A swipe-based gesture control system and method for vehicles

Abstract

Disclosed in the present invention is a swipe-based gesture control system (100) and a respective method for doors and glazing in a vehicle It comprises a touch zone (101) disposed on the vehicle configured to sense a gesture input from a user, a central control unit (106) configured to receive the gesture input from the touch zone (101) and a processor (105) configured to the central control unit (106) configured to interpret the gesture input. The processor (105) is configured to communicate to the central control unit (106) an action, based on the gesture input, to trigger the opening / closing operations of the vehicle door or glazing (104) and the touch zone (101) is configured to identify any false gesture input. It provides an improved system for swipe-based gesture control system for door and glazing of vehicles capable of providing improved user experience.

Description

[0001] A SWIPE-BASED GESTURE CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VEHICLES

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present disclosure relates to a solution for controlling the opening and closing operations of the door and glazing of a vehicle, specifically, this disclosure relates to a swipe-based gesture control system for doors and glazing in a vehicle.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present disclosure. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed disclosure, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

[0006] In conventional vehicle doors, there are provided handles that allow users to physically interact with each other to hold and open the vehicle door. However, in recent years, some vehicle doors do not include an outer handle. This may be owed to requirements of better aesthetics. The advent of electric technologies in automotive vehicles has also led to removal of car door handles to enhance better aerodynamics.

[0007] Reference is made to DE102014222410 that discloses an access system of a vehicle in which in a detection area of a car door, a detection device with at least two sensor surfaces for detecting spatial capacity changes is provided and the detection device is formed in such a manner that it is based on the spatial capacity changes, a direction of non-contact operating gestures being detected, and that operating gestures, which are executed in mutually perpendicular directions are recognized as different operating gestures. However, it does not talk about any means for recognizing false gestures.

[0008] A further reference is made to CN115434603 that discloses a method, a device, a vehicle and a computer storage medium for controlling opening and closing of a vehicle door, in which a touch slippage operation executed by a vehicle user is collected through a capacitance sensing area by the vehicle which is provided with the capacitance sensing area comprising a plurality of capacitance sensing points. It talks about means for determining whether the touch sliding operation is mistaken touch operation according to the trigger state information of the touch sliding operation for the plurality of capacitance induction points and finally, when the touch sliding operation is determined not to be the mistaken touch operation, immediately controlling to open or close the vehicle door according to the triggering sequence of the touch sliding operation on the plurality of capacitance induction points.

[0009] Another reference is made to CN106945636 that discloses a control device and a control method of a vehicle and an automobile. The control method directly obtains the gesture information of the vehicle owner and verifies the gesture information, so that the influence of external signals on unlocking or locking is avoided.

[0010] Despite the solutions known, there are still requirement of an improved swipe gesture-based control for door and glazing in a vehicle that provides swipe feedback-based operation on the actuator control and thereby giving improved user experience. It has been observed that the prior arts do not discuss about the system architecture to open / control multiple doors, sunroof, glass pull up / down as a function triggered by swipe direction, duration and speed. Additionally, there is a requirement of improved false detection means. Therefore, there is a requirement of improved system for swipe-based gesture control system for vehicles. Additionally, there is a requirement of a single sensing area with no requirement of a door handle or a flap for gesturebased door opening and closing operations.

[0011] SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0012] An object of the present invention is to provide an improved solution overcoming the drawbacks of the prior art.

[0013] Another object of the present invention is to provide a single sensing area with no requirement of a door handle or a flap in vehicle for gesture-based door opening and closing operations.

[0014] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improved swipe-based gesture control system for vehicles with improved means for recognizing false gesture.

[0015] Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved swipe-based gesture control system for vehicles with enhance user experience. These and other objects of the invention are achieved by the following aspects of the invention. The following disclosure presents a simplified summary of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. This presents some concept of the invention in a simplified form to a more detailed description of the invention presented later. It is a comprehensive summary of the disclosure, and it is not an extensive overview of the present invention. The intend of this summary is to provide a fundamental understanding of some of the aspects of the present invention.

