TRAILER ACTIVE BACK-UP ASSIST WITH LANE WIDTH HMI

• US 20140218522A1
• Filed: 02/04/2013
• Published: 08/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Lavoie, Erick Michael, Rhode, Douglas Scott, Recker, Darrel Alan
• Granted Patent: US 9,129,528 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/148
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/00 Devices for measuring, signalling, controlling, or distributing tyre pressure or temperature, specially adapted for mounting on vehicles; Arrangement of tyre inflating devices on vehicles, e.g. of pumps or of tanks; Tyre cooling arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/002 specially adapted for covering the peripheral part of the vehicle, e.g. for viewing tyres, bumpers or the like integrated in the windows B60R1/001; combined with rear-view mirrors B60R1/08
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 13/06 for backing a normally drawn trailer
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 6/00 Arrangements for automatically controlling steering depending on driving conditions sensed and responded to, e.g. control circuits means for initiating a change in direction B62D1/00; steering valves B62D5/06; combined with means for inclining the vehicle body or wheels on bends B62D9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 21/02 for measuring length, width, or thickness G01B21/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/167 Driving aids for lane monitoring, lane changing, e.g. blind spot detection
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/18 Closed-circuit television [CCTV] systems, i.e. systems in which the video signal is not broadcast

Abstract

A vehicle comprises a communication interface for enabling information to be communicated to a and from an occupant of the vehicle and a trailer back-up assist system coupled to the communication interface. The trailer back-up assist system is operable for determining a selected width of a lane within which the vehicle and an attached trailer are to be backed from a current position of the vehicle to reach a targeted location for the attached trailer and for outputting to the occupant of the vehicle via the communication interface information characterizing an ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane from the current position of the vehicle.

Claims

1. A vehicle, comprising:

a communication interface for enabling information to be communicated to a and from an occupant of the vehicle; and

a trailer back-up assist system coupled to the communication interface, wherein the trailer back-up assist system is operable to determine a selected width of a lane within which the vehicle and an attached trailer are to be backed from a current position of the vehicle to reach a targeted location for the attached trailer and to output to an occupant of the vehicle via the communication interface information characterizing an ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane from the current position of the vehicle.

2. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising:

a spatial imaging system coupled to the trailer back-up assist system, wherein the trailer back-up assist system is operable to receive lane width determining information from the spatial imaging system.

3. The vehicle of claim 2 wherein the lane width determining information characterizes at least one boundary of the lane.

4. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein the trailer back-up assist system is further operable to output an estimated minimum lane width achievable for a hitch angle between the vehicle and the attached trailer while at the current position of the vehicle and prior to outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

5. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein:

determining the selected width of the lane within which the vehicle and the attached trailer are to be backed includes receiving information characterizing a desired width of the lane; and

outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane includes outputting information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle-trailer combination forward to achieve kinematic model parameters for the vehicle-trailer combination that allow backing of the vehicle trailer combination within the lane of the selected width.

6. The vehicle of claim 5 wherein receiving information characterizing a desired width of the lane includes outputting a prompt requesting entry of the desired width of the lane.

7. The vehicle of claim 5 wherein the information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle forward include information characterizing a distance to move the vehicle forward from the current position of the vehicle.

8. The vehicle of claim 7 wherein the trailer back-up assist system is further operable to output an estimated minimum lane width achievable for a hitch angle between the vehicle and the attached trailer while at the current position and prior to outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

9. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein determining the selected width of the lane which the vehicle-trailer combination is to be backed includes acquiring lane width determining information from an obstacle sensing system of the vehicle.

10. The vehicle of claim 9 wherein outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane includes outputting information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle forward until a suitable kinematic model parameters for the vehicle and attached trailer is achieved to enable the vehicle and the attached trailer to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

11. The vehicle of claim 10 wherein the information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle forward include information characterizing a distance to move the vehicle forward from the current position of the vehicle.

