CUP HOLDER ILLUMINATION
First Claim
1. A cup holder assembly, comprising:
- a housing having at least one cup holder defined by a bottom wall and an upwardly extending sidewall; and
a lighting system having a light source and a light sensor, wherein the light sensor senses an amount of light reflected from an object received in the cup holder, and further wherein the light source provides a light output having a luminous intensity relative to the amount of light reflected.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method of controlling an ambient light feature of a cup holder assembly having one or more cup holders includes providing a light source having a light output of varying luminous intensity, sensing an amount of light reflected from an object received in one of the cup holders using a light sensor, and controlling the luminous intensity of the light output based on the amount of light reflected and the distance between the object and a sidewall of the cup holder assembly. In this method, a change in the amount of light reflected from an object received in one of the cup holders correlates to a change in the luminous intensity provided by the light source, and a change in the distance between the object received the cup holder and the sidewall of the cup holders correlates to a change in the luminous intensity provided by the light source.
14 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A cup holder assembly, comprising:
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a housing having at least one cup holder defined by a bottom wall and an upwardly extending sidewall; and a lighting system having a light source and a light sensor, wherein the light sensor senses an amount of light reflected from an object received in the cup holder, and further wherein the light source provides a light output having a luminous intensity relative to the amount of light reflected. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A cup holder assembly, comprising:
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a light sensor disposed in the cup holder assembly and configured to measure a reflectivity of an object received in the cup holder assembly; a light source having a light output of varying luminous intensity; and a controller communicatively coupled to the light source and the light sensor for controlling the luminous intensity of the light output based on the reflectivity of the object. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of lighting a cup holder, comprising the steps of:
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providing a light source having a light output of varying luminous intensity; sensing an amount of light reflected from an object received in the cup holder using a light sensor; and controlling the luminous intensity of the light output based on the amount of light reflected, wherein a change in the amount of light reflected causes a change in the luminous intensity. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification