A method for operating a vehicle, a steering unit, a driver assistance system, and a corresponding vehicle

Abstract

A method for operating a vehicle 10, which comprises a steering unit 12, which comprises a steering wheel 16, an adjustment unit 18 for wheels, a mechanical steering center and a driver assistance system 14. For an at least partially autonomous driving operation, a steering signal is output for the adjustment unit and the driver assistance system uses a virtual steering center for determining its steering signal, comprising the steps : - detecting a current steering state of the steering unit by sensor data by at least one sensor unit 20, identifying patterns from the sensor data to derive the current mechanical steering center by a model 22 in real time; and - dynamically calibrating the virtual steering center based on the mechanical steering center derived by the model. The system may use a machine learning model.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of vehicles, in particular automobiles, such as vans, cars, or trucks. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method for operating a vehicle which comprises a steering unit and a driver assistance system, in particular an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS). Furthermore, the present invention relates to a corresponding vehicle comprising a steering unit and a driver assistance system. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

[0002] A mechanical center of a steering wheel of a vehicle or car undergoes changes over time, especially when the steering wheel is subjected to movements, such as rotation, displacement, translation, and shifting. This phenomenon leads to an alteration in the steering wheel’s equilibrium position, potentially affecting the overall steering performance and driver experience. The vehicle needs limp home service to recalibrate the vehicle’s center according to the mechanical center of the vehicle. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003] It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for operating a vehicle, a steering unit, a driver assistance system, and a corresponding vehicle, where at least changes of a mechanical center of a steering unit are efficiently tracked and moreover precisely corrected.

[0004] This object is solved by a method for operating a vehicle and a vehicle according to the present invention. Advantageous embodiments are presented in the dependent claims, the description, and the drawings.

[0005] A first aspect of the present invention relates to a method for operating a vehicle which comprises a steering unit, which comprises a steering wheel, an adjustment unit, in particular an actuator, for wheels of the vehicle to perform the steering, and a mechanical steering center. The vehicle further comprises a driver assistance system, in particular an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) by which, for an at least partially autonomous driving operation, a steering signal is output for the adjustment unit of the steering unit, and the driver assistance system uses a virtual steering center for determining its steering signal. The method according to the invention comprises the following steps:

[0006] In a first step, detecting a current and thus in particular continuous, steering state of the steering unit by or via sensor data by at least one sensor unit is performed.

[0007] In a second step, identifying patterns from the sensor data to derive the current mechanical steering center by a model, in particular an Al-based (artificial intelligence) dynamic calibration model, in real time is performed.

[0008] In a third step, dynamically calibrating the virtual steering center based on the mechanical steering center derived by the model is performed.

[0009] The vehicle is in particular a car, van, or truck and at least capable for partial autonomous driving, for example guided by the (advanced) driver assistance system. The adjustment unit of the steering unit is in particular built as an actuator for moving the wheels, in particular a pair of front wheels of the vehicle, into a steering angle for steering the vehicle. The driver assistance system may contain an electronic calculation unit, comprising at least a memory and a computational unit for performing tasks such as collecting and interpreting the sensor data. The at least one sensor unit is, for example, a steering angle sensor and / or a linear displacement sensor and / or an accelerometer. The model is, in particular, Al-based and built via a self-learning algorithm and / or an artificial neural network. The model may be executed or performed via the processing unit.

[0010] In other words, a solution is provided by an autonomous or at least partially autonomous vehicle calculating the software center of the vehicle to precisely match the mechanical center of the vehicle in particular at any given point in time. An algorithm will learn the shifts to the mechanical center over time and calibrate the software center of the vehicle to accommodate any wear and tear to the mechanical components in the steering wheel assembly that might cause such changes to the mechanical center of the vehicle.

[0011] An advantage of the invention is that because of the alignment of the software or the virtual steering center and the mechanical steering center allows for precise steering signals output by the driver assistance system or ADAS.

