Method and system for controlling door lock mechanism of vehicle

Abstract

State-of-the-art solutions using standard cameras and image sensors require complex and powerful computing means to analyze and filter a huge amount of data (a large number of pixels) in a short time while maintaining a good user experience.SOLUTION: The invention relates to a method for controlling a locking mechanism of a door (1) of a vehicle. The method comprises obtaining, by a processing unit (PU) of the vehicle, pixel data from an event-based sensor (EBS) embedded in the vehicle, processing, by the processing unit, the pixel data to identify a hand of a user from the pixel data, detecting, by the processing unit, a hand gesture identified from the pixel data, and controlling, by the processing unit, the locking mechanism in response to the detected hand gesture.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of automotive door locking devices, and more particularly to door locking mechanisms with external handles. [Background technology]

[0002] Automobiles are typically equipped with doors such as side doors, a tailgate, etc. Generally, a vehicle door locking device includes an external handle attached to the vehicle door, a locking mechanism having a locked state and an unlocked state for locking the door in a closed position, and a control device for operating the locking mechanism between the locked state and the unlocked state. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] Today, vehicle access features are increasingly equipped with sensors to detect an open command that triggers the vehicle to unlock. This open command is typically initiated by a user pulling on the vehicle door handle. Examples of such sensors include near field communication (NFC) antennas, capacitance sensors, inductive sensors, strain gauge force sensors, and piezoelectric sensors.

[0004] All of these sensor families require the user to be in close proximity to the car to operate the door lock mechanism: NFC has a detection range of less than a few centimeters, capacitive sensors have a detection range of less than a centimeter, and strain gauge and piezo sensors require touch or contact. Other contactless solutions, such as UWB (Ultra Wide Band), pose security issues as the door locking mechanism can be easily manipulated by unauthorized parties.

[0005] Emerging technologies allow facial recognition cameras to be used to recognize and identify the current user of a vehicle. For example, a visible-field camera integrated into the vehicle's B-pillar can recognize a user as they approach. Once the user is identified, the vehicle can be unlocked and other configurable functions can be set for the identified user.

[0006] High-tech solutions using such standard cameras and image sensors require complex and powerful computing means to analyze and filter huge amounts of data (large numbers of pixels) in a short time while maintaining a good user experience, which makes these solutions costly, cumbersome and difficult to integrate into vehicles, especially vehicle doors. Therefore, the locking mechanism of the vehicle door needs to be controlled at a distance of 0.5 m to 2 m. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention relates to a method for controlling a locking mechanism of a vehicle door, the method comprising: A processing unit in the vehicle acquires pixel data from an event-based sensor embedded in the vehicle; processing, with the processing unit, the pixel data to identify a user's hand within the pixel data; detecting, by the processing unit, a hand gesture made by the hand identified in the pixel data; Controlling the locking mechanism in response to the detected hand gesture by the processing unit.

[0008] These processes allow users to remotely control the lock status of their vehicle doors using only gestures such as their hands, without the need for a special device in their hand or pocket.Furthermore, the use of event-based sensors makes it possible to detect hand and other movements without processing huge amounts of pixel data.

[0009] In an embodiment of the present invention, an event-based sensor is incorporated into a vehicle door handle. This event-based sensor has a wide viewing angle at the vehicle door handle, which can generally be placed on a convex portion of the vehicle.

[0010] In one embodiment of the present invention, the event-based sensor is sensitive to light in the near-infrared wavelength range, making it suitable for detecting users both day and night.

[0011] In one embodiment of the present invention, the locking mechanism of the handle is electrically operated and moves the handle between a stowed position in which the handle is flush with the exterior surface of the vehicle door when the vehicle door is locked, and a deployed position in which the handle protrudes from the exterior surface of the door and can be grasped by a user.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the locking mechanism is controlled by a processing unit that can set the handle to a retracted position when the processing unit detects a locking motion of the user's hand and set the handle to a deployed position when the processing unit detects an unlocking motion of the hand. By selecting hand movements from sign language, the user can easily memorize which hand movements correspond to lock and unlock commands.

