicles locks for vehicles E05B77/00-E05B85/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/10 actuating a signalling device
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/08 Interaction between the driver and the control system

Abstract

A vehicle can be configured to automatically provide settings for one or more components of the vehicle based on a measured anthropometric feature of a person approaching the vehicle. The vehicle can include a sensor configured to acquire data (e.g., visual data) of a portion of an external environment of the vehicle. The external environment can include a person approaching the vehicle. The vehicle can include a component that can be adjustable across a plurality of settings. The component can have a current setting. A processor can be operatively connected to the sensor and the component. The acquired data can be analyzed to measure an anthropometric feature of the person approaching the vehicle. A target setting of the component can be determined based on the measured anthropometric feature. The current setting of the component can be caused to match the determined target setting.

Claims

1. A system for automatically providing a setting for one or more components of a vehicle comprising:

one or more sensors configured to acquire sensor data of a portion of an external environment of the vehicle;

one or more cameras configured to acquire visual data of a portion of an external environment of the vehicle, the visual data including a person approaching the vehicle;

a component of the vehicle, the component being adjustable across a plurality of settings, the component having a current setting, wherein the component is one of;

a seat, a steering wheel, a pedal, a head rest, a side view mirror, a rear view mirror, a seat belt anchor, or a side bolster; and

one or more processors operatively connected to the one or more sensors, the one or more cameras, and the component, the one or more processors being programmed to initiate executable operations comprising;

determining a future travel path of the person, the determining including extrapolating past positions of the person based on sensor data acquired by the one or more sensors;

determining whether the future travel path is indicative of the person approaching the vehicle;

responsive to determining the future travel path of the person is indicative of the person approaching the vehicle, analyzing visual data acquired by the one or more cameras to measure an anthropometric feature of the person approaching the vehicle, the anthropometric feature being a measurement of the person indicative of a size of the person;

determining a target setting for the component based on the measured anthropometric feature, the target setting corresponding to the size of the person; and

causing the current setting of the component to match the determined target setting, whereby the determined target setting improves the comfort of the person when seated in the vehicle.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the anthropometric feature is one of:

an overall height, a torso height, an arm length, a leg length, a thickness, a girth, or a width.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the executable operations further include:

comparing the current setting to the determined target setting, and

wherein, if the determined target setting is substantially equal to the current setting, causing the current setting of the component to match the determined target setting includes maintaining the current setting of the component.

5. The system of claim 1, further including an actuator operatively connected to the component, and wherein the executable operations further include:

comparing the current setting to the determined target setting, and

wherein, if the determined target setting is not substantially equal to the current setting, causing the current setting of the component to match the determined target setting includes causing the actuator to adjust the current setting of the component.

6. The system of claim 1, further including a mobile device detector, and wherein the executable operations further include:

responsive to detecting a mobile device associated with a person approaching the vehicle, determining whether the mobile device is an authorized mobile device associated with the vehicle, and

wherein analyzing the visual data acquired to measure an anthropometric feature of the person approaching the vehicle is performed responsive to determining that the mobile device is an authorized mobile device associated with the vehicle.

7. The system of claim 1, further including a motion detector, and wherein the executable operations further include:

activating at least one of the one or more cameras or the one or more sensors responsive to the motion detector detecting motion in a portion of the external environment of the vehicle.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the executable operations further include:

responsive to determining the future travel path of the person is not indicative of the person entering the vehicle, maintaining the one or more sensors in a deactivated state.

9. The system of claim 1, further including:

a microphone operatively connected to the one or more processors, wherein the microphone is configured to acquire data of a portion of the external environment of the vehicle, and wherein the executable operations further include;

analyzing the data acquired by the microphone to detect a sound in the external environment of the vehicle;

determining whether the detected sound is indicative of a person wanting to enter the vehicle or of a person not wanting to enter the vehicle; and

responsive to determining that the detected sound is indicative of a person not wanting to enter the vehicle, maintaining the one or more sensors in a deactivated state.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein causing the current setting of the component to match the target setting determined is performed prior to the person entering the vehicle.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein determining whether the future travel path is indicative of the person approaching the vehicle is performed when the person is located within an activation range of the vehicle.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein determining whether the future travel path is indicative of the person approaching the vehicle includes determining whether the future travel path of the person intersects the vehicle or passes within a predetermined distance from the vehicle.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein the anthropometric feature is a distance on the person.

2. A method of automatically providing a setting for one or more components of a vehicle comprising:

detecting a mobile device;

determining whether the mobile device is an authorized mobile device associated with the vehicle;

determining a future travel path of a person carrying the mobile device, the determining including extrapolating past positions of the mobile device or of the person;

determining whether the future travel path is indicative of the person approaching the vehicle;

responsive to determining the mobile device is an authorized mobile device associated with the vehicle and to determining the future travel path of the person is indicative of the person approaching the vehicle, analyzing visual data acquired by one or more vehicle sensors of a portion of an external environment of the vehicle that includes the person to measure an anthropometric feature of the person approaching the vehicle;

determining a target setting for a component of a vehicle based on the measured anthropometric feature; and

causing a current setting of the component to match the determined target setting, whereby the determined target setting improves the comfort of the person when seated in the vehicle.

12. A method of automatically providing a setting for one or more components of a vehicle comprising:

determining a future travel path of a person approaching the vehicle, whereby the future travel path includes a subsequent travel path of the person;

determining whether the future travel path is indicative of the person entering the vehicle;

responsive to determining that the future travel path of the person is indicative of the person entering the vehicle, analyzing visual data acquired by one or more vehicle sensors of a portion of an external environment of the vehicle that includes the person to measure an anthropometric feature of the person approaching the vehicle, the measured anthropometric feature being a distance;

determining a target setting for a component of a vehicle based on the measured anthropometric feature, the component being adjustable across a plurality of settings, the component having a current setting, the target setting directly corresponding to the distance, and the component being one of a seat, a steering wheel, a pedal, a head rest, a side view mirror, a rear view mirror, a seat belt anchor, or a side bolster; and

causing the current setting of the component to match the determined target setting, whereby the determined target setting improves the comfort of the person when seated in the vehicle.

13. The method of claim 12, further including:

sensing a portion of an external environment of the vehicle to detect motion therein, wherein acquiring visual data of a portion of the external environment of the vehicle is performed responsive to detecting motion in the portion of the external environment of the vehicle.

14. The method of claim 12,

wherein visual data acquired by one or more vehicle sensors of a portion of the external environment of the vehicle that includes the person is not acquired responsive to determining that the future travel path of the person is not indicative of the person entering the vehicle.

15. The method of claim 14, further including:

determining a likely position of the person within the vehicle responsive to determining that the future travel path of the person is indicative of the person entering the vehicle.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein determining the target setting for the component of the vehicle includes determining the target setting for the component that is located at or near the determined likely position of the person within the vehicle.

17. The method of claim 12, further including:

comparing the current setting to the determined target setting,

wherein, if the determined target setting is substantially equal to the current setting of the component, causing the current setting of the component to match the determined target setting includes maintaining the current setting of the component.

18. The method of claim 12, further including:

comparing the current setting to the determined target setting,

wherein, if the determined target setting is not substantially equal to the current setting of the component, causing the current setting of the component to match the determined target setting includes adjusting the current setting of the component.

19. The method of claim 12, further including:

detecting a mobile device associated with the person approaching the vehicle; and

determining whether the mobile device is an authorized mobile device associated with the vehicle,

wherein determining the target setting for the component of the vehicle based on the measured anthropometric feature is performed responsive to determining that the mobile device is an authorized mobile device associated with the vehicle.