Method and device for controlling vehicle horn volume, and vehicle

Abstract

The present invention discloses a method and device for controlling the volume of a vehicle horn, as well as a vehicle comprising the control device. The control method comprises the following steps: while the vehicle is in motion, in response to a user issuing a first horn command, determining whether there is a living being within a preset distance range in front of the vehicle and whether the current vehicle speed is less than a first speed threshold; and in response to the living being being within the preset distance range in front of the vehicle and the current vehicle speed being less than the first speed threshold, controlling the vehicle horn to perform the first horn honking at a first volume value lower than the standard volume. By implementing the control method, the present invention can promptly identify the presence of a living being in front of the vehicle while the vehicle is in motion, and automatically lower the volume when the vehicle horn honks, thereby simultaneously reminding the living being to avoid the horn without emitting a loud volume that would startle it and cause an accident.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of vehicle horn volume control, and in particular to a vehicle horn volume control method and control device, and a vehicle comprising the control device. Background Art

[0002] With the continuous improvement of urbanization, transportation construction is also developing. However, with the development of cities, various means of transportation such as buses, private cars, taxis, etc. continue to appear on the roads in the city, which makes the roads more and more crowded.

[0003] If a pedestrian doesn't notice they're standing in front of your vehicle, or is blocking the road and refusing to yield, honking your horn to warn them could startle them, especially on quiet roads. The excessive blast could even damage their ears. Furthermore, in a constantly moving traffic environment, startled pedestrians can easily panic, increasing the likelihood of an accident.

[0004] To address the aforementioned issues in the prior art, there is an urgent need in the art for a vehicle horn volume control method, a control device, and a vehicle incorporating such a control device. By implementing such a control method, a vehicle can promptly identify living beings ahead while driving, automatically lowering the volume when the vehicle horn is honking, thereby warning the living being to evade without causing ear damage or startling the person at a high volume, potentially leading to an accident. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The following is a brief summary of one or more aspects to provide a basic understanding of these aspects. This summary is not an exhaustive overview of all conceivable aspects and is neither intended to identify key or critical elements of all aspects nor to define the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that will be provided later.

[0006] To address the aforementioned issues in the prior art, the present invention provides a vehicle horn volume control method, a control device, and a vehicle incorporating the control device. By implementing the control method, the present invention can promptly identify living beings ahead while the vehicle is in motion, automatically lowering the volume when the vehicle horn is honking. This serves to warn living beings to evade without causing ear damage or startling them at high volume, potentially leading to accidents.

[0007] Specifically, the first aspect of the present invention provides a method for controlling the volume of a vehicle horn, comprising the following steps: while the vehicle is in motion, in response to a user issuing a first horn command, determining whether a living being is within a preset distance range in front of the vehicle and whether the current vehicle speed is less than a first speed threshold; and, in response to the living being being within the preset distance range in front of the vehicle and the current vehicle speed being less than the first speed threshold, controlling the vehicle horn to perform the first horn sound at a first volume value lower than the standard volume. By implementing this control method, the present invention can promptly identify living beings in front of the vehicle while the vehicle is in motion, and automatically lower the volume when the vehicle horn is honked, thereby warning the living being to avoid the horn without emitting a loud volume that could damage the ears or startle the horn and cause an accident.

[0008] According to a second aspect of the present invention, a vehicle horn volume control device is provided, comprising a memory and a processor. The processor is connected to the memory and configured to implement the vehicle horn volume control method provided in the first aspect of the present invention. By implementing the control method, the vehicle horn volume control device can promptly identify living beings in front of the vehicle while the vehicle is in motion, and automatically lower the volume when the vehicle horn is honked. This provides a warning to living beings while avoiding the risk of ear damage or startling them at high volume, which could cause accidents.

[0009] According to a third aspect of the present invention, a vehicle is provided, comprising the vehicle horn volume control device provided by the second aspect of the present invention. By implementing the control method provided by the first aspect of the present invention, the vehicle including the control device can promptly identify living beings ahead while the vehicle is in motion, and automatically lower the volume of the horn when honking, thereby warning the living being to evade without emitting a loud horn that could damage its ears or startle it, potentially causing an accident.

[0010] According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions. When executed by a processor, the computer instructions implement the vehicle horn volume control method provided in the first aspect of the present invention. By implementing the control method, the computer-readable storage medium can promptly identify living beings in front of a vehicle while the vehicle is in motion and automatically lower the volume when the vehicle horn is honked. This effectively warns living beings to avoid the vehicle without causing ear damage or startling them at a high volume, potentially leading to accidents. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The above features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood after reading the detailed description of the embodiments of the present disclosure in conjunction with the following drawings. In the drawings, the components are not necessarily drawn to scale, and components with similar related properties or characteristics may have the same or similar reference numerals.

