Control device for triggering a high beam function of a lighting device of a motor vehicle and motor vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to an operating device (1) for triggering a high beam function of a lighting device (2) of a motor vehicle, wherein the lighting device (2) comprises at least two front headlights (20, 21) and a headlight control device (22), comprising - an actuating lever (3), - a touch- and / or proximity-sensitive sensor means (4) which is arranged on or near the actuating lever (3) and is designed to detect a touch and / or proximity of the driver's fingers, and - an electronic evaluation device (5) coupled to the sensor means (4), which is designed to evaluate the touches and / or approaches detected by the sensor means (4) and to recognize an operating gesture of the driver, wherein the evaluation device (4) is configured to control the headlight control device (22) of the lighting device (2) in such a way that, depending on the recognized operating gesture, a predetermined high beam sequence of the front headlights (20, 21) is triggered from a plurality of available high beam sequences by means of the headlight control device (22) to activate a flash-to-pass function.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to an operating device for triggering a high beam function of a lighting device of a motor vehicle according to the preamble of claim 1. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a motor vehicle comprising a lighting device with at least two headlights and a headlight control device configured to control the headlights, and an operating device for triggering a high beam function of the headlights.

[0002] A motor vehicle's headlights, which emit light into the area in front of the vehicle during operation, have both a low beam function and a high beam function. The high beam function serves to illuminate the area in front of the vehicle particularly well and over a wide area. Furthermore, the high beam function of the headlights also enables a flash-to-pass function. Flashing the headlights in a motor vehicle is a warning function in which the driver briefly activates the high beams to give a visual signal to other road users. Flashing the headlights is used particularly to warn other road users of hazards or when overtaking other road users outside of built-up areas.

[0003] The headlight flasher is often activated by briefly pressing a lever located near the steering wheel. This lever is also frequently referred to as the steering column lever or turn signal lever, as it can usually also be used to activate the vehicle's turn signals.

[0004] Typically, the high beam flash is activated by pulling the lever with one or two fingers. The high beam remains on as long as the driver holds the lever. However, continuous manual pulling of the lever also allows for permanent activation of the high beam.

[0005] In prior art solutions, the actuating lever is typically monostable and momentary, with feedback for the driver being generated by a haptic element, which can be, for example, a silicone mat or a permanent magnet. The force thresholds of the actuating lever are static. This means that the same actuating force is always applied by the driver, and the same travel distance is always covered.

[0006] The flash-to-pass function of the headlights is always the same in all known state-of-the-art solutions and cannot be influenced by the driver. The driver can only influence the activation of the high beams by the duration and frequency of the lever's operation, for example, by several short presses or a single, sustained press. Only the states "high beams on" and "high beams off" can be generated. The brightness of the high beams is always the same when the flash-to-pass function is activated.

[0007] Practical experience shows that it is important to distinguish between different levels of potential danger. In some driving situations where there is a risk to life and limb, a very clear warning to other road users is necessary. In other cases, a brief warning of a hazard that is still far away may suffice. Currently, the existing headlight flasher function cannot adequately reflect these varying levels of danger.

[0008] DE 10 2012 004 636 A1 discloses a touch-sensitive operating device for a motor vehicle with an elongated operating lever, in particular a steering column lever, and with a sensor arrangement comprising at least one touch- and / or proximity-sensitive sensor element arranged on the operating lever, and with an electronic evaluation unit coupled to the at least one sensor element. The evaluation unit is designed to detect a touch of the at least one sensor element and / or an approach to the at least one sensor element. The evaluation unit is further designed to recognize an operating gesture by an operator on the operating lever based on a combination of at least two detected touches of the sensor arrangement and / or approaches to the sensor arrangement, and to trigger a predetermined operating function depending on the recognized operating gesture.For example, depending on a detected operating gesture, a vehicle menu with a variety of selectable menu items can be displayed on a display device in the vehicle, or a driver assistance function, such as a rain sensor or a blind spot warning system, can be activated.

[0009] DE 10 2009 022 471 A1 discloses a steering column switch with a shift lever to which several capacitive sensor electrodes are attached. Various switching operations can be detected motionlessly by capacitively sensing the finger position using the capacitive sensor electrodes. This is achieved solely by detecting the position of a finger based on a single touch.

[0010] The invention aims to further develop an operating device for triggering a high beam function of a lighting device of a motor vehicle and a motor vehicle of the generic type in such a way that different forms of a flash-to-pass function can be provided in a simple manner and in a form that is intuitively operable for the driver of the vehicle.