[0012] In an embodiment of the present invention, a steering wheel sensor and / or a linear displacement sensor and / or an accelerometer and / or an angular velocity sensor is or are used as the at least one sensor unit.

[0013] In still another embodiment of the present invention, a model uses a machine learning method for identifying and / or deriving the current mechanical steering center.

[0014] In still another embodiment of the present invention, the model for deriving the machine steering center determines a movement, such as a rotation, displacement and / or translation, from the sensor data.

[0015] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the model determines a wear or tear of the steering unit and performs the calibration as a function of the determined wear or tear.

[0016] In a further embodiment of the present invention, the mechanical steering center describes and / or defines a neutral position of the steering wheel or a neutral position of the adjustment unit or a center of gravity of the vehicle.

[0017] In still another embodiment of the present invention, when using several sensor units, that means more than the at least one sensor unit, the sensor data of the respective sensor unit are merged to form a common set of sensor data.

[0018] A second aspect of the present invention relates to a vehicle which comprises a steering unit comprising a steering wheel, an adjustment unit for wheels, a mechanical steering center, and a driver assistance system or an ADAS, by which a steering signal for the adjustment unit is capable of being output for at least partially autonomous driving operation of the vehicle and the driver assistance system uses a virtual steering center for determining its steering signal, and which is configured to carry out a method according to the third aspect of the present invention.

[0019] Advantages and advantageous embodiments of the first aspect of the invention are to be regarded as advantages and advantageous embodiments of the second aspect of the invention and vice versa.

[0020] Further advantages, features, and details of the invention derive from the following description of preferred embodiments as well as from the drawings. The features and feature combinations previously mentioned in the description as well as the features and feature combinations mentioned in the following description of the figures and / or shown in the figures alone can be employed not only in the respectively indicated combination but also in any other combination or taken alone without leaving the scope of the invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] The novel features and characteristic of the disclosure are set forth in the appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this disclosure, illustrate exemplary embodiments and together with the description, serve to explain the disclosed principles. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system and / or methods in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described below, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying figures.

[0022] The drawings show in:

[0023] Fig. 1 a schematic view of a vehicle comprising a steering unit and a driver assistance system; and

[0024] Fig. 2 a schematic view of a second embodiment of the driver assistance system.

[0025] In the figures the same elements or elements having the same function are indicated by the same reference signs. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] In the present document, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration". Any embodiment or implementation of the present subject matter described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments.

[0027] While the disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawing and will be described in detail below. It should be understood, however, that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the disclosure.

[0028] The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion so that a setup, device or method that comprises a list of components or steps does not include only those components or steps but may include other components or steps not expressly listed or inherent to such setup or device or method. In other words, one or more elements in a system or apparatus preceded by “comprises” or “comprise” does not or do not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional elements in the system or method.

[0029] In the following detailed description of the embodiment of the disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawing that forms part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration a specific embodiment in which the disclosure may be practiced. This embodiment is described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The following description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense.

[0030] Fig. 1 shows a schematic view of a vehicle 10 comprising a steering unit 12 and a driver assistance system 14. The steering unit 12 comprises a steering wheel 16 and an adjustment unit 18, in particular an actuator for wheels of the vehicle 10, and a mechanical steering center. The driver assistance system 14 can operate the vehicle via an at least partially autonomous driving operation, for which a steering signal is output for or to the adjustment unit 18, where the driver assistance system 14 uses a virtual steering center for determining its steering signal for the adjustment unit 18.

[0031] The method for operating the vehicle 10 comprises the following steps:

[0032] In a first step detecting a current steering state of the steering unit 12 via sensor data by at least one sensor unit 20 is performed. In a second step identifying patterns from the sensor data to derive the current mechanical steering center by a model 22 in real time is performed, and in a third step dynamically calibrating the virtual steering center based on the mechanical steering center derived by the model 22 is performed.

[0033] The steering signal and / or the sensor data can be transmitted or exchanged with or without a cable using suitable communication means.