[0012] Figure 1 A schematic flow chart of a method for controlling a vehicle horn volume according to one aspect of the present invention is shown;

[0013] Figure 2 A flow chart showing a method for controlling a vehicle horn volume according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown; and

[0014] Figure 3 A schematic structural diagram of a vehicle horn volume control device provided according to another aspect of the present invention is shown.

[0015] Reference numerals:

[0016] 300: Vehicle horn volume control device;

[0017] 301: memory;

[0018] 302: processor;

[0019] 303: bus;

[0020] 304: Random Access Memory;

[0021] 305: cache memory;

[0022] 306: Storage system;

[0023] 307: program module;

[0024] 308: external devices;

[0025] 309: Display;

[0026] 310: Input / output (I / O) interface; and

[0027] 311: Network adapter. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The following specific embodiments illustrate the embodiments of the present invention. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the contents disclosed in this specification. Although the description of the present invention will be introduced in conjunction with the preferred embodiment, this does not mean that the features of this invention are limited to this embodiment. On the contrary, the purpose of introducing the invention in conjunction with the embodiment is to cover other options or modifications that may be extended based on the claims of the present invention. In order to provide a deep understanding of the present invention, the following description will include many specific details. The present invention can also be implemented without using these details. In addition, in order to avoid confusion or blurring the focus of the present invention, some specific details will be omitted in the description.

[0029] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, they may refer to fixed, detachable, or integral connections; mechanical or electrical connections; direct or indirect connections through an intermediate medium; and internal communication between two components. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0030] Furthermore, the terms "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "top," "bottom," "horizontal," and "vertical" used in the following description should be understood to refer to the orientations depicted in that section and the accompanying drawings. These relative terms are used solely for convenience of description and do not necessarily imply that the devices described herein must be manufactured or operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0031] It will be understood that although the terms "first," "second," "third," etc. may be used herein to describe various components, regions, layers, and / or portions, these components, regions, layers, and / or portions should not be limited by these terms, and these terms are merely used to distinguish different components, regions, layers, and / or portions. Thus, a first component, region, layer, and / or portion discussed below may be referred to as a second component, region, layer, and / or portion without departing from some embodiments of the present invention.

[0032] As mentioned above, with urban development, roads are becoming increasingly congested. If a pedestrian doesn't notice they're standing in front of a vehicle, or is blocking the road and refusing to yield, honking the horn to warn them could easily startle them. This is especially true on quiet roads, where the excessive blast could even damage their ears. Furthermore, in a constantly flowing traffic environment, startled pedestrians can easily panic, further increasing the potential for unexpected traffic accidents.

[0033] To address the aforementioned issues in the prior art, the present invention provides a vehicle horn volume control method, a control device, and a vehicle incorporating the control device. By implementing the control method, the present invention can promptly identify living beings ahead while the vehicle is in motion, automatically lowering the volume when the vehicle horn is honking. This serves to warn living beings to evade without causing ear damage or startling them at high volume, potentially leading to accidents.

[0034] In some non-limiting embodiments, the vehicle horn volume control method provided in the first aspect of the present invention can be implemented by the vehicle horn volume control device provided in the second aspect of the present invention. The vehicle horn volume control device provided in the second aspect of the present invention is arranged inside the vehicle provided in the third aspect of the present invention, and the vehicle executes the vehicle horn volume control method through the vehicle horn volume control device. Specifically, the vehicle horn volume control device is configured with a memory and a processor. The memory includes but is not limited to the computer-readable storage medium provided in the third aspect of the present invention, on which computer instructions are stored. The processor is connected to the memory and is configured to execute the computer instructions stored on the memory to implement the vehicle horn volume control method provided in the first aspect of the present invention.

[0035] The following describes the operating principles of the vehicle horn volume control device, using examples of several vehicle horn volume control methods. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that these examples of vehicle horn volume control methods are merely non-limiting implementations of the present invention, intended to clearly demonstrate the main concepts of the present invention and provide specific solutions that are convenient for public implementation. They are not intended to limit the full range of operating modes and functions of the vehicle horn volume control device. Similarly, the vehicle horn volume control device is merely a non-limiting implementation of the present invention and does not limit the implementation of the various steps in these vehicle horn volume control methods.

