Vehicle lighting system and indication method

Abstract

An exemplary vehicle lighting system includes a brake indicator and a control system, the brake indicator having a lens, the lens having a first area of ​​a different color than the second area, the control system being configured to control a first light source to emit light through the first area to indicate a first operating behavior of the vehicle and control a second light source to emit light through the second area to indicate a second operating behavior of the vehicle. An exemplary indication method for a vehicle includes generating a first lighting effect indicating a first operating behavior of the vehicle through a first area of ​​the lens. The first operating behavior is braking of the vehicle. The indication method also includes generating a second lighting effect indicating a different second operating behavior of the vehicle through a second area of ​​the lens. The first area is different in color from the second area.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to vehicle lighting and more particularly to a brake indicator, such as a center high mounted stop light (CHMSL), which can emit light through different colored areas of a lens to indicate various operating behaviors of the vehicle. Background Art

[0002] The vehicle lighting system includes a plurality of lighting and signaling devices, which are used to illuminate the vehicle and alert others to the presence and driving intention of the vehicle. The vehicle generally includes a center high mounted stop light (CHMSL) as a lighting and signaling device, which illuminates to indicate braking of the vehicle.

[0003] Some electric vehicles include a traction battery that can be charged from a power source external to the electric vehicle, such as grid power. Some electric vehicles include charging indicators around the electric vehicle charging port. These charging indicators can visually indicate the progress of charging, but viewing these charging indicators can be difficult. Vehicles use other types of indicators, such as indicators that show whether the doors are locked or unlocked. Summary of the invention

[0004] The vehicle lighting system according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure particularly includes a brake indicator having a lens having a first area of ​​a different color from a second area. The system also includes a control system configured to control at least one first light source to emit light through the first area to indicate a first operating behavior of the vehicle, and to control at least one second light source to emit light through the second area to indicate at least one second operating behavior of the vehicle.

[0005] In another non-limiting embodiment of the foregoing system, the at least one first and second light sources each comprise a light emitting diode (LED).

[0006] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the at least one second light source comprises a multi-color LED.

[0007] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the at least one second light source comprises a red, green, blue (RGB) LED.

[0008] In another non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the first and second regions are different regions of a single unitary structure. The first region extends across at least one first light source. The second region extends across at least one second light source.

[0009] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the first regions and the second regions are arranged as alternating strips across the lens.

[0010] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the first region has a redder hue than the second region.

[0011] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the brake indicator is a center high mounted stop light (CHMSL).

[0012] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the at least one second operational behavior is a charging status of the vehicle.

[0013] In another non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the at least one light source includes at least one multi-color LED.The controller is configured to control the at least one multi-color LED to illuminate with a color representing a remaining time required to charge a traction battery of the vehicle from a grid power source.

[0014] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the at least one second operational behavior indicates whether the vehicle is locked or unlocked.

[0015] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the at least one second operational action illuminates an area proximate to the vehicle.

[0016] In another non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the at least one second operational action identifies a vehicle by flashing of the at least one second light source, a color of the at least one second light source, or both.

[0017] In another non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing systems, the first operational action is braking of the vehicle.

[0018] Among other things, an indication method for a vehicle according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure includes generating a first lighting effect indicating a first operating behavior of the vehicle through a first area of ​​a lens. The first operating behavior is braking of the vehicle. The method also includes generating a second lighting effect indicating a different, second operating behavior of the vehicle through a second area of ​​the lens. The first area is different in color from the second area.

[0019] In another non-limiting embodiment of the foregoing method, the second lighting effect indicates a charging status of the vehicle.

[0020] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, the second lighting effect indicates whether the vehicle is locked or unlocked.

[0021] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, the second lighting effect illuminates an area proximate to the vehicle.

[0022] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, the first region has a redder hue than the second region.

[0023] In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, the method includes changing a color of light from at least one multi-color light emitting diode (LED) to produce a second lighting effect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The various features and advantages of the disclosed examples will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the detailed description. The drawings accompanying the detailed description can be briefly described as follows:

[0025] Figure 1 An electric vehicle is shown being charged at a schematically represented charging station;

[0026] Figure 2 Shown from Figure 1 A close-up and partially schematic view of a vehicle lighting system of an electric vehicle including a center high mounted stop light (CHMSL);

[0027] Figure 3 Shows Figure 2 an enlarged view of a CHMSL with the lens removed to show the first and second light sources of the CHMSL;

[0028] Figure 4 Shown along Figure 2 A cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG.