[0016] In an aspect of the present invention is provided a swipe-based gesture control system for doors and glazing in a vehicle. This system comprises a touch zone disposed on the vehicle configured to sense a gesture input from a user, a central control unit configured to receive the gesture input from the touch zone, a processor configured to the central control unit configured to interpret the gesture input, an actuator operably configured with the central control unit, and a vehicle door or glazing. The processor is configured to communicate to the central control unit an action, based on the gesture input, to trigger the opening / closing release operation of the vehicle door or glazing; and the touch zone is configured to identify any false gesture input. The processor is configured to execute swipe gestures in a way reducing the cognitive load on the user. The central control unit is configured to control more than one door and / or glazing from one location using swipe-based gesture input, duration and proportional distance to control the door and glazing opening and closing with positional accuracy and speed. The touch zone is divided into separate area for gesture recognition, area for false gesture identification and area for pattern overlay. The touch zone comprises a pattern overlayed on the surface to dissipate water / snow to move towards a region of least resistance and said pattern includes hydrophobic surface with nano or micro patterns or includes guided surface pattern to deviate the water / snow, thereby the touch zone prevents motion due to water / snow from being identified as an input. The touch zone includes touch sensors positioned on an outer tip of the patterned surfaces. The touch zone comprises plurality of sensors configured to identify any false gesture input and a display unit to display message to a user. The central control unit is configured to perform sensor data fusion from the inputs received from the plurality of sensors. The touch zone comprises a first sensor for identifying touch, a second sensor for identifying the presence of rain, fog or snow, a third sensor to detect the presence of human and a fourth sensor to authorise a user. The central control unit is configured to perform sensor data fusion to identify any false gesture input, wherein the plurality of sensors functions in conjunction to identify false gesture. The touch zone is provided in a glazing or a pillar or combination thereof in the vehicle. The central control unit and / or processor is operably configured to a cloud server and is further configured to implement machine learning techniques to improve the gesture recognition. The swipe-based gesture control system has a reserve power unit configured to supply a secondary source of power to the processor and the actuator. The system is capable of providing glass positional accuracy, duration and speed could be altered using potential voltage generated during the touch / swipe event. In this aspect, the sensor comprises of one or more sensing layers adapted to interpret input, a spacer layer adapted to separate said one or more sensing layers, and one or more electrodes adapted to generate electrical current. The spacer layer is adapted to prevent false touches and ensure accurate detection. The sensors are arranged in grid patterns for localizing to prevent false activations, wherein said pattern is a honeycomb-like structure, however, not limited to this.

[0017] In another aspect of the present invention, a pillar or door of a vehicle is provided. Said pillar or door of a vehicle comprises a means to receive and interpret a tactile input from a user. Further, said pillar or door comprises a touch zone disposed on the vehicle configured to sense a gesture input from a user. The touch zone is divided into separate area for gesture recognition, area for false gesture identification and area for pattern overlay and configured to identify any false gesture input. The touch zone comprises plurality of sensors configured to identify any false gesture input and a display unit to display message to a user. The pillar includes a protective and durable abrasion resistant hydrophobic and oleophobic. The sensor comprises one or more sensing layers adapted to interpret input, a spacer layer adapted to separate said one or more sensing layers, and one or more electrodes adapted to generate electrical current. The spacer layer is adapted to prevent false touches and ensure accurate detection. The sensors are arranged in grid patterns for localizing to prevent false activations, and said pattern is a honeycomb-like structure.

[0018] In another aspect of the present invention is provide a swipe-based gesture control method for doors and glazing in a vehicle. Said method comprises obtaining, by plurality of sensors, one or more input data for detecting swipe-based gesture; detecting, by a central control unit, the swipe-based gesture as a false gesture or true gesture; communicating, by the central control unit, to a processor the detected swipe-based gesture; identifying, by the processor, an interpretation of the detected swipe-based gesture; communicating, by the processor, to the central control unit instructions a trigger action based on the swipe-based gesture and sending, by the central control unit, a control signals based on said instructions, to one or more actuators to release and open a door or a glazing.

[0019] The system as per the present invention is capable of having a single sensing unit with no requirement of a door handle or a flap in a vehicle. The door control is managed from the driver side to all doors with schematic manner in a processor. The invention discloses opening mechanism of the door based on feedback from the gesture. The invention takes into account emergency functioning system upon power failure during crash conditions or battery drain situation. The system includes a unique pattern to detect user gestures wearing gloves and avoid water droplets caused due to rain / snow.

[0020] The significant features of the present invention and the advantages of the same will be apparent to a person skilled in the art from the detailed description that follows in conjunction with the annexed drawings.

[0021] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

[0022] The following briefly describes the accompanying drawings, illustrating the technical solution of the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, for assisting the understanding of a person skilled in the art to comprehend the invention. It would be apparent that the accompanying drawings in the following description merely show some embodiments of the present invention, and persons skilled in the art can derive other drawings from the accompanying drawings without deviating from the scope of the disclosure.