[0013] According to one embodiment, the method further comprises rotating the event-based sensor about an axis while simultaneously acquiring, by a processing unit, pixel data from the time-of-flight sensor and the event-based sensor embedded in the vehicle; processing, by a processing unit, pixel data from the time-of-flight sensors and the event-based sensors to detect objects within the scene observed by the time-of-flight sensors and the event-based sensors and to determine a distance from the vehicle of the nearest detected object; When a vehicle door is opened, determining whether there is a collision risk between the vehicle door and the nearest detected object; If there is a risk of collision, the processing unit issues a warning signal to the user, and / or The processing unit controls the locking mechanism to lock the vehicle doors.

[0014] Therefore, an event-based sensor provided to control the locking mechanism of a vehicle door can also be used to detect the risk of a collision between the door and a fixed object when the door is opened.Time-of-flight sensors have the advantage of being much smaller than radar and can be easily integrated into the vehicle door handle.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the event-based sensor is sensitive to light emitted from the light-emitting unit of the time-of-flight sensor, so that detection of objects around the vehicle door can be performed even in dark environments.

[0016] An embodiment of the present invention relates to a control system for controlling a locking mechanism of a vehicle door, the control system comprising an event-based sensor embedded in the vehicle and a processing unit connected to the event-based sensor and the locking mechanism and configured to perform the above-mentioned method. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the control system further comprises a time-of-flight sensor embedded in the vehicle, the processing unit being connected to the time-of-flight sensor and configured to perform the aforementioned method. According to one embodiment, the time-of-flight sensor is embedded in the door handle of a vehicle. According to one embodiment, the event-based sensor is embedded in the door handle of the vehicle. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic front view of a vehicle door according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic front view of a vehicle door handle according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 3]FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the parts forming the handle of the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a lock control device provided in a door of the vehicle according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a rear view of a vehicle equipped with the lock control device according to the embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a lock control device installed in a vehicle door according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of the parts forming a handle according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a handle according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] These and other objects, features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments, given by way of example and not limitation, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to similar elements or elements having similar functionality.

[0019] Figure 1 shows a front door 1 of a vehicle. The front door 1 is provided with a handle 2. Figure 2 shows a front panel 2a of the handle 2. According to one embodiment, the front panel 2a is provided with a window 3. FIG. 3 shows a front panel 2 a of a handle 2 installed on a vehicle door 1 and a handle structure 4 , and the front panel 2 a is fixed to the handle structure 4 .

[0020] Handle 2 can be any type of handle that can incorporate an image sensor, such as a wing handle, a rotating or translating flush handle, a swing handle, a bowl handle, a grip handle, etc. The rotating flush handle is in a retracted position when door 1 is locked and in an extended position when the door is unlocked. In this stowed position, the front panel 2a of the handle 2 is flush with the exterior surface of the door 1. In the extended position, the handle 2 protrudes from the exterior surface of the door and can be grasped by a user. The locking mechanism LKM can be configured to power move the handle 2 between the stowed and extended positions.

[0021] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the handle structure 4 houses an event-based sensor (or camera) EBS having a lens centered on the window 3 . As shown in Figure 4, the event-based sensor (or camera) EBS is connected to a processing unit PU which controls the door locking mechanism LKM of the vehicle door 1. The window 3 can be closed by a transparent cover made of a thermoplastic polymer such as PMMA (Polymethylmethacrylate).

[0022] Instead of capturing images at regular intervals and providing a complete matrix containing the states of all pixels, as conventional image sensors do, the event-based sensor EBS of the present invention detects changes at the edge of the observed scene and provides only short data strings relating to only the pixels where a change occurred. Therefore, in the pixel data stream provided by an event-based sensor, multiple pixels are used as a single sensor. A signal related to one pixel in an image of a scene is provided only when a specific event occurs, such as movement or a change in brightness of the respective pixel. Due to the small amount of data provided, event-based sensors achieve high temporal resolution and low latency. Furthermore, event-based sensors have the advantage of being very small, for example 3 mm x 4 mm. In one embodiment of the present invention, the event-based sensor EBS is sensitive to light in the near-infrared wavelength range (e.g., 780 nm to 2500 nm), so the event-based sensor EBS can detect a user even in dark environments (e.g., at night or in a dimly lit parking lot).

