CONTROL DEVICE AND METHOD WITH VOICE AND/OR GESTURAL RECOGNITION FOR THE INTERIOR LIGHTING OF A VEHICLE

• US 20170270924A1
• Filed: 03/21/2017
• Published: 09/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Valeo Vision (Valeo SE)
• Original Assignee: Valeo Vision (Valeo SE)
• Inventors: FLEURENCE, Thierry, Koniec, Aymeric
• Granted Patent: US 10,937,419 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/146 Instrument input by gesture
• 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: B60Q 3/80 Circuits; Control arrangements for dashboards B60Q3/16; for mass transit vehicles B60Q3/47
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/20 Movements or behaviour, e.g. gesture recognition recognition of facial expressions G06V40/16
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/223 Execution procedure of a spoken command
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

The invention relates to a control device with voice and/or gestural recognition for the interior lighting of a motor vehicle comprising a plurality of lighting modules (M_n) each capable of emitting at least one light beam in an interior of the vehicle. The device includes at least distinct means (C_n) for detecting a plurality of voice and/or gestural commands (S_n), executed by at least one occupant of the vehicle in specific zones (Z_n) of the vehicle interior targeted by the detection means, the detection means (C_n) being capable of transmitting data representative of the commands (S_n) to at least processing and analysis means (ECU) configured to merge and prioritize the data and generate, after comparison with reference data, at least one instruction (A_n) to at least one interior lighting module (M_n).

Claims

1. Control device with voice and/or gestural recognition for the interior lighting of a motor vehicle comprising at least two lights each capable of emitting at least one light beam in an interior of the vehicle, wherein the control device comprises at least distinct means (C_n) for detecting a plurality of commands (S_n), said detection means (C_n) being capable of transmitting data representative of said commands (S_n) to at least processing and analysis means (ECU) configured to merge and prioritize said data and generate, after comparison with reference data, at least one instruction (A_n) to at least one interior lighting module.

2. Device according to claim 1, wherein the detection means (C_n) are configured to detect a plurality of voice and/or gestural commands, executed by at least one occupant of the vehicle in specific zones (Z_n) of the vehicle interior targeted by said detection means.

3. Device according to claim 2, wherein the gestural commands consist of a plurality of gestures forming a determined gestural sequence.

4. Device according to claim 3, wherein the gestural sequence is defined by its vertical and/or horizontal and/or diagonal orientation and its speed of execution.

5. Device according to claim 1, wherein the detection means (C_n) comprise means for acquiring, from a network, data conveying said commands (S_n).

6. Device according to claim 1, wherein the device comprises at least:

a plurality of distinct command detection modules (C_n), configured to at least detect an interior lighting command, analyze this command, and transmit data representative of said command,

an electronic control unit (ECU) linked to said detection modules (C_n) and configured to process a plurality of data representative of a plurality of commands, and transmit at least one resulting instruction (A_n) to at least one lighting module (M_n),

upstream communication means configured to circulate the representative data transmitted by at least one detection module (C_n) to the input of the electronic control unit (ECU),

downstream communication means configured to circulate at least one instruction (A_n) output from the electronic control unit (ECU) to at least one light source and forming a multiplexed network.

7. Device according to claim 6, wherein the detection modules (C_n) are configured to record a plurality of commands for which the performance sequence forms said interior lighting command.

8. Device according to claim 6, wherein that the electronic control unit (ECU) is configured to merge and synthesize the data representative of a plurality of commands into one or more resulting instructions (A_n).

9. Device according to claim 8, wherein the electronic control unit (ECU) is configured to prioritize the data from the different detection modules (C_n), and to establish one or more resulting instructions (A_n) on the basis of a selection of the data from the different detection modules.

10. Device according to claim 6, wherein the electronic control unit (ECU) is configured to compare the data representative of a plurality of commands with reference data and determine according to this comparison, whether the conditions for triggering a lighting function are met.

11. Device according to claim 6, wherein the upstream and downstream communication means consists of a common multiplexed network.

16. Device according to claim 5, wherein the device comprises at least:

a plurality of distinct command detection modules (C_n), configured to at least detect an interior lighting command, analyze this command, and transmit data representative of said command,

an electronic control unit (ECU) linked to said detection modules (C_n) and configured to process a plurality of data representative of a plurality of commands, and transmit at least one resulting, instruction (A_n) to at least one lighting module (M_n),

upstream communication means configured to circulate the representative data transmitted by at least one detection module (C_n) to the input of the electronic control unit (ECU),

downstream communication means configured to circulate at least one instruction (A_n) output from the electronic control unit (ECU) to at least one light source and forming a multiplexed network.

17. Device according to claim 7, wherein that the electronic control unit (ECU) is configured to merge and synthesize the data representative of a plurality of commands into one or more resulting instructions (A_n).

18. Device according to claim 9, wherein the electronic control unit (ECU) is configured to compare the data representative of a plurality of commands with reference data and determine according to this comparison, whether the conditions for triggering a lighting function are met.

19. Device according to claim 10, the upstream and downstream communication means consists of a common multiplexed network.

12. Control method with voice and/or gestural recognition for the interior lighting of a motor vehicle during which, following a voice and/or gestural command (S_n) from at least one occupant in a specific detection zone (Z_n) of the vehicle interior;

the following steps are carried out in succession;

a step of detection (a) of at least a voice sequence and/or of two-dimensional 2D and/or three-dimensional 3D images of a gestural sequence,

a step of analysis (c) of the voice signal and/or of images to generate data representative of the voice and/or gestural command (S_n),

a step of transmission (d) of said representative data to at least one electronic control unit (ECU), via a communication network,

a step of processing (e f, g, h, i) of said data representative of the voice and/or gestural command,

a step of transmission (j), if triggering conditions area met, via a multiplexed communication network, of at least one instruction (A_n) controlling at least one light source of the vehicle.

13. Control method according to claim 12, wherein said processing step comprises at least one step out of the following:

a step of merging (f) of said related data in order to obtain merged representative data,

a step of comparison (g) of said merged representative data relating to said detected voice and/or gestural sequence with at least one reference voice and/or gestural sequence stored in a database,

a step making it possible to determine (h) whether conditions for triggering a lighting function are met,

a step of prioritization (i) of the merged representative data in case of conflicting and concomitant commands executed by a plurality of occupants in order to prioritize, for safety reasons, the command executed by the driver.

14. Control method according to claim 12, wherein, in the case of a command by gestural recognition, there is implemented, in the analysis step (c), a gestural sequence detection means and an image acquisition means that are distinct and capable of interacting with one another, said image acquisition means being implemented only when the detection means has detected the beginning of a gesture that can initiate a gestural sequence.

15. Control method according to claim 14, wherein, in the case of a command by gestural recognition, there is implemented, in the analysis step (c), an image acquisition means which continuously recovers images targeted on the detection zone (Z_n).

20. Control method according to claim 13, wherein, in the case of a command by gestural recognition, there is implemented, in the analysis step (c), gestural sequence detection means and an image acquisition means that are distinct and capable of interacting with one another, said image acquisition means being implemented only when the detection means has detected the beginning of a gesture that can initiate a gestural sequence.