[0036] Please see Figure 1 , Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a flow chart showing a method for controlling the volume of a vehicle horn according to one aspect of the present invention. Figure 1 As shown, the method for controlling the vehicle horn volume includes the following main steps:

[0037] S110: During vehicle driving, in response to a first horn command from a user, determining whether there is a living object within a preset distance range in front of the vehicle and whether the current vehicle speed is less than a first speed threshold.

[0038] In some embodiments of the present invention, during the driving process of a vehicle, there may often be a situation where a pedestrian or small animal, or other living creature, is blocking the road and does not give way to the vehicle or does not give way to the vehicle in a timely manner. In this case, the driver will usually directly press the vehicle horn to warn the pedestrian or small animal to give way.

[0039] The decibel level of a typical household car horn is around 85-115 decibels, while that of a truck horn far exceeds 110 decibels. In 2021, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) raised the decibel level for motor vehicle horns, requiring them to reach 105-118 decibels, effectively warning vehicles ahead while driving.

[0040] The upper limit of decibel levels acceptable to the human ear is 40 to 60 decibels. When the noise level is below 40 decibels, it has no effect on the human body. While sounds between 40 and 60 decibels can help keep people alert, prolonged exposure to these levels can affect the nervous system. After that, every 3 decibel increase in noise doubles the noise's energy. When the noise level reaches 65 to 80 decibels, it can cause stress and discomfort over extended periods. When the noise level exceeds 90 decibels, it can cause itching and pain in the ears, and can even cause significant hearing damage.

[0041] However, given that car horns are used in traffic environments and play a significant role in personal safety, the volume of a car horn prioritizes safety over comfort. However, if the horn is simply pressed using the current method, it will emit a sound exceeding 85 decibels. This is a normal volume for warning vehicles ahead, but if there are pedestrians or animals ahead, their ears are directly exposed to the car horn at close range. This sudden sound exceeding 85 decibels not only damages their hearing but can also easily startle animals ahead. In such a startled situation, both pedestrians and animals are likely to panic, increasing the possibility of unexpected traffic accidents.

[0042] In order to solve the above problems in the prior art, in some embodiments of the present invention, a sensor capable of sensing the approach of living things is configured on the vehicle to detect whether there are living things such as pedestrians or small animals approaching the vehicle.

[0043] In some embodiments of the present invention, a human proximity sensor is provided on the vehicle. The human proximity sensor can accurately detect the approach of pedestrians or other animal life forms even in dim ambient light conditions, thereby further determining whether there are any living creatures around the vehicle.

[0044] Human proximity sensors are based on Doppler technology and utilize a dedicated microwave microprocessor and a planar sensing antenna. Common frequency bands include 5.8GHz, 10GHz, and 24GHz. Using the Doppler principle, when motion is detected within a certain range, a circuit is triggered. This detects the target's speed, alters the radar signal waveform, and triggers the radar sensor. Human proximity sensors are characterized by their ability to sense moving objects, concealed installation, and the ability to penetrate plastic. However, they are unable to sense stationary objects, such as sleeping people or animals.

[0045] In other embodiments of the present invention, vehicles can also be equipped with infrared sensors to determine the presence of living organisms within the vehicle's vicinity. Infrared sensors utilize the principle of pyroelectric infrared sensing, triggering sensor action by collecting changes in infrared energy. Because humans and animals maintain a constant body temperature, typically between 36 and 37 degrees Celsius, infrared sensors emit infrared rays of a specific wavelength. Passive infrared probes operate by detecting infrared rays emitted by the human body. Infrared sensors are affected by ambient temperature. In summer, when ambient temperatures approach human body temperature, there is no change in infrared energy when a person enters the sensing range. Therefore, infrared sensors are less sensitive to human presence in summer.

[0046] In other embodiments of the present invention, a PCR radar sensor can also be configured on the vehicle to determine whether there are any living organisms nearby. The PCR radar sensor is a millimeter-wave radar sensor with an on-chip integrated antenna that operates in the unlicensed 61GHz ISM frequency band. Its principle is to use ultra-wideband to perform high-precision micro-motion detection, thereby detecting the breathing signals of living organisms. Because the PCR radar sensor can be battery-powered, it is widely applicable to scenarios such as smart wearables, mobile devices, smart homes, and the Internet of Things. It can detect not only moving living organisms, but also those that are stationary or sleeping.

[0047] Of course, the method for determining the presence or approach of a pedestrian in the present invention is not limited to the methods mentioned in the above embodiments. Any method that can determine whether a living object is approaching is within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0048] The above-mentioned sensors can effectively detect whether there are any living objects approaching around the vehicle. In order to further understand the environmental conditions around the vehicle, preferably, in some embodiments, four 180-degree wide-angle cameras are installed on the front, back and sides of the vehicle to obtain a 360-degree panoramic image around the vehicle.

