Driving assistance system

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method includes, at the beginning of each driving period of a vehicle, collecting one or more physiological parameters and one or more body parameters of each of one or more passengers of the vehicle, for each of the one or more passengers of the vehicle, storing the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more body parameters to create a temporary personal profile for each passenger, and if an increase in risk of an accident in the vehicle is detected or an accident has been detected, storing the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more body parameters to create a temporary personal profile for each passenger. If so, the temporary personal profile of each of the one or more passengers of the vehicle is provided to one or more vehicle applications.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a driving assistance system and related methods. Background Art

[0002] Driving assistance may include any support provided to a vehicle driver with the aim of enhancing personal safety and improving the driving experience. A driving assistance system can be used to prevent accidents, mitigate the severity of accidents, and provide assistance when an accident occurs.

[0003] There is a need for a driving assistance system and related methods that can effectively reduce the severity of accidents and provide assistance when an accident occurs. Summary of the Invention

[0004] A method includes: at the start of each driving period of a vehicle, collecting one or more physiological parameters and one or more body parameters of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle, storing, for each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle, the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more body parameters so as to create a temporary personal profile for each passenger, and, if an increased risk of an accident occurring in the vehicle is detected or if an accident is detected to have occurred, providing the temporary personal profile of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle to one or more vehicle applications.

[0005] A driving assistance system includes a processor, wherein the processor is configured to, at the start of each driving period of a vehicle, collect one or more physiological parameters and one or more body parameters of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle, store, for each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle, the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more body parameters so as to create a temporary personal profile for each passenger, and, if an increased risk of an accident occurring in the vehicle is detected or if an accident is detected to have occurred, provide the temporary personal profile of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle to one or more vehicle applications.

[0006] When studying the following detailed description and the drawings, other systems, features, and advantages of the present disclosure will be or will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features, and advantages be included in this specification, be within the scope of the present invention, and be protected by the appended claims. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0007] The apparatus and method can be better understood with reference to the following description and the drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, but rather emphasis is placed on illustrating the principles of the invention. In addition, in the drawings, the same reference numerals indicate the same components in all different views.

[0008] Figure 1Schematically shows a driving assistance system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure in a vehicle.

[0009] Figure 2 Schematically shows a driving assistance system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0010] Figure 3 Schematically shows a flowchart of a method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed description

[0011] The driving assistance system and related methods according to the various embodiments described herein can effectively reduce the severity of accidents and provide assistance when an accident occurs.

[0012] Figure 1 Schematically shows a vehicle 10 including a driving assistance system 20. Figure 2 The driving assistance system 20 is further schematically shown in detail. The driving assistance system 20 includes a processor 22 configured to collect, at the start of each driving period of the vehicle 10, one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10. For each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10, one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters are stored, thereby creating temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 for each passenger. If an increased risk of an accident occurring in the vehicle 10 is detected, or if an accident is detected to have occurred, the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 are provided to one or more vehicle applications.

[0013] The driving assistance system 20 may include or may be coupled to one or more sensors 32, 34, 36, 38 arranged in the vehicle 10. Collecting one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters may include receiving one or more parameters from one or more sensors 32, 34, 36, 38. The one or more sensors 32, 34, 36, 38 may include, for example, at least one of a camera 32, a radar sensor 34, a thermal imaging camera 36, and a weight sensor 38. Any other type of sensor may be used to determine the physiological and physical parameters of the passengers.

[0014] One or more physiological parameters may include, for example, at least one of a corresponding passenger's heart rate, respiratory rate, and body temperature. One or more physical parameters may include, for example, at least one of a corresponding passenger's body size, weight, age, and gender. Such physiological and physical parameters related to a specific passenger may determine the general physique and physical condition of the corresponding passenger. The physiological and physical parameters can be collected in a very safe and unobtrusive manner. The passenger may not even notice that the parameters have been determined. For example, a passenger's body size and weight can be determined or at least estimated by one or more cameras 32 (e.g., using suitable image processing techniques). One or more cameras are typically already present on the vehicle for other applications, such as for drowsiness detection applications. Alternatively or additionally, weight sensors integrated in the corresponding vehicle seat on which the passenger is sitting can be utilized to determine the passenger's weight. Such sensors are typically already present on the vehicle for applications that detect the presence of a passenger in order to issue a warning when the passenger is not wearing a seatbelt. A passenger's age and gender can be determined or at least estimated by, for example, a camera and suitable image processing techniques.

