VEHICLE WITH A SAFETY SYSTEM INVOLVING PREDICTION OF DRIVER TIREDNESS

• US 20140046546A1
• Filed: 04/16/2012
• Published: 02/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Scania CV AB (Volkswagen AG)
• Original Assignee: Fredrik Astrom
• Inventors: Kollegger, Peter, Claezon, Fredrich, Frid, Alexandra, strm, Fredrik
• Granted Patent: US 9,340,213 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/41
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/02 Dead-man's devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/00 Arrangements or fittings on vehicles for protecting or preventing injuries to occupants or pedestrians in case of accidents or other traffic risks safety belts or body harnesses in vehicles B60R22/00; devices, apparatus or methods for life-saving in general A62B; safety devices for propulsion unit control specially adapted for, or arranged in, vehicles B60K28/00; seats constructed to protect the occupant from the effect of abnormal g-forces, e.g. crash or safety seats, B60N2/42; energy-absorbing arrangements for hand wheels for steering vehicles B62D1/11; energy-absorbing arrangements for vehicle steering columns B62D1/19; harnessing in aircraft B64D25/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2040/0809 Driver authorisation; Driver identity check
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2040/0818 Inactivity or incapacity of driver
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2040/0872 Driver physiology
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0075 Automatic parameter input, automatic initialising or calibrating means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/043 Identity of occupants
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/18 Steering angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/22 Psychological state; Stress level or workload
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/221 Physiology, e.g. weight, heartbeat, health or special needs
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/10 Historical data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/09 Driving style or behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/002 Analysing tachograph charts arrangements for graph-reading in general G06K11/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/02 Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/06 indicating a condition of sleep, e.g. anti-dozing alarms
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 31/00 Predictive alarm systems characterised by extrapolation or other computation using updated historic data

Abstract

A vehicle (2) has a tachograph (4) which generates a tachograph signal (6) containing information about current clock time and the times of the vehicle'"'"'s movements, a driver'"'"'s report input unit (8) generates a signal (10) containing information about driving and rest times for the driver, including monitoring (12) of driver activity which generates an alertness signal (14) containing information about the driver'"'"'s activity in the vehicle. A safety system (18) has a control unit (20) and an alertness modelling unit (22) which calculates a current and a predicted tiredness values (KSS) for the driver based on the tachograph signal (6) and/or the driver'"'"'s report signal (10). The tiredness values are conveyed to a control unit which determines control signals (24) for the vehicle'"'"'s driver support systems.

Claims

1. A driver alertness detection system for a vehicle, the system comprising:

a tachograph configured and operable to generate a tachograph signal containing information about current clock time and the times of the vehicle'"'"'s movements;

a driver'"'"'s input unit configured to receive input of a report of a driver'"'"'s recent driving conditions and to generate a driver'"'"'s report signal containing driving conditions including information about driving and rest times for the driver;

the vehicle further comprises one or more driver support systems; and

a vehicle safety system comprising a control unit and a driver'"'"'s alertness modelling unit configured and operable to calculate a current tiredness value (KSS) and predicted tiredness values (KSS) for the driver over a predetermined future period of time, using an alertness model, based on said tachograph signal and/or said driver'"'"'s report signal;

a control unit, which is configured to determine control signals for a vehicle driver support system on the basis of said tiredness values; and

said calculated current and predicted tiredness values being arranged for conveyance to said control unit.

2. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said control unit is configured to calculate the tiredness value (KSS) using the formula

KSS=10.9−

0.6(S+C+U),

where S denotes the driver'"'"'s sleep pattern, C denotes the circadian rhythm over a period of 24 hours, which characterises the biological sleep pattern, and U denotes the 12-hour ultradian rhythm based on the driver'"'"'s diurnal biological activity.

3. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined future period of time is shorter than 36 hours.

4. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined future period of time is shorter than 12 hours.

5. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said KSS value is between 1 and 9, where 1 denotes least tiredness and 9 most tiredness.

6. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said control signals affect threshold values for said driver support systems so that the higher is the KSS value, the safer are settings of the driver support system.

7. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said tiredness value (KSS) is calculated continuously.

8. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said tiredness value (KSS) is calculated using a predetermined interval of 10-1000 seconds between consecutive calculations.

9. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said control unit is configured to generate a control signal, and a display system in the vehicle for display of calculated tiredness values and said control unit generates said control signal.

10. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said vehicle comprises a monitoring system for monitoring of driver activity, said monitoring system being configured for generating an alertness signal containing information about the driver'"'"'s activity in the vehicle, and said alertness signal is configured for conveying said information to said safety system and configured for calculating current and predicted tiredness values (KSS) for the driver over the predetermined future period of time.

11. A vehicle according to claim 10, such that said monitoring system is configured to monitor the driver'"'"'s movements in the vehicle.

12. A vehicle according to claim 10, wherein said monitoring system is configured to monitor the driver'"'"'s steering behaviour.

13. A vehicle according to claim 10, wherein said monitoring system is configured to monitor the vehicle'"'"'s movements in its traffic lane.

14. A method for detecting driver alertness in a vehicle, comprising:

generating a tachograph signal containing information about current clock time and the times of the vehicle'"'"'s movements;

generating from a driver'"'"'s input unit a driver'"'"'s report signal containing information about driving and rest times for the driver, wherein the vehicle further comprises one or more driver support systems; and

calculating a current tiredness value (KSS) and predicted tiredness values (KSS) for the driver over a predetermined future period of time, using an alertness model, based on said tachograph signal and/or driver'"'"'s report signal, conveying said calculated current and predicted tiredness values to a control unit and determining control signals for the vehicle'"'"'s driver support systems on the basis of said tiredness values.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein said tiredness value (KSS) is calculated using the formula

KSS=10.9−

0.6(S+C+U),

where S denotes the driver'"'"'s sleep pattern, C denotes the circadian rhythm over a period of 24 hours, which characterises the biological sleep pattern, and U denotes the 12-hour ultradian rhythm based on the driver'"'"'s diurnal biological activity.

16. A method according to claim 14, wherein said predetermined future period of time is shorter than 36 hours.

17. A method according to claim 14, wherein the KSS value is between 1 and 9, where 1 denotes least tiredness and 9 most tiredness.

18. A method according to claim 14, wherein the control signals affect the threshold values for said driver support systems so that the higher the KSS value, the safer the driver support system settings.

19. A method according to claim 14, wherein the tiredness value (KSS) is calculated using a predetermined interval of 10-1000 seconds between consecutive calculations.

20. A method according to claim 14, wherein said control unit is configured to generate a control signal and a display system in said vehicle for display of calculated tiredness values.

21. A method according to claim 14, comprising generating from a monitoring system for monitoring of driver activity an alertness signal which contains information about the driver'"'"'s activity in said vehicle and conveying said information to said safety system to be used to calculate current and predicted tiredness values (KSS) for the driver over the predetermined future period of time.

22. A method according to claim 21, further comprising monitoring the driver'"'"'s movements in the vehicle.

23. A method according to claim 21, further comprising monitoring the driver'"'"'s steering behaviour.

24. A method according to claim 21, further comprising monitoring the vehicle'"'"'s movements in its traffic lane.