Method and apparatus for contactless provision of functionality in a motor vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for contactlessly providing a function in a motorized vehicle, the method comprising the steps of: a) recognizing (S2) the approach of a person towards the motorized vehicle; b) recognizing (S4) a gesture of the person; and c) providing (S5) a function in response to the recognition by steps a) and b), wherein ultrasonic signals are transmitted and received for the recognition in steps a) and b), and (i) the signal repetition rate of the transmitted ultrasonic signals is higher in step b) than in step a), and / or (ii) the repetition rate for receiving the ultrasonic signals is higher in step b) than in step a).

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for contactlessly providing functionality in a motor vehicle, and in particular to a method and apparatus for contactlessly opening a door, particularly a rear hatch, of a motor vehicle.The present invention further relates to a computer program product. Summary of the Invention

[0002] Various methods and devices are available that allow a person to contactlessly open the rear hatch of a motor vehicle. For example, methods are common in which a gesture, such as a foot movement or a step toward the bumper, is detected and thereby the opening of the rear hatch is activated. For this purpose, systems with capacitive sensors, such as those known from DE 10 2009 025 212 A1, or systems with radar-based sensors, such as those known from DE 10 2016 220 084 A1, are commonly used to detect foot movements.

[0003] In the method known from WO 2021 / 037052 A1, in a first step, an ultrasonic sensor is used to detect whether a person is within a predetermined distance of the vehicle. An image is projected onto the ground and a camera is used to determine the person's reaction to the image. If the reaction corresponds to a predetermined gesture, the rear hatch is opened.

[0004] Such sensors are used exclusively for opening doors.

[0005] In the method known from US 2017 / 009509 A1, first a proximity detection is performed. This is done using a smart key. In a second step, a gesture is identified. This can be done using a camera or by using infrared or ultrasonic signals.

[0006] Against this background, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for contactless providing functionality in a motor vehicle, in particular for contactless opening of a door, in particular a rear hatch, of a motor vehicle.

[0007] Accordingly, a method for contactlessly providing a function in a powered vehicle is proposed, the method comprising the steps of: a) identifying the approach of a person to the powered vehicle; b) identifying a gesture by the person; and c) providing a function in response to the identification by steps a) and b); in each of steps a) and b), ultrasonic signals are emitted and received for the identification, which in particular include pulses or pulse sequences: (i) the signal repetition rate of the emitted ultrasonic signals, in particular the repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequences, is increased in step b) compared to step a); and / or (ii) the repetition rate for receiving the ultrasonic signals is increased in step b) compared to step a).

[0008] In order to keep power consumption low when the vehicle is switched off and still achieve reliable gesture recognition, in step b) the signal repetition rate of the emitted ultrasonic signals, in particular the repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequences, is increased compared to step a) and / or in step b) the repetition rate for receiving ultrasonic signals, the repetition rate of the listening interval, is increased compared to step a).

[0009] The proximity of an object to an ultrasonic sensor can be determined using known methods via time-of-flight measurements of ultrasonic signals. The ultrasonic sensor comprises an ultrasonic emitter and an ultrasonic receiver. The ultrasonic sensor data can be evaluated at various levels, e.g., in an ASIC, a central control unit, or a standalone control unit. Using two ultrasonic sensors with overlapping measurement areas, the object's position can be determined by known methods of triangulation or trilateration. The direction of movement is then derived from the position over time. When the measurement areas of multiple sensors overlap, the position and direction can be determined by trilateration. Step a) can be performed by detecting the approach of a person to the door using time-of-flight measurements of the two sensors. Non-human objects can also approach, and there is no need to distinguish them from people in step a).