[0023] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of the system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] FIGs. 2A-2C illustrate different aspects of the patterned surface of the touch zone according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] FIGs. 3 A-3D illustrate different implementation of the touch zone according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of the method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of the system architecture according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] FIGs. 6A-6B illustrate different examples of the system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the disclosure.

[0029] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The present disclosure is now discussed in more detail referring to the drawings that accompany the present application. It would be appreciated by a skilled person that this description to assist the understanding of the invention, but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary.

[0031] The terms and words used in the following description are not limited to the bibliographical meanings and the same are used to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the invention. Accordingly, the terms / phrases are to be read in the context of the disclosure and not in isolation. Additionally, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness.

[0032] The removal of car door handles provides enhanced better aerodynamics. The present invention provides a control system for operation of handle less doors. Such a control may be provided over the glazing region to engage the respective actuators for opening and closing mechanism. This overall control system ensures better user experience without disrupting any existing door / glazing control experience with better functioning and reliability in all environmental and anticipated operating conditions. In an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed a swipe-based gesture control system (100) for doors and glazing in a vehicle. FIG. 1 refers to the block diagram of the system and its architecture. Said system comprises a touch zone (101) disposed on the vehicle configured to sense a gesture input from a user. Said touch zone (101) may be disposed either on a glazing or around the pillar region. The system comprises a central control unit (106) configured to receive the gesture input from the touch zone (101). It further comprises a processor (105) configured to the central control unit (106) configured to interpret the gesture input. The system includes an actuator (102) operably configured with the central control unit (106), and a vehicle door or glazing (104). The processor (105) is configured to communicate to the central control unit (106) an action, based on the gesture input, to trigger the opening of the vehicle door or glazing (104). The touch zone (101) is configured to identify any false gesture input. The disclosed system is capable of controlling the vehicle door and glazing without mechanical handles. It is further configured to access all doors and glazing from one touch zone pillar on the exterior. The unique touch surface avoids water based and other potential false touches to avoid mishaps. In an implementation, the present invention provides means for having a single touch zone for controlling all the door and glazing of the vehicle. The touch zone of the system may be preferably outside the vehicle in a pillar region. It may include a display unit for showing suitable message to users. The system includes a reserve power unit (103) configured to supply a secondary source of power to the processor (105) and the actuator (102). This acts as a backup when original power supply is cut or battery is drained.

[0033] In an embodiment of the present invention are provided means adopted to avoid false touch. There may be false touches on sensor which activates sensor. Such false touches may be induced by water droplets, accumulation of dirt, unintended contacts insect hitting and the like. By combining the right materials and design patterns, it is possible to significantly reduce the occurrence of false touches on tactile sensors, thereby improving the accuracy and reliability of touch detection systems. One of the means is to include a spacer. In implementation of the present invention, in the structure of a tactile sensor, there may be provided a spacer layer to separate sensing layers from the electrodes to prevent false touches and ensure accurate detection. This spacer may be made up of non-conducting materials like silicone or poly imide.

[0034] In an embodiment of the present is provided a means for self-cleaning coating on the touch zone or area of the pillar or the door, for the purpose, a protective coating may be provided on the upper cover of the sensor or pillar part to shield sensor from the environmental damage. The materials may be selected in such a way to treat the surface of B pillar sensor part with hydrophobic coating which repel water and dirt to maintain the functionality. This may be an abrasion resistant hydrophobic and oleophobic material. In an implementation of the present invention such material may be two silane-modified surfaces [octadecyltricholorosilane (OTS) and tridecafluoro- 1, 1,2,2 tetrahydrooctyl-trichlorosilane (FS)]. This material may be made spray coated on to the plastic / glass substrate to modify the surface to make it friction free for water droplets so that the water get deflected before gripping on to the surface. In another implementation, aluminum oxide particles may be provided to construct a thin-rough surface. This advantageously provides the surface with better durability before spraying silane compound. These chemicals may be coated with spraying or dipping methods and no additional pre / post processing is required.