[0049] 360-degree panoramic imaging captures all image information from the front, back, left, and right of the vehicle simultaneously, without post-production synthesis or multi-lens stitching. Based on bionics (fisheye structure), it employs the transmission and reflection principles of a spherical mirror in physical optics to simultaneously capture 360 degrees of horizontal and 180 degrees of vertical information. Software built into the hardware then converts the image to a format familiar to the human eye.

[0050] Typically, panoramic imaging systems utilize four cameras: one located at the front, one at the parking space, and one under each side mirror. These cameras capture images of the front, blind spots, and rear of the vehicle, respectively. These four 180-degree wide-angle cameras simultaneously capture real-time images of every part of the vehicle's perimeter and transmit them to the image processing unit.

[0051] The images captured by the four wide-angle cameras are transmitted to the image processing unit for image processing, correction and stitching. Since a 180-degree wide-angle camera (also called a fisheye wide-angle camera) is used to ensure a sufficiently large field of view, the captured images are somewhat distorted and require geometric correction. Specifically, the software processes the same points in the image, performs operations such as distortion restoration and perspective conversion, and accurately fuses the overlapping areas of the images at specific angles into one, ultimately presenting a panoramic bird's-eye view of the vehicle's surroundings on the screen, thereby intuitively presenting the vehicle's location and surrounding conditions.

[0052] By equipping the vehicle with a 360-degree panoramic imaging function, the vehicle's A / B / C pillar blind spots, the front and rear blind spots, and the rearview mirror blind spots can be eliminated. These blind spots can cause users to miss obstacles and easily collide with pedestrians, animals, and other vehicles. The 360-degree panoramic imaging eliminates the possibility of missing blind spots, further ensuring the safety of the vehicle itself and surrounding pedestrians, animals, and vehicles during driving.

[0053] In this embodiment, a 360-degree panoramic image allows users to view surrounding objects and living things on the vehicle's display screen while the vehicle is in motion. Surrounding objects primarily include vehicles and other immovable obstacles, while living things primarily include pedestrians and animals. The following uses pedestrians as an example to further illustrate the vehicle horn volume control method provided by the present invention.

[0054] Preferably, in some embodiments, the vehicle-mounted system is also equipped with an image recognition function. The vehicle-mounted system can use the image recognition function to identify the identities of living objects around the vehicle in the 360-degree panoramic image obtained around the vehicle. Specifically, if there are pedestrians in the captured 360-degree panoramic image, they can be identified through the face recognition in the image recognition function. For example, if there are three pedestrians in the panoramic image, they can be identified through the face recognition function and marked as pedestrian A, pedestrian B, and pedestrian C respectively. Similarly, if there are animals in the captured 360-degree panoramic image, they can also be identified through the animal recognition in the image recognition function and marked separately.

[0055] In some embodiments, when the user detects an obstacle ahead of the vehicle, such as another vehicle, pedestrian, or animal, and issues a horn command, the vehicle immediately enters a ready-to-honk state. The vehicle then hones the horn if the vehicle's computer system confirms that the obstacle is within a specified distance ahead.

[0056] Alternatively, in other embodiments, the user may issue a horn command as soon as the vehicle starts, and the vehicle will directly perform the horn operation when it finds an obstacle within a specific distance ahead. The vehicle enters a ready-to-honk state after receiving the horn command issued by the user.

[0057] After the vehicle enters the horn-ready state, the vehicle computer system determines the current state of the vehicle's surrounding environment to determine whether the vehicle should execute the first horn command. In this embodiment, the main conditions for determining whether the vehicle should execute the first horn command include: whether there are pedestrians within a preset distance range in front of the vehicle, and whether the current vehicle speed is less than a first speed threshold.

[0058] In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle-mounted system uses the aforementioned sensors to determine whether pedestrians are present or approaching the vehicle. Furthermore, based on a 360-degree panoramic image captured by a camera mounted outside the vehicle, the vehicle-mounted system can use image recognition to identify pedestrians near the vehicle in the panoramic image.

[0059] In the above-described embodiment, the sensor and 360-degree panoramic imaging function used to determine and identify living things can be turned on after the user issues a horn command, turned off after the vehicle completes the horn operation, and turned on again after the user issues the next horn command. Optionally, the sensor and 360-degree panoramic imaging function can also be turned on after the user issues a horn command and remain on at all times. As the vehicle travels, the sensor and panoramic imaging device continuously detect whether there are living things approaching or existing around the vehicle and identify them until the vehicle reaches its destination, at which point the panoramic imaging function and sensor are turned off.

