Apparatus for controlling illumination range of vehicle lights
First Claim
1. A vehicle light control apparatus that is mounted to a controlled vehicle and controls an illumination range of headlights of the controlled vehicle, the vehicle light control apparatus comprising:
- a processor, the processor includingmeans for acquiring presence information that indicates information as to whether or not another vehicle is present in a lateral or rear direction relative to the vehicle; and
means for changing the illumination range of the headlights to a narrower range when the acquiring means acquire presence information indicating presence of the another vehicle,whereinthe acquiring means is configured to acquire a relative motion vector indicating relative travel directions between the another vehicle and the controlled vehicle, in addition to the presence information, andthe changing means i) estimate a first time period that indicates an amount of time for the another vehicle to enter the illumination range, on the basis of the relative motion vector, the first time period depending on where the another vehicle is present in the lateral or rear direction, and ii) change the illumination range of the headlights to a narrower range after lapse of a wait time period that is set with the first time period as being an upper limit.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A light control system acquires presence information that indicates whether or not another vehicle is present in a lateral or rear direction relative to an own vehicle. If presence information indicates the presence of another vehicle, the illumination range of the headlights of the vehicle is changed so as to be narrower. Thus, when another vehicle enters the illumination range from a lateral direction relative to the vehicle equipped with the system, the illumination range of the lights of the vehicle is changed to a narrower range before the entry into the illumination range.
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Citations
5 Claims
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1. A vehicle light control apparatus that is mounted to a controlled vehicle and controls an illumination range of headlights of the controlled vehicle, the vehicle light control apparatus comprising:
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a processor, the processor including means for acquiring presence information that indicates information as to whether or not another vehicle is present in a lateral or rear direction relative to the vehicle; and means for changing the illumination range of the headlights to a narrower range when the acquiring means acquire presence information indicating presence of the another vehicle, wherein the acquiring means is configured to acquire a relative motion vector indicating relative travel directions between the another vehicle and the controlled vehicle, in addition to the presence information, and the changing means i) estimate a first time period that indicates an amount of time for the another vehicle to enter the illumination range, on the basis of the relative motion vector, the first time period depending on where the another vehicle is present in the lateral or rear direction, and ii) change the illumination range of the headlights to a narrower range after lapse of a wait time period that is set with the first time period as being an upper limit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A method for controlling an illumination range of headlights of a controlled vehicle, the method comprising:
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acquiring i) presence information indicates information as to whether or not another vehicle is present in a lateral or rear direction relative to the controlled vehicle and ii) a relative motion vector indicating relative travel directions between the another vehicle and the controlled vehicle using a vehicle light control apparatus; estimating a time period that indicates an amount of time for the another vehicle to enter the illumination range, on the basis of the relative motion vector, when the presence information is acquired, the time period depending on where the another vehicle is present in the lateral or rear direction using the vehicle light control apparatus; and changing the illumination range of the headlights to a narrower range after lapse of a wait time period that is set with the time period as being an upper limit using the vehicle light control apparatus;
whereinthe vehicle light control apparatus is in communication with the changing means and the headlights.
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Specification