Securing a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for managing the safety of a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire. The invention also relates to a computer device (100) implementing such a method, as well as a motor vehicle (1) comprising such a device. Figure for the abstract: 1

Description

Title of the invention: Securing a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire Technical field of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of computer and electronic systems on board motor vehicles to improve road safety and protect the environment. The invention relates in particular to a method for managing, by a computer device on board a motor vehicle, the safety of the vehicle for driving in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire. The invention also relates to a device implementing such a method, as well as a motor vehicle comprising such a device. The invention applies to motor vehicles such as land motor vehicles, in particular cars. State of the prior art

[0002] Certain regions of the globe are particularly exposed to fires. To combat these seasonal phenomena, the authorities have put in place legislation that conditions, in particular, the circulation of vehicles in certain risk zones. Road signs to inform drivers of this particular risk have also been installed along roads and at critical locations. Unfortunately, no driver or occupant of a motor vehicle is immune from forgetting a sign reminding of a recently exceeded fire risk and mechanically throwing a cigarette butt out of the window, sometimes unfortunately realizing too late that this thoughtless action could potentially be the cause of a fire likely to expose its author and third parties to regrettable consequences and cause a certain number of harmful effects on the environment. Summary of the invention

[0003] The invention aims to solve this problem. In particular, it aims to provide a method and a device which make it possible to ensure that an occupant of a motor vehicle cannot commit an inconsiderate act which could cause a fire near the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling in a geographical area for which a fire risk has been identified. In this way, the invention aims to contribute to minimizing the number of fires near roads so as to improve road safety while also helping to preserve the environment.

[0004] In order to achieve these objectives, the invention relates, according to a first aspect, to a management method, by a computer device on board a vehicle, to automobile, securing the vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire, said method comprising the steps of: i. determine whether the vehicle is in a location within a geographical area for which a fire risk is identified by interacting with a vehicle navigation system; and, where this is established to be the case, ii. cause, as soon as the vehicle is moving, at least the closing of the vehicle's movable windows and the deactivation of their control elements.

[0005] According to a variant, step ii) may comprise a step consisting of causing the activation of a heating and air conditioning system of the vehicle.

[0006] According to another variant, said activation may include the selection of an automated operating mode of the heating and air conditioning system.

[0007] According to yet another variant, step i) may comprise a step of determining whether said fire risk corresponds to a predefined risk category.

[0008] According to yet another variant, the navigation system can periodically obtain data characterizing geographical areas for which a fire risk is identified which are generated by a communicating entity of a remote IT infrastructure.

[0009] According to a second aspect, the invention relates to a device for managing the security of a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire, the device comprising an information processing unit, with one or more processors, and a data storage medium, which are configured to implement a method as described above.

[0010] According to a third aspect, the invention relates to a computer program comprising program code instructions for executing the steps of a method as described above when said program is executed by at least one processor.

[0011] According to a fourth aspect, the invention relates to a computer-readable medium on which a program as described above is recorded.

[0012] According to a fifth aspect, the invention relates to a motor vehicle which has a device as described above. Brief description of the drawings

[0013] Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear on examining the detailed description below, and the appended drawings, in which:

[0014] [Fig-1] is a schematic illustration of the invention;

[0015] [Fig.2] is a functional diagram of a device according to the invention; and

[0016] [Fig.3] is a flowchart of the steps of a method according to the invention. Detailed description of the invention

[0017] [Fig.l] shows a schematic illustration of the invention in which we see in particular a vehicle 1 according to the invention. This conventionally comprises a system for managing at least one movable glazing unit 2, which in particular makes it possible to control the movements of the movable glazing units of the vehicle 1 by means of conventional control elements (e.g. lever, button, touchpad, etc.), as well as a heating and air conditioning system 3, which operates according to at least one automatic operating mode in which the ventilation is managed automatically according to a set temperature.

[0018] The vehicle 1 according to the invention also comprises a navigation system 4, which interacts in an ordinary manner with a satellite positioning system (e.g. GPS) in order to be able to calculate routes for journeys based on a map, as well as a radiofrequency signal communication system 5 which makes it possible to communicate (i.e. send and receive data) by means of conventional mobile communication networks and protocols (e.g. 3 / 4 / 5G, C-V2X, ITS-G5, etc.), in particular with a communicating entity 6 hosted within a remote IT infrastructure, administered by an authority responsible for establishing the fire risk for geographical areas, and which periodically transmits data characterizing geographical areas for which a fire risk is identified.

[0019] Advantageously, the vehicle 1 according to the invention also carries a device 100 for managing the safety of a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire within the meaning of the present invention, as described below, which implements a method for managing the safety of a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire within the meaning of the present invention, as briefly summarized below and described in detail below.

[0020] When implementing the method, the device 100 according to the invention interacts with the navigation system 4 to determine whether the vehicle is traveling in a geographical area for which a fire risk is identified. When it establishes that this is the case while the vehicle is moving, the device 100 according to the invention then controls the closing of all the movable windows of the vehicle 1 and the deactivation of the control elements which normally allow their movements to be controlled. In this way, the invention eliminates the risk that an occupant of a motor vehicle could be the cause of a fire in the vicinity of the vehicle 1 according to the invention when the latter is traveling in a geographical area for which a fire risk is identified.