[0060] In other embodiments, the sensor for determining and identifying living objects and the 360-degree panoramic imaging function can also be turned on in response to the user starting the vehicle, turned off after the vehicle honks once, or can be selected to remain on until the vehicle reaches its destination.

[0061] Please continue to see Figure 1 In step S120, after the vehicle system performs the above-mentioned judgment on whether to perform the first horn sounding operation, the judgment result is that there is a living object within the preset distance range in front of the vehicle and the current vehicle speed is less than the first speed threshold. The vehicle system controls the vehicle's horn to perform the first horn sounding at a first volume value lower than the standard volume.

[0062] In the present invention, the first whistle sounding is different from the ordinary whistle sounding. The first whistle sounding refers to the warning whistle sounded by the vehicle in response to the first appearance of a living object in front of the vehicle. In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle detects the presence of a pedestrian within a preset distance range in front through a sensor, and after identifying the identity of the pedestrian within the preset distance range in front through an image recognition function, the pedestrian in front is marked as pedestrian A. If the vehicle system determines that a whistle sounding is the first whistle sounding in response to the vehicle system identifying pedestrian A, then the whistle sounded by the vehicle in response to pedestrian A is the first whistle sounding. The ordinary whistle sounding refers to the warning whistle sounded by the vehicle in response to obstacles other than pedestrians, such as vehicles.

[0063] In some embodiments of the present invention, the first volume value is set to 50% of the standard volume. The standard volume of a normal car ranges from 105 to 118 decibels, so the range of the first volume value is approximately 50 to 60 decibels. The range of the first volume is equivalent to the volume of normal human voice communication. Because when it is determined that there is a pedestrian in front of the vehicle, the ears of the pedestrian in front are directly exposed to the horn of the vehicle at a close distance. The purpose of the vehicle is to warn the pedestrian in front to avoid. In this case, the vehicle system can ensure the safety of the horn warning volume while taking into account the comfort of the horn volume for the pedestrian's naked ears. Honking the horn at the first volume value of 50% of the standard volume can achieve the purpose of warning pedestrians in front at a close distance, while also avoiding the high-volume horn scare and noise interference to the pedestrian.

[0064] However, if the vehicle's purpose is to warn other vehicles ahead to give way, the system will still control the vehicle's horn to sound at the standard volume, approximately 105-118 decibels. This is because if other vehicles are blocking the road, honking at the first volume, which is about half the standard volume, will prevent the other vehicle's driver from being directly exposed to the horn's sound because they are inside the vehicle. Therefore, if the system honks at the first volume, the driver in the vehicle ahead will not hear the warning and will be unable to give way in time, potentially causing a traffic accident.

[0065] The present invention also requires setting a preset distance range, and the preset distance range should not be too long. If the preset distance range is set too long, the vehicle will perform the horn operation at a relatively low first volume, and pedestrians within the longer preset distance range in front may not be able to hear the vehicle horn sounding at the first volume. In this embodiment, the preset distance range is 2 meters, and the first volume range is approximately 50 to 60 decibels. Therefore, when pedestrians are outside the 2-meter range in front of the vehicle, they may not hear the horn sound of the first volume value emitted by the vehicle system. In this case, for safety reasons, the vehicle system still controls the vehicle horn to perform the horn sounding at the standard volume, approximately 105 to 118 decibels.

[0066] In addition, in this embodiment, the first speed threshold can be 20 km / h. The vehicle horn volume control method provided by the present invention can only be implemented when the vehicle speed is less than the first speed threshold of 20 km / h. In other words, the control method provided by the present invention is applicable to the process of low-speed vehicle driving. Because when the vehicle speed is greater than the first speed threshold of 20 km / h, if this control method is used while the vehicle is driving at high speed, using a low-pitched horn will increase the probability of a dangerous accident due to the excessive speed and the low horn warning tone. In this case, the vehicle system still controls the vehicle horn to perform the horn operation at the standard volume, within the volume range of approximately 105 to 118 decibels.

[0067] Therefore, the vehicle system will control the vehicle's horn to sound the horn for the first time only when the environment around the vehicle meets the above three conditions at the same time, that is, within the preset distance range in front of the vehicle (condition 1), there are living objects (condition 2), and the current vehicle speed is less than the first speed threshold (condition 3).