[0010] The ultrasonic sensor emits an ultrasonic signal at a frequency or pitch of, for example, 40 to 60 kHz, at a signal repetition rate, at which the ultrasonic signal is repeated. A pulse or pulse sequence can be modulated at this frequency or pitch as a carrier wave. For example, a square-wave pulse with a pulse duration of 20 ms can be emitted. A pulse sequence can also be a sequence of several pulses emitted in succession. Furthermore, the pitch of the ultrasonic signal, i.e., the carrier frequency, can also be varied by the pulse or pulse sequence. For ultrasonic measurements, pulses or pulse sequences are emitted at regular intervals with a repetition rate and period, and the ultrasonic signal is received at the repetition rate. Depending on the required time resolution, the ultrasonic sensor can emit and / or receive ultrasonic signals at a higher or lower repetition rate. The repetition rate is in this case not the carrier frequency of the ultrasonic signal, but the reciprocal of the interval period and / or the repetition rate during reception of the ultrasonic signal, in particular of the pulse or pulse sequence.

[0011] Between these ultrasonic signals, in particular between pulses or pulse sequences, the ultrasonic sensor does not emit and / or receive ultrasonic signals, thereby consuming as little power as possible by the ultrasonic sensor. The proposed method for contactlessly providing a function in a motorized vehicle, in particular for contactlessly opening a door of a motorized vehicle, is often used in vehicles that are switched off. To keep power consumption low in switched-off vehicles, the ultrasonic sensor operates and / or receives in step a) at a low signal repetition rate, in particular at a pulse or pulse sequence repetition rate. In this case, the ultrasonic sensor may emit and / or receive ultrasonic signals or pulses or pulse sequences for less than 10% of the period T, or for less than 5% of the period T, and not emit and / or receive ultrasonic signals or pulses or pulse sequences for the remaining periods.

[0012] To recognise a gesture, in particular an opening gesture, in step b) the signal repetition rate, in particular the repetition rate of the pulse or pulse sequence and / or the repetition rate of the reception, is increased to provide the time resolution required to recognise such a gesture. State machines or recurrent neural networks can also be used for gesture recognition.

[0013] According to one embodiment, the signal repetition rate according to (i) and / or (ii) in step a) is between 0.5 and 5 Hz, in particular between 1 and 3 Hz.

[0014] According to one embodiment, the repetition rate according to (i) and / or (ii) in step b) is between 10 and 50 Hz, in particular between 20 and 30 Hz.

[0015] According to one embodiment, the motorized vehicle has at least one ultrasonic sensor configured for use in parking assistance, and in steps a) and / or b) the ultrasonic signals are emitted and / or received using the at least one ultrasonic sensor.

[0016] Most modern vehicles already have ultrasonic sensors for parking assistance. This means that there is no additional cost for the sensors if they are used to provide a contactless function, especially for opening the luggage compartment. Vehicles often have, for example, three to six ultrasonic sensors in the rear area for parking assistance.

[0017] According to one embodiment, exactly two or at least two ultrasonic sensors are used for emitting and / or receiving ultrasonic signals in steps a) and / or b).

[0018] Two ultrasonic sensors with overlapping detection areas can detect the direction of an object as well as the distance. If it is limited to two active ultrasonic sensors, energy consumption can be minimized and the function of proximity detection or opening gesture recognition can be maintained.

[0019] According to one embodiment, only one ultrasonic sensor is used in step b).

[0020] If a gesture, especially an open-mouth gesture, is chosen appropriately, the recognition of that gesture can be associated with only one ultrasonic sensor and with as little energy consumption as possible.

[0021] According to one embodiment, at least two ultrasonic sensors alternately emit ultrasonic signals.

[0022] To further reduce the energy consumption of the two ultrasonic sensors, two sensors with overlapping measurement areas can emit signals alternately. However, it is also possible to use more than two ultrasonic sensors to enlarge the detection area for identifying the approach of a person in step a), and still keep energy consumption low by having these ultrasonic sensors emit signals alternately.

[0023] According to one embodiment, in step a) a hypothesis is formed regarding the movement of a person, and if the hypothesis predicts the approach of a person in the defined area with a probability greater than a predetermined probability, step b) is initiated.

[0024] Such hypothesis formation can be performed, for example, using the method known from WO2020 / 007487A1 for object tracking based on multiple measurement hypotheses. For this purpose, several multi-object tracking methods are possible, in which hypotheses are formed about the object motion, in particular by means of a random finite set filter, in particular a so-called probability hypothesis density filter, cardinalized probability hypothesis density filter, multi-Bernoulli filter, such as a cardinality balanced multi-Bernoulli filter, generalized labeled multi-Bernoulli filter, labeled multi-Bernoulli filter, Poisson multi-Bernoulli mixture filter, Poisson multi-Bernoulli filter, or an approximation thereof, and step b) is executed if the hypotheses predict the approach of a person with a probability exceeding a predetermined probability. Such assumption formation allows a high confirmation rate of intent to open and a low number of erroneous openings, since in step a) a high probability is already generated that a person intentionally moves towards the door and therefore probably also wants to open it, which is confirmed in steps b) and c).

[0025] The proposed method for contactless opening of a motor vehicle door allows for a variety of gestures. Known foot movements in the direction of the bumper of the motor vehicle are possible, as are forward and sideways movements. For example, if at least two ultrasonic sensors are used in step b), forward and backward stepping movements or side and reverse stepping movements can be distinguished. Of course, further movement patterns and gestures are also possible, such as arm and / or hand movements.

[0026] According to one embodiment, step a) is performed when or while a smart key associated with the motor vehicle is in communication with the motor vehicle and the motor vehicle is in a park position.

[0027] For example, this prevents the vehicle door from being opened while driving. Furthermore, ultrasonic sensors in motorized vehicles may be required for other functions during driving, such as parking assistance or parking space search. Therefore, it is advantageous for embodiments of the invention if the proposed method for contactlessly providing functions in motorized vehicles, particularly for contactlessly opening doors, is used only with motorized vehicles in a parked position. The parked position can be determined, for example, by setting P for a powered-off vehicle with an automatic transmission, a fixed parking brake, and engaged gears, in conjunction with detecting wheel stoppage using wheel speed sensors. Furthermore, unauthorized persons cannot open the doors of a motorized vehicle, whether intentionally or unintentionally. The risk of unauthorized opening can be reduced if a smart key communicates with the vehicle's control unit. In this case, the smart key includes multiple vehicle access control devices, such as a wireless key, an RFID card, and an RFID transponder, but also a mobile wireless device that can be used as a key for a motorized vehicle. If such a smart key is authorized to open the door, step a) is initiated upon detecting a person's approach to the door. In this case, the proposed method may in embodiments allow the smart key to be inside or outside the vehicle, or may only allow the smart key to be outside the vehicle to initiate step a), in which case, for example, a front passenger without the smart key can also open a door, e.g., a luggage compartment door, while the driver is in the vehicle with the smart key.

[0028] A maximum time can be defined for each of steps a) and b), after which, if no approach or opening gesture is made, the sequence returns to the previous step or the proposed method ends, and a resumption of the proposed method can be triggered, for example, by an end procedure.

[0029] According to one embodiment, between steps a) and b), people who remain located in the region of interest are identified.

[0030] After step a) identifies the approach of a person to the door, a further step determines whether the person remains in the target area before step b) is performed. The target area can be, for example, a zone 0.5-1 m from the door and approximately 1 m wide. If the person remains in the target area, i.e., if the ultrasonic sensor detects an object in the target area moving within the target area for a minimum time, e.g., 0.5 seconds, less than a maximum distance, e.g., 0.1 m, step b) is initiated.

[0031] According to one embodiment, for the identification of what remains located, further ultrasonic signals, in particular further ultrasonic signals comprising pulses or pulse sequences, are emitted and received, and (i) the signal repetition rate of the emitted further ultrasonic signals, in particular the repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequences, is increased compared to the signal repetition rate of the ultrasonic signals emitted in step a), in particular the repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequences; and / or (ii) the repetition rate during reception of the further ultrasonic signals is increased compared to the repetition rate for reception of the ultrasonic signals according to step a).

