Motor vehicle with a motor vehicle door and a warning device for visually warning other road users when the motor vehicle door is open

Abstract

The present invention relates to a motor vehicle with a vehicle door and a warning device for visually warning other road users when the vehicle door is open. The vehicle door (2) can be moved from a closed state to an open state and vice versa, wherein the vehicle door (2) has an outer surface (3) comprising the warning device: - an actively controllable, optically modifiable coating (11), wherein the outside (3) of the motor vehicle door (2) is provided with the coating (11) at least in certain areas, - a control device, wherein the control device is configured to control the optically changeable coating (11) depending on the state of the motor vehicle door (2).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a motor vehicle with a motor vehicle door and a warning device for visually warning other road users when the motor vehicle door is open.

[0002] Open vehicle doors pose a hazard, for example, when the vehicle is parked at the roadside. The open door may then protrude into the roadway, a pedestrian walkway, and / or a cycle path. This creates a risk that other road users, such as other vehicles, cyclists, or pedestrians, will collide with the open car door.

[0003] German patent application DE 10 2020 213 673 A1 discloses a method for warning at least one occupant of a first vehicle of a collision hazard caused by an opening vehicle door, as well as a motor vehicle with a control unit configured to carry out the method. DE 10 2020 213 673 A1 discloses a method and a device for warning of opening vehicle doors.

[0004] Especially in poor visibility conditions and / or confusing traffic situations, such as those that can occur in city centers, there is a risk that another road user will not notice an open vehicle door or will not notice it early enough to avoid a collision with that vehicle door.

[0005] The object of the present invention is to improve a motor vehicle in such a way as to reduce the risk of collision with a motor vehicle door.

[0006] This problem is solved by the object that has the features of claim 1. The dependent claims relate to advantageous further developments.

[0007] The motor vehicle according to the invention comprises a vehicle door, in particular a side door, preferably a pivoting side door, and a warning device for visually warning other road users when the vehicle door is open. The visual warning serves to improve the perception of the open vehicle door by other road users in order to avoid a collision with the vehicle door. The vehicle door can be moved from a closed state to an open state and vice versa, for example by pivoting the vehicle door. The vehicle door has an outer side. The outer side is, in particular, the side of the vehicle door that faces the interior of the vehicle when the vehicle door is closed.

[0008] The warning device for visually warning other road users when a vehicle door is opened features: - an actively controllable, optically changeable coating, wherein the outside of the motor vehicle door is at least partially coated with the coating, - a control device, wherein the control device is configured to control the optically changeable coating depending on the state of the motor vehicle door.

[0009] By controlling the optically modifiable coating, the contrast effect of the coating, and thus the contrast effect of the outside of the vehicle door, can be changed to make it more visually perceptible to other road users when the vehicle door is open.

[0010] Optically changeable coatings are generally known from the prior art. These coatings make it possible to actively and reversibly alter the appearance of surfaces, for example, to achieve a color change. For instance, there are so-called "paramagnetic coatings" that change color when an electrical voltage is applied. Also known from the prior art are so-called e-papers (electronic papers), which allow the appearance of a surface to be changed, for example, with regard to color or contrast, by applying an electrical voltage.E-paper, for example in the form of a film, can comprise a multitude of microcapsules containing particles of a first particle type and particles of a second particle type, wherein the particles of the first particle type can differ in color and charge from those of the second particle type, wherein by applying an electrical voltage the arrangement of the particles in the microcapsule can be changed and thereby a color change or contrast change can be effected.

[0011] In principle, it is also known from the prior art to use such techniques in motor vehicles. For example, DE 10 2015 205 082 A1 discloses a motor vehicle with a control device for controlling the exterior coating of a vehicle, in particular for changing its appearance, for example its color.

[0012] According to the invention, such coatings are advantageously used to provide visual warnings to other road users in the presence of an open vehicle door.

[0013] It is considered particularly advantageous if the control device is designed to control the optically changeable coating in such a way that the outer color of the coating in the open state differs from the outer color of the coating in the closed state of the motor vehicle door.

[0014] It is also conceivable that the coating could be controlled in such a way that it only changes the exterior color in certain areas. This could improve the contrast on the outside of the vehicle door. For example, the coating could appear red and white striped when the vehicle door is open, making the exterior resemble barrier tape.