[0035] In an embodiment of the present invention is provided a means for patterning of the sensor element. Reference is made to FIG. 3D that provides an exemplary embodiment of a grid like pattern (Pl). The Grid patterns enables the sensor to localize touches more accurately. This further helps differentiate between true and false activations. For instance, a sensor may be surrounded by six other sensors, such that it creates a honeycomb-like structure. This pattern is particularly advantageous over traditional square grids, such as more uniform spacing and increased sensitivity due to a higher density of touch points. Reference is made to FIG. 3D, if sensors marked as lb, 2a and 2b activates, it concludes consistent capacitive and resistive change and pattern would be predicted as localised activation and, thereby be identified as real touch. In a second case, say for instance, if sensors marked as lb, 2d and 3a get activated, it result in scattered capacitive and / or resistance change and thereby be interpreted as false touch.

[0036] In the present disclosure, the glazing includes sidelite, quaterlite, and sunroof. Doors may include the regular conventional doors for entry and exit of users into the vehicle, the boot door, the bonnet door, fuel flaps, and the like. The opening / closing operations or simply the term ‘opening / closing’ of the door or glazing include locking, unlocking, releasing of the doors or glazing facilitating the passing of subject into the interior of the vehicle or out to the exterior of the vehicle. For instance, when it has been indicated as opening of sidelite, it includes the sliding down operation on a sidelite. Further, the opening operation herein may factor parameters like the speed, the extent of opening, area of opening of the door or glazing. Glass positional accuracy of the glazing, its duration and speed could be altered using potential voltage generated during the touch / swipe event. In an implementation, the system having the touch zone (101) is linked to the centralized electronic control unit (ECU) of the vehicle. The ECU is linked to the processor (105) and is powered up by the vehicle power supply unit. The actuator performs door and / or glazing control actions as triggered by the input in the touch zone. The central control unit and processor is capable of taking in the feedback for providing the opening / closing of the glazing / door positional accuracy.

[0037] The central control unit (106) is configured to control more than one door and / or glazing from one location using swipe-based gesture input. The central control unit / processor also considers the duration and proportional distance as well to control the door and glazing opening and closing with positional accuracy and speed. For instance, a swifter swipe will result in swifter opening and closing operation. The central control unit / processor is capable of providing accuracy, speed and directional motion-based direction and movement to the glazing. For instance, a half swipe up input will result in half slide up operation of a slid down sidelite. It is thus capable of reducing the cognitive load. Glass positional accuracy of the glazing, its duration and speed could be altered using potential voltage generated during the touch / swipe event.

[0038] In an implementation of the present invention, a special algorithm may be designed for the appropriate interpretation of the touch pattern to have enhanced user experience. This reduces cognitive load and follow existing mental model to execute swipe gestures on the touch zone. The system is capable of controlling different door and glazing from one location using swipe direction / gesture and duration to control the door and glazing. In a specific implementation, the central control unit (106) is configured to control more than one door and / or glazing from one location using swipe-based gesture input and duration to control the door and glazing. The system architecture is such that it can open / control multiple doors, sunroof, glass pull up / down as a function triggered by swipe direction and duration. Also, the unique pattern provided on the surface may be used to resist water droplets, non-human touch triggering a function.

[0039] In an implementation of the present invention, the processor (105) may be configured to communicate to the control unit a respective action (or a control / signal) based on the nature and duration of the swipe. In an implementation, for instance, the disclosed system is capable of opening or controlling multiple doors, sunroof, glass pull up / down as a function triggered by swipe direction and duration. In the following table is provided an instance of the swipe and the respective actions related thereof.

[0040] Table 1

[0041] In an embodiment, is provided the central control unit (106) being configured to control more than one door and / or glazing from one location using swipe-based gesture input, duration and proportional distance to control the door and glazing opening and closing operations with positional accuracy and speed. The central control unit (106) is configured to perform sensor data fusion from the inputs received from the plurality of sensors. The touch zone (101) comprises a first sensor for identifying touch, a second sensor for identifying the presence of rain, fog or snow, a third sensor to detect the presence of human and a fourth sensor to authorize a user. The central control unit (106) is configured to perform sensor data fusion to identify any false gesture input. The plurality of sensors functions in conjunction to identify false gesture.

