Warning device in a vehicle

• US 7,382,240 B2
• Filed: 06/16/2005
• Issued: 06/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Original Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Egelhaaf, Jan
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, PHUNG
• Application Number:
  US11/155,448
• Publication Number:
  US 20060044119A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 340/461, 340/425.5, 340/514, 340/438, 345/530
• US Class Current: 340/461
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 5/36 using visible light sources

Abstract

A warning device in a vehicle includes at least one output unit for outputting at least one warning. A training mode for calling up warnings may be started via an input unit, in which the warnings are output following a call-up without a situation, for which a warning should be output, actually having to exist. Due to this fact, the driver may intuitively inform him/herself about the warning outputs.

Claims

1. A warning device in a vehicle comprising:

at least one output unit for outputting at least one warning;

at least one input unit for calling up a training mode and for calling up warnings in the training mode,

wherein the warnings are output following a call-up; and

a deactivation unit which allows operation of the warning device in the training mode only when a drive unit of the vehicle is shut off.

2. The warning device according to claim 1, further comprising a display for displaying the training mode of the warning device.

3. The warning device according to claim 1, further comprising a display for displaying at least one of a driving situation and a danger situation to which an instantaneously output warning refers.

4. The warning device according to claim 1, wherein the input unit has a button for calling up the training mode.

5. The warning device according to claim 1, further comprising a memory unit for storing vehicle situations for output in the training mode, warnings being output corresponding to an appropriate vehicle situation.

6. The warning device according to claim 1, wherein the warning device is part of a vehicle surrounding warning system in the vehicle.

7. A method for outputting warnings in a vehicle, the method composing:

receiving an instruction for calling up a training mode for outputting warnings;

receiving a selection of warnings to be output in the training mode; and

outputting the selected warnings in the training mode following the calling up;

wherein the training mode is operational conditional upon that a drive unit of the vehicle is shut off.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising calling-up a warning to be output in the training mode from a menu.

9. The method according to claim 7, further comprising outputting a stored sequence of warnings in the training mode.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein the method is performed in a vehicle surrounding warning system in the vehicle.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein the outputting the selected warnings in the training mode following the calling up is performed independently from a vehicle situation underlying each particular warning.

12. The method according to claim 7, further comprising displaying the training mode of the warning device.

13. The method according to claim 7, further comprising displaying at least one of a driving situation and a danger situation to which an instantaneously output warning refers.