[0032] According to one embodiment, the function according to step c) comprises contactlessly opening a driver's door, a passenger door, a front door, a rear door, a luggage door or rear hatch, a frunk door or hatch, or a power connection door or a fuel fill opening door, and / or the gesture according to step b) is an opening gesture.

[0033] According to one embodiment, the function according to step c) comprises contactless folding of mirrors or folding of a trailer hitch.

[0034] The proposed method is preferably used for opening a luggage compartment door or a rear hatch. The proposed method for contactless opening of a door of a motor vehicle can, however, also be used for opening the driver's door, passenger door, front door, rear door, flank door or flank hatch, or a door for a power connection or a door for a fuel fill opening.

[0035] "Frank" stands for "front trunk" and refers to the storage compartment in the vehicle bow, especially in electric vehicles.

[0036] Further, an apparatus for contactlessly providing a function in a motorized vehicle is proposed, the apparatus comprising: a first authentication unit for authenticating the approach of a person to the motorized vehicle; a second authentication unit for authenticating a gesture of the person; and a providing unit for providing the function in response to the authentication using the first and second authentication units. The first and second authentication units are configured to transmit and receive respective ultrasonic signals, the ultrasonic signals particularly including pulses or pulse sequences. A signal repetition rate of the emitted ultrasonic signals, particularly a repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequences, is increased in the second authentication unit compared to the first authentication unit, and / or a repetition rate for receiving the ultrasonic signals is increased in the second authentication unit compared to the first authentication unit.

[0037] The units described in this case, such as the first and / or second certification unit or the providing unit, can be implemented by hardware and / or software. For example, they can be implemented on a microprocessor together with associated storage means. The microprocessor including the storage means can be formed, for example, in a central control unit of a motor vehicle.

[0038] According to one embodiment, a motor vehicle includes an apparatus for contactlessly providing functionality.

[0039] In one embodiment, a motor vehicle includes a motor vehicle controller, at least one ultrasonic sensor, and at least one actuator for opening a door.

[0040] Furthermore, a computer program product is proposed, which comprises instructions that, when the program is executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry out the method described above.

[0041] The computer program product, e.g. computer program means, may be provided or supplied as a storage medium, e.g. a memory card, USB stick, CD-ROM, DVD, etc., or in the form of a file that can be downloaded from a server in a network, e.g. by transmitting the computer program product or a corresponding file containing the computer program means in a wireless communication network.

[0042] In one embodiment, the computer program product is stored in the memory of a motorized vehicle controller and contains commands that, when executed by the motorized vehicle controller's computer, prompt the latter to execute the proposed method. In this case, the computer program product can be divided into multiple modules, which are stored and executed by different computers or controllers. For example, pre-evaluation of the ultrasonic sensor data can be performed in an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) assigned to the ultrasonic sensor, where interference suppression, for example, can be performed. The pre-evaluated data is then passed on to further modules for processing, which can, for example, detect whether and in what direction a person has moved in the measurement area of ​​the ultrasonic sensor. A second module can check whether the person remains in the target area for a predetermined time. A third module can determine whether an open-mouth gesture has been made by the person.

[0043] Embodiments and features described for the proposed apparatus also apply to the proposed method as appropriate, and vice versa.

[0044] Further possible implementations of the invention also include not explicitly mentioned combinations of features or embodiments described above or below with respect to the exemplary embodiments, and again, those skilled in the art will add individual aspects as improvements or additions to each basic aspect of the invention.

[0045] Further advantageous designs and aspects of the invention form the subject matter of the dependent claims and of the exemplary embodiments of the invention described below. The invention will be explained in more detail below on the basis of preferred embodiments with reference to the attached drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0046] [Figure 1] Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram of a motorized vehicle approaching a person. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 illustrates a flow chart of a method for contactless opening of a motor vehicle door according to an exemplary embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 shows schematically four examples of pulses or pulse sequences that can be emitted by an ultrasonic sensor. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 illustrates schematically an apparatus for performing a method for contactless opening of a motor vehicle door according to an exemplary embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0047] In the figures, identical or functionally identical elements are indicated with the same reference numbers unless otherwise noted.

