A device and method for displaying digital media information on wheels

Abstract

This application provides a device and method for displaying digital media information such as video, images, and text on a vehicle wheel. The device includes a speed locator, a display controller, a wheel array of LED beads, an image storage device, and a power supply. The wheel array of LED beads is installed on the hub or spokes of a motor vehicle or non-motor vehicle wheel and consists of several monochrome or colored LED beads. The speed locator measures the wheel speed in real time and transmits the data to the display controller. The display controller retrieves the digital media content to be displayed from the image storage device and, based on the wheel speed and the wheel spoke deflection angle set during the initialization phase, controls the switching, color, and brightness of each LED bead at specific times, thereby utilizing the persistence of vision to display digital media information in the annular planar area where the wheel array of LED beads is located. This application utilizes the wheel for digital media information display, adding a novel information transmission method and function to vehicles, meeting users' pursuit of personalization, and representing a new form of digital media display.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of digital media display, and more specifically, to an apparatus and method for displaying digital media information on wheels (motor vehicles and non-motor vehicles). Background Technology

[0002] Cars and bicycles are important means of transportation, and personalization has become a pursuit for users today, as has novel and personalized designs for vehicle manufacturers. If personalized 3D or 2D videos, patterns, and text could be displayed on the wheels and rims using the persistence of vision during vehicle movement, it would greatly enhance the vehicle's novelty, appeal, and artistry, especially at night, increasing the attractiveness of its lighting effects. This capability also provides a new means of information delivery, such as indicating vehicle intentions (turning, U-turns, stopping to drop off passengers, etc.), advertising, and holiday greetings.

[0003] Our investigation found no existing works related to displaying digital media via vehicle wheels. Regarding the similarity of the implementation techniques, we found that patents CN201910965322.2 and CN201610712107.8 are similar to this application. The similarity lies in their utilization of the persistence of vision in the human eye. However, all the aforementioned existing works differ fundamentally from this application in the problems they solve and the technical solutions they employ: First, in the problem this application aims to solve, the wheel speed is uncontrollable and variable. The device in this application needs to actively sense the wheel speed and convert digital media information (such as video) into control commands for the LED array based on the dynamically changing wheel speed, while existing works lack a speed measuring device. The device in this application does not require a drive unit component (such as a motor), while all existing works require a drive unit. Furthermore, existing works cannot guarantee that the image's orientation is correct and does not deviate during display, which is one of the problems this application aims to solve. Based on the above analysis, none of the existing works can solve the problem of displaying digital media information on vehicle wheels, while this application effectively solves the problem of correctly displaying digital media information according to the vehicle's speed, ensuring that the image information is oriented correctly and does not deviate. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this application is to provide a device for displaying digital media information on wheels (motor vehicles and non-motor vehicles) to increase the personalized display capabilities of vehicles and provide new means of information transmission, which is a new form of digital media display.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a device for displaying digital media information on a wheel, comprising: a speed locator, a display controller, and a wheel disc LED array. The speed locator is connected to the display controller, and the display controller is connected to the wheel disc LED array. In an optional embodiment, the wheel disc LED array can be installed on the hub or spokes of a motor vehicle or non-motor vehicle wheel, and consists of a plurality of monochrome or colored LEDs. The speed locator measures the wheel rotation speed in real time and transmits the measurement result to the display controller. The display controller controls the switching, color, and brightness of each LED at a specific time according to the digital media content to be displayed, the wheel rotation speed, and the wheel spoke deflection angle set during the initialization phase. This utilizes the persistence of vision phenomenon to display digital media information in the annular planar area where the wheel hub or spokes are located.

[0006] As an optional implementation, the wheel-shaped LED array consists of several LED beads, each of which can display the desired color. The LED beads are grouped according to the number of wheel spokes N, with one group of LED beads deployed for each wheel spoke. Each group of LED beads has the same number of LED beads and uses the same arrangement.

[0007] As an optional implementation, the speed measuring and positioning device consists of a signal transmitter and a signal receiver. In an optional implementation, the signal transmitter is mounted on the wheel or vehicle body, and the signal receiver is mounted on the vehicle body or wheel, appearing in pairs. The signal transmitter includes a signal transmission window, and the signal receiver includes an information reception window. When the signal transmission window and the signal reception window are aligned, the signal receiver can receive the light signal emitted by the signal transmitter; when the signal receiver window is misaligned with the signal transmitter window, the signal receiver cannot receive the light signal emitted by the signal transmitter. The time interval from the last time the signal receiver receives a light signal emitted by the signal transmitter to the next time it receives a light signal emitted by the signal transmitter is t, in seconds. The wheel rotation speed is 1 / t, in revolutions per second.

