Method for controlling high beam assist system and high beam assist system

Abstract

The invention relates to a method (5) for controlling a high beam assistance system (4) of a vehicle (2) at night. The invention also relates to said high beam assistance system (4) for implementing said method (5).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a method for controlling a vehicle's high beam assist system at night, as described in the preamble of claim 1. The invention also relates to a high beam assist system for implementing this method. Background Technology

[0002] Vehicles can be equipped with a high-beam assist system to automatically turn high beams on and off at night. This system relies on good object recognition capabilities. When detecting other vehicles at night, their taillights and headlights are the primary indicators. However, a drawback is that reflectors on guardrails often exhibit characteristics similar to taillights, reflecting red light, or headlights, reflecting white light. This can lead to erroneous activation and deactivation of the high beams.

[0003] Patent document US 8,587,456 B2 discloses a method for distinguishing between reflectors located on the roadside and vehicle headlights. This method uses sensors inside the vehicle with a camera pointing towards the external environment to identify reflectors and vehicle headlights.

[0004] Patent document EP 1 905 643 B1 describes a method for pre-identifying curves on a road segment where a motor vehicle is traveling. Patent document DE 10 2010 040 650 A1 discloses a method for adjusting vehicle lighting on curves with poor visibility. Furthermore, patent document DE 10 2019 001 889 A1 discloses a method for automatically controlling lighting functions. Finally, patent document DE 10 2005 033 841 A1 discloses a lighting system for a vehicle. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide an improved or at least alternative implementation of the same type of method, which overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages. A further object of the present invention is to provide a corresponding high-beam assist system for implementing the method.

[0006] This objective is achieved according to the invention through the subject matter of the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments are the subject matter of the dependent claims.

[0007] The present invention is based on the overall concept of using different confidence levels for various curve radii and introducing motion recognition when necessary to avoid unnecessary high beam switching and unnecessary dimming or turning off of the high beams.

[0008] According to the method described in this invention, a high beam assist system is configured or designed for controlling a vehicle at night. Here, the high beam assist system determines data regarding the presence of other vehicles in the road segment ahead. Then, the high beam assist system determines whether other vehicles are present in the road segment ahead based on the determined data, using an adjustable confidence level. If other vehicles are present, the high beam assist system automatically turns off the high beams; if no other vehicles are present, the high beam assist system automatically turns on the high beams. According to this invention, the high beam assist system also additionally determines whether the vehicle is in a curve. If the vehicle is in a curve, the high beam assist system determines the curve radius. The high beam assist system adjusts the confidence level used to determine the presence of other vehicles in the road segment ahead based on this curve radius.

[0009] According to the present invention, when determining data regarding the presence of other vehicles, the speeds of other vehicles in the road ahead are also determined. If the speed of other vehicles is greater than 10 km / h, the high beam assist system sets a relatively high confidence level for determining the presence of other vehicles, specifically 99%, when the curve radius is less than 180 m.

[0010] In the context of this invention, the term "confidence level" is used synonymously with the terms "confidence level" and / or "confidence interval" and / or "trust interval" and / or "expected range". In this invention, the abbreviation "m" represents meters, and "km / h" represents kilometers per hour.

[0011] By employing the method described according to the present invention, erroneous high beam switching and erroneous high beam deactivation can be reduced. In particular, by changing the confidence level, other vehicles in curves with a specific curve radius can be identified more reliably. As a result, reflective objects such as reflectors on guardrails will no longer be misidentified as other vehicles, thus improving the reliability of the high beam assist system.

[0012] The high beam assist system can determine whether a vehicle is in a curve by using the vehicle's steering angle and / or predictive route data of the road ahead. Predictive route data can be read, for example, from existing map data.

[0013] When the curve radius is less than 180m, the high beam assist system can set a relatively high confidence level for determining the presence of other vehicles, specifically 99%. When the curve radius is greater than 180m, the high beam assist system can set a relatively low confidence level for determining the presence of other vehicles, specifically 95%. In this way, unnecessary high beam switching or turning off can be reduced by up to 50%.

[0014] This invention also relates to a high beam assist system for a vehicle, used to automatically turn high beams on and off at night. According to the invention, the high beam assist system is designed to perform the above-described method. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Other important features and advantages of the invention are described by the dependent claims, the drawings, and related drawings based on the drawings.

[0016] It should be understood that the above features and the features to be explained below can be used not only in their respective specified combinations, but also in other combinations or individually, without departing from the scope of the invention. Detailed Implementation

[0017] Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown in the accompanying drawings and will be explained in detail in the following description.

[0018] The only Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a road segment 1 containing vehicle 2 and other vehicles 3 is shown. Here, vehicle 2 is equipped with a high beam assist system 4 according to the invention, for performing the method 5 according to the invention. In method 5, the high beam assist system 4 determines data regarding the presence of other vehicles 3 in road segment 1, and determines the presence of other vehicles 3 from the determined data or based on the determined data according to an adjustable confidence level.

[0019] In addition, the high beam assist system 4 further determines whether vehicle 2 is in curve 6. If vehicle 2 is in curve 6, the high beam assist system 4 determines its curve radius R using the vehicle's steering angle and / or predictive route data from the road segment 1 ahead. The high beam assist system 4 adjusts the confidence level based on the curve radius R when evaluating data or determining the presence of other vehicles 3. Specifically, when the curve radius R is less than 180m, the high beam assist system 4 can set the confidence level to 99%; when the curve radius R is greater than 180m, it can set the confidence level to 95%. Furthermore, the high beam assist system 4 can only set the confidence level to 99% when the curve radius is less than 180m if the speed of other vehicles 3 is greater than 10km / h.

[0020] Method 5 can reliably determine the presence of other vehicles 3 and reduce unnecessary high beam switching or turning off by up to 50%.

Claims

1. A method (5) for controlling a high beam assistant system (4) of a vehicle (2) at night, - wherein, - wherein the high beam assistant system (4) determines from the determined data whether other vehicles (3) are present in the road section (1) ahead depending on an adjustable confidence level, - wherein the high beam assistant system (4) automatically switches off the high beam when other vehicles (3) are present in the road section (1) and automatically switches on the high beam when other vehicles (3) are not present in the road section (1), - wherein the high beam assistant system (4) determines whether the vehicle (2) is in a curve (6), - wherein, if the vehicle (2) is in a curve (6), the high beam assistant system (4) determines a curve radius (R) of the curve (6), and - wherein the high beam assistant system (4) changes the confidence level for determining whether other vehicles (3) are present in the road section (1) depending on the curve radius (R); characterized in that - the high beam assistant system (4), when determining the data about the presence of other vehicles (3), also determines the speed of the other vehicles (3) in the road section (1), and - the high beam assistant system (4) can set the confidence level for determining the presence of other vehicles (3) relatively high, in particular to 99%, when the curve radius (R) is less than 180 m and the speed of the other vehicles (3) is greater than 10 km / h. The high beam assistant system (4) determines whether the vehicle (2) is in a curve (6) by means of the steering angle of the vehicle (2) and / or predictive route data of the road section (1) ahead.

2. The method (5) according to claim 1, characterized in that 3. The method (5) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that - the high beam assistant system (4) sets the confidence level for determining the presence of other vehicles (3) relatively high, in particular to 99%, when the curve radius (R) is less than 180 m, and - the high beam assistant system (4) sets the confidence level for determining the presence of other vehicles (3) relatively low, in particular to 95%, when the curve radius (R) is less than 180 m. The high beam assistant system (4) is designed to carry out the method (5) according to any one of the preceding claims.

4. A high beam assist system (4) of a vehicle (2) for automatically switching on and automatically switching off a high beam at night, wherein ​

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