[0011] The solution to this problem is a generic operating device for triggering a high-beam function of a lighting device of a motor vehicle, comprising the features of the characterizing part of claim 1. With regard to the motor vehicle, this problem is solved by a motor vehicle of the type mentioned at the outset, comprising the features of the characterizing part of claim 5. The dependent claims relate to advantageous embodiments of the invention.

[0012] A control device for triggering a high beam function of a lighting device of a motor vehicle is provided, wherein the lighting device has at least two front headlights and a headlight control device, comprising - an operating lever, - a touch- and / or proximity-sensitive sensor device located on or near the operating lever, designed to detect touching and / or approaching the driver's fingers, and - an electronic evaluation device coupled to the sensor means, which is configured to evaluate the touches and / or approaches detected by the sensor means and to recognize an operating gesture of the driver. According to the invention, it is proposed that the evaluation device is configured to control the headlight control unit of the lighting device in such a way that, depending on the recognized operating gesture, a predetermined high-beam sequence of the headlights is triggered from a plurality of available high-beam sequences by means of the headlight control unit to activate a flash-to-pass function.

[0013] This allows different variations of a headlight flasher function to be provided in a simple and intuitive way for the driver of the vehicle.

[0014] Preferably, the sensor means can be arranged on the rear side of the actuating lever facing away from the driver.

[0015] In one embodiment, it is proposed that the sensor means be capacitive or pressure-sensitive, or that the sensor means be designed to detect changes in electromagnetic fields.

[0016] In another embodiment, the detection of operating gestures can also be achieved via a sensor device that incorporates a ToF camera system (ToF = "Time of Flight"). Depth information can be processed using a ToF camera system, and corresponding operating gestures can be captured.

[0017] A motor vehicle according to the invention is characterized in that the operating device is designed according to one of claims 1 to 4.

[0018] In one embodiment, it is proposed that the headlight control device is configured to vary the duration and / or the light intensity of the high beam sequence of the front headlights depending on the detected operating gesture.

[0019] In one embodiment, the headlight control device is designed to vary the luminous color of the high beam sequence of the front headlights depending on the detected operating gesture.

[0020] In one embodiment, the headlight control device may be designed to activate the high beam function of the headlights as alternating flashing or running lights, depending on the detected operating gesture.

[0021] In one embodiment, it is proposed that the headlight control device is designed to activate, depending on the detected operating gesture, either only the high beam function of one of the headlights or the high beam function of all headlights.

[0022] To further enhance safety, an advantageous embodiment may provide that the evaluation unit is configured to activate at least one additional warning device of the vehicle, depending on the detected operating gesture. This warning device could, for example, be a horn or hazard warning lights.

[0023] With the present invention, it is possible to transmit more information via the "flash-to-pass" channel than previously possible. Other road users can be better warned of hazards by particularly conspicuous high-beam sequences. Furthermore, other road users can be informed in a more targeted manner, for example, by using only one headlight or by dimming the lighting. The potential for glare and aggression can be reduced, while simultaneously increasing the level of protection. The basic operation is preferably not changed, so that the driver can continue to use their learned behavior for triggering the flash-to-pass function. However, the driver can benefit additionally from the extended functionality of the flash-to-pass function through easily learned gestures.

[0024] Further features and advantages of exemplary embodiments of the invention are described below with reference to Fig.1, which shows in a schematically very simplified form an operating device 1 for triggering a high beam function of a lighting device 2 of a motor vehicle, is described in more detail.

[0025] The lighting device 2 comprises a first headlight 20, located on the right side of the vehicle when viewed from the front, and a second headlight 21, located on the left side of the vehicle when viewed from the front. The two headlights 20 and 21 illuminate the area in front of the vehicle. In addition to a low beam function, the headlights 20 and 21 also provide a high beam function to illuminate the area in front of the vehicle particularly brightly and over a long distance. A brief activation of the high beam function triggers a flash-to-pass signal, which serves primarily to warn other road users of potential hazards.The control of the front headlights 20, 21 to provide different lighting functions of the lighting device 2 is carried out by means of a headlight control device 22, which is connected to the two front headlights 20, 21 and can generate corresponding control signals.

[0026] The operating device 1 comprises an actuating lever 3, which is designed in particular as a steering column lever, by means of which the high beam function of the two front headlights 20, 21 can be activated and the headlight flasher can also be triggered. In the prior art, the headlight flasher is triggered by actuating (possibly multiple times), in particular by pulling, the actuating lever.

[0027] The following section will explain in more detail the constructive designs of the operating device 1 and the lighting device 2, which make it possible to provide different forms of the flash-to-pass function in a simple manner and in a form that is intuitively operable for the driver of the motor vehicle.