[0042] In an embodiment of the present invention, the system includes an architecture involving the flow to operate effectively with the gestures being detected for valid functions. In an embodiment, the touch zone comprises the touch or gesture sensor, surface sensor (material detector) and proximity sensing. The central control unit obtains data from said sensors. The surface material sensor works in conjunction with proximity sensor to determine whether the gesture is from a human touch or false detection due to ice, rain, fog or people leaning on surface or other modes of false contacts. This is done in the false detector module, which may be suitably a part of central control unit (106) or processor (105) or even touch zone (101) itself. The False detector receives the information on what type of material is on the surface by means of sensors like, radar or camera. The proximity sensor is configured to detect presence of a human or object near to the Gesture sensor area. This could act as a lead indicator for activation of the sensor in the Gesture region and post that determine if the gesture is accidental or if it is a non-human based contact such as animals, birds, ice, rain, fog and the like. Once the touch or the contact is verified by the False Detector as valid contact, the central control unit (106) triggers the processor (105) to identify the type of gesture else it will wait for the false detection cycle for validation. The processor (105) is capable of selecting an appropriate action cycle based on the gesture. The appropriate action may include trigger to control door or sunroof or any other glazing.

[0043] In an embodiment of the present invention, the central control unit (106) and / or processor (105) is operably configured to a cloud server. The central control unit (106) and / or processor (105) is further configured to implement machine learning techniques to improve the gesture recognition.

[0044] In an exemplary embodiment, the sensor responses may be provided to an edge device capable of implementing a machine learning model. This allows for determining the type of contacts expected by each of the sensors on a long-term basis. The artificial intelligence or the machine learning model may be updated with the new information during each operational cycle of the system and use historical data and existing sensor specifications to define the optimal Gesture and deviations expected from the user. This could reduce the response time and the false detection at the false detector or ECU level itself.

[0045] In an exemplary implementation, a specific touch or continued touch or swipe sequence determines the type of operation to be performed on the sunroof or sidelite glass lowering. The extent of glass lowering or opening in sunroof or sidelite (i.e., gap coordinates) are governed by the touch length and duration proportionately. The touch sensor is configured to detect the swipe length and direction and control the actuator to open / close the glazing to the respective percentage. For instance, a Swipe Down of 75% of total length may result in Lowering / opening of the glazing by 75%. Similarly, a Swipe up of 50% of total length may result in Closing 50% of the glazing (here said glazing may be sidelite or sunroof). The glazing control system detects the position of the glazing and sends feedback to the actuator to perform the action to open or close the glazing depending on the touch input provided by the user considering the distance and direction of the swipe. In an instance, the glass positional accuracy, duration and speed could be altered using potential voltage generated during the touch / swipe event

[0046] Reference is made to FIG. 2A that provides a patterned surface (1011) with touch sensors being positioned on the outer tip of the patterned surfaces. The pattern is overlayed on the touch surface to dissipate the water droplets to move towards region of least resistance which is similar to capillary action. In FIG. 2B is provided the top view of the touch zone (101) disposed either on glazing or pillar part of the vehicle. The touch zone (101) is divided into separate area for gesture recognition (1012), area for false gesture identification (1013) and area for pattern overlay (1011). The substrate for the touch zone may be the same substrate (201) for the glazing or pillar area, i.e, it may be glass or polymer. In an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed, the touch zone (101) comprising a pattern (1011) overlayed on the surface to dissipate water / snow to move towards a region of least resistance. The said pattern includes hydrophobic surface with nano or micro patterns or includes guided surface pattern to deviate the water / snow, thereby the touch zone (101) prevents motion due to water / snow from being identified as an input. Reference is made to FIG. 2B that depicts two instances of patterned surface. One instance may be hydrophobic surface having nano or micro patterns. Another instance, may be a guided surface as an alternate to hydrophobic or hydrophilic surface of patterned glass, polymers, etc. The touch zone may be made of polymers such as acrylics, epoxies, polyethylene, polystyrene, polyvinylchloride, polytetrafluorethylene, polydimethylsiloxane, polyesters, polyurethanes and the like. It may also contain composites such as Manganese oxide polystyrene (MnCh / PS) nano-composite, or Zinc oxide polystyrene (ZnO / PS) nano-composite. It would be appreciated that such instances are provided as means of example and not a means of limitation. The touch zone (101) includes touch sensors positioned on an outer tip of the patterned surfaces. The touch zone (101) comprises plurality of sensors configured to identify any false gesture input and a display unit to display message to a user.

[0047] The touch zone (101) is provided in a glazing or a pillar or combination thereof in the vehicle.