[0015] It is considered particularly advantageous if the control unit is configured to control the optically changeable coating in such a way that the coating's outer color changes periodically when the door is open. Due to this temporal change in the coating's outer color, it is expected that the open vehicle door will be more easily perceived by other road users, as colors that change over time are typically perceived better than static colors.

[0016] It is considered particularly advantageous if the control unit is configured to control the optically changeable coating in such a way that the coating displays a warning symbol when the vehicle door is opened. For example, it is conceivable that the warning symbol could be an exclamation mark “!” or a hazard symbol, such as those used as traffic signs. For instance, the traffic sign for a hazard could be displayed on the outside by changing the coating, or the traffic sign for a narrowing of the roadway.

[0017] It is considered particularly advantageous if the optically changeable coating is an electrically controllable coating.

[0018] In a particularly preferred embodiment, the optically changeable coating is a film. The advantages of a film lie particularly in its simple and cost-effective production, and its high flexibility in application, control, and replacement.

[0019] However, it is also conceivable that the coating is a layer of lacquer.

[0020] In a further advantageous embodiment, the optically modifiable coating comprises at least first particles and second particles, wherein the arrangement of the first and second particles within the coating can be changed by controlling the optically modifiable coating to alter the coating's outer color. The position and arrangement of the particles, and thus the optical appearance of the coating, particularly its color, can be changed, for example, by an electric field. The electric field can be provided, for example, by electrodes controlled by the control device. Preferably, the color of the first particles differs from the color of the second particles. The first particles can, for example, be white, and the second particles can be black.It is quite conceivable that the optically modifiable coating includes further particles or particle types with further color variations.

[0021] It is considered particularly advantageous to modify the optical appearance of the coating using electrophoresis. The advantage lies in the relatively low energy consumption required to change the color. Furthermore, when modifying the optical appearance via electrophoresis, especially the change in the outer color, it is possible to design the modification in such a way that electrical energy is required to effect a change in the state of the outer color, but no electrical energy, or only a significantly lower amount, is required to maintain the existing state.

[0022] It is considered particularly advantageous if the vehicle door is coated in an area adjacent to an outer edge of the door. This design makes the outline or maximum extent of the vehicle door especially easy for other road users to perceive.

[0023] In order to make the inner side of the vehicle door, which faces away from the outside, more easily perceptible to other road users when the vehicle door is open, a particularly preferred embodiment provides that the vehicle door has an inner side, wherein the inner side is provided with the coating in an edge area adjacent to an outer edge of the vehicle door.

[0024] The following figures explain the invention in more detail with reference to exemplary embodiments, without being limited to these. They show: Fig. 1. A motor vehicle in a side view with the vehicle door closed, Fig. 2. A traffic situation with an open vehicle door in a top view. Fig. 3. A warning device for visually warning other road users when a vehicle door is opened, in a schematic representation. Fig. 4 A color-changing film applied to the outside of a motor vehicle door in a schematic representation.

[0025] The Fig. 1 and Fig. Figure 2 shows a motor vehicle 1 according to the invention in a side view.

[0026] The longitudinal direction of the vehicle is indicated by arrow X, the vertical direction by arrow Z, and the lateral direction by arrow Y.

[0027] The motor vehicle 1 has a vehicle door 2. The vehicle door 2 is partially covered with a flexible film. This flexible film forms an actively controllable coating 11, which is part of a warning device 10 designed to visually warn other road users when the vehicle door 2 is open. The coating 11, in the form of the flexible film, is attached to an outer surface 3 of the vehicle door 2, specifically bonded to it. The outer surface 3 is only partially covered with the coating 11, as described in more detail below.

[0028] The vehicle door 2 is provided with coating 11 in an edge region 3 of the outer surface of the vehicle door 2 adjacent to an outer edge 5 of the vehicle door 2. In this region, the coating 11 forms a continuous strip, which also extends along an upper edge of a supporting structure of the vehicle door 2, to which a window of the vehicle door 2 is attached. In the central region of the vehicle door 2, the coating 11 is applied in such a way that it forms a warning symbol in the form of an exclamation mark “!”.

[0029] The warning device 10 comprises a control unit 12, wherein the control unit 12 is configured to control the optically changeable coating 11 depending on the state of the vehicle door 2, as explained in more detail below.