[0008] As an optional implementation, the display controller includes an LED control command generator and an LED status controller. The LED control command generator generates an LED control command sequence in units of wheel frames, and the LED status controller uses the LED control command sequence as input to control the wheel LED array to display digital media information.

[0009] The wheel frame is the time span for one complete wheel rotation. The signal receiver of the speed measuring and positioning device receives the optical signal emitted by the signal transmitter, marking the end of the previous wheel frame and the beginning of the next. The time interval of the previous wheel frame is t, and the wheel rotation speed of the previous wheel frame is 1 / t.

[0010] The LED control command generator takes the digital media data file, the wheel speed of the previous wheel frame, and the wheel spoke deflection angle set in the initialization phase as input to generate the LED control command sequence.

[0011] As an optional implementation, the LED control instruction generator adopts different generation strategies depending on the type of digital media.

[0012] (1) When the digital media type is text, the text is first converted into an image, and then the LED control instruction generation strategy of the image is executed.

[0013] (2) When the digital media type is an image, calculate the polar coordinate position of each LED. The polar coordinate position of the kth LED on the i-th spoke at the j-th time slice is:

[0014] Angle: a = (i-1)*360 / N-a0+(j-1)*180d / (π*(R-(k-1)*d))

[0015] Length: l = R-(k-1)*d

[0016] Wherein, the spoke index is iϵ[1,N], the time slice index is jϵ[1, 2πR / (Nd)], and the LED position index is kϵ[1, K].

[0017] Then, the polar coordinates (a, l) are converted to Cartesian coordinates (x, y). The color value (R, G, B) is obtained by averaging all pixel values ​​within a circle of radius d / 2 centered at point (x, y). Therefore, the color value of the k-th LED on the i-th spoke at time slice j should be (R, G, B). The color value control sequence for all LEDs is obtained using the above method.

[0018] (3) When the digital media type is video, different conversion strategies are executed according to the speed relationship between the wheel frame and the video frame. Assuming the wheel frame duration is t, the number of spokes is n, the video frame rate is f, and the time elapsed from the device's startup to the current wheel frame is T, then the conversion strategy is:

[0019] Case 1: When t = n / f, select n video frames from the interval from T to T + n / f in the video frame image sequence to generate the control command sequence for each LED. The generation method for each frame is the same as in (2).

[0020] Case 2: When t < n / f, select n video frames from the interval from T to T + n / f in the video frame image sequence to generate the control command sequence for each LED. After each frame's control command sequence is generated, insert (1 / ft / n) seconds of empty content. That is, after the wheel rotates for t / n seconds, turn off all LEDs for (1 / ft / n) seconds, and then continue generating the control command sequence for the next frame. The generation method for each frame is the same as in (2).

[0021] Case 3: When t > n / f, n video frames are selected from the interval from T to T + n / f in the video frame image sequence to generate the control instruction sequence for each LED. After the control instruction for each frame is generated, it is determined whether the next frame has expired. If it has expired, the frame is ignored and the next frame is generated directly. This process is repeated for each frame. The generation method for each frame is the same as in (2).

[0022] As an optional implementation, the display controller automatically selects the digital media data file based on the wheel speed and the mapping rule between wheel speed and display content. When there is no mapping rule between wheel speed and display content, the default or user-specified digital media data file is used to control the wheel LED array.

[0023] As an optional implementation, the image storage device stores digital media data files such as videos, pictures, and text to be displayed.

[0024] As an optional implementation, the display controller acquires digital media data files such as videos, pictures and text to be displayed in the image storage through the signal transmission link (104).

[0025] When the display controller and the image storage device are respectively deployed on the wheel and the vehicle body, the signal transmission link can be either wireless or wired data transmission due to the relative movement between the wheel and the vehicle body. The wireless data transmission can use the Bluetooth communication protocol, while the wired data transmission can use a conductive slip ring. When the display controller and the image storage device are simultaneously deployed on the wheel, the signal transmission link uses a traditional data transmission line.

[0026] As an optional implementation, the power supply provides power to the electrical equipment through a power transmission link. The electrical equipment includes the speed measuring and positioning device, the display controller, the image storage device, and the wheel light array.

[0027] When the power source and the electrical equipment are respectively deployed on the vehicle body and the wheels, the power transmission link transmits power through conductive slip rings due to the relative movement between the wheels and the vehicle body. When the power source and the electrical equipment are simultaneously deployed on the wheels or the vehicle body, the power transmission link uses conventional power transmission lines.

[0028] As an optional implementation, the human-machine interaction subsystem is a software program installed on the vehicle control terminal or mobile device terminal, providing a control interface for the user to complete the loading of digital media data files, set the wheel spoke deflection angle during the initialization phase, define the mapping rules from the wheel speed to the display content, and start the device for displaying digital media information on the wheel.