[0029] Figure 5A Shown is a first color luminescent Figure 3 The area of ​​the lens;

[0030] Figure 5B Shown is a second color luminescent Figure 5A The area of ​​the lens;

[0031] Figure 5C Shown emitting light in a third color Figure 5A The area of ​​the lens;

[0032] Figure 5D Shows Figure 5A a region of the lens that emits light of a first color through a first zone of the region and emits light of a second color through a second zone of the region;

[0033] Figure 5E Shows Figure 5A The area of ​​the lens that is greater than Figure 5D The first region of the first area emits light of the first color, and the less than Figure 5D The second region of the second region emits light of a second color;

[0034] Figure 6 Shows Figure 1 Steps in an example indication method of a vehicle;

[0035] Figure 7 According to another exemplary non-limiting embodiment, a Figure 1 Close-up view of the lighting system used in a vehicle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] Generally, the present disclosure relates to a vehicle lighting system that indicates more than one operating behavior of a vehicle. One of the operating behaviors may include braking of the vehicle. Therefore, separate lighting structures are not required to indicate braking and other operating behaviors of the vehicle.

[0037] refer to Figure 1 , the exemplary electric vehicle 10 includes a traction battery 14 that can be charged using grid power from a grid power source 18 external to the vehicle 10. During charging, a charger 22 connects the electric vehicle 10 to the grid power source 18 via a charging port 26. Charging the traction battery 14 from the grid power source 18 takes time.

[0038] The vehicle 10 includes a center high mounted stop light (CHMSL) 30 that produces lighting effects that indicate various operating behaviors of the vehicle 10. In the exemplary non-limiting embodiment, one of the operating behaviors is braking of the electric vehicle 10 during a driving cycle. The CHMSL 30 is considered a braking indicator because the CHMSL 30 can emit light that indicates that the vehicle 10 is braking. The vehicle 10 additionally includes a rear brake light 32, which is another type of brake indicator.

[0039] In the exemplary embodiment, CHMSL 30 additionally generates a lighting effect that indicates the charging progress of vehicle 10. For example, the lighting effect may display a general estimate of the amount of time remaining to complete charging of traction battery 14 from grid power source 18.

[0040] Utilizing the CHMSL 30 to indicate braking of the vehicle 10 and additionally indicate another operating behavior of the vehicle 10 may reduce the complexity of the vehicle 10 because a charge indicator separate from the CHMSL 30 is not required.

[0041] Now refer to Figure 2-4 And continue to refer to Figure 1 , the vehicle 10 includes a control system 40 operatively connected to the CHMSL 30, the traction battery charge sensor 44, the vehicle brake sensor 48, and the vehicle brake 52. The control system 40 collects information from the traction battery charge sensor 44 and the vehicle brake sensor 48, and in response, controls the CHMSL 30 to emit a corresponding lighting effect.

[0042] Generally, the CHMSL 30 includes a housing 56 that provides a cavity 60. A lighting assembly 64 fits within the cavity 60 and is covered by a lens 68. The lighting assembly 64 includes a plurality of first light sources 78 and a plurality of second light sources 82. In this example, the first light sources 78 and the second light sources 82 are light emitting diodes. In an exemplary, non-limiting embodiment, the first light sources 78 are monochromatic LEDs, and the second light sources 82 are multicolor LEDs, such as red, green, blue (RGB) LEDs.

[0043] The lens 68 includes a first region 90 and a second region 94 formed together as a single unitary structure. Figure 2 When in the installed position, the first area 90 covers the first light source 78 and the second area 94 covers the second light source 82.

[0044] The first region 90 is a different color than the second region 94. In this example, the first region 90 has a redder hue than the second region 94. For example, the first region 90 may be red, while the second region 94 is transparent.

[0045] Because the first region 90 is red, the first light source 78 can be an incandescent bulb, which can be cheaper than an LED. When the first light source 78 emits light, the first region 90 filters all light except red light. The light from the CHMSL 30 is then perceived as red.

[0046] During a drive cycle of the vehicle 10, when the control system 40 receives input from the vehicle brake sensor 48 indicating that the electric vehicle 10 is braking, the control system 40 turns on the plurality of first light sources 78 to produce a first lighting effect through the first region 90 of the lens. Because the first region 90 has a reddish hue in this example, the perceived light from the CHMSL 30 is red when the first light sources 78 are illuminated.

[0047] When the control system 40 detects that the electric vehicle 10 is being charged from the grid power source 18, the control system 40 can generate a second lighting effect by turning on the second light source 82 to emit light through the second region 94 of the lens 68. Because the second light source 82 is an RGB LED in this example, the control system 40 can change the color of the light emitted from the second light source 82 to provide different visual indications of a specific operating behavior, here the charging status, of the electric vehicle 10. The second region 94 is relatively transparent so that the color of the second light source 82 can be observed when activated without being substantially changed by the tinted lens.

