Display system utilizing vehicle and trailer dynamics

• US 10,609,340 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2017
• Issued: 03/31/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Aich, Sudipto, Trombley, Roger Arnold, Shutko, John, Miller, Alex Maurice
• Primary Examiner(s): Kong, Sze-Hon
• Application Number:
  US15/805,918
• Publication Number:
  US 20180109762A1
• Time in Patent Office: 875 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60D 1/245 for facilitating push back or parking of trailers
• CPC Class Codes: B60D 1/62 involving supply lines, electric circuits, or the like
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/003 for viewing trailer hitches
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/70 characterised by an event-triggered choice to display a specific image among a selection of captured images
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/808 for facilitating docking to a trailer
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/04 including control of propulsion units
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/20 including control of steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/143 Alarm means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2300/14 Tractor-trailers, i.e. combinations of a towing vehicle and one or more towed vehicles, e.g. caravans; Road trains
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/22 Articulation angle, e.g. between tractor and trailer
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/18 Steering angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/215 Selection or confirmation of options
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/00 Purposes of road vehicle drive control systems not related to the control of a particular sub-unit, e.g. of systems using conjoint control of vehicle sub-units
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/02 Control of vehicle driving stability
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18036 Reversing
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 13/06 for backing a normally drawn trailer
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/027 : Parking aids, e.g. instruction means
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/26 : for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 7/30 : for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 : for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 : for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

A vehicle and trailer display system is disclosed. The display system includes a plurality of imaging devices disposed on the vehicle, each having a field of view. The display system further includes a screen disposed in the vehicle operable to display images from the imaging devices. A controller is in communication with the imaging devices and the screen and is operable to receive a hitch angle corresponding to the angle between the vehicle and the trailer. Based on the hitch angle, the controller is operable to select a field of view of an imaging device to display on the screen.

Claims

1. A vehicle and trailer monitoring system comprising:

a controller in communication with a screen and a plurality of imaging devices configured to capture image data disposed on the vehicle and the trailer, the controller operable to;

receive a hitch angle corresponding to a connection between the vehicle and the trailer;

display a combined image on the screen corresponding to a first and a second field of view of the plurality of imaging devices based on the hitch angle; and

identify an occluded portion of the image data, wherein the occluded portion indicates a region of the image data occluded by the trailer; and

identify at least one feature located in the occluded portion based on a position identified from a global positioning system (GPS).

2. The monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the combined image comprises a fused image combining the first field of view and the second field of view to generate an expanded field of view.

3. The monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein the first field of view corresponds to a first imaging device disposed on the vehicle and the second field of view corresponds to a second imaging device disposed on the trailer.

4. The monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further operable to:

receive a wheel steer angle of the vehicle.

5. The monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further operable to incorporate a representation of the at least one feature in the image data demonstrating the location of the at least one feature relative to the vehicle.

6. A display system comprising:

a plurality of imaging devices disposed on a vehicle and a trailer, each comprising a field of view; and

a screen disposed in the vehicle;

a controller in communication with the imaging devices and the screen and operable to;

receive a hitch angle corresponding to the angle between the vehicle and the trailer;

identify an occluded portion of at least one of the fields of view;

generate an aerial view of the vehicle and the trailer based on the hitch angle, wherein the aerial view demonstrates the occluded portion; and

utilize GPS data to identify at least one feature in the occluded portion.

7. The display system according to claim 6, wherein the aerial view is generated by combining the fields of view of the plurality of imaging devices.

8. The display system according to claim 6, wherein the aerial view of the vehicle and the trailer is simulated as graphics on the screen demonstrating the hitch angle between the vehicle and the trailer.

9. The display system according to claim 6, wherein the aerial view of the trailer is simulated based on at least one of a plurality of trailer dimensions determined from a relationship among the fields of view of the plurality of imaging devices and the hitch angle, and at least one manually input trailer dimension.

10. The display system according to claim 6, wherein the controller is further operable to:

overlay graphical data from a satellite image located in the aerial view based on a GPS location of the vehicle.

11. The display system according to claim 10, wherein the controller is configured to orient the graphic in response to a navigation bearing of the vehicle.

12. The display system according to claim 6, wherein the occluded portion corresponds to a portion of the environment proximate the trailer that is not visible in the plurality of fields of view.

13. The display system according to claim 6, wherein the controller is further operable to display the at least one feature in the aerial view demonstrating composite image data identifying a position of the at least one feature relative to the trailer.

14. A method for controlling a vehicle and trailer monitoring system, the method comprising:

capturing image data from a plurality of imaging devices disposed on the vehicle and the trailer;

receiving a hitch angle corresponding to a connection between the vehicle and the trailer;

displaying a combined image corresponding to a first and a second field of view of the plurality of imaging devices based on the hitch angle;

identifying an occluded portion of at least one of the first field of view and the second field of view;

utilizing GPS data to identify at least one feature in the occluded portion; and

displaying the at least one feature in at least one of the first field of view and the second field of view demonstrating composite image data identifying a position of the at least one feature relative to the trailer.

15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

fusing the first field of view and the second field of view generating an expanded field of view comprising a fused image.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the first field of view is captured via a first imaging device disposed on the vehicle and the second field of view is captured by a second imaging device disposed on the trailer.

17. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

receiving a wheel steer angle of the vehicle; and

demonstrating a future position of the trailer with the simulated graphic based on the wheel steer angle and the hitch angle.