[0029] In a second aspect, the present invention provides a method for displaying digital media information on a wheel based on the device described in the first aspect, comprising the following steps:

[0030] S001. Initialize wheel deflection angle parameters.

[0031] S002. Upload the digital media data file to the image storage device.

[0032] S003. As an optional step, if it is desired to display changing digital media data when the vehicle speed changes, it is necessary to configure the mapping rules from the wheel speed to the displayed content.

[0033] S004. During driving, the wheel speed is recorded once for each rotation of the wheel.

[0034] S005. When the wheel speed is greater than the minimum effective speed, execute S006; otherwise, execute S004. The minimum effective speed is the lowest wheel speed at which effective visual persistence can be achieved.

[0035] S006. If the mapping rule from the wheel speed to the displayed content has been configured, then execute S007; otherwise, execute S008.

[0036] S007. Based on the current wheel speed and the mapping rule between wheel speed and display content, select the digital media data file to be displayed and load it. Continue to S009.

[0037] S008. Load the digital media data file.

[0038] S009. Using the digital media data file, the current wheel speed, and the wheel deflection angle as input data, generate a sequence of LED control commands.

[0039] S010. Control the wheel LED array according to the LED control command sequence. Then continue to execute S004 until the vehicle stops or the device displaying digital media information on the wheel is turned off.

[0040] As an optional implementation, the method for generating the lamp bead control command sequence (S009) includes the following steps:

[0041] S101, Obtain the current wheel frame rotation speed.

[0042] S102. Obtain the preset wheel deflection angle parameters.

[0043] S103. If the digital media data file is text, then execute S104; if it is an image, then execute S105; if it is video, then execute S107.

[0044] S104. Convert text to image.

[0045] S105. Extract the pixel value corresponding to each LED bead.

[0046] S106. Generate the LED control instruction sequence. Execute S111.

[0047] S107. Calculate the duration of the current wheel frame.

[0048] S108. Obtain video frame data corresponding to the current wheel frame duration.

[0049] S109. For each video frame, extract the pixel value corresponding to each LED.

[0050] S110: Generate LED control instruction sequence. If there are still unprocessed video frames, execute S109; otherwise, execute S111.

[0051] S111, Output the sequence of LED control instructions for the current wheel frame. Attached Figure Description

[0052] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of this application and should not be regarded as a limitation of the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0053] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the components of a device for displaying digital media information on a wheel is shown;

[0054] Figure 2 The partial structure of the wheel and vehicle body is shown to illustrate the possible installation locations of the speed locator;

[0055] Figure 3 It showcases the diversity of wheel hubs and spokes;

[0056] Figure 4 The diagram shows the installation of the rotary LED array and how the controller generates the LED control command sequence.

[0057] Figure 5 Several renderings show how digital media data is displayed on wheels;

[0058] Figure 6 A flowchart illustrating a method for displaying digital media information on wheels is shown;

[0059] Figure 7 A flowchart illustrating the method for generating LED control command sequences is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0060] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0061] The purpose of this application is to provide a device for displaying digital media information on the wheels of motor vehicles and non-motor vehicles, thereby increasing the personalized display capabilities of vehicles and providing new means of information transmission, representing a new form of digital media display. Digital media information includes video, images, text, etc.

[0062] The device for displaying digital media information on a wheel disclosed in this application includes the following key components (see...). Figure 1 (As shown): a speed locator, a display controller, and a wheel-shaped LED array. The speed locator is connected to the display controller, which in turn is connected to the wheel-shaped LED array. The wheel-shaped LED array is installed on the hub or spokes of a motor vehicle or non-motor vehicle wheel and consists of several monochrome or colored LEDs. As the wheel moves, the speed locator measures the wheel speed in real time for each revolution and transmits the result to the display controller. The display controller calculates when to turn a specific LED on or off, and controls its color and brightness, based on the digital media content to be displayed, the wheel speed, and the wheel spoke deflection angle set during initialization. During high-speed vehicle rotation, each LED in the wheel-shaped LED array is turned on at a specific position, displaying a certain color, and then displays a different color at the next specific position. Due to the persistence of vision, the annular plane area where the wheel hub or spokes are located appears to be filled with LEDs, creating a visual effect similar to a pixel on a display screen, thus enabling the display of digital media information. Figure 5Several illustrative images are provided. The first image shows a wheel displaying a fire wheel, with the flame portion changing depending on the vehicle's speed. The second image shows circular 3D text that can rotate around the wheel's axle. The third image displays an exquisite planar pattern on the wheel.