12. A method for assisting a driver to back a vehicle-trailer combination, comprising:

at least one data processing device accessing, from memory coupled to the at least one data processing device, instructions causing the at least one data processing device to determine a selected width of a lane within which the vehicle-trailer combination is to be backed from a current position of the vehicle-trailer combination to reach a targeted location; and

the at least one data processing device accessing, from the memory, instructions causing the at least one data processing device to output to a driver of a vehicle of the vehicle-trailer combination information characterizing an ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane from the current position of the vehicle-trailer combination.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising:

the at least one data processing device accessing, from the memory, instructions causing the at least one data processing device to output an estimated minimum lane width achievable for a hitch angle of the vehicle-trailer combination while at the current position and prior to causing the at least one data processing device to output the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein:

causing the at least one data processing device to determine the selected width of the lane within which the vehicle-trailer combination is to be backed includes causing the at least one data processing device to receive information characterizing a desired width of the lane; and

causing the at least one data processing device to output the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane includes causing the at least one data processing device to output information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle-trailer combination forward to achieve kinematic model parameters for the vehicle-trailer combination that allow backing of the vehicle trailer combination within the lane of the selected width.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein causing the at least one data processing device to receive information characterizing a desired width of the lane includes causing the at least one data processing device to output a prompt requesting entry of the desired width of the lane.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle forward include information characterizing a distance to move the vehicle-trailer combination forward from the current position of the vehicle-trailer combination.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising:

the at least one data processing device accessing, from the memory, instructions causing the at least one data processing device to output an estimated minimum lane width achievable for a hitch angle of the vehicle-trailer combination while at the current position and prior to causing the at least one data processing device to output the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

18. The method of claim 12 wherein causing the at least one data processing device to determine the selected width of the lane which the vehicle-trailer combination is to be backed includes causing the at least one data processing device to acquire lane width determining information from an obstacle sensing system of the vehicle.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein causing the at least one data processing device to output the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane includes causing the at least one data processing device to output information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle-trailer combination forward until a suitable kinematic model parameters for the vehicle-trailer combination is achieved to enable the vehicle-trailer combination to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle forward include information characterizing a distance to move the vehicle-trailer combination forward from the current position of the vehicle-trailer combination.

21. An electronic controller system having a set of instructions tangibly embodied on a non-transitory processor-readable medium thereof, the set of instructions is accessible from the non-transitory processor-readable medium by at least one data processing device of the electronic controller system for being interpreted thereby, and the set of instructions is configured for causing the at least one data processing device to carry out operations for:

determining a selected width of a lane within which the vehicle-trailer combination is to be backed from a current position of the vehicle-trailer combination to reach a targeted location; and

outputting to a driver of a vehicle of the vehicle-trailer combination information characterizing an ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane from the current position of the vehicle-trailer combination.

22. The electronic controller system of claim 21 wherein the set of instructions is further configured for causing the at least one data processing device to carry out operations for:

outputting an estimated minimum lane width achievable for a hitch angle of the vehicle-trailer combination while at the current position and prior to outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

23. The electronic controller system of claim 21 wherein:

determining the selected width of the lane within which the vehicle-trailer combination is to be backed includes receiving information characterizing a desired width of the lane; and

outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane includes outputting information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle-trailer combination forward to achieve kinematic model parameters for the vehicle-trailer combination that allow backing of the vehicle trailer combination within the lane of the selected width.

24. The electronic controller system of claim 23 wherein receiving information characterizing a desired width of the lane includes outputting a prompt requesting entry of the desired width of the lane.

25. The electronic controller system of claim 23 wherein the information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle forward include information characterizing a distance to move the vehicle-trailer combination forward from the current position of the vehicle-trailer combination.

26. The electronic controller system of claim 25 wherein the set of instructions is further configured for causing the at least one data processing device to carry out operations for:

outputting an estimated minimum lane width achievable for a hitch angle of the vehicle-trailer combination while at the current position and prior to outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

27. The electronic controller system of claim 21 wherein determining the selected width of the lane which the vehicle-trailer combination is to be backed includes acquiring lane width determining information from an obstacle sensing system of the vehicle.

28. The electronic controller system of claim 27 wherein outputting the information characterizing the ability of the vehicle to be backed within the lane includes outputting information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle-trailer combination forward until a suitable kinematic model parameters for the vehicle-trailer combination is achieved to enable the vehicle-trailer combination to be backed within the lane of the selected width.

29. The electronic controller system of claim 28 wherein the information instructing the driver of the vehicle to pull the vehicle forward include information characterizing a distance to move the vehicle-trailer combination forward from the current position of the vehicle-trailer combination.