[0048] FIG. 1 shows a schematic bird's-eye view of a motor vehicle 100 with a person 120 approaching. A rear hatch, serving as a luggage compartment door 110, closes the luggage compartment of the motor vehicle 100. The motor vehicle 100 is equipped with six ultrasonic sensors 131-136 of a parking assistance system in the rear area. The measurement directions of the ultrasonic sensors 131-136 are shown schematically by dashed lines, and the division does not represent the maximum detection range. Each ultrasonic sensor 131-136 includes, among other things, an ultrasonic emitter and an ultrasonic receiver. For example, the ultrasonic sensors 131-136 can be configured to emit pulses or pulse sequences alternately. The data from the ultrasonic sensors 131-136 is evaluated and passed on at various levels. For example, evaluation is performed for each sensor near the sensor using an ASIC. The data from the ultrasonic sensors 131-136 is then transmitted to a central controller or a stand-alone controller for evaluation.

[0049] When the motorized vehicle 100 moves in the opposite direction, all ultrasonic sensors 131-136 are thus active and measure at a pulse or pulse sequence repetition rate, allowing both static and dynamic obstacles to be quickly identified and the driver to be warned of the obstacles. When the vehicle 100 is moved into a park position, for example by engaging gear P and turning off the engine, the ultrasonic sensors 131-136 are thereby switched off.

[0050] A person 120 approaches the motorized vehicle 100. The person 120 carries a smart key 150 with them. This can be via a so-called fob (a door opener similar to a key fob, typically equipped with an RFID token), a card with an RFID chip, or a mobile phone. The ultrasonic sensors 131-136 are activated by the introduction of the smart key 150 within the receiving range of the motorized vehicle 100. These sensors emit pulses or pulse sequences at a repetition rate of only 2 Hz to identify approach to the luggage compartment door 110. The repetition rate is at the rate at which the pulses or pulse sequences are emitted and received, rather than the carrier frequency or pitch of the ultrasonic signal, which is 40-50 kHz. Because each ultrasonic sensor emits no pulses between these pulses, no power is consumed. For a parking assistance system, this repetition rate, with a half-second interval between ultrasonic signals, would be too low. However, in a parked vehicle situation, this low repetition rate advantageously reduces the energy consumption of the ultrasonic sensors 131-136. A repetition rate of 2 Hz is sufficient to detect the movement of the person 120 .

[0051] As soon as a person 120 enters the detection area of ​​ultrasonic sensors 131-136, they can be identified as an object. In Figure 1, person 120 is located in the area of ​​the measurement directions of ultrasonic sensors 131 and 132 and moves in the direction of the arrow from the measurement direction of sensor 131 to the measurement direction of sensor 133. The position of person 120 can be determined by trilateration. The approach of person 120 to door 110 can be obtained from the time series of positions.

[0052] If the approach of the person 120 in the direction of the luggage compartment door 110 is not recognized, the method for contactlessly opening the luggage compartment door 120 terminates after a predetermined time has elapsed and can be resumed, for example, by a closing procedure using the smart key 150 or by disconnecting and re-establishing communication between the smart key 150 and the motor vehicle 100.

[0053] When it is recognized that the person 120 has approached the luggage compartment door 110, it is checked whether they remain located in the target area 140. The target area 140 is a zone approximately 1 m wide at a distance of 0.5 to 1 m from the rear of the vehicle 100. The target area 140 is detected by the ultrasonic sensors 133 and 134, whereby these two sensors exclusively check whether the person 120 remains located in the target area 140. If the person 120 remains located in the target area 140 and moves at most 0.1 m from that position for a minimum time, e.g., 1 second, the repetition rate of the ultrasonic sensors 133 and 134 covering the target area is increased, e.g., to 25 Hz, for the recognition of an open-mouth gesture. The repetition rate increase can also be performed during or already before the recognition of whether the person 120 remains located in the target area 140. The repetition rate increase relates to both transmission and reception. If the person 120 does not remain located in the region of interest 140, the method thus continues after a predetermined time with a new determination of proximity.