[0063] The speed locator consists of a signal transmitter and a signal receiver. In an optional embodiment, the signal transmitter is mounted on the wheel or vehicle body, and the signal receiver is mounted on the vehicle body or wheel; they appear as a pair. The signal transmitter of the speed locator includes a signal transmission window, and the signal receiver includes an information reception window. When the signal transmission window and the signal reception window are aligned, the signal receiver can receive the light signal emitted by the signal transmitter; when the signal receiver window is misaligned with the signal transmitter window, the signal receiver cannot receive the light signal emitted by the signal transmitter. When the wheel rotates, the time interval from when the signal receiver last receives a light signal from the signal transmitter to when it receives the next light signal from the signal transmitter is t, in seconds. The current wheel speed is 1 / t, in revolutions per second. This t changes with the vehicle speed.

[0064] Figure 2 This is a structural diagram of the vehicle wheel area, where the subframe, shock absorber, stabilizer bar link, cantilever link, and steering link are components of the vehicle body. The cantilever link and shock absorber are non-rotating, relatively fixed, and unobstructed from the wheel, making them suitable for installing a signal transmitter or receiver for a speed locator. The signal receiver or signal transmitter for the speed locator is installed inside the wheel, ensuring that the distance from the receiver window to the wheel axle is the same as the distance from the transmitter window, so that the receiver can receive the light signal emitted by the transmitter.

[0065] The wheel-shaped LED array consists of several LED beads, each capable of displaying the desired color. The beads are grouped according to the number of wheel spokes N, with one group of beads deployed for each spoke. Each group of beads has the same number of beads and uses the same arrangement. Figure 3 The exhibition showcases car wheel hubs with different spokes. Of course, LEDs can also be deployed on bicycle spokes. Figure 4 (a) illustrates the effect of deploying LEDs on a 5-spoke wheel hub, wherein only one row of closely spaced LEDs is deployed on each wheel hub. Of course, this application also supports deploying multiple rows of LEDs on each spoke.

[0066] As a supplementary component, the above-mentioned device also includes (see...) Figure 1(As shown): The image storage device and power supply, as well as the signal transmission link between the image storage device and the display controller, and the power transmission link between the power supply and the display controller. The image storage device stores digital media data files such as videos, pictures, and text to be displayed. The display controller retrieves these digital media data files from the image storage device through the signal transmission link. Similarly, the power supply provides power to the electrical equipment, including the speed locator, display controller, image storage device, and rotary LED array, through the power transmission link.

[0067] There are numerous combinations of how the aforementioned components can be deployed on the vehicle body and wheels, and different deployment methods determine the type of signal transmission link and power transmission link used. This application provides two preferred implementation schemes; other similar combinations also fall within the scope supported by this application.

[0068] Preferred Option 1: The display controller, image storage device, wheel LED array, power supply, and speed locator signal receiver are all deployed on the wheel. In this case, a battery can be used as the power source. These components are connected via traditional wires and circuits as signal and power transmission links. The speed locator's signal transmitter is deployed on the vehicle body and continuously emits light signals, powered by the vehicle's power supply. The image storage device can permanently store specific digital media data files or be implemented using a memory card. Data updates are achieved by removing the memory card and reading / writing the digital media data files using a third-party device.

[0069] Preferred Option 2: The display controller, wheel LED array, and speed locator signal receivers are all deployed on the wheels, while the power supply, image storage device, and speed locator signal transmitter are deployed on the vehicle body. The wheels and vehicle body move relative to each other, and the signal transmission link can be wireless or wired. Wireless data transmission can use Bluetooth communication protocol, while wired data transmission uses a conductive slip ring. Power to the image storage device and speed locator signal generator can be provided using traditional power transmission lines. Power to the display controller can be provided using a conductive slip ring, and then the display controller uses traditional wires and circuits to power the wheel LED array and speed locator signal receivers.

[0070] Regardless of which of the above solutions is used, when the power supply is located on the vehicle body side, an on-board power supply can be used.

[0071] When the image storage device is deployed on the vehicle body, it can be implemented as a removable or non-removable memory card. For removable memory cards, the card can be removed, and data updates can be achieved by reading and writing digital media data files through a third-party device. Regardless of whether the memory card is removable or non-removable, data reading, writing, and updating can be performed through software installed on the vehicle control terminal or mobile device terminal. Figure 1In this context, the software program is a human-computer interaction subsystem.

[0072] The display controller is the most important component in the device of this application. It includes an LED control command generator and an LED status controller. The LED control command generator generates LED control command sequences in units of wheel frames, and the LED status controller uses the LED control command sequences as input to control the wheel LED array to display digital media information.