[0048] The touch zone may be disposed in single glazing or a laminated glazing. Reference is drawn to the FIGs. 3A-3C that provides instances of the touch zone being provided in single glazing, laminated glazing and glazing with display. FIG. 3A shows the touch zone (10) being provided in a single glazing. It includes a substrate of glass or polymer (201), with patterned surface overlay (1011), an area for gesture recognition (1012) and an area for false gesture recognition (1013). Similarly, FIG. 3B depicts the touch zone (110) being provided in a laminated glazing in between two substrates (201, 202) and a sandwiched interlayer (203). The surface pattern may be overlayed on a suitable substrate, preferably on the substrate facing the interiors of the glazing. In some implementations, an illumination / display layer (301) or a display element (301) may be provided to identify region and provide a quick view of the activated doors / sy stems.

[0049] In an implementation of the present invention, a first sensor may be provided in the touch zone. It caters to surface area coverage. It provides a circumferential touch sensor around the gesture area to differentiate the two regions by means either or a combination of capacitive, resistive or conductive method. The sensor is capable to detect full area contact, or if it is a false gesture as may be case when ice / fog is in contact with the surface. In another implementation, a second sensor is provided in the touch zone. Said sensor may be optical sensor placed behind the gesture area to detect presence of fog or ice. In another instance, a third sensor such as a proximity sensor may be provided. It is a LiDAR / Radar or ultrasonic sensors being placed to detect the presence of human and to detect the false gesture of any other material. In another instance is provided a fourth sensor for ensuring selective access control. This selective access control can be used for low frequency (LF) or High frequency (HF) based access control to the gesture area. Such a control may be implemented using NFC coil. The Gesture area will be activated only after access confirmations. This access confirmation may be performed in a similar manner as the conventional key access. Each sensing features or modules may be used individually or used in combination. In an example case, it may be achieved by using the active layer between the hydrophobic layer and glazing layer. The material differentiator sensors may be Radar sensor, Camera. They are configured to function as a false detector as it can differentiate ice / fog and fingers. In an alternative implementation, the surface may be modified using a conductive polymer which can act as a hydrophobic and active layer.

[0050] In an embodiment of the present invention is provided a swipe-based gesture control method for doors and glazing in a vehicle as depicted in FIG. 4. Said method comprises obtaining (SI 01), by plurality of sensors, one or more input data for detecting swipe-based gesture, detecting (SI 02), by a central control unit, the swipe-based gesture as a false gesture or true gesture, communicating (S103), by the central control unit, to a processor the detected swipebased gesture, identifying (SI 04), by the processor, an interpretation of the detected swipebased gesture, communicating (SI 05), by the processor, to the central control unit instructions a trigger action based on the swipe-based gesture and sending (SI 04), by the central control unit, a control signals based on said instructions, to one or more actuators to release and open a door or a glazing.

[0051] Industrial Applicability: The disclosed system may be applied to exteriors of vehicle for door control mechanism, interiors of the vehicle to control multiple systems such as infotainment, navigation, ADAS, Lighting, HVAC management and non-automotive systems. The disclosed system could be a part of the swipe gestures of the interior interface system in automotives, trains and the like. The proposed system may be extended to usage in door control systems in buildings.

[0052] Reference is made to FIG. 5 that shows the system architecture of the invention as per an embodiment of the present invention. It shows the inclusion of a central system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is responsible for general functioning of all vehicle systems. Said central system is configured to be communicatively coupled with the vehicle sub-systems such as and not limited to touch interface and sensors like touch, gesture, proximity and the like (of the touch zone, 5031). For instance, a door control system may be coupled with a motor, and a power supply (501) for battery information and for device powering. In some instances, it may be provided with an Edge device (504). The Edge device here is responsible for transfer of sensor data and algorithm information. The central system performs the control functions such as to operate the door OPEN and CLOSE, basic sensorbased response, diagnosis of sub-systems and also custom algorithm-based door control which can be periodically and need basis updated from the Edge device (504) based on the learning model. In an implementation of the present invention is provided an Edge device. Said Edge Device acts as an interface unit between the Central ECU (502) and the external world and Internet. The device is responsible for acquiring all the sensor information besides the control instructions stored and executed in real-time by the Central ECU (502). However, it is configured to transmit only the relevant or processed information to the external network like cloud (505), other vehicles, infrastructure and the like. With an integrated processing capability, the edge device (504) is configured to perform real-time edge computing at the vehicle level and provide a faster and accurate response. It may also accommodate basic learning model internally and for higher computation can transfer information to a cloud device. The decisions from the processed model may be transferred to a vehicle electronic control unit for performing control functions within the vehicle.

