USER SETTINGS SYSTEM AND METHOD OF USING THE SAME

• US 20120045102A1
• Filed: 01/27/2011
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Polight Technologies Limited
• Original Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: LUNG, CHIEN-LIH
• Granted Patent: US 8,548,209 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/117
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/002 Seats provided with an occupancy detection means mounted therein or thereon detection means responsive to presence or absence of children B60N2/266
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0248 with memory of positions
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/19 Sensors therefor

Abstract

A user settings system includes a trigger module, an image acquisition module, a microprocessor and a database. The trigger module implements the image acquisition module to capture a pupil image of a driver. The database is coupled with the microprocessor, and stores at least one pupil image of at least one authorized user and the personalized settings of the authorized user. The microprocessor includes a comparison module, a response module, and an implementation module. The comparison module compares the pupil image of the driver captured by the image acquisition module with the stored pupil images in the database and generates a result notification to the response module. The response module determines whether or not a matching pupil image is found. The implementation module automatically activates the personalized settings stored in the database.

Claims

1. A user settings system, comprising:

a trigger module;

an image acquisition module for capturing at least one pupil image of a driver triggering the trigger module;

a microprocessor, the microprocessor comprising a comparison module, a response module, and an implementation module; and

a database, the database is coupled with the microprocessor, wherein the trigger module is capable of triggering the image acquisition module to capture a pupil image of a driver triggering the trigger module, the database is capable of storing at least one pupil image of at least one authorized user and a plurality of personalized settings of the authorized user, the comparison module is capable of comparing the pupil image of the driver captured by the image acquisition module with the stored pupil image in the database and generate a result notification to the response module, the response module is used to make a determination as to whether or not the pupil image captured by the image acquisition module matches with the at least one pupil image stored in the database according to an output signal of the comparison result, and capable of generating a corresponding confirmation to the implementation module, and the implementation module is used to automatically install the personalized settings of the driver stored in the database according to the determination of the response module.

2. The user settings system of claim 1, wherein the trigger module comprises an infrared detection device detecting the driver sitting in the driver seat.

3. The user settings system of claim 1, wherein the image acquisition module comprises a camera and an illumination device.

4. The user settings system of claim 3, wherein the illumination device is an infrared illumination device.

5. The user settings system of claim 3, wherein a brightness of the illumination device changes periodically.

6. The user settings system of claim 4, wherein the image acquisition module further comprises a position adjusting device on which the camera and the illumination device are fixed.

7. The user settings system of claim 1, wherein the comparison module is adapted to compare the pupil image captured by the image acquisition module with the stored pupil image in the database by calculating a similarity between the captured pupil image and the stored pupil image in the database, and the output signal is the similarity calculated by the comparison module.

8. A method for personalizing settings of a vehicle, comprising:

capturing at least one pupil image of a driver of the vehicle;

comparing the captured pupil image of the driver with each of the stored pupil images in a database;

determining whether or not a matching pupil image is found in the database; and

activating a plurality of personalized settings of the driver stored in the database if the matched pupil image is found in the database.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the step of determining if a matching pupil image is found in the database comprises:

determining that the matched pupil image is found if the similarity between the captured pupil image and the at least one stored pupil image in the database exceeds or equals a preset value; and

determining that no matched pupil image is found in the database if the similarity between the captured pupil image and each pupil image stored in the database is less than the preset value.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising making a prompt to the driver to adjust the settings of the vehicle and store the settings in the database if no matched pupil image is found in the database.