[0068] Next, please see Figure 2 , Figure 2 FIG. 1 is a flow chart showing a method for controlling the volume of a vehicle horn according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 As shown, Figure 2 exist Figure 1Based on the steps of the vehicle horn volume control method shown in the figure, the method further includes step S130:

[0069] S130: In response to the user issuing a second horn command within a preset time period after the above-mentioned first horn honking, and the above-mentioned living object in front of the vehicle within the preset distance range does not give way, and the current vehicle speed is less than the first speed threshold, the above-mentioned vehicle horn is controlled to perform the second horn honking at a second volume value that is higher than the above-mentioned first volume value and lower than the standard volume.

[0070] In one embodiment, the 360-degree panoramic imaging function and sensors are turned off after the vehicle completes the first horn honking. If the user finds that the pedestrian initially identified as the pedestrian warned by the first horn is still occupying the road within a preset time period, such as three minutes, after the vehicle completes the first horn honking, and has not promptly moved away due to the initial low horn honking, the user can choose to issue a second horn honking command, causing the vehicle to enter a second horn-ready state. The panoramic imaging function and sensors on the vehicle are then reactivated to further determine the pedestrian's identity.

[0071] Optionally, in another embodiment, the panoramic imaging function and sensors remain enabled after the vehicle completes the first horn sound. In this embodiment, the panoramic imaging device and sensors, while enabled, continuously capture and detect the presence or approach of pedestrians near the vehicle while the vehicle is in motion. If the user determines that the pedestrian is still occupying the road and not yielding within a preset time period (e.g., within 3 minutes) after the vehicle completes the first horn sound, the user can choose to issue a second horn sound command.

[0072] The vehicle system determines whether to sound the horn a second time after receiving information about pedestrian avoidance within a preset distance from the panoramic imaging equipment and sensors, and combining it with the vehicle's own speed.

[0073] If the vehicle system determines that the user issues a second horn command within a preset time period after the first horn honking, and there is a pedestrian in front of the vehicle within the preset distance range, and the pedestrian was the subject of the first horn warning, this means that after the vehicle horn honked the pedestrian for the first time, the pedestrian still did not give way in time, so the vehicle horn needs to honk at a higher volume than the first volume to warn the pedestrian.

[0074] Specifically, in one embodiment, the vehicle computer system uses image recognition to identify the face of a pedestrian occupying the road ahead of the vehicle and marks the pedestrian accordingly. The system then compares the pedestrian's identity identified before and after the second horn command with the pedestrian's identity identified before the first horn command. If the pedestrian identified before and after the second horn command is the same pedestrian identified before the first horn command, the vehicle responds to the user's previous horn command and performs the second horn command.

[0075] For example, while traveling at less than 20 km / h, the vehicle's infrared sensor detects a pedestrian within two meters of the vehicle. The vehicle's computer system uses a panoramic image of the pedestrian, captured by an external camera, to perform facial recognition, identifying the pedestrian and labeling them as Pedestrian A. The vehicle then activates the horn to perform the first honk. However, three minutes after the first honk, the user notices that the pedestrian still hasn't yielded, so they issue a second honk command.

[0076] Using facial recognition, the vehicle's system identifies the pedestrian within two meters ahead as the same pedestrian A, who was first identified blocking the road three minutes ago. To further alert the pedestrian, the system then controls the vehicle's horn to sound a second time at a higher volume than the first but lower than the standard volume.

[0077] The reason why the volume is higher than the first volume is because the vehicle system determines that the pedestrian is still the target of the first horn honking, which means that the pedestrian did not evade the vehicle when the vehicle honked the horn the first time and is still in front of the vehicle, occupying the road. Regardless of the reason, such as the pedestrian heard the vehicle's first horn but did not evade in time or actively, or the pedestrian did not hear the vehicle's first horn and did not evade in time, the final result is that the first horn executed by the vehicle did not have the effect of timely warning the pedestrian. Therefore, in order to ensure the effectiveness of the vehicle's horn warning, the second volume of the second horn should be higher than the first volume of the second horn. However, because the vehicle's horn warning target is only pedestrians, in order to protect the naked ears of pedestrians occupying the road ahead who are directly and closely exposed to the vehicle's horn, the second volume of the second horn will still be lower than the standard volume of the car.

[0078] Optionally, in some embodiments, the second volume can be set to 80% of the standard volume, approximately in the 85-95 decibel range. This second volume range, compared to the standard automotive volume of over 100 decibels, is more user-friendly for unaided ears directly exposed to vehicle horns at close range. However, because the volume is generally above 85 decibels, people tend to be highly focused and tense at this level.