[0023] In Figure 5, a user 15 is standing at a distance CD from the door of the vehicle 10 and has his hand 16 inserted into the field of view CFV observed by the event-based sensor EBS. At distance CD, the width of the observed field of view CFV is VW. The maximum value of distance CD is, for example, 5 m, depending on the optical properties of the event-based sensor EBS.

[0024] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the processing unit PU is configured to analyze pixel data provided by the event-based sensor EBS to detect user movements and recognize gestures, and further configured to control a door locking mechanism LKM of a vehicle door 1 in response to the detected user gesture.

[0025] According to one example, the processing unit PU is configured to trigger locking of the locking mechanism when detecting a locking movement of the user's hand in sign language, i.e. a rotation movement of the hand around the axis of the arm with a clenched fist. The processing unit PU is configured to trigger the unlocking of the locking mechanism when it detects the "come here" sign in sign language, i.e., a back and forth movement of the fingers of a hand with the palm facing up.

[0026] It can be seen that by integrating the event-based sensor EBS into the door handle 2, it can be positioned in a generally convex position on the vehicle, which has the advantage of widening the field of view of the sensor. However, event-based sensors can also be integrated in other locations on the exterior sides of the vehicle, such as the rearview mirrors or B-pillars (along the rear edge of the front doors).

[0027] In another embodiment shown in Figures 6, 7 and 8, the handle structure 24 houses an event-based sensor (or camera) EBS having a lens centered on a window 23 formed in the front panel 20a of the handle 20, and a time-of-flight sensor TFS having a lens centered on a window 26 in the front panel 20a of the handle 20. As shown in Figure 6, the event-based sensor EBS is connected to a processing unit PU which controls the door locking mechanism LKM of the vehicle door 1. The event-based sensor EBS and the time-of-flight sensor TFS are connected to the processing unit PU. The time-of-flight sensor TFS comprises an emitter unit TX that illuminates the scene observed by the sensor, and a receiver unit RX that receives the light transmitted by the emitter unit and reflected by objects in the scene observed by the sensor TFS, and is configured to measure the time between the moment of emission of light by the emitter unit and the moment of reception of light by the receiver unit.

[0028] The processing unit PU is configured to control the door locking mechanism LKM, for example to rotate the door handle 20 about a rotation axis X (see Figure 8), and to analyze and correlate pixel data provided by the event-based sensors EBS and TFS to detect an object OB that may be hit when the vehicle door 1 is opened. As the handle 20 moves, a fixed object OB in the scene observed by the event-based sensor EBS is recognized as moving by the event-based sensor EBS, and the pixel data provided by the event-based sensor EBS enables the processing unit PU to generate an image of the fixed object in the scene around the vehicle door observed by this sensor.

[0029] The data provided by the time-of-flight sensor TFS allows the distance to be estimated to the nearest object OB in the scene observed by this sensor. The processing unit PU is configured to emit a warning signal if the nearest object OB detected in the scene is at a distance less than a distance threshold from the sensor EBS, TFS.

[0030] This distance threshold is defined as the distance at which the vehicle door 1 can be opened without risk of colliding with the nearest detected object OB. The warning signal can be sound and / or light.Furthermore, if the opening of the door may collide with the nearest detected object, causing damage to the vehicle or causing an accident, the locking mechanism LKM can be controlled to lock the door 1. The detection of obstacles in the space required to open the vehicle door can only be performed when the vehicle is stationary. According to one example, the axis of rotation X is vertical. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the event-based sensor EBS is sensitive to light emitted by the emitter unit TX of the time-of-flight sensor TFS.

[0031] The above description of various embodiments is provided for purposes of explanation to persons skilled in the relevant art, but is not exhaustive and is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure to only the disclosed embodiments. Numerous alternatives or modifications to the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art. Thus, while several alternatives or embodiments have been specifically presented, other embodiments will be apparent to or readily developed by those skilled in the relevant art. The limitations in the appended claims should be interpreted broadly based on the terms used in the claims, and such limitations should not be limited to the specific examples described above.

