METHOD AND DEVICE FOR GENERATING A USER RECOGNITION SIGNAL

• US 20110121958A1
• Filed: 03/10/2009
• Published: 05/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Volkswagen AG
• Original Assignee: Volkswagen AG
• Inventors: Bohrer, Lorenz, Wäller, Christoph, Bendewald, Lennart, Bachfischer, Katharina
• Granted Patent: US 9,415,689 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/438
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/141 Activation of instrument input devices by approaching fingers or pens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/143 Touch sensitive instrument input devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/1438 Touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/1526 Dual-view displays
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/141 Activation by approaching fingers or pens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/143 Touch sensitive input devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/1438 Touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/1526 Dual-view displays
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/10 Input arrangements, i.e. from user to vehicle, associated with vehicle functions or specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/22 Display screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 37/06 of controls, e.g. controls knobs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00

Abstract

In a device and a method to produce a user recognition signal upon an actuation by a user in a vehicle using a control unit linked with a transmitter and receiver which are disposed relative to one another to set up a user-specific high frequency transmission path therebetween upon actuation by the the user, at least one HF signal is provided and transferred through the body of the user, the HF transfer is evaluated to determine the user-specific transmission path to identify the user, and a user recognition signal is produced that identifies the user, wherein using at least one detection unit an action of the user is detected or an action presence is monitored, and in the detection of the action an action signal is produced, and the transmitter only provides the one HF transmission signal after or upon the existence of an action signal.

Claims

1. A device for generating a user recognition signal upon an actuation action of at least one user out of several users in a vehicle, comprising a discrimination device to generate the user recognition signal identifying at least one of the users, and

at least one detection unit, by means of which upon a detection of an action of one of the users at least one action signal is generated, communicatively coupled with the discrimination device, so that the discrimination device is or will be activated only after or upon an existence of the at least one action signal.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the discrimination device comprises:

a control unit as well as transmitting means and receiving means which are associated with the control unit and are located with respect to each other such that between them upon the actuation action of the at least one user via his/her body a user-specific high frequency transmission path is formed, by means of which a HF signal is transmitted, wherein the control unit is designed to evaluate the HF signal transmission in order to generate the user recognition signal identifying the at least one of the users, wherein the at least one detection unit, by means of which upon a detection of an action of one of the users at least one action signal is generated, is coupled with an activation unit and the activation unit is designed to activate the transmitting means only after or upon an existence of the one action signal.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one detection unit comprises at least one approach detection unit located in spatial proximity to at least one control element by means of which an approach of a body part of one of the users towards the at least one control element which is actuated upon the actuation action is detected as the action.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit comprises the at least one control element and an operation signal generated upon actuating the at least one control element is used as the action signal.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit comprises at least one seat occupancy detection unit which indicates an occupancy of at least one vehicle seat by one of the users and detects a sitting of one of the users on the at least one vehicle seat as the action.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein the transmitting means comprise one or more transmission units, each of which is associated with one vehicle seat and provide a HF signal specific for the vehicle seat or a group of vehicle seats this vehicle seat is a member of, for a coupling into one of the users sitting on the respective vehicle seat and the receiving means comprise at least one receiving unit, which is located in spatial proximity to the one or the several control elements such that upon the actuation action, which comprises an actuation of the one or of one of the several control elements, the user-specific high frequency transmission path is formed.

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein the transmitting means comprise at least one transmission unit, which is located in spatial proximity to the one or the several control elements such that upon the actuation action which comprises an actuation of the one or of one of the several control elements the user-specific high frequency transmission path between the transmission unit and the receiving means is formed, and the receiving means comprise one or more receiving units, each of which is associated with one vehicle seat and are located such that one of the users who is sitting on the respective vehicle seat upon a carrying out of the actuation action forms the user-specific high frequency transmission path between the transmitting means and the receiving unit associated with the respective vehicle seat.

8. A method for generating a user recognition signal upon an actuation action of at least one user out of several users in a vehicle by means of a discrimination device, comprising:

carrying out a user discrimination by means of the discrimination device to identify the at least one user, and

generating a user recognition signal identifying the at least one of the users,

detecting by means of at least one detection unit (13, 13′

, 13″

, 13′

″

) an action of one of the users or monitoring a presence of the action, and upon the detection of the action an action signal is generated, and by means of the action signal the discrimination device is controlled such that it is activated only after or upon the existence of the one action signal.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the discrimination device comprises a control unit as well as transmitting means and receiving means which are associated with the control unit and are located with respect to each other such that between them upon the actuation action of the at least one user via his/her body a user-specific high frequency transmission path is formed and the method further comprises:

providing at least one HF signal by means of the transmitting means,

receiving the HF signal transmitted via the body of the at least one user by means of the receiving means,

evaluating the HF transmission to detect the user-specific transmission path and thereby to identify the at least one user, and

generating an user recognition signal identifying the at least one of the users,

wherein by means of the at least one detection unit an action of one of the users is detected or a presence of the action is monitored and upon the detection of the action the action signal is generated, and the transmitting means are controlled by means of an activation unit such that the transmitting means provide the at least one HF transmission signal at the activation unit only after or upon the existence of the one action signal.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein the at least one detection unit comprises located in spatial proximity to at least one control element at least one approach detection unit by means of which an approach of a body part of one of the users towards the at least one control element is detected as the action, wherein the actuation action comprises an actuation of the at least one control element.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein the detection unit comprises the at least one control element and as an action an operation signal generated upon actuating the at least one control element is used as the action signal.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein the detection unit comprises at least one seat occupancy detection unit which indicates an occupancy of at least one vehicle seat by one of the users and a sitting of one of the users on the at least one vehicle seat is detected as the action.

13. The method according to claim 8, wherein the transmitting means comprise one or more transmission units each of which is associated with one vehicle seat and in each case after or upon the existence of the one action signal provide a HF transmission signal specific for the vehicle seat or specific for a group of vehicle seats for a coupling into one of the users sitting on the respective vehicle seat and the receiving means comprise at least one receiving unit located in spatial proximity to the one or to the several control elements such that upon the actuation action comprising an actuation of the one or of one of the several control elements the user-specific high frequency transmission path is formed such that the at least one HF transmission signal transmitted via the user-specific high frequency transmission path is received by means of the at least one receiving unit.

14. The method according to claim 8, wherein the receiving means comprise one or more receiving units each of which is associated with one vehicle seat and are located such that one of the users sitting on one of the respective vehicle seats upon a carrying out of the actuation action forms the user-specific high frequency transmission path between the transmitting means and the receiving unit associated with the respective vehicle seat and in each case the respective HF transmission signal transmitted via the user-specific high frequency transmission path is received by means of the associated receiving unit and the transmitting means comprise at least one transmission unit located in spatial proximity to the one or the several control elements such that upon the actuation action comprising an actuation of the one or of one of the several control elements the user-specific high frequency transmission path is formed between the transmission unit and the receiving means and the at least one HF transmission signal is provided after or upon the existence of the one action signal.

15. A device for generating a user recognition signal upon an actuation action of at least one user out of several users in a vehicle, comprising:

at least one detection unit generating at least one action signal upon a detection of an action of one of the users,

a discrimination device coupled with said at least one detection unit and receiving said at least one signal and generating the user recognition signal identifying at least one of the users, wherein the discrimination device is or will be activated only after or upon an existence of the at least one action signal.

16. The device according to claim 15, wherein the discrimination device comprises:

a control unit as well as a transmitter and a receiver which are associated with the control unit and are located with respect to each other such that between them upon the actuation action of the at least one user via his/her body a user-specific high frequency transmission path is formed, by means of which a HF signal is transmitted, wherein the control unit is designed to evaluate the HF signal transmission in order to generate the user recognition signal identifying the at least one of the users, wherein the at least one detection unit, by means of which upon a detection of an action of one of the users at least one action signal is generated, is coupled with an activation unit and the activation unit is designed to activate the transmitter only after or upon an existence of the one action signal.

17. The device according to claim 15, wherein the at least one detection unit comprises at least one approach detection unit located in spatial proximity to at least one control element by means of which an approach of a body part of one of the users towards the at least one control element which is actuated upon the actuation action is detected as the action.

18. The device according to claim 15, wherein the detection unit comprises the at least one control element and an operation signal generated upon actuating the at least one control element is used as the action signal.

19. The device according to claim 15, wherein the detection unit comprises at least one seat occupancy detection unit which indicates an occupancy of at least one vehicle seat by one of the users and detects a sitting of one of the users on the at least one vehicle seat as the action.

20. The device according to claim 15, wherein the transmitter comprise one or more transmission units, each of which is associated with one vehicle seat and provide a HF signal specific for the vehicle seat or a group of vehicle seats this vehicle seat is a member of, for a coupling into one of the users sitting on the respective vehicle seat and the receiver comprises at least one receiving unit, which is located in spatial proximity to the one or the several control elements such that upon the actuation action, which comprises an actuation of the one or of one of the several control elements, the user-specific high frequency transmission path is formed.