[0079] During actual vehicle driving, if a pedestrian is identified as occupying the road ahead, and the pedestrian has previously been identified as occupying the road ahead and the vehicle has previously issued a first horn warning to the pedestrian, if the time difference between the vehicle's two identifications of the pedestrian is long, such as half an hour, even if the pedestrian identified as occupying the road ahead is the same person as the first identified person, due to the long time interval between them, it is highly likely that neither the pedestrian nor the vehicle is in the same location as the first horn. In this case, even if the vehicle identifies the pedestrian occupying the road ahead as the person identified during the second pedestrian identification, the reason for the second horn warning is not because the pedestrian did not give way in time during the first horn warning. Therefore, in this embodiment, the preset time period between the first horn warning and the second horn warning should not be set too long. Its purpose is to ensure that the second horn warning executed by the vehicle corresponds to the situation where the pedestrian did not give way in time after the first horn warning.

[0080] Based on the above description, the present invention provides a method for controlling the volume of a vehicle horn. By implementing this method, the present invention can promptly identify living beings ahead while the vehicle is driving, and automatically lower the volume when the vehicle horn is honking. This provides a warning to living beings while preventing them from getting out of the way while emitting a high volume that could damage their ears or startle them, potentially causing an accident.

[0081] Although the above methods are illustrated and described as a series of acts for simplicity of explanation, it is to be understood and appreciated that these methods are not limited by the order of the acts, as some acts may occur in a different order and / or concurrently with other acts from those illustrated and described herein or not illustrated and described herein but understandable to those skilled in the art according to one or more embodiments.

[0082] According to another aspect of the present invention, the present invention also provides a vehicle horn volume control device 300. Figure 3 , Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a vehicle horn volume control device provided according to some embodiments of the present invention is shown.

[0083] like Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment, the vehicle horn volume control device 300 is implemented as a general-purpose computer device and is used to implement the steps of the vehicle horn volume control method described in any of the above embodiments. For details, please refer to the description of the vehicle horn volume control method above, which will not be repeated here.

[0084] The components of the vehicle horn volume control device 300 may include one or more memories 301, one or more processors 302, and a bus 303 connecting different system components (including the memories 301 and the processors 302).

[0085] Bus 303 includes a data bus, an address bus, and a control bus. The product of the number of bits of the data bus and the operating frequency is proportional to the data transfer rate. The number of bits of the address bus determines the maximum addressable memory space. The control bus (read / write) indicates the type of bus cycle and the time when the current input / output operation is completed. Processor 302 is connected to memory 301 via bus 303 and is configured to implement the vehicle horn volume control method provided in any of the above-mentioned embodiments.

[0086] Processor 302 serves as the computational and control core of vehicle horn volume control device 300 and is the final execution unit for information processing and program execution. All software layer operations in a computer system are ultimately mapped to processor 302 operations through an instruction set. Processor 302 primarily processes instructions, executes operations, controls time, and processes data.

[0087] Memory 301 refers to various storage devices in a computer that store programs and data. Memory 301 may include computer system-readable media in the form of volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 304 and / or cache memory 305.

[0088] Random Access Memory (RAM) 304 is internal memory that directly exchanges data with processor 302. It can be read and written at any time (except when refreshing) and is very fast. It is typically used as a temporary data storage medium for the operating system or other running programs. If power is lost, the stored data will be lost. Cache 305 is a primary memory located between main memory and processor 302. It has a relatively small capacity but a much higher speed than main memory, approaching the speed of processor 302.

[0089] It should be noted that when the vehicle horn volume control device 300 includes multiple memories 701 and multiple processors 302, a distributed structure can be employed between the multiple memories 301 and the multiple processors 302. For example, the device 300 may include memories 301 and processors 302 located locally and in a backend cloud, respectively, with the local and backend cloud jointly implementing the vehicle horn volume control method. Furthermore, in embodiments employing a distributed structure, the specific execution terminal of each step can be adjusted based on actual circumstances, and the specific implementation of each step on a specific terminal should not unduly limit the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0090] The vehicle horn volume control device 300 may further include other removable / immovable, volatile / non-volatile computer system storage media. In this embodiment, the storage system 306 may be used to read and write immovable, non-volatile magnetic media.

[0091] Memory 301 may also include at least one set of program modules 307. Program modules 307 may be stored in memory 301. Program modules 307 include, but are not limited to, an operating system, one or more application programs, other program modules, and program data. Each or some combination of these examples may include an implementation of a network environment. Program modules 307 generally implement the functions and / or methods described in the embodiments of the present invention.