[0054] If a movement of the foot from the target area 140 in the direction of the right tail light 160 is defined as an opening gesture, the ultrasonic sensor 134 may be sufficient to qualify this opening gesture in this manner. Because the approach of the person 120 has been pre-qualified rather than the opening gesture alone determining whether the luggage compartment door 110 will be opened, qualifying the opening gesture alone can tolerate more false positives without increasing the incidence of false openings in the overall method.

[0055] If the data from the ultrasonic sensor 134 identifies the movement of the person 120's foot from the target area 140 towards the right tail light 160 as an opening gesture, the controller thus sends a control command to the actuator 190 to open the luggage compartment door 110. In Figure 1, the luggage compartment door 110 is embodied as a rear hatch, which swings upwards by spring force after the luggage compartment is unlocked.

[0056] If the person's 120 open mouth gesture is not recognized, the method can thus continue, checking whether they remain located in the region of interest 140 after a predetermined time.

[0057] FIG. 2 illustrates a flow chart of a method for contactless opening of luggage compartment door 110 of motor vehicle 100 according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0058] In a first step S1, a method for contactless opening of the luggage compartment door 110 of the motor vehicle 100 is initiated. The luggage compartment door 110 is prevented from being opened accidentally while the vehicle is moving. Furthermore, an unauthorized person 120 is prevented from opening the luggage compartment door 110. Furthermore, the ultrasonic sensors 131-136 may be required for other purposes depending on the situation, e.g., for parking assistance.

[0059] Therefore, for the operation of the method for contactlessly opening the luggage compartment door 110 of a motor vehicle 100, a condition is defined that must be met so that the method can be activated. Accordingly, in step S1, it is checked whether the motor vehicle 100 is in park. For this purpose, the wheel rotation sensors are evaluated, and it is checked whether the automatic transmission is in setting P and whether the parking brake is engaged. Furthermore, it is checked whether the motor vehicle 100 is authorized to open. For this purpose, it is checked whether a smart key 150 associated with the motor vehicle 100, which is located around the vehicle, communicates with the control unit of the vehicle 100. It is expected that the authorized person 120 will attempt to open the luggage compartment door 110 only if the motor vehicle is unlocked or ready to be opened. The condition must be met at the start of the method for contactlessly opening the luggage compartment door 110 of a motor vehicle 100 and must remain met throughout the method. For example, the method ends when the parking brake is released and the gears are engaged.

[0060] If the conditions of the method for contactlessly opening the luggage compartment door 110 of the motor vehicle 100 are met, it is recognized in step S2 whether the person 120 has approached the luggage compartment door 110. For this purpose, the ultrasonic sensors 131-136 emit signals at a repetition rate of 2 Hz. Then, from the data of the ultrasonic sensors 131-136, it can be determined whether the person 120 has approached the luggage compartment door 110. In this case, by using all six ultrasonic sensors 131-136, a wide area can be covered for approach recognition.

[0061] Whether the person 120 approaches the luggage compartment door 110 or not is determined by, for example, forming a hypothesis about the person 120's movement using a multi-object tracking method, in particular a random finite set filter. If the hypothesis predicts an approach with a probability higher than a predetermined probability, in step S3, it is checked using the ultrasonic sensors 133 and 134 whether the person 120 remains located in the target area 140. In this case, the ultrasonic sensors 131, 132, 135, and 136 can be deactivated in step S3 so that they do not consume power. The repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequence is increased to check whether the person 120 remains located in the target area 140, thereby providing a better time resolution, and it can be determined that the person 120 remains located for, for example, 0.5 seconds. This increased repetition rate is, for example, 5 to 10 Hz, preferably 6 to 9 Hz.

[0062] If in S3 it is determined that the person 120 remains stationary, then in step S4 the repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequences of the ultrasonic sensors 133 and 134 is further increased. The further increased repetition rate may be, for example, 10-50 Hz, preferably 20-30 Hz. The ultrasonic sensors 131, 132, 135 and 136 may still be switched off. In S4 a predefined mouth opening gesture is determined. For example, it may be determined from the data of the ultrasonic sensors 133 and 134 that the person 120 is moving forward or backward in the region of interest 140.