[0015] Physiological parameters such as, for example, heart rate, respiratory rate, and body temperature can be determined without any specific action by the passenger, for example, by a camera, a radar sensor, and a thermal imaging camera. Heart rate and respiratory rate can be determined very accurately by, for example, a radar sensor 34, while a thermal imaging camera 36 can be used to determine body temperature. However, any other suitable sensors can be used alternatively or additionally to determine physiological parameters.

[0016] Today, many people have at least one permanent personal profile stored, for example, in the cloud or in a social network 64. Many people also use wearable devices, such as fitness trackers 62 (e.g., smartwatches or dedicated fitness-tracking wristbands), which need to store the permanent personal profile either in the device itself or in the corresponding cloud. Such permanent personal profiles may include body parameters, such as, for example, age, gender, body type, weight, etc. The driving assistance system 20 may be coupled to the passenger's fitness-tracking device 62, or to the cloud or social network 64, and receive one or more body parameters from the fitness-tracking device 62, the cloud, or the social network 64. Such parameters may be permanently stored in the permanent personal profile because they are not likely to change significantly over time, or, if a parameter such as, for example, weight changes, it is typically updated accordingly by the user. The fitness-tracking device 62 or other wearable sensors 60, such as, for example, a wearable electrocardiogram (ECG) device, may also provide current physiological parameters, such as, for example, heart rate, respiratory rate, etc., to the driving assistance system 20. The driving assistance system 20 may store the parameters received from one or more sensors 32, 34, 36, 38 arranged in the vehicle, as well as the parameters received from other external devices (e.g., wearable sensors 60, fitness-tracking device 62, cloud, or social network 64), in the corresponding personal profiles 52, 54, 56. Accessing an external database (e.g., fitness-tracking device 62, cloud, or social network 64) may require identifying the passenger (e.g., via facial recognition technology). Additionally, the passenger may be required to enter a password for the external database, or the driving assistance system 20 may already know the password so that it can access the external database when necessary.

[0017] Determine at least once at the start of a driving period one or more physiological parameters and one or more body parameters. For example, when the engine of the vehicle 10 is started, the parameters may be determined and the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 may be stored. According to another example, when the engine of the vehicle 10 has been started and the vehicle 10 begins to move, the parameters may be determined and the temporary personal profiles may be stored. However, it is also typically possible to determine the parameters and store the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 when it is determined that someone is sitting in the vehicle seat, before the vehicle 10 is started and / or begins to move.

[0018] During a driving period, at least some physiological parameters may change. Thus, it is possible to update the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 at least once during the driving period. According to one example, the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 may be updated periodically, such as every 10 minutes or every 30 minutes. However, alternatively or additionally, it may also be possible that the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 are updated when a trigger event occurs. For example, if an increased risk of an accident occurring in the vehicle 10 is detected, the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 may be updated. For example, this may occur if the distance between the vehicle 10 and the vehicle in front rapidly decreases or falls below a defined threshold. However, any suitable manner may be employed to detect whether the risk of an accident occurring has increased.

[0019] If an increased risk of an accident occurring in the vehicle 10 is detected, or if an accident is detected to have occurred, the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 are provided to one or more vehicle applications (as Figure 2 shown by the arrows). The one or more vehicle applications may include the airbag unit of the vehicle 10, the braking unit of the vehicle 10, the seatbelt tightening unit of the vehicle 10, and / or the emergency call unit of the vehicle 10.