[0073] A wheel frame differs from the concept of a frame in a video file. A wheel frame represents the time span of one wheel rotation and the content to be displayed within that time span. For distinction, in this application, a frame in a video file is referred to as a video frame. The signal receiver of the speed locator receives the light signal emitted by the signal transmitter, marking the end of the previous wheel frame and the beginning of the next. The time interval of the previous wheel frame is t, and the wheel rotation speed of the previous wheel frame is 1 / t.

[0074] As an optional implementation, the display controller automatically selects the digital media data file based on the wheel speed and the mapping rule between wheel speed and display content. When no such mapping rule exists, a default or user-specified digital media data file is used to control the wheel LED array. Examples of the mapping rule between wheel speed and display content are shown in Table 1. For example, when the current wheel speed t is between T0 and T1, FileName_1 is displayed, and so on.

[0075] Lower limit of wheel speed Upper limit of wheel speed Digital Media Data Files <![CDATA[T0]]> <![CDATA[T1]]> FileName_1 <![CDATA[T1]]> <![CDATA[T2]]> FileName_2 … … … <![CDATA[T n-1 ]]> <![CDATA[T n ]]> FileName_N

[0076] Table 1

[0077] The LED control command generator takes the digital media data file, the wheel speed of the previous wheel frame, and the wheel spoke deflection angle set during the initialization phase as input to generate a sequence of LED control commands. As a preferred implementation, the working mechanism of the LED control command generator is as follows:

[0078] Different processing mechanisms are used depending on the type of digital media.

[0079] (1) When the digital media type is text, the text is first converted into an image and the following processing mechanism is executed.

[0080] (2) When the digital media type is an image, for the current wheel frame (rotation speed 1 / t), since the number of spokes is N, the LED array on each spoke is only responsible for displaying the image of a 360 / N-degree fan-shaped area within time t. The left wheel of the vehicle rotates counterclockwise, and the right wheel rotates clockwise. As an example, this application always uses the right wheel as an example and gives the formula; the left wheel is not described further. Figure 4As shown in (b), assuming the signal receiver of the speed locator is installed behind the spoke of wheel s1, and the signal generator of the speed locator is installed at the radial position marked "speed locator" as shown in the figure, with an angle of a0 with the vertical line, then the fan-shaped area to be displayed by the LED array s1 on the first spoke s1 (a column in the schematic row in the figure) is the angle interval: [-a0, 360 / N-a0]; while the fan-shaped area to be displayed by the i-th spoke is the angle interval: [(i-1)*360 / N-a0, i*360 / N-a0], where i ∈ [1, N]. Assuming the diameter of the LED is d, the distance from the farthest LED on the spoke to the center of the axle is R, and the distance from the nearest LED to the center of the axle is r, the farthest LED needs to sweep an arc of length 2πR / N in time t, within which 2πR / (Nd) LEDs can be arranged. Therefore, to display the image data along this arc length, time t needs to be divided into 2πR / (Nd) equal parts. In the first time segment, the LED is located at an angle of (i-1)*360 / N-a0 with a radius of R; in the second time segment, the LED is located at an angle of (i-1)*360 / N-a0+180d / (πR) with a radius of R; and so on. In the j-th time segment, where j ϵ[1, 2πR / (Nd)], the LED is located at an angle of (i-1)*360 / N-a0+(j-1)*180d / (πR) with a radius of R. Let there be K LEDs from R to r, then the distance of the k-th LED from the axis is R-(k-1)*d, where k ϵ[1, K]. We can obtain a unified formula: the polar coordinates of the k-th LED on the i-th spoke in the j-th time segment are:

[0081] Angle: a = (i-1)*360 / N-a0+(j-1)*180d / (π*(R-(k-1)*d))

[0082] Length: l = R-(k-1)*d

[0083] Wherein, the spoke index is iϵ[1,N], the time slice index is jϵ[1, 2πR / (Nd)], and the LED position index is kϵ[1, K].

[0084] Cartesian coordinates can be easily obtained from polar coordinates (conversion formula omitted), thus revealing the pixel position (x, y) of the LED in the image at that time slice. Averaging the pixel values ​​within a circle of radius d / 2 centered at this point yields the LED's color value (R, G, B). Therefore, the color value of the k-th LED on the i-th spoke at time slice j should be (R, G, B). This allows us to obtain the color value control sequence for all LEDs.