[0034] As at least one of the at least one sensor unit 20 a steering wheel sensor 24 and / or linear displacement sensor 26 and / or an accelerometer and / or an angular velocity sensor is used.

[0035] The model 22 is in particular an Al-based dynamical calibration model based on real time data point and uses in particular an Al algorithm for learning and calibration of data. As an input, if more than one sensor unit 20 is used, these sensor data of the sensor units 20 are fused together, in particular in a sensor fusion and processing unit 28.

[0036] Fig. 2 shows a second embodiment of the driver assistance system 14 or in particular the model 22 where the different inputs from the angular position of the steering wheel 16, a linear displacement or angular velocity are not fused together via the sensor fusion processing unit but are input into the model 22 in parallel and directly.

[0037] The input for the model is in particular for real time data analysis. A steering angle sensor embedded within the steering wheel assembly continuously monitors the mechanical steering center shift, for example, caused by movements such as rotation, displacement and translation. After processing and training the model with training data from labelled steering angle 24 sensor data, for example, the adaptive algorithm from the model 22 learns from the collected data and identifies patterns and trends in mechanical center variations. This learning process allows the algorithm to predict and anticipate future shifts.

[0038] Therefore, an output is generated which is a dynamic calibration or calibration output 30. The calculated software center is dynamically calibrated based on the algorithm’s predictions. This ensures that the software center precisely matches the current mechanical center of the vehicle, accounting for any wear and tear in the steering wheel components.

[0039] This is an adaptive process with continuous adjustment. As the vehicle 10 accumulates wear over time, the algorithm continually refines its calibration, thus, maintaining accurate alignment between the software or virtual center and the mechanical center.

[0040] The mechanical steering center may describe or define a neutral position of the steering wheel 16 and / or a neutral position of the adjustment unit 18 and / or a center of gravity of the vehicle 10.

[0041] With the provided method and the provided vehicle 10 an Al-based automatic alignment of software center in mechanical center for a steering assembly is provided. Signs vehicle steering unit driver assistance system steering wheel adjustment unit sensor unit model steering wheel sensor linear displacement sensor sensor fusion and processing unit calibration output

Claims

1. A method for operating a vehicle (10), which comprises a steering unit (12), which comprises a steering wheel (16), an adjustment unit (18) for wheels and a mechanical steering center, and a driver assistance system (14) by which, for an at least partially autonomous driving operation, a steering signal is output for the adjustment unit (18), and the driver assistance system (14) uses a virtual steering center for determining its steering signal, comprising the steps :detecting a current steering state of the steering unit by sensor data by at least one sensor unit (20);identifying patterns from the sensor data to derive the current mechanical steering center by a model (22) in real time; anddynamically calibrating the virtual steering center based on the mechanical steering center derived by the model (22).

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in thata steering wheel sensor (24) and / or a linear displacement sensor (26) and / or an accelerometer and / or an angular velocity sensor is used as the at least one sensor unit (20).

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in thatthe model (22) uses a machine learning method for identifying and / or to derive the current mechanical steering center.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in thatthe model (22) for deriving the machine steering center determines a movement, such as a rotation, a displacement and / or a translation, from the sensor data.

5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in thatthe model (22) determines a wear of the steering unit (12) and performs the calibration as a function of the determined wear.

6. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in thatthe mechanical steering center describes a neutral position of the steering wheel (16) and / or a neutral position of the adjustment unit (18) and / or a center of gravity of the vehicle.

7. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in thatwhen using several sensor units (20), the sensor data of the respective sensor unit (20) are merged to form a common set of sensor data.

8. A vehicle (10) comprising a steering unit (12), comprising a steering wheel (16), an adjustment unit (18) for wheels, and a mechanical steering center, and a driver assistance system (14) by which a steering signal for the adjustment unit (18) is capable of being output for at least partially autonomous driving operation, and the driver assistance system (14) uses a virtual steering center for determining its steering signal, and which is configured to carry out a method according to one of the preceding claims.

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