[0032] In this regard, it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that the event-based sensor EBS does not necessarily have to be integrated into the handle 2 in order to control the locking mechanism LKM in response to the user's hand movements, and the time-of-flight sensor TFS does not necessarily have to be integrated into the handle 20.

[0033] The event-based sensor EBS, which rotates to capture pixel data of fixed objects around the vehicle door, does not necessarily have to be integrated into the steering wheel 2, but can also be associated with a dedicated motor or integrated into an electrically rotating part of the vehicle, such as a side exterior rearview mirror. Furthermore, the time-of-flight sensor TFS does not necessarily have to be integrated into the handle 2 and does not necessarily have to rotate together with the event-based sensor EBS. By rotating the TFS, it is possible to have a wide field of view that covers the entire field of view covered by the event-based sensor. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] 1. Front door 2 handles 3. Windows 4. Handle structure 10 vehicles 15 users 16 moves 20 Handle 20a Front Panel 23 Window 24 Handle structure 26 Windows EBS Event-Based Sensor LKM locking mechanism TFS Time-of-Flight Sensor PU Processing Unit

Claims

1. A method for controlling a locking mechanism (LKM) of a vehicle door (1), comprising: a processing unit (PU) of the vehicle acquiring pixel data from an event-based sensor (EBS) embedded in the vehicle; the processing unit processes the pixel data to identify a hand (16) of a user (15) within the pixel data; the processing unit detecting a hand gesture of the identified hand in the pixel data; 10. The method for controlling a vehicle door locking mechanism, comprising: controlling the locking mechanism in response to the detected hand gesture by the processing unit.

2. 2. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the event-based sensor (EBS) is integrated into the handle (2, 20) of the vehicle door (1).

3. 3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the event-based sensor (EBS) is sensitive to light in the near-infrared wavelength range.

4. 3. The method of claim 2, The locking mechanism (LKM) moves the handle between a stored position where the handle is flush with the outer surface of the vehicle door (1) and a deployed position where the handle protrudes from the outer surface of the door and can be grasped by the user when the vehicle door is locked.

5. 5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the locking mechanism (LKM) is controlled by the processing unit (PU), and the processing unit sets the handle (2, 20) to the retracted position when it detects a locking movement of the hand (16) of the user (15), and sets the handle to the extended position when it detects an unlocking movement of the hand.

6. 10. The method of claim 1 further comprising: rotating the event-based sensor (EBS) about an axis (RX) and simultaneously acquiring, by the processing unit (PU), the pixel data from a time-of-flight sensor (TFS) embedded in the vehicle and the event-based sensor (EBS); processing, by the processing unit, the pixel data obtained from the time-of-flight sensor and the event-based sensor to detect objects (OB) in the scene observed by the time-of-flight sensor and the event-based sensor, and determining a distance from the vehicle of the nearest of the detected objects; determining whether there is a risk of collision between the vehicle door (1) and the nearest detected object (OB) when the vehicle door (1) is opened; and and / or controlling the locking mechanism by the processing unit to lock the vehicle doors when there is a risk of collision.

7. 7. A method according to claim 6, characterized in that the event-based sensor (EBS) is sensitive to light emitted by an emitter unit (TX) of the time-of-flight sensor (TFS).

8. A control system for controlling a vehicle door lock mechanism, comprising: an event-based sensor (EBS) embedded in the vehicle; 10. A control system for a vehicle door locking mechanism, comprising: a processing unit (PU) connected to said event-based sensor and said locking mechanism (LKM), said processing unit (PU) being configured to perform the method of claim 1.

9. 9. The control system of claim 8, a time-of-flight sensor (TFS) embedded in the vehicle; the processing unit is connected to the time-of-flight sensor; 7. A control system for a vehicle door locking mechanism, wherein the processing unit is further configured to perform the method of claim 6.

10. 10. The system of claim 9, A control system for a vehicle door lock mechanism, characterized in that the time-of-flight sensor (TFS) is embedded in the handle (20) of the vehicle door (1).

11. 11. The system of claim 10, A control system for a vehicle door lock mechanism, characterized in that the event-based sensor (EBS) is embedded in the handle (20) of the vehicle door (1).

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