[0085] (3) When the digital media type is video, assuming the video file has a total of s frames, which is a sequence of s images, and the frame rate is f, then normal video playback should play at a speed of f frames per second, with each frame lasting for 1 / f seconds. To play the video on the wheel, a timer T needs to be introduced. When the wheel rotates for the first revolution (the first wheel frame), only the rotational speed is measured, and T is not timed, nor is the video played. Timing and playback begin from the second revolution (the second wheel frame). Assuming the time interval between two received signals measured by the positioner in the first wheel frame is t0, then the duration of the second wheel frame is approximately t0. When the second wheel frame is completed, the timer T = t0. After the wheel rotates x revolutions, the total duration T = t0 + t1 + ... + t x-1 At this point, the video should have played for a duration of T, corresponding to a video frame count of f*T. As a preferred implementation, the following is the control logic for playing video frames in each wheel frame: Assuming the number of spokes is n, and the current wheel frame duration is t, then completing the playback of one frame requires t / n, meaning each spoke's LED array only needs to rotate 1 / n arcs. Therefore, n spokes rotate a total of 360 degrees, so one frame can be played within t / n duration, and n frames can be played within t time. Since the playback speed of wheel frames and video frames differs, an appropriate number of video frames need to be selected for playback within a single wheel frame. There are three possible scenarios:

[0086] Case 1: If t = n / f, then the wheel frame and the video frame are exactly synchronized. For each wheel frame, n video frames are selected from the interval from T to T + n / f in the s-frame image sequence for playback. The LED control method for each frame is the same as in (2), and will not be repeated here.

[0087] Case 2: When t < n / f (i.e., t / n < 1 / f), the rotation speed is faster than the video playback speed. We still need to select n video frames from the interval from T to T + n / f in the s-frame image sequence for playback. However, we need to insert (1 / ft / n) seconds of empty content after each frame is played. That is, when the wheel has rotated for t / n time, the playback of one frame has been completed. At this time, all LEDs should be turned off for (1 / ft / n) seconds, and then the playback of the next frame should continue. The LED control method for each frame is similar to (2), and will not be repeated here.

[0088] Case 3: When t > n / f (i.e. t / n > 1 / f), the rotation speed is slower than the video playback speed. In this case, we still need to select n video frames from the interval from T to T + n / f in the s-frame image sequence. However, after each frame is played, we need to determine whether the next frame should have started playing. If the frame has expired, we skip it and play the next frame directly. This process is repeated to complete the sampling and playback of n video frames. The LED control method for each frame is similar to (2) and will not be repeated here.

[0089] As an optional implementation, the human-computer interaction subsystem (108) is a software program installed on the vehicle control terminal or mobile device terminal to provide a control interface for users to complete the loading of digital media data files, set the wheel spoke deflection angle during the initialization phase, complete the mapping rule definition from the wheel speed to the display content, and start the device for displaying digital media information on the wheel.

[0090] In addition to describing a device for displaying digital media information on a wheel, this invention provides a method for displaying digital media information on a wheel based on the device, comprising the following steps:

[0091] S001. Initialize the wheel deflection angle parameter. This deflection angle is the angle between the line connecting the speed locator and the wheel axle center and the vertical line. This parameter ensures the correctness of the image display direction in subsequent calculations controlling the LED array. For this step, this deflection angle only needs to be measured once for a specific speed locator installation method for a particular vehicle model. The value is the same when setting this parameter on different instances of the same vehicle model.

[0092] S002. Upload the digital media data file to the image storage device. This step is not necessarily ordered with S001, and their order can be interchanged. However, in practice, S001 usually occurs during the vehicle production or modification stage, while S002 can be performed by the vehicle user at any time to change the content displayed on the wheels.

[0093] S003. As an optional step, if it is desired to display changing digital media data when the vehicle speed changes, it is necessary to configure the mapping rules from the wheel speed to the displayed content. Table 1 illustrates the structure of the mapping rules.

[0094] S004. During driving, the wheel speed is recorded once for each rotation of the wheel.

[0095] S005. When the wheel speed is greater than the minimum effective speed, execute S006; otherwise, execute S004. The minimum effective speed is the lowest wheel speed at which effective visual persistence can be achieved.

[0096] S006. If a mapping rule for wheel speed to display content has been configured, then execute S007; otherwise, execute S008.

[0097] S007. Based on the current wheel speed and the mapping rule between wheel speed and display content, select the digital media data file to be displayed and load it. Continue to S009.

[0098] S008, Load digital media data file.

[0099] S009. Using digital media data file, current wheel speed, and wheel deflection angle as input data, generate the LED control command sequence for the current wheel frame.

[0100] S010: Control the wheel LED array according to the LED control command sequence. Then continue to execute S004 to display the next wheel frame until the device stops or is turned off.

[0101] The method for generating the above-mentioned LED control command sequence (S009) includes the following steps:

[0102] S101, Obtain the current wheel frame rotation speed.

[0103] S102. Obtain the preset wheel deflection angle parameters.

[0104] S103. If the digital media data file is text, then execute S104; if it is an image, then execute S105; if it is video, then execute S107.

[0105] S104. Convert text to image.

