ACTUATION OF A LOCKING ELEMENT FOR A VEHICLE USING AN ULTRASOUND SENSOR

• US 20180118161A1
• Filed: 04/07/2016
• Published: 05/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Volkswagen AG
• Original Assignee: Volkswagen AG
• Inventors: ETTE, Bernd
• Granted Patent: US 10,730,478 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/2045 by hand gestures
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/2054 by foot gestures
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/73 responsive to movement or presence of persons or objects
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/76 responsive to devices carried by persons or objects, e.g. magnets or reflectors E05F15/77 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 2015/763 using acoustical sensors
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 2015/765 using optical sensors
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 2015/767 using cameras
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2400/858 by body parts, e.g. by feet
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/546 Tailboards, tailgates or sideboards opening upwards
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/86 Combinations of sonar systems with lidar systems; Combinations of sonar systems with systems not using wave reflection
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2015/932 for parking operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3231 Monitoring the presence, absence or movement of users
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• 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

Abstract

A method to actuate a locking element for a vehicle including detecting a movement of an object using an optical sensor, activating an ultrasound sensor in accordance with the detected movement, detecting a gesture using the ultrasound sensor, and actuating the locking element in accordance with the detected gesture.

Claims

1. A method for actuating a closing element of a vehicle (10), the method comprising:

detecting a movement of an object using an optical sensor;

activating an ultrasound sensor depending on the detected movement;

detecting a gesture using the ultrasound sensor; and

actuating the closing element depending on the detected gesture.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound sensor is activated in response to a person being detected with the optical sensor as the object and the movement of the person is proceeding toward the detection area of the ultrasound sensor.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

searching for a key authorized for the vehicle in response to a person being detected as the object and the movement of the person is proceeding proceeds toward the detection area of the ultrasound sensor; and

activating the ultrasound sensor in response to the key authorized for the vehicle being detected.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the gesture is detected based on outputs of the ultrasound sensor and the optical sensor.

5. The method as claimed in of claim 4, characterized by further comprising:

detecting a predefined shape of an object which performs the gesture based on the basis of the outputs of the optical sensor;

detecting a distance between the object and the vehicle per time unit as the gesture based on the outputs of the ultrasound sensor; and

actuating the closing element in response to the object being the predefined shape and the gesture satisfying a predefined condition.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

actuating the closing element in response to a straight kicking gesture or a standing gesture being detected as the gesture.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

closing the closing element in response to the object passing by the ultrasound sensor being detected as the gesture.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

deactivating the activated ultrasound sensor if it is detected with in response to the optical sensor detecting that the object is leaving the detection area of the ultrasound sensor.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the closing element is self-opening and the actuation of the closing element includes an opening of the closing element.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle comprises a parking aid, and the parking aid comprises the ultrasound sensor.

11. A device for actuating a closing element of a vehicle, wherein the device comprising:

control means a controller;

an optical sensor; and

an ultrasound sensor,

wherein the optical sensor detects a movement of an object,

wherein the controller evaluates the movement detected by the optical sensor and activates the ultrasound sensor depending on the evaluation,

wherein the ultrasound sensor detects a gesture, and

wherein the controller evaluates the gesture and actuates the closing element depending on the gesture.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the device activates the ultrasound sensor by the controller in response to a person being detected by the optical sensor as the object and the movement of the person toward the detection area of the ultrasound sensor being detected by the optical sensor.

13. The device of claim 11, wherein the device detects the gesture using outputs of the optical sensor and of the ultrasound sensor.

14. The device of claim 11, wherein the device carries out a method comprising detecting movement of the object using the optical sensor, activating the ultrasound sensor depending on the detected movement;

detecting a gesture using the ultrasound sensor; and

actuating the closing element depending on the detected gesture.

15. A vehicle with a closing element and a device as claimed in claim 14.

16. The device of claim 14, wherein the ultrasound sensor is activated in response to a person being detected with the optical sensor as the object and the movement of the person is proceeding toward the detection area of the ultrasound sensor.

17. The device of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises:

searching for a key authorized for the vehicle in response to a person being detected as the object and the movement of the person is proceeding toward the detection area of the ultrasound sensor; and

activating the ultrasound sensor in response to the key authorized for the vehicle being detected.

18. The device of claim 14, wherein the gesture is detected based on outputs of the ultrasound sensor and the optical sensor.

19. The device of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises detecting a predefined shape of an object which performs the gesture based on the outputs of the optical sensor, detecting a distance between the object and the vehicle per time unit as the gesture based on the outputs of the ultrasound sensor, and actuating the closing element in response to the object being the predefined shape and the gesture satisfying a predefined condition.

20. The device of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises actuating the closing element in response to a straight kicking gesture or a standing gesture being detected as the gesture.

21. The device of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises closing the closing element in response to the object passing by the ultrasound sensor being detected as the gesture.

22. The device of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises deactivating the activated ultrasound sensor in response to the optical sensor detecting that the object is leaving the detection area of the ultrasound sensor.

23. The device of claim 14, wherein the closing element is self-opening and the actuation of the closing element includes an opening of the closing element.

24. The device of claim 14, wherein the vehicle comprises a parking aid, and the parking aid comprises the ultrasound sensor.