[0048] The first light source 78 is controllably separate from the second light source 82. In some examples, the first light source 78 can be on a separate circuit from the second light source 82. Isolating the first light source 78 from the second light source 82 ensures that the first light source 78 can emit light indicating that the vehicle 10 is braking even if the second light source 82 fails.

[0049] Regulatory requirements may require this separation between the first light source 78 and the second light source 82. In addition, regulatory requirements may require a specific color, here red, when the electric vehicle 10 is braking. The different color areas of the lens 68 allow regulatory requirements to be met while still providing an area for viewing the light emitted from the multi-color LEDs of the CHMSL 30.

[0050] Now refer to Figures 5A-5E And continue to refer to Figures 1 to 4 , the color from the second region 94 of the lens 68 may be as follows Figure 5A A single color, such as red, is shown. For example, the red color may indicate that there is a substantial remaining time to charge the traction battery 14 of the electric vehicle 10, such as more than sixty minutes.

[0051] The red color may be switched on and off suddenly to indicate a charging problem, such as the grid power source 18 being unable to deliver power to the vehicle 10 or the charger 22 being disengaged.

[0052] The red light emitted through the second area 94 can also be used to indicate braking of the electric vehicle 10 by changing the second light source 82 to emit red light through the second area 94 in response to a command from the control system 40. When used to indicate braking, the second light source 82 can be combined with the red light from the first light source 78 through the first area 90 of the lens 68.

[0053] In the event that the second light source 82 is unable to provide a red color, the regulatory requirement to provide a red color from the CHMSL 30 may still be met by the first light source 78 emitting light through the first region 90 .

[0054] Reference Figure 5B , the color emitted from the second region 94 can be changed to Figure 5A The first color is different from the second color. Figure 5B The second color may be yellow, and may indicate, for example, that it will take less time to complete charging of the electric vehicle 10 than if the light emitted from the second region 94 is red. For example, yellow may indicate that thirty minutes of charging remain.

[0055] In some examples, the second light source 82 is from Figure 5A The color gradually changes to Figure 5BThe gradual transition indicates that the time is gradually decreasing from 60 minutes to 30 minutes. The observer will be able to discern from the light that if the light is redder, more charging time is remaining. As the remaining charging time decreases, the light gradually turns yellow. For example, red, green, and blue from an RGB LED can be mixed to provide a variety of colors.

[0056] Reference Figure 5C , the color emitted from the second region 94 may be Figure 5B The second color and Figure 5A The third color may be, for example, green, which indicates that charging of the traction battery 14 is complete or that less than 5 minutes are left until completion. As the time to complete charging decreases, the color emitted from the second area may gradually change from yellow to green. The greener the light, the less time is left to complete charging.

[0057] The charge status can be shown in other ways, for example by referring to Figure 5D The charging progress can be visually indicated by the second area 94 by controlling some of the second light sources 82 to emit the third color (here green) and other second light sources 82 to emit the first color (here red). Figure 5D As shown, approximately one quarter of the second region 94 is green, while approximately 75% of the second region 94 is red. This provides a visual indication that approximately 25% of the charging process has been completed.

[0058] Go to Figure 5E , approximately 75% of the second area 94 is green, and the remaining 25% of the second area 94 is red. This provides a visual indication that approximately 75% of the charging process has been completed.

[0059] The second operating behavior of the electric vehicle 10 has been described in conjunction with the charging state, however various operating behaviors may be indicated. That is, although shown and described in conjunction with the remaining charging time, other operating behaviors may be indicated and will fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0060] Another example operating behavior may include indicating to an operator outside the electric vehicle 10 that the doors of the electric vehicle 10 are locked or unlocked. The operator may recognize, for example, a green light through the second area 94 indicating that the doors are locked and a red light through the second area 94 indicating that the doors are unlocked.

[0061] Additionally, other operational actions may include simply lighting up an area of ​​the vehicle 10 as a welcome or farewell light or to help locate the vehicle 10. For example, when an operator is attempting to locate the electric vehicle 10 in a dark parking lot, the control system 40 may emit a high intensity white light through the second area 94 to display the location of the electric vehicle 10 in the parking lot. The control system 40 may control the second light source 82 to flash to provide further visual queues. The operator of the vehicle 10 may customize the color, flashing, intensity, etc. via a human-machine interface (e.g., a touch screen within the vehicle 10).

