Speed-monitoring radar-activated brake light

• US 7,319,932 B2
• Filed: 12/13/2006
• Issued: 01/15/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Steve Thorne
• Original Assignee: Steve Thorne
• Inventors: Thorne, Steve
• Primary Examiner(s): Beaulieu; Yonel
• Application Number:
  US11/610,039
• Publication Number:
  US 20070100552A1
• Time in Patent Office: 398 Days
• Field of Search: 701/93, 701/96, 701300-302, 340/425.5, 340/436, 340901-903, 348/118, 342/42
• US Class Current: 701/301
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/161 Decentralised systems, e.g. inter-vehicle communication

Abstract

A radar activated brake light device to be integrated into a vehicle to alert drivers of potentially hazardous changes in traffic speed consisting of a radar device to measure the speed of a forward vehicle; a sensor input from the speedometer of the host vehicle; a computer processor to evaluate the data for potentially hazardous speed changes; a luminous display mounted on the host vehicle to warn the driver of a trailing vehicle; and, optionally, a warning light and warning buzzer mounted internally to the host vehicle to alert the driver of the host vehicle of potentially hazardous speed changes.

Claims

1. Vehicular alerting apparatus comprising:

a host vehicle;

means, carried by the host vehicle, for determining a significant deceleration of a forward vehicle, the forward vehicle being forward of the host vehicle; and

a luminous display operably coupled to the determining means and activated whenever said significant deceleration of the forward vehicle is determined, the luminous display carried by the host vehicle and being sufficiently bright and strategically positioned to be visible by an operator of a trailing vehicle, the trailing vehicle trailing the host vehicle.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the determining means comprises a radar device mounted integrally with the host vehicle.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the determining means comprises means for determining any change in velocity between the forward vehicle and the host vehicle and any change in velocity of the host vehicle.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the host vehicle comprises a brake light of a first color and the luminous display comprises a light of a second color.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the host vehicle comprises a brake light and the luminous display comprises a series of lights.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the luminous display comprises a display screen capable of conveying a text message.