[0053] In the one or more embodiments of the present invention, system architecture is advantageously modified in touch zone (5031) which includes a combination of proximity sensor, surface sensor and touch / gesture sensor. The receptor surface of the system has a unique design pattern and material finish to sense the user touch / gesture even with gloves / fabric and to detect and avoid other external elements such as water, snow, non-human touch and the like. The system holds a standalone (dis-associated to the master power supply) reserve energy supply unit to operate the door opening under emergency situations such as low or drained battery / crash events disrupting the wiring. The reserve unit charges the reserve battery using the mechanical energy during manual opening / closing of the doors. FIG. 5 depicts an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed system.

[0054] Examples: Reference is made to FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B that depicts the control flow as per some of the implementation of the present invention. In this implementation, touch / gesture sensor may be used for touch detection. If it has been identified as a true gesture by the processor, the central control unit provides the actuator control system with relevant control signals. This control signal could be used for door control and sunroof control (for instance and not as means for limitation). The surface sensor detects the material and proximity sensor detects the appropriate presence of the human (whether leaning or not). The data from these sensors may be used for false gesture detection. This detection is performed by the false detector. The touch detection and identification of the gesture may be performed by the ECU. This control flow and system architecture has been defined in FIG. 6A. In FIG. 6B depicts yet another example. In this example, once the touch detection is performed by the ECU, it performs the identification of the gesture and determines the function of the gesture. Additionally, it also identifies the direction of the gesture, and detects the distance and timing of the gesture. Once these instructions are determined and identified, the control is provided to the actuator control system which in turn is operably coupled with the door control and the sunroof control. The door and sunroof control respectively are responsible for the taking care of the door and sunroof positions. The Feedback of the door and sunroof control are fed into the actuator control system. This feedback with glass / door being fed into the control system provides positional accuracy as well.

[0055] In an embodiment of the present invention, the receptor surface of the system includes a unique design pattern and material finish to sense the user touch / gesture even with gloves / fabric and to detect and avoid other external elements such as water, snow, non-human touch etc. The disclosed invention is a centralized system that links and controls all the door in a vehicle and glazing enclosed including roof. The disclosed system may be installed, at a pillar part (not limited to pillar though) and is configured to operate via swipe gesture that control the doors in multiple modes based on the direction of swipe and time duration of touch. The system may include a standalone reserve energy supply unit (in addition to and dis-associated to a master power supply) to operate the door opening under emergency situations such as low or drained battery / crash events disrupting the wiring. The reserve unit charges the reserve battery using the mechanical energy during manual opening / closing of the doors

[0056] Features that are described and / or illustrated with respect to one embodiment may be used in the same way or in a similar way in one or more other embodiments and / or in combination with or instead of the features of the other embodiments.

[0057] Some advantages of the present invention are enlisted in the following:

[0058] • The disclosed system has a unique means for controlling the vehicle door and glazing without mechanical handles and accessing all doors and glazing from one pillar on the exterior.

[0059] • The false gesture recognition incudes a unique touch surface avoids water based and other potential false touches to avoid mishaps.

[0060] • The removal of handles in the vehicle door enhances aerodynamics

[0061] • It implements edge computation and machine learning method to improve user experience to have pillar-based technologies to control the door opening and closing mechanism

[0062] List of reference numerals appearing in the accompanying drawings and the corresponding features: 100: system 101 : touch zone

[0063] 102: actuator

[0064] 103: power reserve unit

[0065] 104: vehicle Door / glazing

[0066] 105: processor

[0067] 106: central control unit

[0068] 107: power supply

[0069] 1011 : patterned surface

[0070] 201, 202: glass substrate

[0071] 203 : interlayer

[0072] 1012: gesture area

[0073] 1013: false gesture area

[0074] 301 : Display element la, lb, 1c, ld„„: indicators of patterned texture

[0075] 501 : Vehicle Power Supply

[0076] 502: Centralized ECU

[0077] 505: Processor

[0078] 5031 : Touch Zone

[0079] 5032: Actuator

[0080] 5033: Reserve Power Unit

[0081] 5034: Door and Glazing Unit

[0082] 504: Edge Device

[0083] 505: Cloud / Intemet

[0084] 506: ML Model

[0085] Pl : patterns 101-S 106: steps of the method

Claims

CLAIMS1. A swipe-based gesture control system (100) for doors and glazing in a vehicle, wherein said system comprises: a touch zone (101) disposed on the vehicle configured to sense a gesture input from a user; a central control unit (106) configured to receive the gesture input from the touch zone (ioi); a processor (105) configured to the central control unit (106) configured to interpret the gesture input; an actuator (102) operably configured with the central control unit (106), and a vehicle door or glazing (104); wherein the processor (105) is configured to communicate to the central control unit (106) an action, based on the gesture input, to trigger the opening / closing operations of the vehicle door or glazing (104); and the touch zone (101) is configured to identify any false gesture input.

2. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processor (105) is configured to execute swipe gestures in a way reducing the cognitive load on the user.

3. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the central control unit (106) is configured to control more than one door and / or glazing from one location using swipe-based gesture input, duration and proportional distance to control the door and glazing opening and closing with positional accuracy and speed.

4. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-3, wherein the touch zone (101) is divided into separate area for gesture recognition (1011), area for false gesture identification (1012) and area for pattern overlay (1013).

5. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-4, wherein the touch zone (101) comprises a pattern overlayed on the surface to dissipate water / snow to move towards a region of least resistance; andsaid pattern includes hydrophobic surface with nano or micro patterns, or includes guided surface pattern to deviate the water / snow, thereby the touch zone (101) prevents motion due to water / snow from being identified as an input.

6. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-5, wherein the touch zone (101) includes touch sensors positioned on an outer tip of the patterned surfaces.

7. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, wherein the touch zone (101) comprises plurality of sensors configured to identify any false gesture input and a display unit to display message to a user.

8. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-7, wherein the central control unit (106) is configured to perform sensor data fusion from the inputs received from the plurality of sensors.

9. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-8, wherein the touch zone (101) comprises a first sensor for identifying touch, a second sensor for identifying the presence of rain, fog or snow, a third sensor to detect the presence of human and a fourth sensor to authorise a user.

10. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-9, wherein the central control unit (106) is configured to perform sensor data fusion to identify any false gesture input, wherein the plurality of sensors functions in conjunction to identify false gesture.

11. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-10, wherein the touch zone (101) is provided in a glazing or a pillar or combination thereof in the vehicle.

12. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-11, wherein the central control unit (106) and / or processor (105) is operably configured to a cloudserver; and is further configured to implement machine learning techniques to improve the gesture recognition.

13. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-12, comprising a reserve power unit (103) configured to supply a secondary source of power to the processor (105) and the actuator (102).

14. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-13, wherein the sensor comprises: one or more sensing layers adapted to interpret input, a spacer layer adapted to separate said one or more sensing layers, and one or more electrodes adapted to generate electrical current; wherein the spacer layer is adapted to prevent false touches and ensure accurate detection.

15. The swipe-based gesture control system (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1-14, wherein the sensors are arranged in grid patterns for localizing to prevent false activations, and said pattern is a honeycomb-like structure.

16. A pillar or door of a vehicle having means to receive and interpret a tactile input from a user, wherein said pillar or door comprises: a touch zone disposed on the vehicle configured to sense a gesture input from a user, wherein the touch zone is divided into separate area for gesture recognition, area for false gesture identification and area for pattern overlay, and configured to identify any false gesture input.

17. The pillar or door of a vehicle as claimed in claim 16, wherein the touch zone comprises plurality of sensors configured to identify any false gesture input and a display unit to display message to a user.

18. The pillar or door of a vehicle as claimed in claim 16 or 17, wherein the pillar includes a protective and durable abrasion resistant hydrophobic and oleophobic.

19. The pillar or door of a vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 16-18, wherein the sensor comprises: one or more sensing layers adapted to interpret input, a spacer layer adapted to separate said one or more sensing layers, and one or more electrodes adapted to generate electrical current; wherein the spacer layer is adapted to prevent false touches and ensure accurate detection.

20. The pillar or door of a vehicle as claimed in claim 16-19, wherein the sensors are arranged in grid patterns for localizing to prevent false activations, and said pattern is a honeycomb-like structure.

21. A swipe-based gesture control method for doors and glazing in a vehicle, wherein said method comprises: obtaining (SI 01), by plurality of sensors, one or more input data for detecting swipebased gesture; detecting (SI 02), by a central control unit, the swipe-based gesture as a false gesture or true gesture; communicating (SI 03), by the central control unit, to a processor the detected swipebased gesture; identifying (SI 04), by the processor, an interpretation of the detected swipe-based gesture; communicating (SI 05), by the processor, to the central control unit instructions a trigger action based on the swipe-based gesture; and sending (SI 04), by the central control unit, a control signals based on said instructions, to one or more actuators to release and open / close a door or a glazing.

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