[0106] S105. Calculate the polar coordinates of each LED at a certain moment, convert them to Cartesian coordinates to determine the pixel position corresponding to the center of the LED, and take the average value of the pixel values ​​in the area covered by an LED to obtain the color value that the LED should display.

[0107] S106. According to the method in S105, generate the LED control instruction sequence according to the time sequence. Execute S111.

[0108] S107. For video, calculate the duration of the current wheel frame.

[0109] S108. Obtain video frame data corresponding to the current wheel frame duration.

[0110] S109. For each video frame, extract the color value that each LED should display. The method is similar to S105.

[0111] S110: Generate LED control instruction sequence. If there are still unprocessed video frames, execute S109; otherwise, execute S111.

[0112] S111, Output the sequence of LED control instructions for the current wheel frame.

[0113] In the embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and methods can also be implemented in other ways. The apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the flowcharts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of apparatus, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of this application. In this regard, each block in a flowchart or block diagram may represent a module, segment, or portion of code containing one or more executable instructions for implementing a specified logical function. It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions marked in the blocks may occur in a different order than those marked in the drawings. For example, two consecutive blocks may actually be executed substantially in parallel, and they may sometimes be executed in reverse order, depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each block in a block diagram and / or flowchart, and combinations of blocks in block diagrams and / or flowcharts, can be implemented using a dedicated hardware-based system that performs the specified function or action, or using a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0114] In addition, the functional modules in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated together to form an independent part, or each module can exist independently, or two or more modules can be integrated to form an independent part.

[0115] If the aforementioned functions are implemented as software functional modules and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks. It should be noted that in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0116] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit this application. Various modifications and variations can be made to this application by those skilled in the art. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the protection scope of this application. It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters in the following figures indicate similar items; therefore, once an item is defined in one figure, it does not need to be further defined and explained in subsequent figures.

[0117] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A device for displaying digital media information on a wheel, comprising: A speed measurement and positioning device, a display controller, a wheel disc lamp bead array, an image memory, and a power supply; The speed measurement and positioning device is connected to the display controller, and the display controller is connected to the wheel disc lamp bead array and the image memory; the wheel disc lamp bead array is installed on the hub or spoke of the wheel of a motor vehicle or a non-motor vehicle and consists of a number of monochromatic or colored lamp beads; the speed measurement and positioning device measures the wheel speed in real time and transmits the measurement result to the display controller; the display controller obtains the digital media content to be displayed from the image memory and controls the on / off, color, and brightness of each lamp bead at a specific time according to the wheel speed and the wheel spoke deflection angle set in the initialization stage, so as to display digital media information in the annular plane area where the wheel hub or spoke is located by using the human visual persistence phenomenon; the wheel spoke offset angle is the included angle between the line connecting the speed measurement and positioning device to the wheel axis and the vertical line, which is used to ensure the non-skewed display of the digital media information on the wheel when generating the lamp bead control instruction; The display controller adopts different lamp bead control instruction generation methods according to different digital media types, including: When the digital media type is a picture, the method for generating the lamp bead control instruction of the picture is: calculate the polar coordinate position of each lamp bead. The polar coordinate position of the k-th lamp bead on the i-th spoke at the j-th time slice is: angle , length , Among them, the spoke index N is the number of wheel spokes, and the time slice index. LED position index Then, the polar coordinates (a,l) are converted to Cartesian coordinates (x,y). Taking point (x,y) as the center, the average value of all pixel values ​​within a circle with a radius of d / 2 is calculated to obtain the color value of the k-th LED on the i-th spoke at the j-th time slice. The color value control sequence of all LEDs is obtained according to the method described above. When the digital media type is text, convert the text into a picture and then execute the method for generating the lamp bead control instruction of the picture; When the digital media type is a video, generate lamp bead control instructions in units of wheel frames to control the display states of the lamp beads in the wheel disc lamp bead array. Assume that the wheel frame duration is t, the number of spokes is n, the video frame rate is f, and the time elapsed before the current wheel frame is T. Then When t = n / f, select n video frames from the interval of T to T + n / f in the video frame image sequence to generate the control instruction sequence for each frame of each lamp bead; When t < n / f, after generating the control instruction sequence for each frame, insert empty content for (1 / f - t / n) seconds, and then continue to generate the control instruction sequence for the next frame; When t > n / f, after generating the control instruction sequence for each frame, judge whether the next frame has expired. If it has expired, ignore this frame and directly continue to generate the next frame, and so on for each frame; Among them, the method for generating the control instruction sequence for each frame is the same as the method for generating the lamp bead control instruction of the picture.

