Indicating instrument

• US 6,531,958 B2
• Filed: 04/09/2001
• Issued: 03/11/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Mannesmann VDO AG (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Mannesmann VDO AG (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Leimbach, Jürgen, Kabatek, Ulrich, Tiede, Lutz-Wolfgang
• Primary Examiner(s): LA, ANH V
• Application Number:
  US09/829,254
• Publication Number:
  US 20010035818A1
• Time in Patent Office: 701 Days
• Field of Search: 340/425.5, 340/461, 340/441, 340/936, 340/815.45, 340/815.42, 340/815.47, 340/815.78, 340/525, 362/23, 362/26, 362/31, 362/32, 345/35, 345/39, 116/286, 116/288, 116/290
• US Class Current: 340/425.5
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/185 connected to the speedometer display, e.g. by sensors or switches responsive to the position of the indicator needle arrangement of pointers in automobile speedometers for indicating predetermined speeds by the detection of the position of the indicator needle G01P1/11
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/215 characterised by the combination of multiple visual outputs, e.g. combined instruments with analogue meters and additional displays
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 1/08 Arrangements of scales, pointers, lamps or acoustic indicators, e.g. in automobile speedometers
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 1/103 by comparing the value of the measured signal with one or several reference values in general G01R17/00

Abstract

An indicating instrument for a vehicle includes an analog indication of the current measured value and has a variable indication of a reference value. An automatic setting device indicates the reference value based on variable data that are significant for the indicated measured variable. The entire indicating instrument is rotated by the setting device so that the pointer is aligned horizontally when the current measured value agrees with the reference value.

Claims

1. An indicating instrument for a vehicle, comprising:

an analog indication for indicating a current measured value of a measured variable;

a variable indication of a reference value of the measured variable; and

a setting device including means for receiving data pertaining to the reference value of the measured variable and means for automatically setting said variable indication of the reference value in response to the data pertaining to the reference value of the measured variable, wherein said analog indication includes a pointer for indicating the current measured value and said setting device is operatively arranged for rotating said indicating instrument into a position in which said pointer points in one of a horizontal direction and a vertical direction when the current measured value equals the reference value.

2. The indicating instrument of claim 1, wherein said indicating instrument comprises a tachometer and said data pertaining to the reference value of the measured variable includes operating data from an internal combustion engine in the vehicle.

3. The indicating instrument of claim 2, wherein said operating data comprises an oil temperature of the internal combustion engine in the vehicle.

4. The indicating instrument of claim 1, wherein said indicating instrument comprises a speedometer and wherein said data pertaining to the reference value of the measured variable includes a position of the vehicle.

5. The indicating instrument of claim 4, wherein said setting device is arrangeable for adjusting the variable indication in response to setting commands from a vehicle navigation system, wherein said setting commands are determined in response to the position of the vehicle determined by the vehicle navigation system.

6. The indicating instrument of claim 4, wherein said data pertaining to the reference value of the measured variable comprises data transmitted via a wireless transmitter.

7. The indicating instrument of claim 4, further comprising an automatic image recognition device for automatic image recognition of traffic signs, and wherein said data pertaining to the reference value of the measured variable comprises a speed limit determined by the automatic image recognition device.

8. The indicating instrument of claim 1, wherein the setting device further allows manual setting of said variable indication.

9. The indicating instrument claim 8, wherein said analog indication includes a pointer for indicating the current measured value and said indicating instrument further comprises means for the differently colored illumination at least of the sector between said pointer indicating the current measured value and the reference value, depending on whether the measured value falls above or below the reference value.