[0021] In [Fig.2] the security management device 100 is illustrated in more detail. of a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a fire risk according to the invention. It is essentially a computer device, which comprises at least one information processing unit 101, comprising one or more processors, a data storage medium 102, on which is recorded in particular a program which comprises program code instructions for the execution of the steps of the method according to the invention described below, and an input and output interface 103 allowing the reception and transmission of data.

[0022] Preferably, the device 100 according to the invention is integrated into an independent computer and it interacts via its input and output interface 103 and by means of a wired communication network of the vehicle (e.g. CAN, Ethernet, MOST) - shown in [Fig.l] by the two-way arrows - with the management system of at least one movable window 2, with the heating and air conditioning system 3, with the navigation system 4 and with the radiofrequency signal communication system 5. Alternatively, the device 100 according to the invention is partially or fully part of one or other of these systems.As a result, it can, in particular, determine whether the vehicle is in a location belonging to a geographical area for which a fire risk has been identified, it can cause the vehicle's movable windows to close and their control elements to be deactivated, and it is able to control the activation of the heating and air conditioning system 3.

[0023] According to the invention, all the elements described above contribute to enabling the implementation of a method for managing the safety of a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire, as described below in connection with [Fig.3].

[0024] [Fig. 3] illustrates by means of a flowchart the steps of the process according to the invention. According to a first step 201 of the method according to the invention, the device 100 according to the invention determines whether the vehicle is located at a location belonging to a geographical area for which a fire risk is identified. It interacts to do this with the navigation system 4, the latter periodically obtaining data characterizing geographical areas for which a fire risk is identified which are generated by the remote communicating entity 6, for example in a manner similar to that implemented to distribute traffic information that motor vehicle navigation systems traditionally use to perform real-time updates of calculated routes.Thus, during this first step 201 of the method, the device 100 according to the invention makes use of this data which is obtained by the navigation system 4 to determine, based on the current location of the vehicle, whether the latter is in a place which is exposed to a risk of fire.

[0025] Preferably, the data obtained by the navigation system 4 identify different risk categories (eg low, moderate, high), so that the device 100 according to the invention determines at this stage whether the location where the vehicle 1 is located is in a geographical area for which a fire risk identifying a predefined risk category is identified. Then, when it establishes that the vehicle is indeed in such a risk area, the device 100 according to the invention then proceeds by implementing the following step of the method according to the invention described below.

[0026] According to a second step 202 of the method according to the invention, the device 100 according to the invention causes, as soon as the vehicle is moving, at least the closing of the movable windows of the vehicle and the deactivation of their control elements. In other words, the device 100 according to the invention proceeds during this last step of the method to close the windows of the vehicle 1 and it forces them to remain in the closed position. To do this, the device 100 according to the invention determines that the vehicle 1 is moving by interacting with the navigation system 4 and, by interacting with the management system of at least one movable window 2, it controls the closing of the movable windows as long as the vehicle 1 remains in the area for which a fire risk is identified. The driver is therefore at this stage advantageously relieved of the constraint of having to remember that it is advisable not to throw a cigarette butt out of the window at this moment of the journey.

[0027] It will be noted that the closing of the windows and the deactivation of their control elements only occur if the vehicle 1 is moving. This prevents in particular the windows of the vehicle from being closed due to the location of the vehicle 1 in a risk zone when the vehicle 1 is parked with a young child or an animal on board.

[0028] According to an advantageous variant, the device 100 according to the invention then causes the activation of the heating and air conditioning system 3, preferably by selecting an automatic operating mode. It thus immediately compensates for any drop in comfort caused by the closing of the windows.

[0029] Consequently, thanks to the method and the device according to the invention described above, it is ensured that an occupant of a motor vehicle cannot stupidly throw a burning cigarette butt out of the window when the vehicle is in a geographical area for which a fire risk has been identified. The invention therefore undeniably contributes to minimizing the number of fires near roads so as to improve road safety while also helping to preserve the environment.

Claims

Claims

1. Method for managing, by a computer device (100) on board a motor vehicle (1), the safety of the vehicle for driving in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire, characterized in that the method comprises the steps of: i. determining whether the vehicle is in a location belonging to a geographical area for which a risk of fire is identified by interacting with a navigation system (4) of the vehicle; and, when it is established that this is the case, ii. causing, as soon as the vehicle is moving, at least the closing of the movable windows of the vehicle and the deactivation of their control elements.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that step ii) comprises a step of causing the activation of a heating and air conditioning system (3) of the vehicle.

3. A method according to claim 2, characterized in that said activation includes the selection of an automated operating mode of the heating and air conditioning system (3).

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that step i) comprises a step of determining whether said fire risk corresponds to a predefined risk category.

5. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the navigation system periodically obtains data characterizing geographical areas for which a fire risk is identified which are generated by a communicating entity (6) of a remote IT infrastructure.

6. Device (100) for managing the security of a motor vehicle for circulation in a geographical area exposed to a risk of fire, characterized in that said device comprises an information processing unit (101), with one or more processors, and a data storage medium (102), which are configured to implement a method according to any one of the preceding claims.

7. A computer program comprising program code instructions for executing the steps of a method according to one of any of claims 1 to 5 when said program is executed by at least one processor.

8. Computer-readable medium, characterized in that a program according to claim 7 is recorded therein.

9. Motor vehicle (1), characterized in that said vehicle carries a device (100) according to claim 6.

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