ACCESSORY FOR VEHICLES FOR AUTOMATING MAIN BEAMS COMPLETE WITH AN ELECTRONIC SYSTEM FOR REDUCING OPTICAL DISTURBANCES

• US 20170232883A1
• Filed: 05/27/2015
• Published: 08/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: NICE SRL (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: NICE SRL (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Dzyubyk, Oleksandra, Polverini, Sergio
• Application Number:
  US15/314,125
• Publication Number:
  US 20170232883A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/1423 Automatic dimming circuits, i.e. switching between high beam and low beam due to change of ambient light or light level in road traffic
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/314 Ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/42 oncoming vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/45 Special conditions, e.g. pedestrians, road signs or potential dangers
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2900/10 Retrofit arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2900/30 Lamps commanded by wireless transmissions

Abstract

The electronic device described in the present patent application applies to the accessories used to automate the main beams that use sensors to detect the light coming from the vehicles met along roads. The device reduces or even suppresses the undesired effects produced by reflections, onto the surrounding objects, of the lights of the vehicle on which it is mounted, thus avoiding undesired main beam turn-off signals. Said device is particularly convenient to use if mounted after the vehicle is commissioned, being it compatible with wireless transmission systems which make its installation easier.

Claims

1-12. -12. (canceled)

13. An accessory for vehicles to automate the turn-off and the turn-on of the main beams, comprising:

one or several photo-detectors;

a main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit comprising a central processing unit which runs a program stored in a memory and controls a switch which makes said main beams turn on or off;

an analysis circuit analyzing electrical signals generated by said one or several photo-detectors comprising a decision circuit, a central processing unit which runs a program stored in a memory, and a comparator which compares the signal coming from said one or several photo-detectors to a trigger signal, corresponding to the relative dark signal, generated by said central processing unit;

a wireless transmit assembly connected to said analysis circuit which transmits the signal received by it;

a wireless receive assembly, connected to said control circuit, which receives the signal from said wireless transmit assembly; and

a battery which supplies power to said one or several photo-detectors, to said analysis circuit and to said transmit assembly;

wherein said program of said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit and said program of said analysis circuit share a timing sequence, whose execution is coordinated via said wireless transmit assembly and said wireless receive assembly, so that the sequence of said trigger signal is synchronous with the main beam turn-on and turn-off sequence;

wherein said comparator outputs a reflection or blank signal toward said central processing unit of said analysis circuit whenever the magnitude of said signal from said one or several photo-detectors is greater than the magnitude of said trigger signal;

wherein in the presence of said reflection or blank signal, said central processing unit of said analysis circuit sends to said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit a reflection or blank signal and therefore causing the main beams to be turned-on again.

14. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein said program of said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit and said program of said analysis circuit start being run under the control of said decision circuit which activates said central processing unit of said analysis circuit which in turn starts the transmission of said wireless transmit assembly.

15. The accessory according to claim 14, wherein said timing sequence makes said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit turn-off said main beams at least two times.

16. The accessory according to claim 15, wherein said program of said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit and said program of said analysis circuit start being run thereafter in the presence of said signal sent by said decision circuit after a pre-determined delay time.

17. The accessory according to claim 16, wherein said pre-determined delay time is one second.

18. The accessory according to claim 15, wherein said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit, in the absence of said reflection or blank signal, makes the main beams turn-on again after three seconds.

19. The accessory according to claim 14, wherein said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit, in the absence of said reflection or blank signal, makes the main beams turn-on again after three seconds.

20. The accessory according to claim 14, wherein said program of said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit and said program of said analysis circuit start being run thereafter in the presence of said signal sent by said decision circuit after a pre-determined delay time.

21. The accessory according to claim 20, wherein said pre-determined delay time is one second.

22. The accessory according to claim 20, wherein said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit, in the absence of said reflection or blank signal, makes the main beams turn-on again after three seconds.

23. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein one of said one or several photo-detectors is dedicated to detecting all or some of the light emissions comprised in the range of the wavelengths from 620 to 700 nm.

24. The accessory according to claim 23, wherein upstream said photo-detector dedicated to all or some of the light emissions comprised in the range of the wavelengths from 620 to 700 nm there is installed a filter of a type that lets at least some of the light emissions comprised in the range of the wavelengths from 620 to 700 pass through.

25. The accessory according to claim 24, wherein said filter is an optical filter.

26. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein said timing sequence makes said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit turn-off said main beams at least two times.

27. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein said program of said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit and said program of said analysis circuit start being run thereafter in the presence of said signal sent by said decision circuit after a pre-determined delay time.

28. The accessory according to claim 27, wherein said pre-determined delay time is one second.

29. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein said analysis circuit comprises an equalizer filter which suppresses one or several frequency components of the signal coming from said one or several photo-detectors before it is input to said comparator.

30. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein said central processing unit and said program memory of said analysis circuit are contained in a microcontroller.

31. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein said processing unit and said program memory of said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit are contained in a microcontroller.

32. The accessory according to claim 13, wherein said main beam turn-off and turn-on control circuit, in the absence of said reflection or blank signal, makes the main beams turn-on again after three seconds.