[0030] The motor vehicle 1 has a sensor device 6, wherein this sensor device 6 is configured to detect a state of the motor vehicle door 2, namely to detect whether the motor vehicle door 2 is in the closed state, which is described in the Fig. 1 is shown, or in the open state shown in the Fig. The sensor device 6 is located as shown in Figure 2. The sensor device 6 is connected to the control device 12 via a signal connection. The control device 12 activates the coating 11 depending on the state detected by the sensor device 6, specifically by activating two electrodes 118, 119 of the coating 11, thereby altering the electric field between them. This change in the electric field alters the arrangement or position of different types of particles 111, 112, 113, 114, which differ in their color. This, in turn, changes the color and thus the external color of the coating 11 as perceived by an external observer.When the vehicle door 2 is closed, the actively controllable, optically modifiable coating 11 is controlled by the control unit 12 in such a way that the coating 11 applied to the area has the same or nearly the same color as the rest of the vehicle door 2. Therefore, the optically modifiable coating 11 is not or hardly perceptible in the closed state, as is also the case in the . Fig. Figure 1 is shown schematically. In the open state, however, which is shown in the Fig. As shown in Figure 2, the control unit 12 controls the optically variable coating 11 in such a way that a high color contrast effect exists between those areas of the vehicle door 2 that are provided with the coating 11 and the other areas of the vehicle door 2. This results, as also shown in the Fig.As shown schematically in Figure 2, the outer edges 5 and the warning symbol, namely the exclamation mark “!”, are particularly noticeable to other road users, such as a cyclist 20. This prevents a collision between other road users and the open vehicle door 2.

[0031] It is quite conceivable that an inner surface 4 of the motor vehicle door 2 is also provided with the coating 11, in particular in an edge area of ​​the inner surface 4 adjacent to the outer edge 5.

[0032] In the present case, the motor vehicle 1 has a high-voltage battery 7, wherein the control unit 12 is electrically connected to the high-voltage battery 7 in order to supply the control unit 12 with electrical energy. However, the invention is not limited to an electrically or partially electrically powered motor vehicle 1 with a high-voltage battery 7, but can also be applied, for example, to internal combustion engine-powered motor vehicles 1. QUOTES INCLUDED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents cited by the applicant was automatically generated and is included solely for the reader's convenience. The list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA accepts no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] DE 10 2020 213 673 A1

[0003] DE 10 2015 205 082 A1

[0011]

Claims

[1] Motor vehicle (1) with a motor vehicle door (2) and a warning device (10) for visually warning other road users when the motor vehicle door (2) is open in order to avoid a collision with it, wherein the motor vehicle door (2) can be moved from a closed state to an open state and vice versa, wherein the motor vehicle door (2) has an outside (3), wherein the warning device (10) has: - an actively controllable, optically modifiable coating (11), wherein the outside (3) of the motor vehicle door (2) is provided with the coating (11) at least in certain areas, - a control device (12) wherein the control device (12) is configured to control the optically changeable coating (11) depending on the state of the motor vehicle door (2). [2] Motor vehicle (1) according to claim 1, wherein the control device (12) is configured to control the optically changeable coating (11) in such a way that an outer color of the coating (11) in the open state is different from an outer color of the coating (11) in the closed state. [3] Motor vehicle (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control device (12) is configured to control the optically changeable coating (11) in such a way that an outer color of the coating (11) changes periodically in the open state. [4] Motor vehicle (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the control device (12) is configured to control the optically changeable coating (11) in such a way that the coating (11) displays a warning symbol when the motor vehicle door (2) is opened. [5] Motor vehicle (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the optically changeable coating (11) is an electrically controllable coating (11). [6] Motor vehicle (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the optically changeable coating (11) is a film. [7] Motor vehicle (1) according to one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the optically modifiable coating (11) comprises at least first particles (111) and second particles (112), wherein by controlling the optically modifiable coating (11) an arrangement of the first particles (111) and the second particles (112) in the coating (11) can be changed to change an outer color of the coating (11). [8] Motor vehicle (1) according to one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the motor vehicle door (2) is provided with the coating (11) in an outer edge (3) of the outer side of the motor vehicle door (2) adjacent to an outer edge (5) of the motor vehicle door (2). [9] Motor vehicle (1) according to one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the motor vehicle door (2) has an inside (4), wherein the inside (4) is provided with a coating (11) in an edge region adjacent to an outside edge (5) of the motor vehicle door (2).

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