[0020] For example, if an impending accident is detected, the airbag of the vehicle 10 may be adjusted according to the physiological and body parameters stored in the corresponding temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56. For example, depending on the size and weight of the passenger, the airbag may be filled with more or less air. Additionally or alternatively, the seatbelt of the corresponding passenger may be pre-tensioned in preparation for the accident. The pre-tensioning of the seatbelt may also be determined, for example, according to the size and weight of the passenger. The vehicle 10 may also prepare to perform an emergency braking operation. Based on the weight of each passenger in the vehicle 10, the total weight of the vehicle 10 including the passengers may be determined. The braking force may be determined, for example, according to the determined total weight.

[0021] If an accident has occurred, some or all of the parameters stored in the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 may be provided, for example, to the competent authorities. Nowadays, many vehicles automatically make an emergency call when an accident in the vehicle 10 is detected. The physiological and body parameters may be transmitted as part of such an emergency call. Any medical staff arriving at the accident scene will be informed of the physical condition of each passenger before the accident occurred. That is, the medical staff will have information about passengers who were in poor physical condition before the accident and may be in more urgent need of treatment than other passengers.

[0022] If, after an accident occurs, one or more sensors 32, 34, 36, 38 arranged in the vehicle 10 are still functional, it may even be possible to update the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 again to determine the physical condition of the passengers after the accident. That is to say, the occurrence of the accident may be a triggering event that causes the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 to be updated. It is generally possible to transmit the physiological parameters and physical parameters stored in the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 to the competent authority in this way. The competent authority can then evaluate these parameters, for example. However, according to one example, the driving assistance system 20 can create an emergency report by using artificial intelligence AI to evaluate one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters. Then this emergency report can be transmitted to the competent authority.

[0023] The driving assistance system may include or be coupled to a storage device 40, in which the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 are stored. Any data stored in the storage device 40 can only be accessed by the driving assistance system 20. That is to say, the physiological parameters and physical parameters of the passengers are not available to others and cannot be used by any other system. The temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 can be permanently deleted at the end of each driving period.

[0024] Now refer to Figure 3 , a flowchart of a method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is schematically shown. The method includes, at the start of each driving period of the vehicle 10, collecting one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 (step 301). For each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10, store one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters, thereby creating a temporary personal profile 52, 54, 56 for each passenger (step 302). If an increased risk of an accident occurring in the vehicle 10 is detected, or if an accident is detected to have occurred, provide the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 to one or more vehicle applications (step 303).

[0025] One or more physiological parameters may include at least one of the heart rate, respiratory rate, and body temperature of the corresponding passenger. One or more physical parameters may include at least one of the body shape, weight, age, and gender of the corresponding passenger. Collecting one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters may include receiving one or more parameters from one or more sensors 32, 34, 36, 38 arranged in the vehicle 10.

[0026] According to one example, collecting one or more physiological parameters and one or more body parameters may further include receiving one or more parameters from one or more wearable sensors 60, from one or more fitness tracking devices 62, and / or from one or more permanent personal profiles of corresponding passengers in a cloud or social network 64. Providing the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 to one or more vehicle applications may include providing the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 to an airbag unit of the vehicle 10, a braking unit of the vehicle 10, a seatbelt tightening unit of the vehicle 10, and / or an emergency call unit of the vehicle 10.

[0027] According to one example, the method may further include updating at least once during a driving period the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10. For example, the temporary personal profiles 52, 54, 56 of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle 10 may be updated periodically and / or when a triggering event occurs.

[0028] According to one example, an emergency report may be created by leveraging artificial intelligence AI to evaluate one or more physiological parameters and one or more body parameters. For example, when it is detected that an accident has occurred, an emergency report may be created. The emergency report may be transmitted to an authority to replace or supplement unprocessed physiological and body parameters.