[0063] If the predetermined opening gesture is recognized in step S4, a control signal is sent to actuator 190 in step S5 to open luggage compartment door 110. Actuator 190 may be, for example, an electric motor, which unlocks and opens luggage compartment door 120.

[0064] FIG. 3 shows four examples of ultrasonic signals as pulses or pulse sequences that can be emitted by an ultrasonic sensor. In FIG. 3a), square-wave pulses are modulated to the ultrasonic carrier frequency, e.g., 50 kHz. The square-wave pulses are emitted again after a period T in each case. The repetition rate of the pulse or pulse sequence is the reciprocal of the period. In FIG. 3b), the emitted pulses have amplitude modulation and are emitted at a repetition rate of 1 / T. In FIG. 3c), a pulse sequence is shown emitted at a repetition rate of 1 / T. In FIG. 3d), the carrier frequency is modulated in addition to the pulse amplitude, but the repetition rate 1 / T is the same as in the other examples. In all four examples, the periodic signal component is less than 50%, meaning that no signal is emitted most of the time. For the proposed method, it is advantageous to have even less periodic signal components, so that the power consumption of the ultrasonic sensor can be reduced, e.g., by less than 90%. However, the repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequence cannot be arbitrarily reduced, since otherwise it would be possible for a motor vehicle to approach without authorization between signals. The time width over which the ultrasonic sensor transmits and receives signals can be 20 to 60 ms, particularly 30 to 50 ms, in embodiments.

[0065] FIG. 4 illustrates a schematic diagram of an apparatus for performing a method for contactless opening of a door 110 of a motor vehicle 100, according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0066] Each of the four ultrasonic sensors 131-134 is provided with a sensor proximal ASIC 200 for preprocessing the sensor data and transmitting the sensor data via a data bus 210 to a computer 170, which may be part of a motor vehicle controller. The ultrasonic sensors 131-134 measure their measurement areas with pulses or pulse sequences at a repetition rate of 2 Hz. A first module 171 (also a "first recognition unit" in this case) of the computer 170 processes the sensor data such that it recognizes whether an object, e.g., the person 120, is moving in a direction corresponding to an approach to the door 110. If such an approach is recognized, a second module 172 is thus invoked, which recognizes from the sensor data whether the person 120 remains located in the target area 140. If it is determined that the person 120 remains in place, the second module 172 (which may also be designated a "third determination unit" in this case) generates control signals that are sent via the data bus 210 to the sensor proximal ASIC to switch off the ultrasonic sensors 131 and 134 and increase the repetition rate of the pulses or pulse sequences of the ultrasonic sensors 132 and 133. Further, the third module 173 is invoked. The third module 173 (which may also be designated a "second determination unit" in this case) determines from the sensor data of the ultrasonic sensors 132 and 133 whether the person 120 has performed a predetermined mouth gesture in the target region 140, for example whether the person 120 has taken a step to the left and back. If third module 173 recognizes the predetermined opening gesture, fourth module 174 then generates a control command, which is sent via control line 180 to actuator 190, which opens door 110, and fourth module 174 completes the method for contactlessly opening door 110 of motorized vehicle 100. Fourth module 174, control line 180, and actuator 190 are also jointly designated a "providing unit" in this case.The first, second, third and fourth modules 171, 172, 173 may be specifically designed as "embedded systems", ie as application-specific combinations of hardware and software.

[0067] Although the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it can be modified in many ways.

