Vehicle assembly having a capacitive sensor
First Claim
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1. A vehicle comprising:
- a vehicle body;
a capacitive sensor;
an intermediate bracket mounting the sensor on a portion of the vehicle body;
wherein the sensor capacitively couples to an electrically conductive object proximal to the portion of the vehicle body such that the capacitance of the sensor changes;
a controller configured to control a vehicle function based on the capacitance of the sensor, the controller being configured to control movement of the portion of the vehicle body based on a comparison of a proximity profile gesture with the capacitance of the sensor; and
wherein the controller is configured to adjust an acceptable comparison based on a change in temperature.
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Abstract
An illustrative assembly includes a panel and a capacitive sensor. The panel is movable between an opened position and a closed position relative to a closure of a vehicle body. The sensor is positioned on the panel such that at least a portion of the sensor is perpendicular to the closure of the vehicle body as the panel moves between the opened and closed positions. The sensor capacitively couples to an electrically conductive object proximal to the closure of the vehicle body such that capacitance of the sensor changes.
105 Citations
7 Claims
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1. A vehicle comprising:
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a vehicle body; a capacitive sensor; an intermediate bracket mounting the sensor on a portion of the vehicle body; wherein the sensor capacitively couples to an electrically conductive object proximal to the portion of the vehicle body such that the capacitance of the sensor changes; a controller configured to control a vehicle function based on the capacitance of the sensor, the controller being configured to control movement of the portion of the vehicle body based on a comparison of a proximity profile gesture with the capacitance of the sensor; and wherein the controller is configured to adjust an acceptable comparison based on a change in temperature. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. A sensor assembly, comprising:
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at least one capacitive element situated relative to a portion of a vehicle body where the capacitive element couples with an electrically conductive object near the capacitive element, the capacitive element providing an output that has a profile corresponding to a predetermined, intentional movement of the electrically conductive object relative to the capacitive element; and a controller that determines whether the profile of the capacitive element corresponds to a predefined profile and instigates an operation of at least one component associated with the vehicle if the profile of the capacitive element sufficiently corresponds to the predefined profile.
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4. A sensor assembly, comprising:
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at least one capacitive element situated relative to a portion of a vehicle body where the capacitive element couples with an electrically conductive object near the capacitive element, the capacitive element providing an output that has a profile corresponding to movement of the electrically conductive object relative to the capacitive element; and a controller that determines whether the profile of the capacitive element corresponds to a predefined profile and instigates an operation of at least one component associated with the vehicle if the profile of the capacitive element sufficiently corresponds to the predefined profile; wherein there are a plurality of predefined profiles corresponding to a plurality of different operations; and the controller determines which of the operations to perform based on determining which of the predefined profiles most closely corresponds to the capacitive element output profile.
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5. A sensor assembly, comprising:
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at least one capacitive element situated relative to a portion of a vehicle body where the capacitive element couples with an electrically conductive object near the capacitive element, the capacitive element providing an output that has a profile corresponding to movement of the electrically conductive object relative to the capacitive element; and a controller that determines whether the profile of the capacitive element corresponds to a predefined profile and instigates an operation of at least one component associated with the vehicle if the profile of the capacitive element sufficiently corresponds to the predefined profile; wherein the controller is configured to adjust how the controller determines whether the profile of the capacitive element output corresponds to the predefined profile based on at least one of an ambient temperature or a temperature of the capacitive element. - View Dependent Claims (6)
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7. A sensor assembly comprising:
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at least one capacitive element situated relative to a portion of a vehicle body where the capacitive element couples with an electrically conductive object near the capacitive element, the capacitive element providing an output that has a profile corresponding to movement of the electrically conductive object relative to the capacitive element; and a controller that determines whether the profile of the capacitive element corresponds to a predefined profile and instigates an operation of at least one component associated with the vehicle if the profile of the capacitive element sufficiently corresponds to the predefined profile; wherein the controller creates a new profile based on the controller being in a teach mode wherein the profile resulting from teach mode becomes a predefined profile that the controller uses with a corresponding operation.
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Specification