2. The device for displaying digital media information on a wheel according to claim 1, characterized in that, The speed measurement and positioning device consists of a signal transmitter and a signal receiver; the signal transmitter is installed on the wheel or the vehicle body, and the signal receiver is installed on the vehicle body or the wheel, and they appear in pairs; the signal transmitter includes a signal transmission window, and the signal receiver includes an information reception window. When the signal transmission window is aligned with the information reception window, the signal receiver can receive the optical signal emitted by the signal transmitter; when the signal receiver window is错开 from the signal transmitter window, the signal receiver cannot receive the optical signal emitted by the signal transmitter.

3. The device for displaying digital media information on a wheel according to claim 2, characterized in that, The wheel-shaped LED array consists of several LED beads, each of which can display the desired color. The LED beads are grouped according to the number of wheel spokes N, with one LED bead group deployed for each wheel spoke. Each LED bead group has the same number of LED beads and uses the same LED bead arrangement.

4. The device for displaying digital media information on a wheel according to claim 3, characterized in that, The display controller includes an LED control command generator and an LED status controller. The LED control command generator takes the digital media data file, the wheel speed of the previous wheel frame, and the wheel spoke deflection angle set in the initialization phase as input to generate an LED control command sequence. The LED status controller takes the LED control command sequence as input to control the wheel LED array to display digital media information.

5. The device for displaying digital media information on a wheel according to claim 4, characterized in that, The display controller automatically selects the digital media data file based on the wheel speed and the mapping rule from wheel speed to display content; when there is no mapping rule from wheel speed to display content, it uses the default or user-specified digital media data file to control the wheel light array.

6. The device for displaying digital media information on a wheel according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that: The image storage device stores digital media data files to be displayed, including videos, images, and text. The display controller acquires these digital media data files from the image storage device via a signal transmission link. When the display controller and the image storage device are deployed on the wheel and vehicle body respectively, the signal transmission link is either a wireless data transmission method or a wired data transmission method. The wireless data transmission method uses the Bluetooth communication protocol, and the wired data transmission method uses a conductive slip ring. When the display controller and the image storage device are deployed on the wheel simultaneously, the signal transmission link uses a traditional data transmission line. The power supply provides power to the electrical equipment via a power transmission link. The electrical equipment includes the speed locator, the display controller, the image storage device, and the wheel light array. When the power supply and the electrical equipment are respectively deployed on the vehicle body and the wheels, the power transmission link transmits power through a conductive slip ring. When the power supply and the electrical equipment are simultaneously deployed on the wheels or the vehicle body, the power transmission link uses a conventional power transmission line.

7. The device for displaying digital media information on a wheel according to claim 6, characterized in that, The human-computer interaction subsystem is a software program installed on the vehicle control terminal or mobile device terminal, providing a control interface for users to load digital media data files, set the wheel spoke deflection angle during the initialization phase, and define the mapping rules from the wheel speed to the displayed content.

8. A method for displaying digital media information on a wheel, employing the apparatus according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S001. Initialize wheel deflection angle parameters; S002. Upload digital media data files to the image storage device; S003. Configure the mapping rules from wheel speed to display content to display changing digital media data as vehicle speed changes; S004. During driving, the wheel speed is obtained once for each rotation of the wheel. S005. When the wheel speed is greater than the minimum effective speed, execute S006; otherwise, execute S004. The minimum effective speed is the lowest wheel speed that can produce an effective visual persistence phenomenon. S006. If the mapping rule from the wheel speed to the displayed content has been configured, then execute S007; otherwise, execute S008. S007. Based on the current wheel speed, according to the mapping rule from wheel speed to display content, select the digital media data file to be displayed and load it, then continue to execute S009; S008. Load the digital media data file; S009. Using the digital media data file, the current wheel speed, and the wheel deflection angle as input data, generate a sequence of LED control commands; S010. Control the wheel lamp array according to the lamp control command sequence, and then continue to execute S004 until the vehicle stops or the device displaying digital media information on the wheel is turned off.

9. The method for displaying digital media information on a wheel according to claim 8, characterized in that, The method for generating the LED control command sequence includes the following steps: S101, Obtain the current wheel frame rotation speed; S102. Obtain the preset wheel deflection angle parameters; S103. If the digital media data file is text, then execute S104; if it is an image, then execute S105; if it is video, then execute S107. S104. Convert text to image; S105. Extract the pixel value corresponding to each LED bead; S106. Generate the LED control instruction sequence and execute S111; S107. Calculate the duration of the current wheel frame; S108. Obtain video frame data corresponding to the current wheel frame duration; S109. For each video frame, extract the pixel value corresponding to each LED. S110: Generate LED control instruction sequence; if there are still unprocessed video frames, execute S109; otherwise, execute S111. S111, Output the sequence of LED control instructions for the current wheel frame.

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