[0068] List of Reference Numbers 100 motorized vehicles 110 Luggage compartment door 120 people 131~136 Ultrasonic sensors 140 Target Areas 150 Smart Key 160 right taillight 170 Computers 171 Module 1 172 Module 2 173 Module 3 174 Module 4 180 Control Line 190 Actuator 200 Sensor Proximal ASIC 210 Data Bus

Claims

1. 1. A method for contactlessly providing functionality in a motor vehicle (100), comprising the steps of: a) identifying (S2) the approach of a person (120) to the motorized vehicle (100); b) recognizing (S4) a gesture of the person (120); and c) providing said functionality in response to the certification in steps a) and b) (S5); For said determination in steps a) and b), in each case an ultrasonic signal is emitted and received, (i) in step b) the signal repetition rate of the transmitted ultrasound signals is increased compared to step a); and / or (ii) in step b), the repetition rate for receiving the ultrasound signals is increased compared to step a); method.

2. The repetition rate according to (i) and / or (ii) in step a) is between 0.5 Hz and 5 Hz, in particular between 1 Hz and 3 Hz; The method of claim 1.

3. The repetition rate according to (i) and / or (ii) in step b) is between 6 Hz and 20 Hz, in particular between 7 Hz and 13 Hz; 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the motor vehicle (100) includes at least one ultrasonic sensor (131-136) configured for use in parking assistance, and in steps a) and / or b), the ultrasonic signal is emitted and / or received using the at least one ultrasonic sensor (131-136); The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. in steps a) and / or b) exactly two or at least two ultrasonic sensors (131-136) are used for said emission and / or reception of said ultrasonic signals, The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. At least two ultrasonic sensors (131-136) alternately emit ultrasonic signals; The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. In step a), a hypothesis is formed regarding the movement of the objects using a multi-object tracking method, in particular by means of a random finite set filter, in particular by means of a so-called probability hypothesis density filter, a cardinalized probability hypothesis density filter, a multi-Bernoulli filter such as a cardinality-balanced multi-Bernoulli filter, a generalized labeled multi-Bernoulli filter, a labeled multi-Bernoulli filter, a Poisson multi-Bernoulli mixture filter, a Poisson multi-Bernoulli filter or an approximation thereof, and if the hypothesis predicts the approach of the person (120) with a probability exceeding a predetermined probability, step b) is executed. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. The gesture in step b) includes an arm movement, a foot movement toward the bumper of the motor vehicle (100), a step forward or backward, or a step to the side and backward. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. Step a) is performed when or while a smart key (150) associated with the vehicle (100) is in communication with the vehicle (100) and the vehicle (100) is in the parked position. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. The person (120) remaining located (S3) in the target area (140) is determined between steps a) and b). The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. Upon said determination of said remaining in position (S3), further ultrasound signals comprising a pulse or pulse sequence are emitted and received; (i) the signal repetition rate of the transmitted further ultrasound signal is increased compared to the signal repetition rate of the ultrasound signal transmitted in step a); and / or (ii) the repetition rate of the reception of the further ultrasonic signal is increased compared to the repetition rate for the reception of the ultrasonic signal according to step a). The method of claim 10.

12. the function according to step c) comprises contactlessly opening a driver's door, a passenger's door, a front door, a rear door, a luggage compartment door or rear hatch, a flank door or flank hatch, or a power connection door or a fuel fill opening door, and / or the gesture according to step b) is an opening gesture, The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

13. 1. An apparatus for contactlessly providing functionality in a motor vehicle (100), comprising: a first authentication unit (171) for authenticating the approach of a person (120) to the motorized vehicle (100); a second recognition unit (173) for recognizing a gesture of the person (120); a provisioning unit (174, 180, 190) for providing the functionality based on the certification using the first certification unit and the second certification unit; Equipped with the first qualification unit and the second qualification unit are configured to emit and receive respective ultrasound signals comprising a pulse or a sequence of pulses; (i) the frequency of the pulses or pulse sequences of the emitted ultrasound signals is increased in the second qualification unit compared to the first qualification unit; and / or (ii) the frequency of sampling of the ultrasound signal upon its reception is increased in the second qualification unit compared to the first qualification unit; Device.

14. A motor vehicle (100) comprising the apparatus of claim 13.

15. A computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed by a computer (170), cause the computer (170) to carry out a method according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

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