[0029] It will be understood that the systems and methods shown are only examples. Although various embodiments of the present invention have been described, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that there may be more embodiments and implementations within the scope of the present invention. Specifically, those skilled in the art will recognize the interchangeability of various features from different embodiments. Although these technologies and systems have been disclosed in the context of certain embodiments and examples, it should be understood that these technologies and systems may extend beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments to other embodiments and / or their uses and obvious modifications. Therefore, the present invention is not limited except as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0030] The description of the embodiments has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. Suitable modifications and variations of the embodiments can be made in accordance with the above description or can be obtained by practice of the methods. The arrangements are exemplary in nature and may include additional elements and / or omit elements. As used in this application, an element recited in the singular and preceded by the word "a" or "an" should be understood not to exclude a plurality of such elements, unless such exclusion is stated. Furthermore, a reference to "an embodiment" or "an example" of the present disclosure is not intended to be construed as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features. The terms "first," "second," and "third," etc. are used only as labels and are not intended to impose numerical requirements or a particular positional order on their objects. The subject matter of the present disclosure includes all novel and non-obvious combinations and sub-combinations of the various systems and configurations and other features, functions, and / or properties disclosed. The appended claims particularly point out the subject matter that is considered to be novel and non-obvious from the above disclosure.

Claims

1. A method, comprising: At the start of each driving period of a vehicle (10), collecting one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle (10), For each of one or more passengers in the vehicle (10), storing the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more physical parameters, thereby creating a temporary personal profile (52, 54, 56) for each passenger, and If an increased risk of an accident in the vehicle (10) is detected, or if an accident is detected to have occurred, providing the temporary personal profile (52, 54, 56) of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle (10) to one or more vehicle applications.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the one or more physiological parameters include at least one of the heart rate, respiratory rate, and body temperature of the corresponding passenger.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the one or more physical parameters include at least one of the body type, weight, age, and gender of the corresponding passenger.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein collecting the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more physical parameters includes receiving one or more parameters from one or more sensors (32, 34, 36, 38) arranged in the vehicle (10).

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein collecting the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more physical parameters further includes receiving one or more parameters from one or more wearable sensors (60), from one or more fitness tracking devices (62), and / or from one or more permanent personal profiles of the corresponding passengers in a cloud or social network (64).

6. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein providing the temporary personal profile (52, 54, 56) of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle (10) to one or more vehicle applications includes providing the temporary personal profile (52, 54, 56) to the airbag unit of the vehicle (10), the braking unit of the vehicle (10), the seatbelt tightening unit of the vehicle (10), and / or the emergency call unit of the vehicle (10).

7. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising updating at least once during the driving period the temporary personal profile (52, 54, 56) of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle (10).

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the temporary personal profile (52, 54, 56) of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle (10) is updated periodically and / or when a triggering event occurs.

9. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising creating an emergency report by evaluating the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more physical parameters using artificial intelligence AI.

10. A driving assistance system (20), comprising a processor (22), the processor being configured to At the start of each driving period of the vehicle (10), one or more physiological parameters and one or more physical parameters of each of one or more passengers in the vehicle (10) are collected. For each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle (10), the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more physical parameters are stored, thereby creating the temporary personal profiles (52, 54, 56) for each passenger, and If an increased risk of an accident in the vehicle (10) is detected, or if an accident is detected to have occurred, the temporary personal profiles (52, 54, 56) of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle (10) are provided to one or more vehicle applications.

11. The driving assistance system (20) according to claim 10, wherein the driving assistance system (20) includes or is coupled to one or more sensors (32, 34, 36, 38) arranged in the vehicle (10), and wherein collecting the one or more physiological parameters and the one or more physical parameters includes receiving one or more parameters from the one or more sensors (32, 34, 36, 38).

12. The driving assistance system (20) according to claim 11, wherein the one or more sensors (32, 34, 36, 38) include at least one of a camera (32), a radar sensor (34), a thermal imaging camera (36), and a weight sensor (38).

13. The driving assistance system according to any one of claims 10 to 12, further including or being coupled to a storage device (40), wherein the temporary personal profiles (52, 54, 56) of each of the one or more passengers in the vehicle (10) are stored in the storage device (40).

Images