[0092] The vehicle horn volume control device 300 can also communicate with one or more external devices 308. In this embodiment, the external devices 308 include four 180-degree wide-angle cameras for capturing images of the vehicle's surroundings, sensors for detecting the approach of living beings, and other components. The external devices 308 also include a display 309. When implementing the vehicle horn volume control method, the user can intuitively view a 360-degree panoramic image of the vehicle's surroundings, as well as an image indicating the approach of living beings, through the display 309 of the vehicle horn volume control device 300.

[0093] The vehicle horn volume control device 300 may also communicate with one or more devices that enable a user to interact with the vehicle horn volume control device 300 and / or with any device (e.g., a network card, a modem, etc.) that enables the vehicle horn volume control device 300 to communicate with one or more other computing devices. Such communication may occur via an input / output (I / O) interface 310.

[0094] The vehicle horn volume control 300 can also communicate with one or more networks (such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) and / or a public network such as the Internet) through a network adapter 311. Figure 3 As shown, the network adapter 311 communicates with other modules of the vehicle horn volume control device 300 via the bus 303. It should be understood that, although not shown in the figure, other hardware and / or software modules may be used in conjunction with the vehicle horn volume control device 300, including but not limited to: microcode, device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays, RAID systems, tape drives, and data backup storage systems.

[0095] Another aspect of the present invention provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program. When executed by a processor, the computer program implements the steps of the vehicle horn volume control method described in any of the above embodiments. For details, please refer to the above description and will not be repeated here. Furthermore, it is understood that the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium may also be in the form of a system, i.e., comprising multiple computer-readable storage sub-media, so that the steps of the vehicle horn volume control method described above are implemented through the multiple computer-readable storage media.

[0096] According to the present invention, a vehicle horn volume control method, control device, and computer-readable storage medium can promptly identify living objects in front of the car while the car is driving, and automatically lower the volume when the vehicle horn is honked, thereby warning the living objects to avoid the horn without emitting a loud volume that may damage their ears or frighten them and cause accidents.

[0097] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that information, signals, and data may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips cited throughout the foregoing description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0098] Those skilled in the art will further appreciate that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic steps described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of the two. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps are generally described above in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system. A skilled person may implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as resulting in a departure from the scope of the present invention.

[0099] The various illustrative logic modules and circuits described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented or executed using a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0100] Although the processor 302 described in the above embodiments can be implemented through a combination of software and hardware, it is understood that the processor 302 can also be implemented in software or hardware. For hardware implementation, the processor 302 can be implemented in one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, other electronic devices for performing the above functions, or a combination of the above devices. For software implementation, the processor 302 can be implemented through independent software modules such as procedures and functions running on a general-purpose chip, each of which performs one or more functions and operations described herein.

[0101] The previous description of the disclosure is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the examples and designs described herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for controlling the volume of a vehicle horn, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: During vehicle driving, in response to a first horn command from a user, determining whether there is a living object within a preset distance range in front of the vehicle and whether the current vehicle speed is less than a first speed threshold; In response to the living being being within the preset distance range in front of the vehicle and the current vehicle speed being less than the first speed threshold, identifying the identity of the living being for the first time, and controlling the vehicle horn to perform a first honking at a first volume value lower than a standard volume; In response to the user issuing a second horn command within a preset time period after the first horn command, and the living being in front of the vehicle within the preset distance range does not yield, and the current vehicle speed is less than a first speed threshold, identifying the identity of the living being for a second time; comparing the identity of the living being identified for the second time with the identity of the living being identified for the first time; as well as In response to the second identification of the living object as the object warned by the first horn, the vehicle horn is controlled to perform a second horn sounding at a second volume value higher than the first volume value and lower than the standard volume.

2. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: Before the step of controlling the vehicle horn to honk for the first time at a first volume value lower than the standard volume, the control method further includes: Identifying the identity of the living object in front of the vehicle within the preset distance range; and In response to the current whistle instruction being the first whistle instruction after the identity of the living being is identified, the current whistle instruction is determined to be the first whistle instruction.

3. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: The first speed threshold is 20 km / h.

4. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: The first volume value is 50% of the standard volume.

5. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: The second volume value is 80% of the standard volume.

6. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: In response to a living being existing in front of the vehicle within the preset distance range, but the current vehicle speed is above a first speed threshold, controlling the vehicle horn to honk at a standard volume; or In response to there being no living object in front of the vehicle within the preset distance range, the vehicle horn is controlled to honk at a standard volume.

7. A vehicle horn volume control device, characterized in that: include: Memory; as well as Processor; the processor is configured to execute the vehicle horn volume control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A vehicle, characterized in that: The vehicle includes the vehicle horn volume control device according to claim 7.

9. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon, wherein when executed by a processor, the computer-executable instructions implement the vehicle horn volume control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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