[0062] In some examples, the color, flashing, or intensity of the second light source 82 may help identify the vehicle 10. If the vehicle 10 is an autonomous vehicle, the second light source 10 may flash a specific color code to identify that the vehicle 10 for a ride is being picked up.

[0063] Although the control system 40 has been described in conjunction with these second operating behaviors indicated by the second region 94 , the first light source 78 may alternatively be used with the second light source 82 .

[0064] refer to Figure 6 , combined with Figure 1 An exemplary indication method for use with the vehicle 10 of FIG. 5 includes step 104 of determining whether the electric vehicle 10 is braking. If the electric vehicle 10 is braking, the method moves to step 108, wherein the control module causes the first light source 78 to emit light through at least the first area 90 of the lens 68 in step 108. In step 112 of the method 100, the electric vehicle is evaluated to determine whether the electric vehicle 10 is charging. If the electric vehicle 10 is charging, the method 100 proceeds to step 116, wherein the control system 40 generates a second lighting effect through at least a second area of ​​the lens 68.

[0065] In some examples, the intensity of the lighting effect may be affected by the time of day or a day / night sensor. For example, the intensity may be increased in low light conditions.

[0066] Reference now Figure 7 , another exemplary CHMSL 230 may be used in conjunction with the vehicle 10. The CHMSL 230 includes a lens 268 having a first region 290 and a second region 294 as a plurality of alternating strips arranged along the length of the lens 268. In this example, the strips extend vertically.

[0067] The five strips of the first region 290 can cover the corresponding first light source, and the five strips of the second region 294 can cover the corresponding second light source. That is, the first and second light sources within the CHMSL 230 can alternate so that the first region 290 and the second region 294 cover the appropriate lighting device.

[0068] Features of the disclosed examples include a vehicle lighting system that can indicate various operational behaviors from a common device while satisfying potential regulatory requirements to keep the functionalities of the operational behaviors separate from each other.

[0069] The foregoing description is illustrative rather than restrictive in nature. Changes and modifications to the disclosed examples may become apparent to those skilled in the art without necessarily departing from the essence of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of legal protection afforded to the present disclosure can only be determined by studying the claims.

Claims

1. A vehicle lighting system, comprising: a brake indicator having a lens having a first region that is a different color than a second region; as well as a control system configured to control at least one first light source to emit light through the first area to indicate a first operation behavior of the vehicle, and to control at least one second light source to emit light through the second area to indicate at least one second operation behavior of the vehicle, Wherein the first area and the second area are arranged as alternating strips across the lens, and wherein the at least one second operating behavior is a charging status of the vehicle, the control system is configured to control some second light sources to emit a first color and control other second light sources to emit a second color to visually indicate charging progress. 2 . The vehicle lighting system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one first light source and the at least one second light source each comprise a light emitting diode (LED). 3 . The vehicle lighting system of claim 1 , wherein the first light source is a single-color LED and the at least one second light source comprises a multi-color LED, the multi-color LED being a red, green, blue (RGB) LED.

4. The vehicle lighting system of claim 1, wherein the first region and the second region are different regions of a single integral structure, the first region extending across the at least one first light source and the second region extending across the at least one second light source. The vehicle lighting system of claim 1 , wherein the first region has a redder hue than the second region.

6. The vehicle lighting system of claim 1, wherein the brake indicator is a center high mounted stop light (CHMSL).

7. The vehicle lighting system of claim 1, wherein the at least one second operating behavior further comprises indicating whether the vehicle is locked or unlocked, or wherein the at least one second operating behavior further comprises illuminating an area near the vehicle.

8. The vehicle lighting system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one second operating behavior further comprises identifying the vehicle by flashing of the at least one second light source, a color of the at least one second light source, or both; and wherein the first operating behavior is braking of the vehicle.

9. A method for indicating a vehicle, comprising: generating a first lighting effect indicating a first operating behavior of the vehicle through a first area of ​​the lens, the first operating behavior being braking of the vehicle; as well as A second lighting effect indicating a second different operating behavior of the vehicle is generated by a second area of ​​the lens, the first area and the second area having a different color, Wherein the first area and the second area are arranged as alternating strips across the lens, and wherein the second lighting effect indicates a charging status of the vehicle, a portion of the second area is controlled to display a first color and another portion of the second area is controlled to display a second color to visually indicate charging progress.

10. The indication method according to claim 9, wherein the second lighting effect further comprises indicating whether the vehicle is locked or unlocked, or the second lighting effect further comprises illuminating an area near the vehicle. The indicating method according to claim 9 , wherein the first area has a redder hue than the second area.

12. The indicating method of claim 9, further comprising changing the color of light from at least one multi-color light emitting diode (LED) to produce the second lighting effect.

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