[0028] For this purpose, the operating device 1 comprises a touch- and / or proximity-sensitive sensor means 4, which is arranged on a rear side of the operating lever 3 facing away from the driver, and an electronic evaluation device 5, which is connected to the sensor means 4 and which is designed to detect an operating gesture of a driver from a plurality of possible operating gestures relating to different forms of the headlight flasher function, based on detected touches of the sensor means 4 and / or detected approaches to the sensor means 4.

[0029] Each operating gesture by the driver is assigned a specific high-beam sequence of the headlights 20, 21, resulting in different flash-to-pass modes. In other words, the use of the operating lever 3, equipped with the sensor 4, enables the sensor to detect operating gestures of the driver's fingers on the operating lever 3 and to "translate" these into different high-beam sequences of the headlights 20, 21. Preferably, the force-displacement characteristic remains unchanged during the actuation of the operating lever 3, so that there are no operating differences compared to triggering the flash-to-pass function in the previous form.

[0030] The basic idea is that the evaluation unit 5 can analyze the operating gesture of the driver's fingers, which is detected by the sensor 4 on the back of the operating lever 3. This allows the driver to actively implement different high-beam sequences of the headlights 20, 21, and thus different flash-to-pass signals, using different operating gestures. Other road users can thereby be alerted to different hazards depending on the situation.

[0031] The sensor means 4 on the back of the actuating lever 3 can in particular be designed to have a capacitive touch-sensitive sensor surface to detect touches of the driver's fingers.

[0032] In an alternative embodiment, the sensor means 4 can also be pressure-sensitive.

[0033] In another alternative embodiment, the sensor means 4 is configured to detect changes in electromagnetic fields when the sensor surface is touched or approached.

[0034] The active sensor surface of the sensor element 4 is preferably designed in a manner comparable to a notebook touchpad or a smartphone touchscreen and enables the processing of multi-touch gestures. This means that multiple fingers of the driver can be recognized simultaneously.

[0035] In another embodiment, the detection of operating gestures can also be carried out via a sensor 4 which includes a ToF camera device (ToF = "Time of Flight"). Depth information can be processed and corresponding operating gestures can be captured by means of a ToF camera device that is positioned near the operating lever 3.

[0036] The evaluation unit 5 is designed to evaluate and interpret the sensor data from the sensor device 4. This allows the system to detect a current operating gesture of the driver's fingers from a plurality of available operating gestures.

[0037] The detected operating gestures are transmitted by the evaluation unit 5 as control signals to the headlight control unit 22 in order to control the headlight control unit 22 and thus also the headlights accordingly. The corresponding high-beam sequences, which are to be triggered by the detected operating gestures, are stored in the headlight control unit 22. The headlight control unit 22 controls the headlights 20 and 21 by means of corresponding control signals, so that they can generate the high-beam sequences for the headlight flasher in front of the vehicle.

[0038] Different high beam sequences, light sequences, and light settings can be generated and output. Possible, but expressly not exhaustive, examples include: short or long activation of the high beam, dimming or activation of the headlights 20, 21 at maximum brightness, a change in the light color (white high beam vs. yellow or red light via RGB LEDs), activation of one or more headlights 20, 21, and alternating flashing or running light of the headlights 20, 21.

[0039] The mechanical actuation of the operating lever 3 preferably remains unaffected by the sensory detection of different operating gestures by means of the sensor 4, so that the haptic feedback of the controls does not change and the driver can generally continue to use their learned behavior for activating the headlight flasher. However, the driver can activate additional headlight flasher functions via learnable operating gestures.

[0040] Preferably, the operating gestures can be personalized and saved by the driver so that each driver can use the most natural movement sequences for him / her.

[0041] The following are some examples of possible scenarios involving flashing headlights. Use Case 1:

[0042] A vehicle ahead changes lanes unexpectedly without activating its turn signal, creating an imminent risk of collision. Surprised and instinctively, the driver reaches for the operating lever 3 with their whole hand or several fingers and activates it to flash the headlights. In this situation, the sensor 4 detects several of the driver's fingers. This gesture is detected by the sensor 4 and evaluated by the evaluation unit 5. The evaluation unit 5 generates a control signal for the headlight control unit 22 of the front headlights 20, 21, which in turn controls the front headlights 20, 21 by means of a control signal such that a particularly bright and intense high-beam flash sequence is triggered, for example, five bright high-beam flashes in quick succession.The reason why the driver reaches for the actuating lever 3 with as many fingers as possible in this situation is that the hand is always in motion relative to the fixed position of the actuating lever 3 during a steering movement, and the driver's desire to reach the actuating lever 3 is most easily fulfilled by trying to touch it with as many fingers as possible. Use Case 2:

[0043] The driver uses only a single finger to grasp the operating lever 3 to trigger the headlight flasher. In this situation, the sensor detects the driver's finger. This operating gesture is detected by the sensor 4 and evaluated by the evaluation unit 5. The evaluation unit 5 generates a control signal for the headlight control unit 22 of the front headlights 20, 21, which in turn controls the front headlights 20, 21 by means of a control signal such that the headlight flasher is triggered once. Use Case 3:

[0044] The driver grasps the operating lever 3 with two spread fingers to trigger the headlight flasher. This operating gesture is detected by the sensor 4 and evaluated by the evaluation unit 5. The evaluation unit 5 generates a control signal for the headlight control unit 22 of the headlights 20, 21, which in turn, via a corresponding control signal, activates only the first headlight 20, which is located on the right side in the forward direction of travel of the vehicle. The headlight flasher function of the first (right) headlight 20 can be activated only once. The purpose of this application could be, for example, to warn people or animals at the roadside without dazzling oncoming road users by activating the high beam function of the second headlight 21. Use Case 4:

[0045] The driver grasps the operating lever 3 with two fingers held close together but not spread apart to trigger the high beam flash signal. This operating gesture is detected by the sensor 4 and evaluated by the evaluation unit 5. The evaluation unit 5 generates a control signal for the headlight control unit 22 of the front headlights 20, 21, which controls the front headlights 20, 21 by means of a corresponding control signal such that the high beam function for generating the high beam flash is only executed very briefly, for a few milliseconds – a speed that a driver could hardly achieve at the speed when operating the lever. The purpose of this could be, for example, to indicate an intention to overtake. The very brief flash of the high beam allows the driver to draw attention to themselves without harassing or overwhelming the road user ahead.

[0046] The rate of change of the operating gesture, especially in use case 1, can preferably also be used for evaluation, since further information about the extent of the criticality of the hazardous situation can be derived from this rate of change.

[0047] Furthermore, certain operating gestures may activate additional warning devices of the vehicle, such as the horn or hazard warning lights. This can lead to further improved safety.

Claims

[1] Control device (1) for triggering a high beam function of a lighting device (2) of a motor vehicle, wherein the lighting device (2) comprises at least two front headlights (20, 21) and a headlight control device (22), comprising - an actuating lever (3), - a touch- and / or proximity-sensitive sensor means (4) which is arranged on or near the actuating lever (3) and is designed to detect a touch and / or proximity of the driver's fingers, and - an electronic evaluation device (5) coupled to the sensor means (4), which is designed to evaluate the touches and / or approaches detected by the sensor means (4) and to recognize an operating gesture of the driver, characterized by, that the evaluation device (4) is designed to control the headlight control device (22) of the lighting device (2) in such a way that, depending on the recognized operating gesture, a predetermined high beam sequence of the front headlights (20, 21) is triggered from a plurality of available high beam sequences by means of the headlight control device (22) to activate a flash-to-pass function. [2] Operating device (1) according to claim 1, characterized by , that the sensor means (4) is arranged on a rear side of the actuating lever (3) facing away from the driver. [3] Control device (1) according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized by , that the sensor means (4) is capacitive or pressure-sensitive or that the sensor means (4) is designed to detect changes in electromagnetic fields. [4] Control device (1) according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized by, that the sensor means (4) includes a ToF camera device. [5] Motor vehicle, comprising - a lighting device (2) with at least two front headlights (20, 21) and a headlight control device (22) designed to control the front headlights (20, 21), and - a control device (1) for triggering a high beam function of the front headlights (20, 21), characterized by , that the operating device (1) is designed according to one of claims 1 to 4. [6] Motor vehicle (1) according to claim 5, characterized by , that the headlight control device (22) is designed to vary the duration and / or the light intensity of the high beam sequence of the front headlights (20, 21) depending on the detected operating gesture. [7] Motor vehicle (1) according to one of claims 5 or 6, characterized by, that the headlight control device (22) is designed to vary the luminous color of the high beam sequence of the front headlights (20, 21) depending on the detected operating gesture. [8] Motor vehicle (1) according to any one of claims 5 to 7, characterized by , that the headlight control device (22) is designed to activate the high beam function of the front headlights (20, 21) as alternating flashing or running lights, depending on the detected operating gesture. [9] Motor vehicle (1) according to any one of claims 5 to 8, characterized by , that the headlight control device (22) is designed to activate, depending on the detected operating gesture, either only the high beam function of one of the front headlights (20, 21) or the high beam function of all front headlights (20, 21). [10] Motor vehicle (1) according to any one of claims 5 to 9, characterized by, that the evaluation unit (4) is designed to activate at least one additional warning device of the motor vehicle depending on the detected operating gesture.

Images